Well, I've started it now...

[rriggs]

Hi all

I've always kept my sets as sets when storing them which makes it easy to build sets as LEGO intended but time consuming when building and disassembling MOCs. So, with the Xmas break approaching I've made the decision to separate the sets and sort by part. According to BrIcklink I have 43,000 parts so it's quite a job.

I've decided to sort broadly according to the LDD categories which means I don't need to decide which of the ambiguous parts go in which category. Some categories will have to broken down a bit for practical reasons I should iagin but essentially I hope to use LDD in future as a parts index.

Has anyone else tried sorting using LDD as a base? Any pros, cons, tips or general advice on sorting?

Cheers

Rog

Edited December 10, 2011 by rriggs

[Lyichir]

Good luck. Aanchir and I have been trying to sort our LEGO part-by-part for the better part of a decade. LDD probably gives you a good head start, though.

[brickmack]

Good luck on sorting, the LDD categories should be of some help. That's something I've always had problems with, the categories. The sorting containers might get a bit expensive, and it's going to take a lot of room probably.

[Bearded Castle Guy]

Good luck on sorting, the LDD categories should be of some help. That's something I've always had problems with, the categories. The sorting containers might get a bit expensive, and it's going to take a lot of room probably.

@rriggs, You may want to check out the storage thread here http://www.eurobricks.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=26213 if you have not already.

I've not been that systematic in deciding the categories I use to sort yet but I've only buckled down on my sorting a few months ago and decided to move beyond ziplock's in plastic shoeboxes or even just the plastic shoebox itself for a sorting method. I decided upon the Stanley organizer's with the lift out 'cups' mentioned in that thread. A couple of reason I went with those, a number of parts I decided I want to sort out to a the level of specific parts in a single bin or even a single color of a part in a bin. By swapping around the bin between different copies of the same depth organizer I can arrange things more to my liking. I like that they have a positive latching ability and stack nicely. The 25 compartment ones are smallish compared to the deeper 10 compartment ones but you get a bigger number of the smaller bins to sub divide into.

My one bit of advice is to try choose a style of containers that's widely available in your area and try to stick with it. I have at least 3 styles of the plastic shoeboxes that don't stack quite so well with the other styles, they're from different eras basically and it can be a pain to have a stack fall if it was a stack of mixed types. There have been times where I've had to choose between sets or more storage even, the Stanley Organizers are not always as cheap as some of the other options (especially for a given capacity) but I do NOT want loose drawers (or potentially loose drawers) so that's the price I pay for my choice. *IF* you go with plastic shoeboxes or the like buy enough or rather buy MORE than you think you'll need, trust me you'll still use them all.....

[rriggs]

Thanks guys.

I'm mainly reusing the containers that the individual sets are currently in. These were 10 for £1 and I have more than 100 already which gives me a good starting point. They're fairly small so I will need to find something for the larger categories and larger pieces but I will worry about that as and when it happens. Making good progress so far but haven't got to any big sets yet!

LDD categories is working out OK so far. The benefits are that I can let LDD decide when I'm unsure of which category to use and can refer back to it should I forget how I categorised something.

Cheers

Rog

Edited December 11, 2011 by rriggs

[rriggs]

6000 pieces and 114 minifigs sorted into 75 categories so far. Haven't done any big sets yet (Creator Highway Transport x 2 will be fun...)

Still, feels like I'm making progress!

Cheers

Rog

[Tontus]

A little late now, but you might run into a slight problem come Jan 17 when LDD is updated. There might be some reorganizing on LDD when new bricks are added. Not really a big deal I suppose.

I personally still haven't left the set segragation phase myself. I can see the benefit of consolidation, but I can't bring myself to doing it. I use LDD for MOCs, and if I like the results I'll Bricklink what I need.

[rriggs]

A little late now, but you might run into a slight problem come Jan 17 when LDD is updated. There might be some reorganizing on LDD when new bricks are added. Not really a big deal I suppose.

I personally still haven't left the set segragation phase myself. I can see the benefit of consolidation, but I can't bring myself to doing it. I use LDD for MOCs, and if I like the results I'll Bricklink what I need.

I'm hoping to be finished by Jan 17!!

I'm using LDD to help define the categories while I'm sorting but will probably end up with something in Excel by the time I'm done as my index.

Cheers

Rog

[mikey]

I'm hoping to be finished by Jan 17!!

...

You will never be finished sorting!

Personally I would find using LDD categories too ambiguous, but I can see it will give you a good starting point to further refine your system. At the end of the day the categorisation is a really personal process - depending on how you build, how you perceive different parts, and what your collection consists off.

[Bearded Castle Guy]

Thanks guys.

I'm mainly reusing the containers that the individual sets are currently in. These were 10 for £1 and I have more than 100 already which gives me a good starting point. They're fairly small so I will need to find something for the larger categories and larger pieces but I will worry about that as and when it happens. Making good progress so far but haven't got to any big sets yet!

LDD categories is working out OK so far. The benefits are that I can let LDD decide when I'm unsure of which category to use and can refer back to it should I forget how I categorised something.

Cheers

Rog

You could just sort piece type by color and use multiple containers if you like the ones you have now but having a couple of different sized containers is usually good. My main point is pick something you can get more of and are happy with using. It sound like you have already settled on a workable solution for the way YOU sort and likely build, now the job is finishing.

[rriggs]

Well, I'm getting there! 26000 pieces sorted and 15000 to go so about two thirds done.

So far I have 120 plastic containers (500ml) which are mainly sorted by type and size and then broken down by colour for the most popular pieces. I am plannin to get another 50 boxes tomorrow as a number of the categories of pieces are very close to filling their current boxes and will need to be split up.

Current problem areas are the big pieces (train bases, XXL crane bases, a-frames, etc) as I am not sure how to store them. They are currently in plastic bags while I decide.

Also, I am unsure whether to store trans pieces (bricks, plates, tiles) together or in their respective size/type category? They're altogether at the moment which looks pretty but I fear might be a pain to find specific items in future.

I also need to think of the best way of sorting minifig accessories as they are plentiful and tiny.....

Cheers

[rriggs]

Well, the sorting is now all done. It took a bit longer than expected but it wasn't quite the mission I thought it might be!

So, here are the stats:

43,535 pieces sorted into 248 categories

223 x 750ml plastic boxes

16 x 2.6l plastic boxes for the larger categories of pieces

5 x 32l boxes for the really large pieces one of which is for the 409 minifigs who now all live together

2 x Heidrun 16 compartment storage drums for the trans plates/tiles and for minifig tools & weapons

The boxes are spread out across a small bookcase, two drawers of a filing cabinet and under desk storage so that all are out of the way day to day.

I tried building my first MOC yesterday using the sorted pieces and it was great. Really easy to find the pieces I was looking for. I have also done an index of all the boxes and their contents so that I can find pieces once the sorting is not so fresh in my mind...

Only thing I have left to do now is label all the boxes properly - Currently they are just numbered using black marker but I intend to print some labels for them this week.

The bookcase:

Drawer 1:

Drawer 2:

Under the desk:

The 32l boxes:

My build area including the two Heidrun tubs:

Cheers

Rog

[Vindicare]

Wow, pretty nice storage set up. I'm thinking about doing this. What did you do with your printed/stickered pieces?

[rriggs]

I'm thinking about doing this

I'm really glad that I did it but it's not a small job. I spent some of every day during my Xmas holiday sorting and it did get very tedious at times!

I estimate that I spent about 30 hours physically sorting pieces. Add to that another 2-3 hours sorting and indexing the boxes and clearing space in my office for them.

• Cost-wise, I had some of the 223 small boxes already as these held my smaller sets. I had to buy about 120 of them to complete the sorting. They cost £1 for 10 from the pound shop so about £23 in total.
  
• The 2.6l boxes were 99p each from a supermarket's value home care range.
  
• The very large boxes were two for £5 on offer at a different supermarket.
  

That's a grand total of 33 hours and £54 which I don't think is a bad job!

What did you do with your printed/stickered pieces?

I've kept them separate from the other pieces. They are roughly sorted as small, medium and large.

Cheers

Rog

Edited January 8, 2012 by rriggs

[nicoga3000]

Hey - I'm curious about your sorting! LDD only shows 26 categories, so how did you use LDD to help? I'm REALLY needing to start sorting and disassembling soon, and I like the idea of using LDD as a base.

[rriggs]

Hey - I'm curious about your sorting! LDD only shows 26 categories, so how did you use LDD to help? I'm REALLY needing to start sorting and disassembling soon, and I like the idea of using LDD as a base.

LDD helped me with some of the pieces and components that are ambiguous. I was worried that I would end up forgetting which hard to find pieces were in which category or, worse, the same pieces in one than more category. LDD helped by removing the most variable part of the sorting process - me!

Cheers

Rog

[nicoga3000]

LDD helped me with some of the pieces and components that are ambiguous. I was worried that I would end up forgetting which hard to find pieces were in which category or, worse, the same pieces in one than more category. LDD helped by removing the most variable part of the sorting process - me!

Cheers

Rog

So you obviously don't have a container for EVERY piece, then. I'm guessing you blocked a few together under the general headings that LDD gives?

[rriggs]

So you obviously don't have a container for EVERY piece, then. I'm guessing you blocked a few together under the general headings that LDD gives?

Exactly right!

Although a lot of the common pieces have a box to themselves many of the smaller pieces are lumped together (eg 1x1 modified plates is a category that contains more than 10 different types of piece in one box).

LDD is useful to establish exactly what is in a box of mixed parts.

Cheers

Rog

Edited January 8, 2012 by rriggs

[CptMugwash]

It certainly looks well organised, I haven't gotten around to sorting my collection out properly, right now my current setup is 2 old school drawers, 18 bigish sized draws each, good for big plates and bricks but they have everything in there now sorted by colour. I got 40 small storage bins from screwfix for xmas and are good for the smallerer parts, and I've just ordered 2 mini drawers 40 draws each for screws and nuts but I'll be using them for minifig parts and other tiny pieces. For catergorising, I'll probably do it by colour, type, size. I hope to get as organised as you, you've done a great job!