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 Posted - January 07 2012 : 10:18:17 PM
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Hey Guys;
I'm about to embark on making some box inserts to hold locomotives....
Some alternatives are,
1/. Corrugate as per picture:
2/. Foam
Anyway the corrugate can be made by tracing the locomotive and then carefully cutting while folding sides down (to raise the insert to approx 1/2 the height of the box) and ends up to hold the insert down. Of course these can be reversed...
Foam is do-able but not sure about the cutting.
Reboxx makes custom boxes with foam inserts that are sectioned to allow you to custom fit almost any loco but the prices are such that you likely confine them to Brass or high value items. Accurail sells 3 box batches for about $3 and for a bit more ones long enough to hold an 89ft flatcar and therefore will hold almost any locomotive, except a few Turbines and Steamers with Tenders... BUT you still have to come up with inserts. Perhaps foam sections can be "blocked in" to get a secure fit?
Finally for really favourite stuff; I'm thinking of my Varney "Super" Units I like the idea of wooden "jewellery" boxes where you trace an outline then using a router make a profile nest and pad it for these units... Little engraved plaque.... 
Anyway, if you've come up with a clever alternative, by all means chime in....
-Gareth
"A is A"
-Aristotle
Law of Identification
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Posted - January 07 2012 : 11:38:51 PM
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quote:Hey Guys;
I'm about to embark on making some box inserts to hold locomotives....
Foam is do-able but not sure about the cutting.
Perhaps foam sections can be "blocked in" to get a secure fit?
Anyway, if you've come up with a clever alternative, by all means chime in....
-Gareth
Originally posted by romcat - January 07 2012 : 10:18:17 PM
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Actually, Gareth, they make foam sheets now with "block cut" feature, you can remove small foam blocks of 1/4 inch to 1 inch depending on the foam sheet. Used in electronics metal carry cases to custom-fit units easily. Here's a link to some -
http://floridacaseseahorse.com/foam-sets.html
http://www.caseclub.com/pick-and-pluck-foam.htm
http://www.pick-n-pluck-foam.com/stock-foam-set.htm
There's more foam options out there, just gotta search for them.
Jerry
" When life throws you bananas...it's easy to slip up"
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Posted - January 08 2012 : 02:22:43 AM
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Hey Jerry;
Thats a real help. I think Reboxx usea the pick `n pluck foam in it's bow replacement sets....
I'll order one set initially for a Brass Mogul I have....see how that works and replacement foam for my Brass MLW RS18 . If both those set up ok, we're off to the races!
I think on the cheaper stuff I'll use the corrugate inserts though...
Thanks again Jerry!
-Gareth
"A is A"
-Aristotle
Law of Identification
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Posted - January 08 2012 : 08:12:24 AM
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Not to be a contrarian, but wouldn't a box-sized bed of bubble wrap, the corrugate custom insert, some more bubble wrap on top before closing the cover be sufficient to stabilize and properly cushion a car or loco?
I buy an inexpensive roll of bubble wrap at Walmart, wrap each item twice around, secure with packing tape, put a label- or write in permanent marker on the outside then store many wrapped items in a plastic box ( also from Walmart. I write a second inventory label on the box. This is what I do for stuff I have no present room or use for on the layout.
Or, am I over-thinking this?
Siouxlake/Ron
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Posted - January 08 2012 : 11:07:20 AM
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Hey Ron;
Well two things, I don't shop at Walmart. I despise them as a company
Two, I don't like bubble wrap next to locomotives especially valuable steamers as I have had thigs snag in transit. there's also all that unwrapping if you want to have a quick look... so that my slant on the buble wrap idea.
-Gareth
"A is A"
-Aristotle
Law of Identification
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Posted - January 08 2012 : 11:14:13 AM
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Didn't mean to offend about Walmart, but they were pretty handy when my daughter ran out of Pampers at 2 am when she was a baby; and there WAS that time I was trying to fit a 32" wide new refrigerator in a 30" opening and had cut the countertop a bit to make it fit. I had to go there to get another sabresaw blade set when mine broke (while SHE was away for the weekend)
To each his own, but I owe more than I own....
Siouxlake/Ron
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Posted - January 08 2012 : 11:40:07 AM
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What I been getting & trying to get is the skinny boxes that are with PCs They have been working out great & even have the foam in them already
I'll find a couple & take pics
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Posted - January 08 2012 : 11:56:33 AM
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quote:Not to be a contrarian, but wouldn't a box-sized bed of bubble wrap,.... be sufficient to stabilize and properly cushion a car or loco?
Siouxlake/Ron
Originally posted by siouxlake - January 08 2012 : 08:12:24 AM
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In addition to Gareth's contention of small sharp parts catching in the plastic - I work in electronicis, and have noticed that bubble wrap used to wrap painted aluminum products will sometimes leave the "bubble" pattern in the paint, and it is NOT removable. Not sure if there is some chemical reaction with it, or what, but we've tried all kinds of cleaners, and the bubble pattern remains embedded in the paint.  So we made a note to never wrap our aluminum products in it directly. Steel doesn't seem to have the same problem, just aluminum. Maybe a paint difference, don't know. But since trains are more aluminum and alloys than steel, not sure how over time any chemical reaction with the plastic bubblewrap and the train's painted surface would work. Want to find out? 
Anyway, the bubbles, being huge in scale compared to the train, will also create pressure points on said small details ( hence Gareth's concern, too ). I personally use high-density foam sheets myself, basically an air-pocket sealed foam ( won't wick water ), which can come in thicknesses from 1/2 inch down to 1/32 of an inch. These sheets are often found wrapped around commercial electronics, TV's, etc in big boxes to protect against abrasion during shipment. I don't know where you would find them retail, but we get quite a bit in shipping from vendors, from standard white to pink ( anti-static type ). We don't like keeping the white at work due to it forms static,so I take it home to use for train packing. 
WIsh I had a picture of this, a club member yesterday was toting two of his high-dollar steam engines around in a neat makeshift storage container, he found these bread-loaf shaped cake containers, and he then cut holes in the base, and installed small foam paint brushes in parallel, and one on each end, and he custom-fit his engines to fit, so he has a couple of 2-8-2's basically side by side, held solidly in place as the foam brushes have stiff wooden posts inside, not sure how he did that. I'll have to ask. Maybe they're a new kind of foam brush. Anyway, the lid snaps on, has a carry handle on top, so it made for a nice compact see-through transport container robust enough to transport them. He also bought a metal carrying case from Harbor Freight that the top folds out like an alligator, not a clam-shell case with full opening top piece. He could get two of these plastic cake carriers inside it. Overall a nice piece of work. I may have to look into some foam brushes.
I still like my ( sorry, Gareth ) Wal-mart findable fishing tackle plastic containers, although you can find these ( at more expense ) at Dick's or other sporting good stores for $5 more, which fit HO scale rolling stock and engines in 3 of the 4 long lengths, I think smaller steam engine and tender would fit inside except for the huge ones. I use the high-density foam sheets I mentioned earlier, and I can see the tops of the engines through the clear plastic.
Target also has nice flat plastic storage boxes with positive-lock lids on each end with fold-around locking plastic wide tabs, I've dropped these and never had one come open. Roughly 14 x 10 inches, and 2.5 inch working height, these have no separated areas, all open, so you'd have to make partitions, but I invest in these for my finer stock and ability to see inside easily. I can probably glue in the grey foam in rows, I just haven't done it.
So, that's my further contribution to this thread, there myriad ways to store trains, and new suggestions and ways to do it are always popping up. But I would personally avoid bubble wrap due to the chemical leaching possibility of staining of train paint . Not to say my high-density foam won't, but I haven't noticed any on the trains I do currently store with it. And if electronics can be shipped with it wrapped around it and not leave any stains, I'd say it's been industry tested. Consumers would have complained by now. You never see heavy objects wrapped in bubble wrap usually, because they can pop the bubbles with a heavy shock or drop, then you've lost the cushioning, we've found that out with our electronics going overseas. We use high-density foam cushion. Since metal engines are relatively heavy for their size, and small details COULD puncture the bubbles, overall I think it a poor choice for mobile storage, for home use, eh, it's up to you. I just don't like the fact that it seems to react with some paints, so I won't use it myself.
Jerry
" When life throws you bananas...it's easy to slip up"
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Posted - January 09 2012 : 1:45:57 PM
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| Thank you. Now I know where those marks come from on engines I have gotten. And you are right, it does not come off... Short of maybe wet sanding it, but I have not tried that... I like the original box with inserts best. They can be displayed even.. I am trying to find a good source for the plastic window film in the boxes. I have a few boxes that could use new windows...
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