That's exactly what I'm trying to move past having to do. The storage containers suck for play, but loading baking cups (or whatever) for games where you need access to a 15 different components, and then re-storing them afterwards is a drain.Smoove_B wrote: ↑Sat Dec 23, 2023 11:46 pm I guess a lot also depends on whether or not you think you're going to be playing directly from the storage container. I've tried doing that, but Invariably end up putting tokens into a series of silicone baking cups instead because they're easier to use at the table.
I have a number of those - I picked up a stack of them a few years ago at back-to-school clearance. I use them for all sorts of odds and ends.Smoove_B wrote: ↑Sat Dec 23, 2023 11:46 pm When I hit that point (of not finding what I wanted), I transitioned to bags for storage and then if you're looking for stacking, sealing containers to store the bags and other components in (for easy access), I am a big fan of these bins that are sold on Amazon but actually can be found at Office Depot and Target. They have various depths and a locking lid; they stack great.
Unfortunately, I'm not finding what I'm looking for. To clarify the terminology I'm using, I'd call a 'component tray' one designed for easy access. That means shallow enough to pick things up from the bottom, and with rounded/slanted bottoms to the compartments to make it easy to grab flat pieces. That's the problem with the bead box storage option (which I still like for games not being played.) The bead boxes have tall, narrow compartments that meet the bottom at right angles. That means that it's really difficult to pick up flat pieces off of the bottom - you can't 'pinch' things because it's too deep and narrow, and you can't slide it out because of the right angle.
I have some component trays.
The best ones I have, rock-solid, swappable dividers in three sizes, link together, but can't be used for storage, which means that you have to spend extra time during setup pulling out all of the components and loading it:
A nice one, big compartments, rounded bottom corners (although they could be more rounded), but the lid absolutely does not stay on in storage, and it's vacuformed, so it's not sturdy enough to put a box band on:
This one has perfectly shaped compartments (although they could be a bit bigger), but it's the one with the springy lid that either has to stick straight up or be folded under - and if it's folded under and gets too light, it turns into a token catapult:
There are also individual boxes/trays, but the problem there is that either you have to load them up for each game, or you have to try to store a dozen different small boxes (and with my space, that's a problem.)
And then there are the storage boxes. Like I said, I like these for storage, but they just don't work well on the tabletop.
Here's my box for the Fallout board games, which it's perfect for:
The problem is that I have a bunch of games that just won't fit. I have probably ten that require two boxes, and a few that require three. Here's Core Space, keeping in mind that half of the components from the expansions aren't in there:
Still, I like these, as they store really, really well, and at $2 each, I can buy a dozen and have them ready as I need them. That's a huge advantage, as it means that they're all the same size, which makes storing them much more efficient:
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So, what I was looking for was:
1) a bead style box that was big enough to hold the two-box games in one, and are cheap enough that I can buy a stack for the ones I have now, plus extras for the future so that I can take advantage of the same-sized boxes when it comes to storage. (I'm not looking for something big enough for something like Core Space - those are big enough to require specialized storage.)
2) A hybrid between the component tray (easy access to pieces) and the storage boxes (solid construction, more compartments, lid designed to stay closed.) The idea being that if I'm going to be playing a game repeatedly for a while, I can take the pieces out of the bead box, put them into the tray, and use that. And when I'm done with that game, I can put the pieces back in the bead box, and use the tray for the next extended-play game. And this was never about games with four or five types of tokens - those only take a minute to set up, so I don't really need six-compartment boxes. These are for the more expansive games where sorting tokens into the trays and back into storage every time really pads the setup time.
I'm now not sure that #1 is available at affordable prices, or that #2 exists at all.
