Storage and Sorting LEGO

[1980-Something-Space-Guy]

I had been meaning to mention this for a while. Here in the USA there is a chain of craft stores called Michael's. There's a section for beads and whatnot, and the area with storage containers is golden for small Lego parts. I got this one, after keeping an eye out for a while:

http://www.michaels.com/Medium-Bead-Box/bd1058,default,pd.html?start=40&cgid=products-beads-beadlandingtoolsandstorage

This one is great because it has these little plastic partitions that you can move, so you can make a bin of a better size to hold longer technic pins, for example. Or have a smaller bin for tiny technic pins or something. This is an advantage over other containers that just have fixed size bins in them. There are two latch clips that hold the lid on pretty securely (lid hinges, as opposed to being removable, for better or worse).

The only drawback of these are:

- A decent number of partitions, but could have used a handful more. (Could have stolen some from another unit on the shelf without any suspicions, but that would be wrong.) A fix would be to cut your own partitions out of a milk jug or similar thing.

- I don't think you can find this exact one to order online. I think you have to go in-person to Michael's.

So if you're in the USA, I recommend these.

Have you tried putting minifigs in it? If so, how good are these cases for that?

Edited May 21, 2012 by Ricecracker
Please don't quote images unnecessarily, and try to only quote the relevant parts. Thanks :)

[fred67]

This one is great because it has these little plastic partitions that you can move, so you can make a bin of a better size to hold longer technic pins, for example. Or have a smaller bin for tiny technic pins or something. This is an advantage over other containers that just have fixed size bins in them. There are two latch clips that hold the lid on pretty securely (lid hinges, as opposed to being removable, for better or worse).

The only drawback of these are:

- A decent number of partitions, but could have used a handful more. (Could have stolen some from another unit on the shelf without any suspicions, but that would be wrong.) A fix would be to cut your own partitions out of a milk jug or similar thing.

- I don't think you can find this exact one to order online. I think you have to go in-person to Michael's.

So if you're in the USA, I recommend these.

I have a couple of ones very much like that - probably that I got at Michael's. They are pretty good for those little pieces that you have like one or two of and don't know what to do with them, but otherwise I greatly prefer the Stanley ones (found at Home Depot, Lowes, Target, etc., and online):

(deep)

(shallow)

The second one is what I'd use to replace those smaller ones, but they both have the same form factor (just different heights) and so they stack well together, even if you mix the sizes.

The cons are 1) they are bigger (when you might not want that - but now I have many more of these than I do the smaller ones, which I should frankly get rid of), and 2) the sections are not customizable in size. 3) if you stack them on a shelf, you can't see what's in them... but I put labels under the handles (slopes, inverse slopes, tiles, etc.) to mitigate that problem.

However, that second one is also a pro, because in this particular case, the bins are removable (and re-arrangeable in the case), which makes them easier to dump and dig through if you need to.

Given the prices that Michael's and Joanne's charge for those hobby cases, these Stanley cases ($13.80 shallow, $18.50 deep on Amazon when I looked) are a better bang for the buck.

Stanley also has a large case with resizable partitions, but I didn't like that one at all - I much prefer the bins, even if I have to "spill" pieces over (use two or more bins because I have a lot of a particular piece).

[Darkdragon]

I have a couple of ones very much like that - probably that I got at Michael's. They are pretty good for those little pieces that you have like one or two of and don't know what to do with them, but otherwise I greatly prefer the Stanley ones (found at Home Depot, Lowes, Target, etc., and online):

(deep)

(shallow)

I got some on ebay that I just love. They look just like the second one there but are deeper (I have one from Stanley too). I use these for all of my minifigure parts except torsos: heads, legs, weapons, utensils, headgear/etc. Out of all the things I've tried for organizing minifig parts these work the best because they are adjustable in that I can switch out to larger/smaller tubs if needed and everything locks into place via the lid, so when they are carried by the handle even the feathers don't fall into other tubs. I bought 10 so far and am trying to buy another 10 (but the seller doesn't do free shipping anymore so I'm paused on this idea).

Anyway, I really like this method for minifig parts but the only other parts i'd use it for is small tecnic things like pins and whatnot.

[Zeya]

Add minifig hats/hair to the list of things I need to put in these divider cases. Same goes for all of my tiles! The tiles are getting way too overflowing and unorganized. The organizing never ends.

Does anyone have a storage solution that they like for minifig torsos (torso assemblies)? I'm thinking of sorting them by a kind of ad-hoc heuristic, kind of by theme, time period, and gender. But then, what to put them in? Torsos are so awkward to store, I find.

[Bearded Castle Guy]

I have a couple of ones very much like that - probably that I got at Michael's. They are pretty good for those little pieces that you have like one or two of and don't know what to do with them, but otherwise I greatly prefer the Stanley ones (found at Home Depot, Lowes, Target, etc., and online):

(deep)

(shallow)

The second one is what I'd use to replace those smaller ones, but they both have the same form factor (just different heights) and so they stack well together, even if you mix the sizes.

The cons are 1) they are bigger (when you might not want that - but now I have many more of these than I do the smaller ones, which I should frankly get rid of), and 2) the sections are not customizable in size. 3) if you stack them on a shelf, you can't see what's in them... but I put labels under the handles (slopes, inverse slopes, tiles, etc.) to mitigate that problem.

However, that second one is also a pro, because in this particular case, the bins are removable (and re-arrangeable in the case), which makes them easier to dump and dig through if you need to.

Given the prices that Michael's and Joanne's charge for those hobby cases, these Stanley cases ($13.80 shallow, $18.50 deep on Amazon when I looked) are a better bang for the buck.

Stanley also has a large case with resizable partitions, but I didn't like that one at all - I much prefer the bins, even if I have to "spill" pieces over (use two or more bins because I have a lot of a particular piece).

Those two Stanley cases are what I've settled on myself for much the same reason's. Currently I've only finding the deep version locally @ Home Depot and a re-colored version @ Wal-Mart (apparently a charity donation for quantity moved deal). Target seems to have switched to a Stanley with moveable dividers which defeats the whole point of why I was buying them over the Plano type cases.

What's interesting is I also found a 9 Compartment version that uses the same bins in the re-colored scheme. The measurement listed on the label are 8 1/4 x 13 1/8 x 2 1/8... Although I was just counting the bins and I seem to have 11 and not 9, my first suspicion is that somebody wanted more medium and less small bins since what's in the one I purchased is 2 large, 1 medium and 8 small bins. I'll try and dig up a link from the Stanley site if I can.

Edit, bah I forgot how horrible the Stanley website is, they fail to list a lot of sku's or have inaccurate information about availability on it. Further inspection of the label reveals that this recolored line is part of a Wal-Mart exclusive line for women called Barbara's Way and the site for THAT fails to list either the 25 Compartment Organizer or the 9 Compartment Organizer as an available product. Nor does the Wal-Mart site list these either. Still the 9 Compartment version has the virtue of being smaller and thus more portable than either of the other 2 sizes listed AND the tray's are compatible with the shallow 25 Compartment version.

Edited May 22, 2012 by Bearded Castle Guy

[mrklaw]

that stanley stuff looks great but its really expensive here in the UK

[fred67]

that stanley stuff looks great but its really expensive here in the UK

That may be true, but here, compared to those hobby cases, they are a lot more worth it. Those smaller cases in hobby stores can cost just as much, sometimes more, than the Stanley cases that hold much more.

[jFox]

I recently purchased a couple packs of craft boxes made by Really Useful Boxes. http://www.reallyusefulproducts.co.uk/usa/html/onlineshop/rub_craft.php The ones that I really like are the Organizers Packs. The boxes themselves stack well enough, but these packs come in a divided plastic container, which also has screw holes on the back for wall-mounting. The idea of an entire wall of these things is dreamy, but just sitting on my desk they work out okay.

If you don't want to order online you can get them in some OfficeMax / OfficeDepot stores (at least in the U.S.), for a little bit less even. I think I paid about $25 for the 16-pack of 0.3L boxes, which on their website goes for almost $40.

I've also considered the Stack-On cases (like this: http://www.homedepot.com/Stack-On/h_d1/N-5yc1vZ1pb/R-100023878/h_d2/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10053&langId=-1&storeId=10051), but for some reason I don't like that the drawers aren't airtight. I can't imagine overnight the tiny gap would fill each drawer with dust, but it still irks me. Has anyone ever used these before? Has dust been a problem with them?

[Darkdragon]

Does anyone have a storage solution that they like for minifig torsos (torso assemblies)? I'm thinking of sorting them by a kind of ad-hoc heuristic, kind of by theme, time period, and gender. But then, what to put them in? Torsos are so awkward to store, I find.

Be careful sorting by theme, it can limit you subconciously on how you use the torsos. I sort mine by color, but if I have a lot that go together i sort those separately. It's a bit complex to explain I guess. I should get a photo sometime, it really does work well for me at least - quick to find what I need.

The different colors/prints/styles/whatever are in zip baggies and then stored in a big tub:

I think the most important peice of my torso sorting is that I keep track of how many of each actual torso I have via the Bricklink stockroom feature. This way if I'm trying for a certain look I can start searching on Bricklink and once I find the perfect one, use the item number to search my inventory and see if I have it before wating any time looking through my actual parts. It's saved me a lot of time and money having it all inventoried.

[gotoAndLego]

I use those Plano containers, both the single compartment and the ones that you adjust the separators. My organization system developed as a result of how I look for pieces when building and it goes as follows.

Colors:

White

Black

Light and Dark Bley

Bright Basic Colors (Red, Green, Yellow, Blue, Orange, etc.)

AFOL Colors (Tan, Brown, Dark Red, Medium Blue, Dark Green, etc.)

Boxes:

Round 1x1 Plates & Tiles (separated by kinds and colors)

Square 1x1 Plates & Tiles (separated by kinds and colors)

2x2 Plates & Tiles (separated by kinds and colors)

1x? Plates (separated by colors)

1x? Tiles (separated by colors)

2x? Plates (separated by colors)

Bricks (separated by colors)

Larger Plates (separated by colors)

Wing Plates (separated by colors)

Brackets & Bricks with Multiple Studs (separated by kinds and colors)

Arches

Curved Slopes (separated by kinds and colors)

Flat Slopes (separated by colors)

Click Hinges

Free Hinges

Technic (separated by kind)

All the other pieces are separated in a similar manner. I'm more general about the more specialized pieces and just group by type of item. I'll get more specific if I have a lot of a certain type of piece.

For a general example I'll use dark red which will be split into the following containers.

1x1 square plates and tiles

1x1 round plates

1x2 plates and tiles

2x2 plates and tiles

all bricks

1x? plates

1x? tiles

2x? plates

wings

brackets

curved slopes

flat "roof" slopes

etc.

This gives me enough organization to get to what I need quickly, and since they are in separate boxes I can surround myself with all the boxes I need and when I'm done I can click them closed and toss them to the side. This system is general enough to make post-building clean up quick. I just push them into piles based on type (1x1, 1x2, 2x2, etc.) and then I bring the specific boxes over and put them away. Currently I'm working on my Modular Madness entry and I periodically push everything back into those piles on the floor. Because those piles are organized similarly to my boxes I can easily grab pieces from them while I build, without having to go to my boxes. This system also makes it easy to break sets down for parts.

Edited May 22, 2012 by gotoAndLego

[Vindicare]

I recently purchased a couple packs of craft boxes made by Really Useful Boxes. http://www.reallyusefulproducts.co.uk/usa/html/onlineshop/rub_craft.php The ones that I really like are the Organizers Packs. The boxes themselves stack well enough, but these packs come in a divided plastic container, which also has screw holes on the back for wall-mounting. The idea of an entire wall of these things is dreamy, but just sitting on my desk they work out okay.

If you don't want to order online you can get them in some OfficeMax / OfficeDepot stores (at least in the U.S.), for a little bit less even. I think I paid about $25 for the 16-pack of 0.3L boxes, which on their website goes for almost $40.

I've also considered the Stack-On cases (like this: http://www.homedepot.com/Stack-On/h_d1/N-5yc1vZ1pb/R-100023878/h_d2/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10053&langId=-1&storeId=10051), but for some reason I don't like that the drawers aren't airtight. I can't imagine overnight the tiny gap would fill each drawer with dust, but it still irks me. Has anyone ever used these before? Has dust been a problem with them?

Oh my, you've made my day with the Really Useful Boxes website. I'm heading to Office Depot today! I hope they have the different sizes.

[mrklaw]

Oh my, you've made my day with the Really Useful Boxes website. I'm heading to Office Depot today! I hope they have the different sizes.

I have a couple of the 16x 0.3 organisers for small special pieces (snot bricks, cones etc), they are really useful :) and having kids the lockable lids help prevent accidents.

They do nice dividers for their 4 and 7 litre boxes too. The US sorter has 7 deep ish compartments and you can put 1 in the 4 litre box and 2 stack in the 7 litre. Thethere are the shallower hobby trays that stack 2 in the 4 litre boxes and have more compartments, so maybe useful for smaller pieces in lower quantities.

I have a couple of their tower units with 4 litre boxes in. In the UK at least you can configure almost anything - nearly ordered a 3x8 (so 24 boxes in a connected set of drawers)l check here for the kinds of things they do

Link

Edited May 22, 2012 by mrklaw

[jFox]

I have a couple of the 16x 0.3 organisers for small special pieces (snot bricks, cones etc), they are really useful :) and having kids the lockable lids help prevent accidents.

They do nice dividers for their 4 and 7 litre boxes too. The US sorter has 7 deep ish compartments and you can put 1 in the 4 litre box and 2 stack in the 7 litre. Thethere are the shallower hobby trays that stack 2 in the 4 litre boxes and have more compartments, so maybe useful for smaller pieces in lower quantities.

I have a couple of their tower units with 4 litre boxes in. In the UK at least you can configure almost anything - nearly ordered a 3x8 (so 24 boxes in a connected set of drawers)l check here for the kinds of things they do

Link

Whoa, those towers are pretty hardcore! Too bad they don't have one of those tower builders for the U.S. I guess it's okay though, my own collection wouldn't warrant something like that just yet. Thanks for pointing out those dividers, I must have overlooked them before. I do find myself starting to accumulate lots of odd pieces--an extra droid arm or something similar here or there. And some of the boxes I have already are too big for such small quantities.

[toycardriver]

I got some on ebay that I just love. They look just like the second one there but are deeper (I have one from Stanley too). I use these for all of my minifigure parts except torsos: heads, legs, weapons, utensils, headgear/etc. Out of all the things I've tried for organizing minifig parts these work the best because they are adjustable in that I can switch out to larger/smaller tubs if needed and everything locks into place via the lid, so when they are carried by the handle even the feathers don't fall into other tubs. I bought 10 so far and am trying to buy another 10 (but the seller doesn't do free shipping anymore so I'm paused on this idea).

Anyway, I really like this method for minifig parts but the only other parts i'd use it for is small tecnic things like pins and whatnot.

If you have a Harbor Freight Tools nearby, they carry these cases, they are even available online:

Parts Bin

[Darkdragon]

If you have a Harbor Freight Tools nearby, they carry these cases, they are even available online:

Parts Bin

OH Awesome! Thanks for the heads-up, I will go by there tomorrow and see if they have a few cases of those.

Here's a couple examples what I do with mine from "Bolton Tools", they are deeper than that purple Stanley one I have. I hope the ones from Harbor Freight are deep like these yellow ones. As you can see these are perfect for sorting minifig parts. Additionally because the bins are removable it is great for building say an army of figs with black hair or whatever, without having to take up a lot of space on the table with the whole container but just the bin with the parts needed.

Minifig Hair (sorted by color and a some by style)

Minifig Heads (sorted by pattern and color)

[Vindicare]

I have a couple of the 16x 0.3 organisers for small special pieces (snot bricks, cones etc), they are really useful :) and having kids the lockable lids help prevent accidents.

They do nice dividers for their 4 and 7 litre boxes too. The US sorter has 7 deep ish compartments and you can put 1 in the 4 litre box and 2 stack in the 7 litre. Thethere are the shallower hobby trays that stack 2 in the 4 litre boxes and have more compartments, so maybe useful for smaller pieces in lower quantities.

I have a couple of their tower units with 4 litre boxes in. In the UK at least you can configure almost anything - nearly ordered a 3x8 (so 24 boxes in a connected set of drawers)l check here for the kinds of things they do

Link

I'm a set sorter, so the dividers don't mean much to me, but genius to stack inside the bigger ones. I went to Office Depot today, and wow, they have a huge selection of these bins. Probably a dozen different sizes. They really are great cases, especially if you're like me and just collect LEGO sets and not MOC. They are a tad expensive when compared to more basic designed plastic containers. In fact, mainly because they were on sale, it's the house brand container was n sale at 5 for $10. So I bit and will give these a try. They're about the size of a shoebox with a recess in the lid so they can stack. Quite sturdy. But I really like the Really Useful Boxes ones.

[toycardriver]

OH Awesome! Thanks for the heads-up, I will go by there tomorrow and see if they have a few cases of those.

(snip informative pics. Wow, that's a lot of heads in a box!)

Glad I could help, seeing this thread reminded me that I needed to get a couple more.

[AndyC]

I needed some more storage this week so picked up a couple of those official Lego brick shaped boxes (the 8 stud variety). A little Googling failed to get a definitive figure on their capacity, though I did find one site claiming they were 12L. Having emptied the contents of a full 9L Really Useful Box into one, it's basically full so I guess the real capacity is around 9L too.

Which means I either having to do some finer grained sorting of my "small 2 wide plates" or I need yet bigger boxes. Still I have to admit they do look kinda cool and it's neat that you can build them like real bricks (the temptation to buy loads just to build a big wall is probably not a great idea!)

[Darkdragon]

If you have a Harbor Freight Tools nearby, they carry these cases, they are even available online:

Parts Bin

I picked up a bunch of the shallow (as linked) and the deep (8 bin) containers. Actually I bought all they had, couldn't pass it up for the price. I've actually started using them tonight and thought I would drop in with my opinion.

These cases from Harbor Freight are nice but they are not as nice as the Stanley (walmart) or Bolton Tools (ebay) version. At a glance they do look nearly identical, but the clear lid part does not sit totally flat against the top of the bins like the other brands do. The bins themselves do not fit as snuggly into the case itself either, and they are thinner which means a little space is lost by the bowing on the sides. The deeper bins version is way too large of bins to be of much use for me on minifig parts. I might be able to use them for sorting slopes or somthing like that, not sure yet - at this point I"m considering taking the large ones back.

Were these worth the $7.99 +tax? Yes, definately.

What will they be used for? Larger minifig parts - torsos and legs only.

[Tormenter370]

Anyone know any good storage options, I've let my collection go unorganized for to long and have some 10,000+ peaces just sitting around unsorted. Overall i'm looking for something cheap, that you can buy in bulk, that has dividers for individual brick kinds.

http://i.imgur.com/xKZ7L.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/I0qVQ.jpg

In this picture, notice how my son has made some kind of junkyard ship, i feel like im going to keep this on display. And its a cryout to me that its been to long.

http://i.imgur.com/7kkZQ.jpg

Only some of the lego is pictured above since, it would be a heck to clean up >.<

Edited July 17, 2012 by Ricecracker
Changed oversized pictures to links

[Ricecracker]

Please keep all discussion related to storage and sorting in this topic. I'll merge it shortly. As well, please make sure your images are 800x600 maximum. Thanks.

[Tormenter370]

I picked up a bunch of the shallow (as linked) and the deep (8 bin) containers. Actually I bought all they had, couldn't pass it up for the price. I've actually started using them tonight and thought I would drop in with my opinion.

These cases from Harbor Freight are nice but they are not as nice as the Stanley (walmart) or Bolton Tools (ebay) version. At a glance they do look nearly identical, but the clear lid part does not sit totally flat against the top of the bins like the other brands do. The bins themselves do not fit as snuggly into the case itself either, and they are thinner which means a little space is lost by the bowing on the sides. The deeper bins version is way too large of bins to be of much use for me on minifig parts. I might be able to use them for sorting slopes or somthing like that, not sure yet - at this point I"m considering taking the large ones back.

Were these worth the $7.99 +tax? Yes, definately.

What will they be used for? Larger minifig parts - torsos and legs only.

Harbor Freights a good place but most of the stuff they have is not real good quality.

[legomr]

I found it quite useful to keep the plastic insets from Lego Advent Calendars for sorting and storage. Although they are a bit wobbly, come to think of it.

[mrklaw]

I found it quite useful to keep the plastic insets from Lego Advent Calendars for sorting and storage. Although they are a bit wobbly, come to think of it.

I use two trays. The first just sits there, and with the other, I cut out the individual little containers. Then little random pieces go in those tubs, and the tubs sit in the first tray to keep them in place. That way I can just pull a little tub out and put it back again - makes getting the tiny pieces out a little easier.

[ryanoliono]

anybody want to help/sort it for me?, i just found 5 huge boxes in the loft from my childhood,airport monorail set all there, i might have to build it, only issue is i cant find my instructions folders, its like a treasure trove up there.