Looking for a mass-produced casing that could fit my needs

[koifish | 670]

Figured I would ask here since collectors fret over shelf matters all the time. New 3DS cover plates are a pain to store. If you do not have the original packaging then there isn't much out there to hold them securely. There are boxes that fit them but nothing that secures them in place and nothing that adequately reinforces against damage. The plates are starting to get hard to find and some are getting very valuable, so in the interest of protecting them, I want to discuss this matter further. Below is a breakdown of my current thinking. If you don't care to read it, then skip to the last paragraph. If you do care to read it, then please do so with a critical eye. I want to know if you think my idea is reasonable, or if you think I am taking the wrong approach. Don't be afraid to discard my suggestion and offer a different solution.

Now then, my goal is to find a storage solution for New 3DS cover plates. The main goals:

1. secure storage, something to hold the plates in place and prevent moving around/scratching/etc. Nothing sticky or potentially residue-creating should be touching the plates in any way.
2. mass production, a case or container that is already mass-produced and thus available in large quantities for cheap. I don't have a ton of plates, but I also don't want to necessarily do a lot of work and headache to make this work. As any good engineer knows, the best project is one already done for you.
3. easy access, which means it would be good if the plates were visible or otherwise easy to pick out, such as taking them out of a box or off of a shelf. They don't need to be completely visible all the time, but some method of easily identifying and accessing a set would be excellent.

 

One idea I've had is using plastic cases. I remember for a long time people bought different plastic cases to be replacement cartridge boxes/cases, and companies used to make universal cart cases. My thinking was, a thick enough case could be filled with foam on the inside of both halves. Cutouts could then be made into the foam to fit the two plates, one on each side, deep enough to fully contain the plates. I don't think you would need further securing devices after that, because the foam cutout, if purposely made slightly too small, would hold the plates in by friction alone.

I figure the cutouts should be slightly deeper than the plates, and only slightly narrower and shorter (maybe by a few millimeters). The entirety of the depth of the plates is on the edges, so I would make the main cutout pretty shallow, and then just cut deeper slits on the edges, so that the two plate edges would sit and nestle deep inside of the cuts and be securely held. Making the whole cutout slightly deeper would give an inset that the plate could sit inside of, ensuring it was protected on all sides. The last piece could be a thin foam sheet that went between the two sides when closed, fully sealing both plates.

So all that said, I think I am looking for a plastic clamshell case. Now onto the dimensions.

The bottom plate is largest, at 140.58mm x 63.50mm, so the foam cutout hole likely needs to be about 140mm x 63mm so that you get a snug fit. The bottom plate is about 10.5mm deep, so you also need it to be 11 or 12mm deep foam to let the plate sit deeply inside and give space from the surface. The top plate is smaller, so it fits within the same 140x63. You would just need to cut its spot to a smaller size. It is also much more shallow, and a 6.5mm deep foam pad should be enough to hold it. Including both pads, I figure that 18-19mm deep would be enough, maybe 20mm to be safe and allow a thin pad between the two sides. The one side would be deeper than the other since the bottom plate needs more space, though I imagine the case would have equal space on both sides. Lastly, I would need to have some amount of space around the plates, because my design relies on having some space around the plates for side protection/firm hold. Assuming 4mm on all sides, that would bring it up to 148mm x 71mm internal space. Add that to the 20mm internal depth to get the final dimensions.

the tl;dr - My ideal solution appears to be the following: a plastic hard shell case that can sit on a shelf, with internal dimensions no smaller than 148mm x 71mm x 20mm, that would be cheap and easy to buy a few dozen of and be easy to install foam pads inside of. Lastly some way of labeling the outside would be the final goal, though masking tape on the edge would suffice in a pinch. Does such a product exist? If so, what is it and where can I buy it in higher quantities?

As stated above, if you have another suggestion, then please reply with that instead. I have not yet tried this method and have no idea if my foam theories will pan out. Thanks for reading.

[koifish | 670]

I spoke to an Amazon seller of repro NES hard shell cases (like the ones they used for rentals) and unfortunately they have the right internal dimensions for everything except height, which is only 140mm. Going to look for VHS hard cases next, maybe something exists and if so then tapes should definitely be big enough to give the dimensions I need.

[drxandy | 3,349]

What about a cartridge or box protector? I was using SNES cart protectors for displaying my dsi systems and there was a little space but looked nice to me. I hate to not have the dimensions but maybe something like that?

[koifish | 670]

@drxandy Any idea what model the stated cart protectors are or where I can get some?

Reached out to a VHS case seller on amazon to see what they send back. I assume if it fits a tape then it should fit these, as plates are smaller by a good margin.

[drxandy | 3,349]

21 hours ago, koifish said:

@drxandy Any idea what model the stated cart protectors are or where I can get some?

Reached out to a VHS case seller on amazon to see what they send back. I assume if it fits a tape then it should fit these, as plates are smaller by a good margin.

https://retroprotection.com/product/snes-cartridge-protector/ people also sell them on eBay and several other places online (just Google videogame box protectors and there's a lot of different kinds out there)

Maybe will fit? You would have to compare to the size of cartridge to the shells, sorry I'm not more help

[koifish | 670]

@drxandy Thanks. I'll check it out.

For now, I've spoken with an amazon seller of VHS storage cases and ordered a set. They average out to about USD 1.30 a case. Also ordered two types of foam, polyurethane and polyethylene, to see which I like more. Both are half an inch thick, which given the tape case dimensions, will almost totally fill the inside, which is perfect. The cases will probably be a bit larger than I'd like overall, but I think the match of cost and space will be hard to beat. Just have to wait until they arrive to start cutting up foam and experimenting.

[koifish | 670]

Brief update; I got the foam. Also got some tracing tools and a utility knife, following some advice I found online. Cutting to a shallow enough depth to create an insert that still fits inside a tape case won't be easy, but should be interesting. I'll try and chronicle the process. Maybe a blog post here. Cases don't arrive until later this week, so I'll do test cuts for now and see how it goes.

Edited July 23, 2024 by koifish

[koifish | 670]

First case well under way. Will share pic. Adapting into blog soon. Surprising to me, the bottom plate has been much easier. The deeper side walls means it sticks in more easily. I tried a new method as well; Going to redo the top plate to see if my new method works better or if it's just a PITA every time.