Admiral Ron Posted March 9, 2010 Posted March 9, 2010 I just smash mine into the smallest shape possible, and then recycle them, all of my instructions are in a filing box, which weighs about 1000 pounds, but I really like the binder idea. Quote
Big Cam Posted March 9, 2010 Posted March 9, 2010 I just smash mine into the smallest shape possible, and then recycle them, all of my instructions are in a filing box, which weighs about 1000 pounds, but I really like the binder idea. When my collection gets bigger I will be moving to hanging files. That binder is almost to full the way it is, and it's the biggest binder I could buy. Quote
Aanchir Posted March 9, 2010 Posted March 9, 2010 As a child, I used to cut my boxes apart, so that I could sort of "file them away" in a bin. I still do that at home, but since I'm at college I now mostly keep my boxes intact so I'll have plenty of containers to use for MOCing parts, instructions, and (when the time comes to go home for the summer) complete set storage. This recent behavior is mostly a consequence of being a BIONICLE fan-- last year most of the sets I had up here at college were BIONICLE sets, including some I'd brought from home. But since only the small and mid-size sets come in canisters, I had to pack some of my larger sets in the box of a recently-built set. As I accumulated sets, I accumulated boxes, and by winter break I ended up bringing home one big LEGO bag of canister sets and one big LEGO bag of boxed sets. And that's not including the smaller boxes (which opened from the sides and were not needed for storage). Those were sent home loose in my dad's SUV. Cutting the boxes apart is not only a space-saver, it makes them easier to scan into a computer if I so chose. Of course, that only works for boxes of a certain size-- the front and back of larger boxes both pose several problems even when collapsed. At home, my family's instructions recently got filed into folders by theme. At college, I keep them in one of my boxes. Quote
RubeusHagrid Posted February 17, 2011 Posted February 17, 2011 Hi, My house is full of Lego: sets, in their boxes. I'm sure that it wouldn't take up half the space if it wasn't in it's original boxes. I'm not MOCing at the moment so I don't need bricks in little drawers. I generally prefer to keep sets together unless they're really **** and buy in bricks to MOC. What would you advise I do? I have never thrown a Lego box away in my life and I don't really want to start now. Thanks Quote
Rick Posted February 17, 2011 Posted February 17, 2011 I have never thrown a Lego box away in my life and I don't really want to start now. Well then there's only one option really. Fold your boxes flat (or store big ones in little ones) and store your sets in zip-lock bags or similar. Quote
nicoga3000 Posted February 17, 2011 Posted February 17, 2011 Well then there's only one option really. Fold your boxes flat (or store big ones in little ones) and store your sets in zip-lock bags or similar. It was so hard for me to throw out my first few boxes after coming out of my Dark Ages, but I've never looked back. Given that I'm not investing in Lego for profit, the boxes, while cool, are only taking up space. Now, if you're not into MOC'ing, keeping the boxes with the sets together is probably not a terrible idea. With that said, doing exactly what Rick suggested is your A+ best bet. Folding them down and storing them accordingly will be the most space-saving method. Regarding the sets, you can probably bag them and label them so they won't get terribly mixed up. Quote
Siegfried Posted February 17, 2011 Posted February 17, 2011 It was so hard for me to throw out my first few boxes after coming out of my Dark Ages, but I've never looked back. Yeah. I used to keep my boxes as they were... then I put small boxes in bigger boxes... then I flat packed then... then I started throwing all but a few out. Now I use them when I can (such as for storage), but most end up in the recycle crate. (At first I used to keep all the bags too! ) Quote
Churchill Posted February 17, 2011 Posted February 17, 2011 (edited) (At first I used to keep all the bags too! ) Ah, finally, I thread were I can confess! Now that Siegfried has admitted keeping the bags.... I've kept all the boxes, and am ashamed to admit, they all have the bags in them too. I don't know why I'm keeping them. Maybe I think I wish I had the ones from when I was a kid. But this is silly. I'm not investing, and I'm not going to resell them. Why can't I get rid of them? I'd welcome any advice on how to get the strength to throw them away! Even flat, they take up alot of space! Edited February 17, 2011 by Churchill Quote
nicoga3000 Posted February 17, 2011 Posted February 17, 2011 Ah, finally, I thread were I can confess! Now that Siegfried has admitted keeping the bags.... I've kept all the boxes, and am ashamed to admit, they all have the bags in them too. I don't know why I'm keeping them. Maybe I think I wish I had the ones from when I was a kid. But this is silly. I'm not investing, and I'm not going to resell them. Why can't I get rid of them? I'd welcome any advice on how to get the strength to throw them away! Even flat, they take up alot of space! Honestly, the boxes are all super nice. That's one of the things that I hard the hardest time parting with - that, and the fact that I'm a completionist at heart. I didn't want to see them go, but I realized they were just taking up space. Since I had no intention of reselling (and if I did, the box adds value, but the pieces are a majority of it), I realized the pretty cardboard wasn't helping my cause. I have the instructions kept in a big brown box, but I'd like to find a way to make a display "book" of them - maybe some plastic sleeves in a binder? It will definitely still be a nice homage the sets I've bought! It's easier for me to show my "sets" off that way anyways. :) Quote
Big Cam Posted February 17, 2011 Posted February 17, 2011 Well then there's only one option really. Fold your boxes flat (or store big ones in little ones) and store your sets in zip-lock bags or similar. Bingo. I have one giant rubber made tub that I have all my boxes in (folded down) and all my sets in (each in individual zip lock bags. Takes up barely any room in my closet but I have at least 50 sets in there. I also only keep one box from sets I have multiples of such as battle packs. Quote
Rook Posted February 17, 2011 Posted February 17, 2011 (edited) I only keep my SWU boxes. I flatten them and put them in the basement. Most likely the next time I move I’ll be putting them out at the curb. I’ve got about 3’x8’x4' worth of flatten empty boxes. Edited February 17, 2011 by Rook Quote
Brickdoctor Posted February 17, 2011 Posted February 17, 2011 Ah, finally, I thread were I can confess! Now that Siegfried has admitted keeping the bags.... I've kept all the boxes, and am ashamed to admit, they all have the bags in them too. I don't know why I'm keeping them. Maybe I think I wish I had the ones from when I was a kid. But this is silly. I'm not investing, and I'm not going to resell them. Why can't I get rid of them? I'd welcome any advice on how to get the strength to throw them away! Even flat, they take up alot of space! I've got all the boxes, not flattened... ...and all the bags, including sub-bags... ...and all the cardboard pieces for capes and rubber bands... ...and the shipping boxes from S@H... ...and the adds from all sets and shipping boxes from S@H... ...and all the Brand Store and LEGOLAND shopping bags. Quote
JCC1004 Posted February 17, 2011 Posted February 17, 2011 I've got all the boxes, not flattened... ...and all the bags, including sub-bags... ...and all the cardboard pieces for capes and rubber bands... ...and the shipping boxes from S@H... ...and the adds from all sets and shipping boxes from S@H... ...and all the Brand Store and LEGOLAND shopping bags. I have most of my boxes, flattened most of them, only missing a couple from when I first came out of my dark age and any BL buys without boxes. I was keeping bags and cardboard boxes but I had already thrown so many out I found it useless to start now. My shipping boxes either are storing LEGO or other misc. items, I also have the ads included in S@H boxes. I too have all the LEGO Store bags. You did forget to mentioned used sticker sheets. I have all those too. Also have all the poly bags from promo sets, etc., LEGO Store Calendars, etc. Pretty much anything that says LEGO on it. Quote
Brickdoctor Posted February 17, 2011 Posted February 17, 2011 You did forget to mentioned used sticker sheets. Oh yeah, have those too. Mostly 'cause I don't apply them, so I have a little stack just waiting for the day when I'll need them. Instruction books I obviously keep. Quote
Aanchir Posted February 17, 2011 Posted February 17, 2011 I tend to cut my boxes up, making sure to keep all the best pictures. Safety warnings on the sides of the boxes don't need to be kept, for instance, but the front and back of the box always do. In retrospect I wish I'd simply folded them flat starting in childhood. Cutting them up into differently-sized pieces makes it hard to find the ones I want if I ever need to consult a box for anything. But the way I've done it has allowed me to minimize the space they take up, so if it suits your interests you might want to try that. Quote
cimddwc Posted February 17, 2011 Posted February 17, 2011 In my youth, I never kept the boxes. When I started again to buy the first big sets a few years ago (Ferraris, for instance, and then the modular buildings), I originally kept them for a while, but ultimately decided I rather need the space than the boxes. And while they may be nice to look at, I actually never missed them... So all I keep are the instructions and extra stickers – and a few shipping boxes for storage (not necessarily for Lego). Quote
The Yellow Brick Posted February 17, 2011 Posted February 17, 2011 At the moment all of my boxes are stacked in a corner waiting to fall down, I am planning to sort them out but I never get around to doing it. I might put the small boxes inside the larger ones. Quote
legomaniac83 Posted February 17, 2011 Posted February 17, 2011 (edited) I have the instructions kept in a big brown box, but I'd like to find a way to make a display "book" of them - maybe some plastic sleeves in a binder? It will definitely still be a nice homage the sets I've bought! It's easier for me to show my "sets" off that way anyways. :) I have binders with all my instructions in them. Like this: They are just photo sleeves you can buy at WM. The only ones I have a problem with are some of the big book ones (they are just too long for page sleeves) and the small square ones, so they are all in a tote. For boxes, I cut up most of mine when I was a kid, but since I came out of my Dark Age, I have kept them all. Smaller ones are stored in bigger boxes, and all boxes are then stored in big moving/shipping boxes. I don't keep the little bags though - You guys are nuts! Edited February 17, 2011 by legomaniac83 Quote
dr_spock Posted February 17, 2011 Posted February 17, 2011 Hi, My house is full of Lego: sets, in their boxes. I'm sure that it wouldn't take up half the space if it wasn't in it's original boxes. I'm not MOCing at the moment so I don't need bricks in little drawers. I generally prefer to keep sets together unless they're really **** and buy in bricks to MOC. What would you advise I do? I have never thrown a Lego box away in my life and I don't really want to start now. Thanks You could try for a bigger house. I collapsed my smaller boxes and put in the bigger boxes. Some boxes I have tossed back in the 1980s, now I wish I hadn't. Quote
nicoga3000 Posted February 17, 2011 Posted February 17, 2011 I have binders with all my instructions in them. Like this: <stuffffff> I think I've seen your pics of this before. I like this idea a LOT. Quote
XimenaPaulina Posted February 18, 2011 Posted February 18, 2011 When I was a kid, I didn't really care about the boxes, and as such, all my childhood boxes (and sets) are now unfortunately gone. But now that I'm an AFOL, I can't seem to part ways with the boxes since I view them as part of the 'whole experience' of purchasing the sets. Like brickdoctor, I keep everything - the box, instructions, polybags, sticker sheets, cape mini-box, etc. Storage space may become an issue for me in the future, but for now I'm content collecting and keeping them in their natural unflattened state. Quote
chris_austin Posted February 18, 2011 Posted February 18, 2011 I have so many boxes and they take up a lot of room even when you put smaller ones inside larger ones. This doesn't save as much space as you'd think so i've gone for storing them flat. It also helps with or prevents the warping problem with the larger sets. I carefully open all the glue points so that nothing tears. They all still take up space but are so much easier to sort, store and transport! I feel as though the boxes are pointless because my LEGO will never be sold (until i'm dead, that is) but I love looking at and holding the old boxes so i'm going to keep them incase I regret it later. I'd rather have them and not need them than throw or sell them and regret it one day (like a kind of dark age about boxes!). Quote
OrangeKNight Posted February 18, 2011 Posted February 18, 2011 LegoManiac83, I just want to say that out of those 3 pics I picked out six sets I used to own as a kid! xD As for the topic at hand, if you still want to keep the boxes folding smaller ones flat to slide into bigger ones is a great way to save on space as well as maybe picking some out(if there are any at least) what you don't need/want to keep and recycling them. The parts can easily go into ziplock bags to keep them organized by set. Mike Quote
AussieJimbo Posted February 18, 2011 Posted February 18, 2011 Like a few posters I'm hopelessly addicted to keeping everything and not flattening the boxes. It's getting a bit out of hand in my "stuff" room so I've got to do a bit of a consolidation into bigger cardboard boxes. It's a bit like Lego Tetris, trying to get as many squared away as possible. At least they are reasonably light so I can shove them up in the roof space without any drama. Just got to audit them all for manuals, stickers and any unopened bags. Bricks are either in assembled models or lost in a frenzy of boxes for MOC-ing, vaguely organised by the sets they came from. :classic: Quote
Nikola Bathory Posted February 18, 2011 Posted February 18, 2011 (edited) I keep all my LEGO boxes. Nowdays the boxes have become huge and I really don't like that, it's a waste of space and material.... It's really a problem to find enough place to store these giant boxes! Edited February 18, 2011 by Nikola Bathory Quote
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