I keep the boxes for my engines and rolling stock. I have too many engines and rolling stock that would ever fit on my layout. I group by era and only use those engines and rolling stock that are appropriate for that era. I do the same thing with my structures to a certain point as well.
Right now my layout is running 4-4-0's 4-6-0's and early 2-8-0's as well as some early Shays from the 1900's. Rolling stock is mainly 36' box cars, stock cars and reefers and shorty oil cars logging and mining and flat cars. I have a few speciality buildings from that era as well.
When running other eras these engines and rolling stock and a few specialty buildings are put in storage and then I run another era such as the late 1950's with some later steam and early diesels
I do keep my original boxes, but then again my collection isnt large by any means. When I shift eras or prototypes, I can store the cars and locos I dont want in thier boxes. I wrap my blue box cars in paper towels before putting back in thier original box, keeps them from rattling around and knocking off the couplers. Original boxes are very important for Brass locos, cars, signal bridges and structures and any limited run items. Its much easier to dispose of a collection if the higher doller items have thier original boxes and instructions intact. This will net a better value at the estate sale for the family. On that note, I am searching for a box for my Tenshodo ATSF SD24 diesel if anyone has one that needs a home! Cheers Mike and Michele T
LHS mechanic and geniune train and antique garden tractor nut case!
eaglescoutApparently, locomoives and rolling stock in the original boxes are more valuable if you ever want to resell them.
I have heard this more than once. So because you do not know which loco or car is going to be of value you have to keep all the boxes to be sure.
Bob
Photobucket Albums:NPBL - 2008 The BeginningNPBL - 2009 Phase INPBL - 2010 Downtown
Keep the boxes??
I have very limited space and a huge backlog of unbuilt kits.
Locos and Brass rolling stock boxes yes. Everything else no. I do use the car boxes to store other items and sort stuff.
Most of my rolling stock was built from kits and would be damaged by putting it back in the boxes (all those grabs and other details). It all stays on the layout or in storge bins specifically designed to not damage the delicate details.
Guy
see stuff at: the Willoughby Line Site
Boxes for rolling stock I keep without question, I've taken entire trains in their boxes to run at times. Not the best idea, but I didn't have the money for a storage box. When I did acquire one I wondered how I lived so long without it. I got bored once and stacked all of mine up to see how high they'd stack before collapsing. There were no models inside of course!
For model vehicles, something I enjoy collecting almost as much as I do trains, unless the boxes are particularly nice I throw them out. The big exception being Model Power vehicle cases, they're like a display case for the model off of a layout.
Structure kit models I've never felt a need to keep the box.
Alvie
I saw something like that on TV, specifically the show Hoarders, made me sad.
I don't keep any of the boxes once they are opened and determined to function properly. This being said, I am a user not a collector. And I don't buy stuff that might one day be expensive (I'm cheap). All of my cars are on the track. My engines are displayed on the wall in a specially made cabinet. these are mostly old Tycos that I had as a kid, (and they all work) mainly for sentimental reasons. I do have boxes of parts, modeling scraps etc. and these are stored under the layout on some shelving. Along with my son's Legos and Hot Wheels, the wife's high school annuals, and other odds and ends.
I have all the boxes for my locos, but the rolling stock ones go in the recycling. I have one model structure kit box, in which I store the odds and ends left over from other kits. And I usually have a couple of shipping boxes or shoe boxes hanging around just in case.
Connecticut Valley Railroad A Branch of the New York, New Haven, and Hartford
"If you think you can do a thing or think you can't do a thing, you're right." -- Henry Ford
I have an attic full of boxes in larger boxes for mostly rolling stock,& locomotives, for several reason. A: Anything is worth more in it's original box if you were ever inclined to sell any of them and B there is nothing better for long term storage. I have way more rolling stock then my layout can presently accommodate so I floor to ceiling shelves in my staging room full of rolling stock. When it comes to saving kit boxes I am little less anal about it. It just isn't practical to do so and for what purpose really once the kit is built and residing on the layout other then keeping several of the larger ones to hold kit bashing parts there is no need. When your storing empty boxes you don't have to be as careful where you put them. I don't know about your attic put in my house I wouldn't think of putting boxes with rolling stock or locomotives in them I'll leave that for the wife and her gazillion Christmas ornaments and other assorted do dads .
I threw away about 70% of my rolling stock boxes this fall. Just to much stuff in the train room. Most off my rolling stock is Blue Boxes and personal I don't think the boxes make for good storeage. Couplers keep coming off fron slinding around in the box. I know wrapping them will keep that from happing, but if I wrap them might as well but them in a larger box.
Do keep all the engine boxes.
Ken
I hate Rust
When I was in HO, a lot of Athearn and MDC boxes got retasked for parts/tools/materials storage. Some boxes were destroyed. And others were used to store the rolling stock that came in them. Structure kit boxes were either discarded or retasked. I suppose a case can be made for keeping the picture on the cover for future reference.
Now that I'm in N scale, most of the rolling stock comes in clear plastic jewel cases, and I've even bought new jewel cases to store items that didn't come with them. It seems to be the best way to store the cars and locos. And the jewel cases can be retasked.
I didn't get a chance to build most of my N scale structure kits before I had to move. A sump pump failure resulted in a basement flood, and most of the boxes had to be discarded. The kits went into ziplock bags.
In general, I am more willing to save "permanent" boxes like plastic jewel boxes, or the old plastic boxes Train Miniature used for their kits. Cardboard boxes I am less likely to save, although an Athearn blue box or the equivelent MDC boxes stand a better chance than a structure kit box.
Dan
Actually , come to think of it, my Dad kept all of the boxes for our old Lionel stuff which was good because when we went to sell the stuff after we had converted to HO it made quite a difference in the price if we hadn't had the original boxes. Of course those boys carry things a bit too far when they start grading condition of the boxes as well, but that's their game.
Mark
RMR
farrellaa I keep the locomotive bpxes in case I want to sell them again. Kits and other rolliing stock I toss unless it is a high dollar item that might need storage later or again for resale. ...
I keep the locomotive bpxes in case I want to sell them again. Kits and other rolliing stock I toss unless it is a high dollar item that might need storage later or again for resale.
This. I don't have the space to keep everything.
HO & N scale. Digitrax DCC. Mostly L&N (Louisville and Nashville) railway using a mix of brands. Back in the hobby after a looooong absence.
Another reason I have not seen mentioned is that if a part breaks off later, becomes worn etc...If you keep the orginial box with instructions it usually has the part number/name on it. This makes ordering and contacting the correct manufacture much easier. You can also use it to determine which Hobby shop store price sticker on box. This has been very useful to me on several occasions.
We tend to keep a lot of things I suppose we don't "need".
AMong them are all the boxes for my rolling stock. I don't know why I keep them. I don't take the arduous time to repack them in the boxes tehy came in when they are not in use, rather I pack them with extruded foam and cotton bating into plastic shoeboxes. I have two dressers in the train room fullof other stuff I am trying to get rid of, JUSt so I can store the empty RR boxes in them. Actually what I shoud do is get a bunch of cardboard boxes and store the empty RR boxes in them, then put those boxes in the shed! Then I could put my rolling stock in the shoe boxes into the dressers for easier access.
I DO throw away the empty boxes for building kits, but for some reason I cut the picture off the front of the box to "save". I don't know why.
WE live in a trailer,and have WAY to much stuff crammed into it anyway. we need to thin down. If my back holds out, I would like to have a yard sale and sell stuff CHEAP if someone can use it rather than just add to the landfill problems by throwing away.
You are NOT ALONE in keeping boxes, the MRR force is with you!.
-G .
Just my thoughts, ideas, opinions and experiences. Others may vary.
HO and N Scale.
After long and careful thought, they have convinced me. I have come to the conclusion that they are right. The aliens did it.
Hi Ken,
I think this ritual started many years ago, 50s-60s, with the brass locomotives as they were high quality boxes meant to stay with the engine, caboose, or passenger car and greatly "devalued" the item if the box wasn't present.
Since then this thinking has expanded to include most every item we have now which I personally think is a good thing, but that's just "my" opinion.
Over the years I have acquired quite a bit of rolling stock with no boxes and tried several different alternatives but without that much success then I stumbled on the solution one day while at a friend's pizza joint.
I bought some unused pizza boxes from him, not those flimsy, cheap things but some heavy duty corrogated boxes. They came in 3 different sizes so I bought a couple of each and tried them to find out which ones worked best for me. I now have all my excess rolling stock that didn't have original boxes in them neatly stacked on shelves. The includes freight cars, passenger cars, and some engines which I acquired for various projects.
I place a label on the end of the box and can tell instantly what is in them and they are all neatly keep from dust and such at the same time. I also "date" the label.
All of my other "rolling stock" that still have their original boxes I put in those heavy plastic "milk crates" for storage and/or transport. They're very tough and will take some abuse without harming the contents plus they're "stackable" and because they have semi-open sides they also get good air flow around them.
As the old saying goes and I'm always telling my wife to no avail it seems, "organization is the key to productivity". It's also the key to knowing what you have so you aren't buying the same thing over and over because you can't find the ones you have!
I keep all locomotive boxes with instructions. Rolling stock... hmmm.. I've kept about 40 percent maybe. If you're likely to move in the future then having the boxes is a good thing. I have a friend that has well over 1, 500 rolling stock and just about 90 percent of the original boxes. If you're going to sell the collection then having the original box, or even a duplicate box, is a definite plus.
I just don't have the space.
Jarrell
I guess I'm the contrarian, as usual.
With the exception of five (count 'em) boxes for U.S. prototype locos, all of my empty boxes have long since joined the trash stream. Any kit boxes I have still have unassembled kits in them.
When I moved, several years ago, my rolling stock was packed in plastic file boxes between decks of fan-fold underlayment (thin extruded foam), separated by strips of the same material. I suffered exactly NO damage, even though the boxes were transported 2000 miles in the bed of a pickup truck (under a topper).
My 'not on the layout' rolling stock is stored in cassettes, not boxes.
As for possible sale action, I'll let my estate executor worry about it. It won't be an issue before then.
Chuck (Modeling Central Japan in September, 1964)
I keep the boxes for freight cars if they're the type with a separate lid, and pick-up extra empty ones when they're available. For most cars, they go in the boxes in which they fit best, which is not necessarily their original ones. Because I don't have boxes for all of the cars (I buy a lot of used stuff that comes without boxes), I make-do with what I have: an Athearn Blue Box will hold two open hoppers, while the longer version used for Athearn passenger cars is good for four cars of the same type. I re-label each box with the reporting marks and car number, and keep them reasonably organised on shelves beneath my staging yards. Not only are the boxes useful for carrying the cars, they also serve as off-layout interchange destinations and origins.
Passenger cars, locomotives, and MoW equipment goes into boxes like these:
Inside are compartmentalised trays, built to suit the equipment:
Wayne
IRONROOSTER I keep them all even if the built kit won't fit in. No good reason, I just like having them. Enjoy Paul
I keep them all even if the built kit won't fit in. No good reason, I just like having them.
Enjoy
Paul
I'm on the same page with Paul. I did recently move and they were handy, but I had stored them neatly stacked on a shelf as if to document the achievement of having built the kits and bought the brass. I stored them with no intention of using them.
Somehow, I can't bear to throw them away. Yes, it's a quirk shared by many of us in the hobby.
Phil, I'm not a rocket scientist; they are my students.
Well, I keep loco and rolling stock boxes, not for resale or "collector value", I'm never selling anything. But they are the best way to transport or store models in the event of a move or other life changing event.
Structure boxes - no, becaue they won't go back in.
Sheldon
I keep the locomotive bpxes in case I want to sell them again. Kits and other rolliing stock I toss unless it is a high dollar item that might need storage later or again for resale. I have at least 60-70 unbuilt kits/rolliing stock in my storage areas and don;t really see a need to keep empty ones. My wife likes to toss anything in the fridge that has an expired date on it, even one day past. She would have my train room spotless if I gave her the chance. I think many of my kits have expired dates on them!! Save what you want but remember how much space you are giving up to empy boxes.
- Bob
Life is what happens while you are making other plans!
I keep all of my original boxes to my locos and rolling stock. However, if the box is to a flat car of some kind (regular, bulkhead, centerbeam, etc.) that has a permanently attached load that I added to it, then no.
I won't be able to put the car back into the box unless I end up breaking the load and/or the car while trying.
Will
I keep all my boxes for my rolling stock and locomotives. Makes for an easier storage and more valuable if I decide to sell them.
I had saved all my rolling stock boxes just because I felt someday I might need them. As it turned out that day came sooner than I expected and I was glad I had them. All my rolling stock is packed away in their original boxes then sorted and placed into larger containers by type of train they would be used for. I will not be able to start my layout until next year and sorting them will be a lot easier and I know that they will not be damaged. I had kept them all intact as and stored them under the layout.
Joe
Apparently, locomoives and rolling stock in the original boxes are more valuable if you ever want to resell them. As far as building kits, I agree you could not fit the finished product back in the box so I can't see the value in keeping it.
some things are just too good to throw away immediately. i have long observed this human behavior in myself as well as others, and i don't fully understand it yet.
for instance, back when i ran a business my helper would ask what to do with a particular thing and i would almost always tell him to put it under the bench or on a shelf. after a few months of this i would tell him to throw all that crap in the scrap. seems like it is easier to throw it away after you have kept it for a while.
as long as it is a bunch of kit boxes you are probably ok. just as long as you don't get to be like the lady on tv recently who had 56 cats in her house. 20 live and 36 dead. now there is a hoarder!!
grizlump