Building a games case - Part 1
10.6.2020
Translation: machine translated
I always take a good number of board and card games with me to game nights. I have a special case to transport them easily. But it's getting on in years. So it's time for the game case 2.0.
Almost everyone around me loves board games. However, tastes vary and there aren't always the same number of players on game nights. Sometimes it's primarily about socialising, sometimes it's about challenging games. In order to offer a selection, I often had plastic bags (paper bags tear with the weight) filled to the brim with possible games. However, I had to reorganise these bags before every game night. That took time. A solution had to be found. The idea of a "games case" was born. And that was six years ago.
In the picture you can see how I created a recess in the foam for each game and accessory. However, the accompanying documentation was anything but clear, which I would now like to change.
Time for the games case 2.0
My new game case should be easy to set up and be able to transport as many games as possible to an event. I secure the games in the case with relatively hard foam, which is used for photo camera cases, for example. The accessories can also be stored in the foam or in the lid.
Selecting the games
I made it relatively easy for myself with the first version by packing all the games I owned at the time into the case. Since then, however, more have been added that also want a mobile home. Card games are generally ideal, but so are board games that don't have too much material. Here is a list of the games that I will include in version 2.0:
Activity Codeword, Agent Undercover, Bam, Bang, Blitzdings, Codenames and Codenames Undercover, Coup and Coup: Reformation, Crazy Time, Cro-Magnon, Decrypto, The Cartographer, The Crew, Exploding Kittens incl. all expansions, Exploding Kittens. all expansions, Frantic, Just One, Klattschen, Krasse Kacke, Krazy Wordz, Lucky Lachs, Meisterwerke, Munchkin, Music IQ and Beer IQ, Outburst, Paper Tales, Privacy Chilli and Numbers, Red 7, Saboteur 1 and 2, Sags mir: Films, Skull King, Sticheln, Temple of Terror, The Game, Top & Flop, Werwörter, Wordslam Midnight.
Case selection
The games should be organised and easy to stow away, so a pilot's case is not suitable. Nor is a normal travelling case, as the "conversion" would involve enormous effort. A robust tool case made of smooth aluminium or plastic with reinforced edges is therefore the ideal basis. The size shouldn't be too small, otherwise I won't be able to fit all the games in it. But it shouldn't be too big either, because I don't want to be lugging around 20kg every time. Something along these lines:
I found my new case in a building supplies shop. You can buy them almost everywhere and in all kinds of designs. It is designed for cameras, 500 mm wide, 150 mm high and 400 mm deep. The foam is already inside. But I will replace it with a new one.
Measuring the games
As the measurements for the games on the internet are too imprecise, I need a calliper. I use it to measure the games to within a tenth of a millimetre and compile the data in an Excel list.
Some games also have accessories or need two cut-outs, which I have noted as a comment in the table. I also realised with the first case that the height is not entirely irrelevant. I take this measuring quite seriously so that nothing flies around and gets mixed up during transport. At the moment, my suitcase looks like this:
The personalised foam
A foam insert was already included when the case was purchased. However, this is standardised and not designed for my personal needs. I therefore needed a customised solution. But first I have to create a sketch for the cut-outs. Since, like most people, I have little knowledge of CAD and DXF, I quickly used Word for my first sketch:
Looks very good, I think. The distance from play to play is ten millimetres, but this is only possible with relatively hard foam. A service provider who professionally manufactures such case inserts recommends Plastazote LD 29, where the cut-outs should be continuous, which makes customisation cheaper. I will ask the service provider for the cut-outs so that I can "adjust" the height myself with a little manual labour. However, the service provider needs a PDF or a DXF file in order to read it into the waterjet cutter. Converting the Word into a PDF did not work, as the dimensions were then no longer correct. So how do I get a DXF with the correct dimensions?
In our company there are CAD specialists who I politely ask for a private favour. Fortunately, someone takes the time to convert my sketch into a professional DXF:
I am now sending the DXF to various service providers and awaiting their offers.
Next steps
While I wait for the foam to be cut, I will tackle the lid and the accessories. I don't yet know exactly what this will look like. You'll find out which variant I decide on in another article. Part two will follow soon.
Do you have any tips that I should bear in mind? For example, how should I design the lid? Then please let me know in the comments. I'm grateful for any input. Don't want to miss the next step on my journey to the perfect, self-made play case 2.0? Then follow me by clicking on the "Follow author" button.
Alessandro Grieco
Passionierter Brett- und Kartenspieler
Every week, I organize board game evenings in a private setting. I am open to all games. I also like puzzles and Escape Rooms. I am not afraid of challenges.