A Seasonal Post

It may seem like things have been quiet here at Lead HQ. Well, far from it. With Christmas looming I have had to up sticks and relocate to a new home. With a tale that was almost Dickensian, involving forced house moving at Christmas I have done it. A wargamers worst fear, transporting their leadpile.

So, apologies for the lack of posts, but I'll be honest, I've been busy. I don't need to explain in detail, everyone knows moving house is a pain. Moving house with a wargamers collection even more so. So, now we are mostly settled, (the Christmas tree is up and I can find a shirt for work) I thought I would talk to you about the exciting world of storage.

We all spend a small fortune on our toy soldier collections, yet how much care do we take of them? I have seen collections thrown in cardboard boxes with little more than a carrier bag to vaguely try and stop the Armee du Nord from chipping their paint. I have seen players sweep whole regiments off the table at the end of a game like them are gathering loose change into a bucket at a jumble sale. Taking them home in a shoe box tucked under an arm like a subuteo team.

When we discovered we had to move house one of the saving graces was that my extremely intelligent and organised wife has always insisted that apart from the few pieces on display in a couple of glass cabinets, all our hobby items were already organised and stored correctly. Only a couple of days after we had agreed on our new home, I was moving the lead pile in. A combination of old GW cases, KR multicases and boxes from The Works ensured most of my armies travelled in comfort. Yes, I have discovered that The Works sell a collapsible box that can hold five GW or KR trays with space at the side for a rulebook or two. They have lots of designs, comic characters, cute characters, I even got a  couple in classic Great War propaganda posters.

If you are buying multiple, they will cost you a fiver a box, then just buy some foam trays separately from your favourite supplier. I'll still use my official cases for taking models to play elsewhere, but for home storage they do an excellent job.

So, the home move went well, minimal casualties, there was the odd model that was in the glass cabinet that yes, I did just put in a very small foam filled box and carry on my lap in the car, some models are just too delicate. Yes, a tiny model of a boat with paper sails and rigging looks good, but how do you transport them without completely trashing all your hard work?

How this resin guy made it unscathed I will never know, he normally breaks from just being looked at.

Some models didn't fare so we'll.

How?

Looks okay at first...

my dodgy pinning job is going to need re-doing though.

The rest of the move? Well, luckily my wife's hobby is knitting. Wool is a lot lighter than lead and doesn't need packing in bubble wrap or foam. I'm a little jealous of a hobby that is light and soft. Well, apart from the needles of course, but my wife has nowhere near as many needles as I have brushes, so let's leave that there shall we.

The Illustrious Opponent was one of many that selflessly gave up some of their free time to help me move, for which I am forever grateful. When he saw our new living room with space for a new larger dining table the gaming ideas were already being discussed. The new year will definitely have to have some tabletop skirmishes taking place at the new Chez Lead. I have however promised myself not a dice will roll or a brush stroke until the boxes are fully unpacked. (Let's see if that promise is kept.)