Keyboard boxes ordered.

[snuci]

It's finally time I cleaned up and organized the spare keyboards I have that I don't have displayed with it's appropriate computer or terminal. I ordered some boxes that I thought might be of interest. They are not the optimal size but I think they will work. This was the best I could find for the best price in case anyone is wondering. I will be getting them early next week so I'll post some pics when I get them if anyone is interested.

http://www.uline.ca/Product/Detail/S-31 ... rds=S-3189

23 x 13 x 2 1⁄2" White Literature Mailers

[XMIT]

I rather prefer:
http://www.uline.com/Product/Detail/S-6 ... oard-Boxes

They fit everything up to a Model M.

keyboards-f2/keyboard-boxes-t3753.html

If you Google around for the size - "19 1⁄8 x 9 1⁄8 x 2 3⁄16" - you can find them more cheaply elsewhere. I just ordered a stack of 100 of them and have gone through 45 of them so far...

[snuci]

I was looking for that thread. I did find an old one but not that one so thanks for that thread. Strange.

Anyway, I have a lot of older keyboards so bigger is better for me. I also wanted to try to keep things thin for space so I thought 4" was a bit much. We'll see how these work. I did chicken out and only bought 50 for now just in case.

[terrycherry]

Thanks to share. I'm wondering about the keyboard box size. Cause my clean keyboard getting much.

[clickykeyboards]

The 19 x 9 x 2.5" dimensions makes for very compact and efficient storage of full-size model M keyboards.

Model m archival storage with Uline keyboard boxes

model-m-boxes.jpg (2.29 MiB) Viewed 5092 times

I second Uline's keyboard boxes for storage purposes.

....but not for shipping purposes, as the boxes are a bit too thin and don't have enough space at the ends for padding materials.

[Chyros]

Nice, it's not that easy to find boxes that will fit a Model M well. I get mine from the recycling centre in all kinds of sizes, but not many fit an M. I did one some nice ones, I have Dell boxes that fit three Bigfoots like a glove, and I even found ones that fit a Battleship. The only things I haven't fond a proper box for at all is my M0116 and the Pingmaster because of their bizarre shapes xD .

[XMIT]

For archival storage - as I do - I propose cutting away a short (2", 5cm or so) section of flaps to better enable the boxes to close. The IBM Model M, Dell AT101W, and AEK I and AEK II all fit nicely.

As clickykeyboards mentioned, these boxes are not ideal for shipping purposes - not alone, anyway. However, this box *inside* another box, with padding in between, would be really great. I have yet to ship a keyboard like this yet but know it will be way better than bubble wrap.

Here is where I got mine, way cheaper than Uline.
http://www.esupplystore.com/19-18-x-9-1 ... _3112.html

[XMIT]

Exterior dimensions:
516mm wide x 239mm deep x 62mm tall

Interior dimensions:
494mm wide x 235mm deep x 58mm tall

Box weight: 206 grams

Convert these to other units if you need, I'm able to more easily be precise in mm and grams. These are actual dimensions taken just now with a real box and a measuring tape.

[XMIT]

I can fit eighteen of these boxes standing up, on shelves readily available at Costco!

Archival keyboard storage. More dense than USPS flat rate boxes.

DSC_0064.JPG (318.38 KiB) Viewed 5039 times

Again, some keyboards, most notably the Model M, are wide and can make it very difficult to close the box. I recommend cutting away part of the side panels as noted.

Box surgery, to create more clearance for locking flaps.

DSC_0061.JPG (221.26 KiB) Viewed 5039 times

[vivalarevolución]

The one flaw of the uline keyboard boxes is the low height and sometimes short width, which in not suitable for some older keyboards and longer keyboards, like a beam spring or 122-key Model M/F. Oh well, they work for most.

[Hypersphere]

For archival storage - as I do - I propose cutting away a short (2", 5cm or so) section of flaps to better enable the boxes to close. The IBM Model M, Dell AT101W, and AEK I and AEK II all fit nicely.

As clickykeyboards mentioned, these boxes are not ideal for shipping purposes - not alone, anyway. However, this box *inside* another box, with padding in between, would be really great. I have yet to ship a keyboard like this yet but know it will be way better than bubble wrap.

Here is where I got mine, way cheaper than Uline.
http://www.esupplystore.com/19-18-x-9-1 ... _3112.html

I started to order these, but the shipping costs nearly doubled the price.

So, I ordered these from Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/Aviditi-MFL1992- ... rd+mailers

$48.98 shipped from Amazon Prime for a pack of 50.

[Tuntematon]

I also bought some 23 x 13 x 2 1⁄2 boxes. I think this is the best stock size out there for over-sized keyboards but it is definitely big. Feels too big for the average keyboard.

I'm going to purchase some 19 1⁄8 x 9 1⁄8 x 2 3⁄16 boxes at some point to use for the bulk of the collection. It's a shame the perfect keyboard box doesn't exist. Something like 21 x 10 x 2 1⁄2 would be great.

[spolia_optima]

I use 20x10x4 Uline boxes for storage and occasionally shipping keyboards. They're a little tall, but that just leaves extra room for padding

[Hypersphere]

The Aviditi boxes arrived and I put a few of them together yesterday. Well, you get what you pay for. The quality is not as good as that of the Uline boxes. The cardboard is a bit thinner and they don't assemble as well. The tabs on the sides don't fit as well into the slots -- I had to tape one of them to keep it from unfolding. Nevertheless, they will work.

I've been stacking my keyboards in boxes, but I think the XMIT method is better -- stored on metal rack shelves like books, with accession numbers showing on the "spines" and all the information in a computer database. Now that's organization!