Component and Parts Storage

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General[edit]

Storage is a necessary pain. What do we want from storage?

  • Easy to find the parts.
  • Easy to setup and maintain.
  • Space efficient.
  • Reasonable cost.
  • Some people want to see the part.
  • Safe for the part.

Here we are mostly concerned with small parts which can be a problem no matter how much space you have.

Coin Envelopes[edit]

These are small ( but available in a variety of sizes ) brown paper envelops. You can buy them in boxes of hundreds. What is good about them.

Characteristics

  • Little wasted space for small parts.
  • Easy to write on ( and erase and reuse ).
  • Easy to sort.
  • Very inexpensive ( 500 for $15 recently on Amazon ).
  • Need to store them but see pictures for one way.
  • Parts not very visible.
  • Best for small parts.
  • Unclear on static issues, but can be used with static foam or bags.
  • Parts are not physically protected.


Env1a.jpg Coin Envolopes in a drawer.

Env2a.jpg

Small Drawer Sets[edit]

Characteristics

  • Fair amount of wasted space. Drawer takes up same space empty or full.
  • Nice labels are a bit of a pain.
  • Fairly easy to sort.
  • Can be expensive, and almost never cheap.
  • Parts fairly visible by opening the drawer.
  • Unclear on static issues, but can be used with static foam or bags.
  • Parts are physically protected.


Smalldrawa.jpg


Divided Storage Boxes[edit]

Plastic boxes with divided sections. A significant disadvantage is that you can not easily dump just one kind of part to root through them.

Notebooks[edit]

There are some inserts for notebooks with envelopes or pockets. Some are clear so you can see the parts. We could use some more info on this.


Baggies[edit]

Best for moderate sized parts when static is not an issue and seeing the part is. Reused washed food bags and they are free. Need a larger container to store them.

Plastic Shoe Boxes[edit]

Many are made that are easy to stack in a stable way. For larger parts. Can get ( with a good deal ) for about $1.00. May be used to hold smaller containers like baggies or coin envelopes.




Links[edit]