Storage and Organization

I was inspired buy a post over at Belched from the Depths on miniature storage. Spooktalker showed a method for storing miniatures using jewelry trays that filled my requirements for compact storage while securing the items using magnetized bases.

The trays are 14 3/4" x 8 1/4" and made from injection molded plastic.  Gems On Display sells them in depths ranging from 1" to  4" along with carrying cases made from a tough lined nylon which will hold up to 12 - one inch trays. 

I changed up the basic idea by lining the trays with magnetic sheet because I base my miniatures on steel washers. The magnetic sheet isn't remarkably strong but will keep the minis in place during regular movement and transport in the car.

Recently I stumbled on Dave's Baggage Train who appears to have commercialized this technique and offers foam inserts and other options.

As miniature trays these options work out perfect for all but the largest models.

Now that I am printing out Dragonlock™ terrain from Fat Dragon Games I needed some method to store the numerous tiles, walls, corners and other accessories. I decided to make a set of custom trays with just over 2" internal depth that allows for packing the most tiles in the smallest space.

Here are a couple finished trays filled with the Dragonlock cavern tiles. (I haven't finished painting these yet.)

 

The basic process is cut four sides from 1/4" plywood and cut out a rabbet along one side to hold the bottom then miter the corners. The long sides are 14 3/4" by 2 1/4" and the short sides are 8 1/4" by 2 1/4" so that the finished tray can still fit in the gem cases and I can pack up a case with a mixture of terrain and miniature for a game.

 Aligning the points of the miter then using masking tape across the joint gives a strong clamping force and will keep the joint square as long as the miter was accurate.







Here is the inside of the joint ready for glue.

When the joint is closed up the tape holds the surfaces together without clamps.

The bottom then drops into the rabbet and is clamped.










I add small pieces of wood to the bottom (tongue depressor) so that the trays don't slide when they are stacked.

Once the table saw and miter saw are set up it is easy to make a stack of trays to store everything.

3D printing some accessories for our D&D game.  This Barrel Cart model is from Thingiverse and prints easily and adds a little color to the outside of the tavern.

One of the reasons I like the Fat Dragon 3D models has to be the user community that expands the options by creating custom models.  These are freely shared and available in the forums.

Testing Printing Fat Dragon Floors and Roofs

After several attempts at printing the roof pieces from the Dragonlock 2 Village Terrain I stumbled on the idea to print them vertical rather than laying flat on the bed.

Everyone's printer is different but for my Prusa i3 clone the vertical arrangement gives a much flatter tile and a better top surface.

The vertical print on the left compared to the flat print on the right.










I'm able to print six roof tiles at a time (print time was almost seven hours) and the quality is great at 0.2 resolution.

I tried a floor tile and there is much less curling at the corners and the clips still work great.
The flat print is on the left below and the vertical print is on the right.

I have created a couple custom window inserts for the Fat Dragon Village Dragonlock Ultimate Set.

The STL files can be found on the Fat Dragon Forums

A Beginning

This is an archive of my current projects and activities.  While posting may not be frequent, I hope it will be informative.  Some of the photos and links may only be useful to me or my family but please comment if there is something you find helpful, or if there is something you would like me to explore in more detail.