Storing, Displaying, and Transporting Your Figures
by Iffy
You have invested a huge amount of time and time and money in your painted figures, where do you keep them and how do you transport them from place to place? How do you pack the greatest number of figures into the smallest number of bag while still keeping them secure? Interestingly enough, people will spend hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars on figures, hundreds of hours painting figures, but fail to think about how they're going to protect or display that investment. Some of the answers will depend on whether you want to show off figures, and your playing patterns.
Storage and Display
One of the first questions you have to ask yourself is whether you need or want to display any figures? If not, then the question becomes very simple and, depending on the number of figures you have, your storage can be your transport. If you do want to display figures, then you need to figure out what figures you want to display: units, vehicels, or individual figures?
Bookshelves
I store a fairly large number of figures in a small CD bookshelf. They are very easy to get to and they show off units quite nicely. Depending on the depth of the bookshelf and the distance between individual shelves, you may or may not be able to fit in large vehicles or monsterous creatures. My CD shelf, for example, fits smaller vehicles OK, but isn't really deep enough to accept large Forgeworld models. You can use a regular sized bookshelf for more space customization, but if it's too deep, then it's hard to see the figures in the back. Most bookshelves lack a front cover, so figures inside will get dusty.
Purpose-Made Display Cases
If you want to go all out and showcase your figures, you can find purpose-made display cases with glass-doors, lighting, rotating stands, etc. They can be expensive, but if you shop around a bit, you can find one priced pretty reasonably. This model, for example, was found on the IKEA site (under "glass-door cabinet")for $60.00. Not only will these kinds of cabinets show off your figures in the best light, but the enclosed display will keep all of the dust and cobwebs off them.
Shadow Boxes
Another option is a wall mounted box. You can find these all over the place. I have a shadow box that I bought nearly 20 years ago, and it's moved all over the world with me. It's simply nailed to the wall, and my favorite individual figures go inside. They aren't big enough for units and you probably don't want to put in any figure that is going to see a lot of use, but the display is very attractive and takes up almost no space at all.
Transportation
The next question we'll address is getting your figures to wherever you game. One of the fundamental questions you have to ask yourself is where are you transporting them? Do you drive from your house to the store, where you have positive control over your carrying case at all times, or will you by flying or taking the bus/train, where your case might get kicked? This will drive your transport options. If you're only driving the figures from A to B, then all you really need is something to prevent them from bouncing around inside the car yet is easy to carry from the car to the store. If you're the person who is always flying with figures, then you're probably looking for something with a hardcase, straps, and other accessories that ensure they don't get crushed and are very easy to carry around.
Let's take a look at some transport options.
The Toolbox
I've used toolboxes for army transport for as long as I can remember. I have 3 of them, of the 3-drawer variety, at home. They're sturdy, have convenient drawers to help you get at stuff, are lockable, and don't require that you pluck any foam. Because you can line up figures as you would on the battlefield, you probably get the highest density of figures per case with a toolbox. However, you will have to magnetize your bases or create magnetized movement trays to secure them in place, which you may have done already.
As you can see, some of the figures even get stuck onto the top of the lid for transport. Took them back and forth to 2 events this weekend and they stuck beautifully. As you can see, the packing density is much tighter than you can get in a foam tray and there is nothing for the claws of the tyranids to catch on. The top drawer is large enough to accomodate my Carnifexes and other taller figures.
Purpose Made Cases
There are a number of manufacturers who make cases designed specifically for miniature figures. The most popular seem to be the Sabol Army Transport system and the Games Workshop equivalent. You can buy a variety of tray sizes (1", 1.5", 2", 2.5" 3", and 4") depending on your figure sizes and poses, and the cases come with a number of pockets for storing dice, templates, and books. Personally, I use a Sabol Army Transport for moving my larger figures back and forth. I've also used a fair number of Chessex cases, which are nice because they are hard shelled and stack really nicely for storage. Battlefoam is a newer entrant to the market and they really focus on the foam trays. They will cut foam to your specifications so that it fits your army's models and the density per tray is maximized.
Alternatives
Naturally, toolboxes and purpose-made cases are not the only way to transport figures. You can very easily buy large storage boxes at your nearest discount store and cut foam to fit. I've created magnetized trays that fit inside these storage boxes to keep everything from moving around. Tons of people use gun cases. Some people just throw them willy-nilly into a box (YIKES!).
Other Considerations
Some of the other features of your carrying system you may want to consider is hard-shell vs. soft shell and whether or not it can be locked. Ultimately, there is no right answer. It's up to you and what trade offs you want to make between cost, portability, and security.
Final Thoughts
Don't forget that you can mix and match. Do whatever is right for you. I only travel to local game stores, so I use both a tool box and a Sabol case. The toolbox lets me carry 200 magnetized rank and file along with 9 deffkoptas, while top-heavy metals (like the old Stormboyz, special characters, killa kans, etc, go into the Sabol case. This gives me the right mix of figure density plus the protection for large models. In any case, protect your investment. You've already spent hundreds in figures, paints, and time. Don't skimp on the transport and storage.
