Tag Archives: storage

Dreadball Battle Foam Review

I love Dreadball.  I’m almost done painting both teams, just the 4 human strikers left unpainted.  The box insert that come with the game has places for everything, including the minis, but it lets them move around and bump into each other.  To remedy this, Battle Foam sells a kit that is specifically for Dreadball, and fits in the game box.

The imaginatively titled Dreadball Foam Kit For Game Box is $37.99 and comes with 2 foam trays. Only one of the trays will fit in the box at a time.  I’m not quite sure why it comes with two.  Just one tray will fit 4 teams, cards, dice, tokens, balls, and the ref.  What do I do with the other tray?

That said, the foam is very nice.  The bottom is a dense, stiff foam, and the top part is a softer foam.  It fits in the box well, and has a space for the game cards.  There are many different sized spaces, so you can fit everything into an appropriate space, including the dice, tokens, etc.

The foam is just slightly too tall, however.  Once the board is placed on top, there’s not quite enough room for the rulebook, or the roster pad.

dreadball_battle_foam_in_box

Here’s the foam tray in the game box.

 

dreadball_battle_foam_rulebook_no_fit

This is how much the rulebook sticks out when the game board is placed on top of the foam tray.  It’s not too bad.  Once the lid is on, it’s hard to tell.  However, there is no room at all for the roster pad.

 

One last, minor complaint: it takes a while for your order to show up.  I ordered directly from Battle Foam on June 5th, and my order arrived June 19th.  To be fair, they do warn you about that on their website.

Pros:

  • Fits in the box
  • Has a spot for the cards, and other spaces will hold dice, etc.
  • Can fit 4 full teams
  • Sturdy construction
  • I feel my minis are safe

Cons:

  • Why 2 trays?  I’d prefer just the one tray and a cheaper price
  • A bit too tall, the rulebook sticks out a little.
  • No space for the roster pad

Overall, I’m happy with it.  I suppose I can use the 2nd tray later this year when my Deadzone gear arrives.  More importantly, the minis I spent hours painting are protected, and everything (except the roster pad) still fits in the box, more or less, with a lot less rattling around.

 

This Is What $85 Buys You In 15mm Sci-Fi

One of the great things about 15mm Sci-Fi minis is that they are so inexpensive.  An infantry figure costs around 60 cents. A tank or wheeled vehicle around $11.  Compared to some company’s 28mm figs, that is super cheap.

Here’s what $85 buys you:

full_frontal

This is my 15mm Sci-Fi army, which can  be used to play Gruntz, Tomorrow’s War, Stargrunt II, FUBAR, etc. I ordered from Ground Zero Games in the UK  and Rebel Miniatures in the USA. Total cost was $85 US, not including shipping or tax. 65 infantry, 4 big guns, and 5 wheeled vehicles.

 

full_off_center

The big list:

— Vehicles: —

Right side

  • GZG V15-42A Bulldog 4-wheel HMTV closed-back Troop Carrier version
  • GZG V15-39A Bobcat 4-wheel HMLCV (High Mobility Light Combat Vehicle) with autocannon turret

Left Side

  • GZG V15-42B Bulldog 4-wheel HMTV closed-back Command Post version (with left over Rebel Mini’s gun)
  • GZG V15-41A Bulldog 4-wheel HMTV (High Mobility Transport Vehicle), open, with tribarrel autocannon mount (+ crew) (I didn’t use the crew)

Center

  • Rebel Minis RMEFG1 Earth Force ATV Buggy.

— Big Guns: —

Right side:

  • GZG V15-25A GAWP – Groundmount Autonomous Weapons Platform with Rotary Cannon

Left side:

  • GZG V15-73A Heavy Autocannon (with NAC gunner)

— Troops: —

Black “Command” and Black 1:

  • GZG SG15-SFE5 Assault Team (human troops in fatigues) – 4 character figures and four line grunts

Black 3 & 4:

  • GZG SG15-F03 FSE POWER ARMOUR

Black 2 & 5

  • GZG SG15-E03 ESU POWER ARMOUR

Green 3 & 4:

  • GZG SG15-A23 NAC Power Armour & SG15-A21 NAC Assault Power Armour pack A

Green “Command”, 1 & 2:

  • Rebel Minis MAEF1 The Earth Force Marines Infantry Pack

full_off_center_lower full_side wheeled_from_side wheeled_and_plants command_flag sunglasses_in_center armor_manned_guns_and_buggy

auto_guns

in_the_tin

 

All 65 troops fit in a cookie tin.  Magnetic bases keep them in place.

GZG Full Thrust Intro Fleet Double – Part 5

case

Spaceship minis really need to be stored with the base attached. I put hours into cleaning, assembling and painting these miniatures, I want to make sure they stay safe in storage and transport. I’ve used camera cases like this one in the past to store microphones. I bet it would be great for miniatures, too. Dedicated miniature cases can be very expensive. This case is $34.99 on Amazon.com. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001HJTK5Y/ref=oh_details_o01_s00_i00  There are many other sizes, also.

 

case_open

The inside of the case. It has some dividers I won’t use, a set of keys to lock it, and a shoulder strap. There are 3 layers of foam, a thin top and bottom layer, and a thick middle layer that is perforated for easy cutting.

 

measuring

I’ve removed the top layer of foam. I put it back before I close the case and put them away. The middle layer of foam is perforated, so it’s easy to cut along the perforations with a butter knife. I would not suggest using a sharper knife, because then you might cut the foam instead of the perforations. I measured the space I needed for each ship. In this case it was a 3×4 rectangle.

 

cut_fit

It fits. If you accidentally cut too much, glue it back with wood or elmers glue.

 

cuts_with_supports

I cut all the spaces for the ESU fleet. In some cases, I put a chuck of foam back for the front or back of the ship to rest on, but still allow the base to go all the way down. You can use wood glue to hold them in, or just friction.

 

Starship mini storage

Here’s the whole ESU Intro Fleet

 

both_fleets

 

Here’s both Intro Fleets. As you can see, there’s still plenty of room for more ships.