Sign in to follow this  
natesroom

Organizing pirate minifigs

Recommended Posts

Do you guys just put all your minfigs in one bucket or container and then go through them when you need them? If so how do you organize what goes together? the reason i'm asking is the islanders, bluecoats, pirates all kinda go together, then you got POTC and so those are very similar so i put them together, but then you have the spanish conquistadors, do you keep them in the same bucket? I have some french looking swash bucklers and i have him there to. Then i have all the different CMF like the Swiss dude whos dressed very ealy mid 1800's Etc.

This may sound weird but i'm having difficulty trying to pin down the organization. This wouldnt be an issue if it was just a dozen, but I'M trying to seperate the western minifigs which seems to include civil war looking figs - those arent "Pirates" right?

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
2 hours ago, natesroom said:

Do you guys just put all your minfigs in one bucket or container

Put them in a bucket or container?

They should be armed and ready for action at all times! pir-triumph.png

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I have all my historical (pirates and castle) themed thorsos in a separate bin, but no further organization than that.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I've been trying to pin down a working organization scheme, too. I have ~150 pirate/imperial minifigs. I end up giving minifigs in other themes (space, marvel, etc) to my kids

My scheme is centered around having the minifigs sorted so I can quickly find them to use them in MOCs.

Current scheme is below:

- Redcoats (an acrylic 2-step case for each)
--- Classic Torsos (60x)
--- Newer Torsos (12x)
--- Imperial Admiral (10x)
--- Newer Imperial Officers (12x)
--- Toy Soldiers / Redcoat Cavalry (8x)
--- Royal Guards (5x)
--- Sea Captain / Royal Naval Intelligence Officers (6x)
--- Dark Blue Officer variants for Royal Navy officers (16x)

- Bluecoats (an acrylic 2-step case for each)
--- Classic Torsos (20x)
--- Newer Torsos (12x)
--- Imperial Governor (4x)
--- Bespin Guards / Bluecoat Cavalry (8x)

- Greencoats (all in a single case)
--- Thespian Torso (2x)
--- Greycoats (9x)
--- Hoodie guy w/ armor & dragon helmet (4x)

- Pirates (case per each)
--- Classic pirates (12x)
--- Classic pirates that could pass for townsfolk (12x)
--- PoTC (12x)

- Others that can be used with pirates (single case)
--- Native American minifigs (4x)
--- Roman/Greek (6x)
--- Highwaymen (4x)
--- Girl minifigs / princesses (6x)
--- Shakespeare (3x)
--- Armada (2x)
--- Castle Townsfolk (4x)

Edited by evancelt
Forgot my dark blue navy guys!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I also find it helpful to have a 2-step case with my "go to" minifigs in it because it provides easy access. This is my current go to case:

minifig-cases.jpg

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
3 minutes ago, Brickander Brickumnus said:

Adding some photos in your posts, like @evancelt, will be helpful.

Especially for us who we don't have "specialty" in minifigures.

I will see if I have some time today to take some pics of the organized cases. Would be good to see what @natesroom is trying to sort!

Edited by evancelt

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

@evancelt I never liked the toy soldier torso, but that photo is changing my mind.

@natesroom I have torsos organized in a clear plastic jewelry box, blue soldiers, red soldiers, Spanish, civilians, pirates, natives, and females. Legs are all together in a bin, but the decorated ones are in the jewelry box. Heads are organized into clean shaven, facial hair, native, pirate, and female. Weapons, epaulettes, headgear, and utensils are piled together.

I think the best question for organizing it... are they reasonably safe from scratching? Can I find/assemble any pirate within an acceptable time frame? 

Edited by TomSkippy

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

So this was more informative then i thought, So currently i have Pre Assembled Minifigs that i would call officical (came from a set, or parts that made an exact replica of a figure from a set) then i have extras inside plano containers. I will post photos below and discuss/describe my dilemna.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Here are some photos of my dilemma, and I want to organize them better. Currently I have all my Castle factions bagged together but all my other figs live inside a container of sorts... as there are many new "castle/fantasy/historic/pirate" CMFs they don't belong to a faction and need to live somewhere.

All my loose pieces are in a separate container

2021-02-13_02-24-30

50940020332_6462a43779_b.jpgPXL_20210213_192454860 by Natesroom, on Flickr

Edited by natesroom

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Another thing to consider is how much room you want the storage to take up. My method of using acrylic display cases takes up lots of room (the whole top of a bookcase), but the pro is that I can see them and be reminded they exist to use in MOCs. However, some times I need to make room on top of the shelf to put half-done MOCs.

If your collection is fitting in that divided case, that might be great - doesn't take up too much room! You could potentially use ziplocs within the division to group things as needed.

2 hours ago, TomSkippy said:

I never liked the toy soldier torso, but that photo is changing my mind.

Can I find/assemble any pirate within an acceptable time frame? 

@TomSkippy I think the torso of the Toy Soldier is pretty good, but the blue legs, red hat, rosy cheeks, etc are all pretty goofy - so I changed them!

Interesting tip about storing minifigs broken apart into torsos/heads/etc. I have ~150 minifigs but 300+ heads. I find I end up finding and using a head from one of the built together minifigs in a display case rather than rummaging through the overflow bag - helps it stay front of mind. Definitely good to have extra bags for different color epaulettes, etc though. I keep baggies of hats, epaulettes, muskets, swords, etc in a fishing tackle box. Broke some of them out recently for The Siege of Skull Island by Imperial Guards.

Good point re: ability to find things. Probably best to weigh the following and come up with a ratio that is right for you:

- Ability to find what you need quickly
- Amount of space it takes up to store
- Ability to see / display the minifigs if that gives you inspiration

Edited by evancelt

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I am keeping my minifigs in a drawer container all disassembled. I started by separating the too modern aspect torsoes from the medieval and Pirate ones but after a certain use, I saw I tend to use any torso available (I even used a SW Rebel Pilote torso backward !) and so mixed all my torsoes together in the same drawer.

Actually I have a group of minifigs ready for action scattered in all my MOCs and a big amount of disassembled minifigs in several drawers of a container

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Interesting - I'll follow this too. Currently, have some set up on some baseplates with weapons and all, but the rest in a few bins, one for specific characters and one for general applicable minifigs/minifig parts. Accessories are sorted by type (guns, shields, long weapons, short weapons, epaulettes, armour, etc.)

Non-pirate/era-appropriate are sorted out for themselves.

The acrylic cases are a good idea to avoid dust, the constant enemy of lego!

On 2/13/2021 at 3:11 PM, evancelt said:

Forgot my dark blue navy guys!

Heresy! :pir-upset:

:pir-wink:

 

EDIT: Very useful blog from @Kai NRG!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
On 2/13/2021 at 4:48 PM, evancelt said:

I also find it helpful to have a 2-step case with my "go to" minifigs in it because it provides easy access. This is my current go to case:

 

When I see this I have to re-think my storage... The pile of Lego is just growing and growing..... And minifigs and parts i use most time on to organize.. Bricks is just mixed because I build best with a mixed pile.... But Minifigs... its killing me... 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I learned how to store my Minifigures after literally visiting a local lego pop and mom shop and saw how they do it, the thing is to buy something called scrapbook casing usually a brand called Simply Tidy makes them, since I have a ton of 32x32 I used them as the base but you can literally fit them standing them up, weapons and all, comfortable inside one.  I literally do this for all my lines be castle, Star Wars old trilogy, sequel, micro fighters etc. 

I bought the majority of my casings after Toys R us sold their stores since some of these were only made for Lego!  

 

t4b3Sfd.jpg

Edited by eldiano

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
15 hours ago, evancelt said:

Nice tip!

If you live in the US take advantage of Michael’s coupons to get them 25% off, you then can usually get a hefty discount on the 6tray/mini shelf combo!!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
Sign in to follow this  

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    No registered users viewing this page.