MOC: My Minifigure Display Stand

[Splat]

First of all, I normally hang out in the Technic Forum, so I apologise if something like this has already been posted.

After buying all of the Collectable Minifigures (Series 1 - 4), I had been storing them in plastic storage boxes. I wanted to actually display them rather than just store them, so I decided to build my own display stand for them, and I built it out of Lego of course!

During the 'May the Fourth' promotion on the Lego website, they were offering free shipping to Australia, so in addition to a few other Lego sets I decided to order a few parts from the Pick A Brick (PAB) selection. You could probably get these parts cheaper on BrickLink, but you might have to get them from several sellers, and pay multiple shipping costs, so in this case Pick A Brick was just easier.

An interesting side note: although the Lego website says that the Pick A Brick order will take a few days longer to ship than normal Lego sets, I have found that in Australia they usually arrive first in most cases. I think this is because they get shipped directly from Denmark, whereas the other Lego sets get shipped via a distribution centre in S.E. Asia somewhere.

Before I ordered the parts, I modelled the display stand in MLCad, only using parts that are available in Pick A Brick, and I decided upon this design:

(Click on the images to see larger versions)

I didn't get the Tile, Modified 4 x 3 with 4 Studs in Center parts from Pick A Brick though because they only come with the Collectable Minifigures. If you want to display other minifigures but don't have enough of these parts, you can get them from BrickLink, or use some Plate 2 x 3 parts instead (you will need 32 of them).

I didn't get these baseplates from Pick A Brick either. I actually used a different type of baseplate, which I'll show you later (you'll need to keep reading to find out!).

After receiving my Pick A Brick order, this is what my first display stand looks like:

And populated with Series 1 Collectable Minifigures:

You may notice that there is a Technic pin hole on the side. There is another one on the opposite side, and one on the back too. This is so that a Technic Pin can be inserted to join two (or more) display stands together:

The join isn't strong enough that it makes a rigid connection, but it does keep the display stands aligned and stops them from getting knocked apart by accident.

The photo above also shows how I have purposely offset the minifigures in each row so that they don't get hidden by the row in front of them.

Alternatively, you can place the display stands one behind the other, and use Brick 2 x 2 x 3 parts to raise the back stand up to the correct level:

As I mentioned above, I didn't order the baseplates from Pick A Brick, I actually planned for these display stands to be put on a X-Large Gray Baseplate. Each display stand is 24 studs wide and 12 studs deep, so eight display stands fit on the 48 x 48 studs of the baseplate, and creates a nice set of bleachers:

My bleachers have room for eight series of Collectable Minifigures, but only four have been released so far, so it is half empty at the moment. Perhaps I'll fill it up with other minifigues for now.

On the right half of the stand, I have used the Plate 2 x 3 parts, but when more Collectable Minifigures are released, I will replace them with the Tile, Modified 4 x 3 with 4 Studs in Center parts instead.

You can view all these images, building instructions, and MLCad file in my BrickShelf Folder (once moderated).

If you want to see the Pick A Brick parts list, or the BrickLink XML so that you can add the parts to your BrickLink Wanted List, expand the 'Spoiler' section below:

Lego Pick A Brick Parts (excluding the baseplates and Tile, Modified 4 x 3 with 4 Studs in Center):

Element ID QTY Description
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________

302326 12 Black Plate 1X2
306926 12 Black Flat Tile 1X2
370026 3 Black Technic Brick 1X2, Ø4.9
300326 1 Black Brick 2X2
301026 2 Black Brick 1X4
300126 1 Black Brick 2X4
4181144 1 Black Brick 2X6
300726 10 Black Brick 2X8
4125550 18 Black Brick W. Bow 4X1x1 1/3
4617860 4 Black Brick 2X10
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Current price for these parts: 10.49 AUD, 13.29 USD, 8.47 GBP

In addition, you may need these extra parts:

Element ID Description Price Note
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________

4211807 Connector Peg 0.08 AUD ea To join display stands together
4113241 Brick 2x2x3 0.17 AUD ea Need 4 to raise one level, 8 to raise two levels, etc
302126 Plate 2X3 0.09 AUD ea Need 32
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________

BrickLink XML (excluding the baseplates):

<INVENTORY>
<ITEM>
<ITEMTYPE>P</ITEMTYPE>
<ITEMID>2456</ITEMID>
<MINQTY>1</MINQTY>
<COLOR>11</COLOR>
<REMARKS>Lego Element ID: 4181144</REMARKS>
</ITEM>
<ITEM>
<ITEMTYPE>P</ITEMTYPE>
<ITEMID>3001</ITEMID>
<MINQTY>1</MINQTY>
<COLOR>11</COLOR>
<REMARKS>Lego Element ID: 300126</REMARKS>
</ITEM>
<ITEM>
<ITEMTYPE>P</ITEMTYPE>
<ITEMID>3003</ITEMID>
<MINQTY>1</MINQTY>
<COLOR>11</COLOR>
<REMARKS>Lego Element ID: 300326</REMARKS>
</ITEM>
<ITEM>
<ITEMTYPE>P</ITEMTYPE>
<ITEMID>3006</ITEMID>
<MINQTY>4</MINQTY>
<COLOR>11</COLOR>
<REMARKS>Lego Element ID: 4617860</REMARKS>
</ITEM>
<ITEM>
<ITEMTYPE>P</ITEMTYPE>
<ITEMID>3007</ITEMID>
<MINQTY>10</MINQTY>
<COLOR>11</COLOR>
<REMARKS>Lego Element ID: 300726</REMARKS>
</ITEM>
<ITEM>
<ITEMTYPE>P</ITEMTYPE>
<ITEMID>3010</ITEMID>
<MINQTY>2</MINQTY>
<COLOR>11</COLOR>
<REMARKS>Lego Element ID: 301026</REMARKS>
</ITEM>
<ITEM>
<ITEMTYPE>P</ITEMTYPE>
<ITEMID>3023</ITEMID>
<MINQTY>12</MINQTY>
<COLOR>11</COLOR>
<REMARKS>Lego Element ID: 302326</REMARKS>
</ITEM>
<ITEM>
<ITEMTYPE>P</ITEMTYPE>
<ITEMID>3069b</ITEMID>
<MINQTY>12</MINQTY>
<COLOR>11</COLOR>
<REMARKS>Lego Element ID: 306926</REMARKS>
</ITEM>
<ITEM>
<ITEMTYPE>P</ITEMTYPE>
<ITEMID>3700</ITEMID>
<MINQTY>3</MINQTY>
<COLOR>11</COLOR>
<REMARKS>Lego Element ID: 370026</REMARKS>
</ITEM>
<ITEM>
<ITEMTYPE>P</ITEMTYPE>
<ITEMID>6081</ITEMID>
<MINQTY>18</MINQTY>
<COLOR>11</COLOR>
<REMARKS>Lego Element ID: 4125550</REMARKS>
</ITEM>
<ITEM>
<ITEMTYPE>P</ITEMTYPE>
<ITEMID>88646</ITEMID>
<MINQTY>16</MINQTY>
<COLOR>11</COLOR>
<REMARKS>Comes with Collectible Minifigures</REMARKS>
</ITEM>
</INVENTORY>

Constructive comments and feedback welcome.

Edited May 22, 2014 by Splat

[Yatkuu]

That is a very clever design (and a very detailed post if I may say!)

Have you considered using some bricks from the colors of each serie? I don't mean to build a full orange stand for serie 4 but rather inserting some orange in it so that it's not completely black. I'm not sure how it would look like with the integration of the black MF display plates but it would give some contrast to the stands and reinforce the "series" aspect.

Very well done!

[Lord Of The Fries]

Great design Splat !

Also I agree with Yatkuu, because it does look a bit plain with just black but if you add some colour, I think that will brighten it up a bit

I want one now that you have shown us

[XimenaPaulina]

Now that is one wonderful way of showcasing your CMS minifig collection, thanks for sharing this Splat! I've been meaning to do a similar display case before, and I think these elevated stand concept is the best solution to effectively show each minifigure in the collection. With regards to the color, I for one, like the all-black scheme as it highlights more the minifigs, while using other bright colors might be a bit distracting and take away the attention from the minifigs. Overall, this is really a great idea as it's easy to do, the parts are readily available, can be expanded depending on the future additional series, and it really looks like a professional way to display one's minifig collection.

[ETAV8R]

That is fantastic!

I made a stepped platform but recently broke it down.

[Splat]

Thanks everyone for your comments

Have you considered using some bricks from the colors of each serie?

Also I agree with Yatkuu, because it does look a bit plain with just black but if you add some colour, I think that will brighten it up a bit

With regards to the color, I for one, like the all-black scheme as it highlights more the minifigs, while using other bright colors might be a bit distracting and take away the attention from the minifigs.

Hi Yatkuu and Lord Of The Fries. I did think about adding some colour, but as KielDaMan mentioned, I didn't want the display stand to draw attention away from the minifigures. Adding colour to the stand itself might get lost at the minifigures feet and just add 'visual noise', but I did think about adding a flag pole and creating custom stickers to put on them.

Unfortunately these flag poles weren't available on Pick A Brick, and BrickLink doesn't have many sellers that have much stock.

I want one now that you have shown us

Well, that's why I provided the Pick A Brick and BrickLink details in the 'Spoiler', just in case anyone else needed to know what parts to use to make their own

That is fantastic!

I made a stepped platform but recently broke it down.

Thanks ETAV8R

Do you have any photos of what yours looked like before you pulled it apart?

Edited April 10, 2013 by Splat

[Masked Builder]

I like what you've done here. You even thought to offset the stands. Quite inexpensive too. I may order one or two for my Star Wars minifigures......

[Wout]

That's a very nice construction!

Well done!

[Rufus]

Thank you Splat, that's genius! You should patent this design - I know I for one am going to copy it!

[Dazmundo]

This looks really nice, I have done something similar but much simpler

I have replaced all the red with lime green and I am gradually replacing the white with orange as I get bricks with other Bricklink orders, no one has many orange 2x4 bricks.

Have you thought about doing 2 slightly different versions so when you put them together the front row of one is ofset from the back row of the one infront?

D

[Brickdoctor]

Great work. I've done something similar, but not as nice as this. The curved slopes are what really set this apart from other display stands.

I didn't get the Tile, Modified 4 x 3 with 4 Studs in Center parts from Pick A Brick though because they only come with the Collectable Minifigures. If you want to display other minifigures but don't have enough of these parts, you can get them from BrickLink, or use some Plate 2 x 3 parts instead (you will need 32 of them).

Why not use rows of 1xn plates and 1xn tiles? (and if you chose to do that you could alternatively change the row of 1xn plates to a row of alternating 1x2 plates and tiles, so that when minifigs are placed on the stand it would be completely studless)

[Splat]

Thanks again for your comments everyone

You even thought to offset the stands. Quite inexpensive too.

Those were two of my design criteria: show the minifigs, and keep the cost down. Given that each series cost me about AU$80 (16 x AU$5), adding another AU$12.50 or so for the pieces and 1/8th of the cost of the baseplate isn't too bad.

I know I for one am going to copy it!

Please do copy it. But if you do, all I ask is that you share your results with the rest of us. I'd love to see how others take my design and mod it to make it their own.

I have done something similar but much simpler

Thanks for sharing. I like how you have made the stands fit perfectly within the width of the shelf, and when more series are released you could squash them up a bit to make room for the new minifigs too.

After seeing your coloured stands, I think that I will stick with black as I think it gets a bit too 'busy' with too many colours - but that is just my opinion.

Have you thought about doing 2 slightly different versions so when you put them together the front row of one is ofset from the back row of the one infront?

I realised that after I ordered all of the pieces! The problem would be that the second stand would have rows with 6:5:6 which adds up to 17, so doesn't really work with the Collectable Minifigs, but if you were using these stands for other minifigs that wouldn't be a problem and would probably be a better solution.

The curved slopes are what really set this apart from other display stands.

I agree! I was looking through Pick A Brick for parts for another MOC, and when I saw the Brick, Modified 2 x 4 x 1 1/3 with Curved Top (aka Brick W. Bow 4X1x1 1/3), I immediately thought that they would be good to use for a minifig stand - that's where it all started!

Why not use rows of 1xn plates and 1xn tiles? (and if you chose to do that you could alternatively change the row of 1xn plates to a row of alternating 1x2 plates and tiles, so that when minifigs are placed on the stand it would be completely studless)

Those are great ideas I was trying to incorporate the Tile, Modified 4 x 3 with 4 Studs in Center parts, and the use of the Plate 2 x 3 parts was really a last minute decision. Unfortunately the supporting structure of my design wouldn't be able to do what you suggested as it has a few gaps (see below), but it could be re-designed fairly easily. It might use a few more bricks and cost a bit more though.

PS. It looks like my BrickShelf Folder is public now, and includes the building instructions in there too.

Edited April 10, 2013 by Splat

[Brickdoctor]

Those are great ideas I was trying to incorporate the Tile, Modified 4 x 3 with 4 Studs in Center parts, and the use of the Plate 2 x 3 parts was really a last minute decision. Unfortunately the supporting structure of my design wouldn't be able to do what you suggested as it has a few gaps (see below), but it could be re-designed fairly easily. It might use a few more bricks and cost a bit more though.

Ah, I see. I guess then what it really comes down to is whether or not you have the 2x3 plates already. (which you do, but for anyone else building this...)

On another note, those instructions look great.

[SilentMode]

Excellent work on the minifigure display stands! If I had the space and perhaps a plastic case to put over it, I'd build a few of these myself.

Unfortunately these flag poles weren't available on Pick A Brick, and BrickLink doesn't have many sellers that have much stock.

You could use or and inside a as a substitute.

[greg]

Other suggestion for a flag pole, directly stolen from the Winker Bakery Shop:

> > >

They all exist in black, and the flags exist in a bunch of colors - availability might not be high enough to cover the current and any future minifigure sets though.

http://www.bricklink.com/catalogItem.asp?P=4495

http://www.bricklink.com/catalogItem.asp?P=2714

http://www.bricklink.com/catalogItem.asp?P=62462

http://www.bricklink.com/catalogItem.asp?P=2460

Edited June 21, 2011 by greg

[toytoy]

I wanted to make it all white but I do not have enough bricks.

Edited June 24, 2011 by toytoy

[fred67]

I realised that after I ordered all of the pieces! The problem would be that the second stand would have rows with 6:5:6 which adds up to 17, so doesn't really work with the Collectable Minifigs, but if you were using these stands for other minifigs that wouldn't be a problem and would probably be a better solution.

If you could do a minor redesign.... I have the cases from the Container Store (as shown on another thread); you can fit 7 CMF baseplates across three rows, so staggering it you get 6 in the middle. 7+6+7=20, which ends up being quite a good number for CMFs (5 series times 16 figures = 80 = 20 times four display stands).

[Lego Otaku]

If you could do a minor redesign.... I have the cases from the Container Store (as shown on another thread); you can fit 7 CMF baseplates across three rows, so staggering it you get 6 in the middle. 7+6+7=20, which ends up being quite a good number for CMFs (5 series times 16 figures = 80 = 20 times four display stands).

Then series 6 comes out...You might end up building a display for 10 series and then spend 2 years waiting for them to come out.

It's a very neat design, I'm stealing the design but making a variation that doesn't group by 16 per section. Since I don't collect minifig but I'd like to display some minifig from my original collection ('79 to '90)

[fred67]

Then series 6 comes out...You might end up building a display for 10 series and then spend 2 years waiting for them to come out.

That's what I'm expecting to happen... I don't see a problem with it, though... until it's complete, one of the cases will simply not be completely full.

[1980-Something-Space-Guy]

Found this thanks to the new special themes index.

I have to say that this stand looks very professional. It is so sleek and versatile.

For the moment, I have to store my minifigs on plastic cases. I haven't even got enough money or space to have all the minifigs on my want list, so I can't make a display right now. Yours, however, looks beautiful, and I hope I'll someday be able to display my figs. How do you keep them dust free?

[Splat]

How do you keep them dust free?

Hi johnnyvgoode. Thanks for the compliment I have my minifigs on display inside a 'DETOLF' glass cabinet from Ikea. It seems to do a good job of keeping the dust away. The shelves are too small to fit a 48x48 baseplate, but I can fit 6 of my stands in there on one shelf (48x36).

In the pic above I have Series 1-5, plus a few other Star Wars and Ninjago minifigs. The only minifig that doesn't fit on my stand properly is the Lizard Man (in the bottom left of the pic) because his tail is too long, so I have him standing on an angle. I also have the surfer dude and chick standing on their surfboards, and the two skaters on their skateboards, so they are on an angle too. Click the pic to enlarge.

Edited April 10, 2013 by Splat

[1980-Something-Space-Guy]

Looks very good! There's nothing like the look of many minifigures together.

You seem to have found a very good solution. The display looks incredible. Can't wait for my series 5 minifigures to arrive and complete my collection.

[tedbeard]

I built a minifig stand for a local LUG event. Its not specifically for CMS but it is another alternative.

There are some disadvantages but it does allow for most of the figs to be seen clearly even if you cannot pack as many into the same footprint.

[fred67]

My complete set of the first five series, 80 figures in four cases:

DSCF0851 by FredJH, on Flickr

[K-Nut]

fred67, I use those same cases but make one separate for each series. From back to front I do 6x5x5.

Edited September 23, 2011 by K-nut