Tabletop Game Storage (Star Wars X-Wing Miniatures) | I Like To Make Stuff

I've started playing the tabletop game Star Wars X-Wing and I really love it. There are a lot of small ships and pieces that need proper storage. Let me show you how I used some scrap wood and cheap foam core to make some really nice tabletop game storage boxes.
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These storage boxes are going to be made out of some scrap hardwood I have available. You don't have to make them out of hardwood, you could use pine from the box stores and stain them to your favorite color, or you could even use MDF and paint them. Because I have this lumber available, I have to mill it to the right sizes first. Milling is the process of flattening each face and squaring each edge. We did a Bits video all about it if you are interested.
I used the material to dictate the sizes of each box because I couldn't go out right now and buy more materials. The X-Wing ships are quite small, so this wasn't an issue. If you are making a box for something specific, make sure you have enough material (plus some extra) to fit the intended item. I decided to use my Incra box joint jig to add some finger joints to each piece of prepared lumber. I glued up enough pieces to make two walnut boxes and one maple box. To add a bottom panel, I used the palm router with a rabbeting bit set to the thickness of the thin material. We will cover making some decorative lids later on.
If you've never worked with foam core, do it. Foam core is cheap and works super well for a lot of applications. I decided that the box's dividers should be simple enough that I could change the interior space to accommodate more ships. By making the organizing trays out of glued wood, I couldn't easily change the layout. I cut the foam tray pieces using a sharp box cutter and glued them together with hot glue.
For the lids, I decided to make something awesome. You could totally glue a wooden frame to a sheet of thin material and be done, but I wanted to add a little Star Wars flare to these storage bins. In the tabletop game X-Wing, there are different factions of ships. I have the Mandalorians, the Empire, and the Rebel Alliance. Using my Glowforge laser cutter, I first etched these logos into a thin wooden panel. Then using some of their adhesive-backed veneers, I cut the inlay to fit inside that etched area. I used contrasting woods to highlight the logos and placed them inside of a dadoed wooden frame.
Now that the boxes are done, the foam core trays are made, and the lids are finished I have to find a way to assemble them all together. The trays fit perfectly inside the boxes because they were cut to size earlier. The lids; however, aren't firmly attached. There are many ways to do this; hinges, friction fit lips, or sliding rails. I decided to simply use rare earth magnets placed in the box and the lids to snap them in place. These small magnets are surprisingly strong and can be attached by drilling a shallow hole and securing with CA glue.
I am really happy with how these boxes turned out. Like I mentioned at the beginning, Star Wars X-Wing has a lot of pieces and now that we have dedicated tabletop game storage boxes it adds to the excitement of playing the game. Each faction has a home and we are now more excited to get them out and play the game as a family. I already want to get more ships to place in the boxes and because I used foam core, we can easily adjust the interior space to fit more. I hope this encouraged you to use materials like foam core for your organizing projects and to make some nice looking boxes for your favorite games!
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Tabletop Game Storage (Star Wars X-Wing Miniatures) | I Like To Make Stuff
• Tabletop Game Storage ...
I Like To Make Stuff
/ iliketomakestuff

[@XILMX1]

Welcome to the world of minis, Where you never have enough and there is always a reason to justify buying more!

[@jonathanknight123]

I have them all but still need more

[@DracoTorment]

This is totally me there is never enough stuff in a game!

[@alexbevan2183]

I’m a 40k player and I have one army. The justification for me buying more is that my one army isn’t the same army as the next one I want. I can’t afford my next army, it’s quite expensive for a teenager with a part time job that pays slightly less then minimum wage.

[@kellyb.5306]

Fantasy Flight Games makes some great stuff

[@einflinkeswiesel2695]

I want more... and I know I shouldn't

[@andyiliff7793]

"Today we're gonna make some fancy boxes for some tiny spaceships." What a magnificent sentence😂 I love it👍

[@tylerpeters1181]

Foam core pro-tip: use a cork backed steel ruler or make sure your fingers are well back from the edge of the ruler. My ruler slipped in college and I chopped off the tip of my middle finger while making a model.

[@AlexCue]

As any designer, hobbyist, or maker knows: craft foam and knives require regular blood sacrifices. 🔪🩸

[@tylerpeters1181]

@@AlexCue my college R.A. did not appreciate me bleeding all over the hallway asking for her first aid kit. She also had never seen that much blood and nearly passed out. Live and learn!

[@BroMordekai]

I always go cork side up cause I like the ruler to be flat on the surface lol it’s risky 😅

[@tobermorywomble23]

"One of these is almost full". Well that's a sign to get more Scum & Villainy ships.

[@alexwhite3988]

"I ended up with more ships than I thought" Welcome to the word of tabletop war games. I've been saying that for a long time yet still buy more!

[@captin3149]

I've been interested in this game, but I just got over my Warhammer addiction.......

[@chriscordeiro1052]

Cap Tin it’s actually fairly inexpensive as a tabletop hobby goes! Keep in mind you are purchasing 7-8 ships MAX for an entire squad. Ships cost ~$12-15 depending on the size of ship and how recently it was printed. Very “affordable” hobby in my opinion

[@DanMacMartin]

Really loving the "use what's on hand" approach these days. Great work!

[@Iliketomakestuff]

I think people underestimate what you can do with what you have available.

[@DanMacMartin]

@@Iliketomakestuff totally agree!

[@garythree]

I really like the foam core board boxes actually. Kind of reminds me of the flexibility of a pelican case foam insert.

[@granttbrown]

holy cow. absolutely BEAUTIFUL shot at 6:00 or so, super impressive shooting and editing, especially while everyone is socially distanced. loved it

[@MarcusBeirne]

Bob: X-wing is a game I just heard of. Also Bob: I have three boxes worth of extra ships.

[@Miniac]

table top miniatures + carpentry + bob = my heaven

[@wrenchdoozer]

6:22 - Turned away for a second and the "clamp champ" bell brought me back.

[@ThatGeekyMaker]

Beautiful job! I really like the laser cut inlays. The Force is with you.

[@Iliketomakestuff]

Thanks Randy!

[@Rouverius]

Thanks for keeping it real. I appreciated you modifying your design based on the materials on hand. Honestly, they look great.

[@Iliketomakestuff]

Thank you!!

[@SteedmanWhite]

That focus shot of the finger joints around 6:07ish is 👌

[@SupeMima]

I really liked the idea of ​​magnets to close the boxes. No (wrong) drilling holes with metal trinkets, or extra stuff beyond the sides of the box. Nice Thank you

[@jessevervaart2523]

Ah, this is exactly the type of project I was looking for! I bought loads of dice and printed (and still am printing) a lot of minis so this will be perfect storage. Love the modular part of the build!

[@twisted_seraph]

I am a collector of legos and I have designed a modular system for 3D printing storage boxes. It fits like an interlocking system. Put them in a wooden cabinet and love being able to sort by piece and color.

[@tjkendall48176]

Love the magnet approach versus hinges.

[@TryToDIY]

Wow this inlay on the top looks very nice!

[@anirapixel2499]

"I hate hot glue, it's coarse, and stringy, and it gets everywhere"

[@Iliketomakestuff]

Ha!

[@darinnetherland3466]

ISWYDT

[@butzmn7190]

I immediately thought of that too

[@charlietye6474]

Ha Geniis

[@graphicscvids]

( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

[@mkegadgets4380]

Great use of what you have on hand, got to love 1, 2, 3 blocks.

[@dddmmm21]

Getting into the rabbit hole that is tabletop gaming... well done

[@STUPERdude100]

I cant believe I haven’t heard of this game, I’m ordering it now

[@adamlowe2075]

Haha same

[@Farfri]

@@adamlowe2075 You've taken your first steps into a larger world!

[@johnphillips3703]

Its a fun game. Better if you have friends that play

[@txag007]

Make sure you buy the 2.0 version. 1.0 is errata'd.

[@edvolz73]

I love X-wing. So many possibilities and tons of fan made ways to play in addition to the regular game.

[@jamiedouglas5529]

Great video pal, been doing woodwork for 3 year now and your projects have been very helpful, appreciation from Northern Ireland 👍

[@KevinOMalleyisonlysmallreally]

I knew you were a gamer, but I'm delighted to see it influencing your projects. May the dice favour you

[@davedaylor]

Wow, I had not checked out your channel in a few years.. Congrats on almost 3 MILLION subs !!! I always loved your content, Bob. I'm sure you now have a full production crew. Love how you have made a career on youtube building cool stuff !! Hats off, and rock on :)

[@CrankyOldNerd]

Gorgeous work, looks at my stacks of x-wing ships and sighs wistfully. Wish I had access to my fathers tool collection but alas it's 1100 miles that way

[@clydebalcom8252]

The Force is with you, always.

[@neobaggins3718]

I have the ultimate method of organizing my X-Wing stuff. Put it all in a box except for a few of my favorites, set them out as display pieces and play the X-Wing 2.0 Unified mod in Tabletop Simulator. It also means I can actually play the game again, after the only person I played with moved 500 miles away. Also, setup, cleanup and even play is so much easier as you no longer have to guess over ranges, movements, worry about possibly bumping pieces, etc.

[@KrazeeKraftZ]

Hey Bob, love your work and ingenuity, plus all the ideas to use up scrap! I have a group of mini Star trek ships, not part of a game as such, but at the moment they are just rattling around in a container. They are made from some kind of rubbery plastic stuff, got them about/at least 20 years ago, and, they all came with little clear plastic stands. I'm thinking to do something similar to display them, maybe an engraved acrylic front, rather then top, so they are visible when the box is vertical on a shelf. I often work with what we, here in Australia, call "Corflute" it's like corrugated cardboard, only plastic, limited supply from our local hardware giant but if you want enough you can order in many colours and thicknesses from the local manufacturer, bit more expensive than foam core, but also waterproof!! A few years ago I made trifold panels for my haunted house at Halloween out of it, routed rabbits into 30mm square pine and they are about 900mm X 1800mm with 3 panels hinged together! This way they are light and easy to manoeuvre but I need to find a better way to keep them weighted when assembled outdoors! Ideas gratefully accepted! Just recently I made a 1m tall Dalek cupcake stand for my sister's 50th out of Corflute. It looks amazing, and she was super excited to see it! I will be renting it out once it's fully finished!! Pictures of the things I make can be seen on my Facebook pages krazeekraftz and myhauntedhalloweenhouse. I'm working on making videos for my KZbin channel but need to get more organised first. Greeting from the land down under!!

[@zerenius4978]

Love the use of machinist blocks to align foamcore walls. Good weight to not slide around and makes square, plumb sidewalls.

[@iambear.6526]

11:04 was waiting for an Anakin hating sand reference XD

[@kurtisfraley6795]

Great game and awesome boxes and video. Welcome to the X-Wing collecting hobby.

[@ascott741]

Bob, just finished a foam core organizer for Gloomhaven and my method for flying was to use PVA glue and use a thick CA glue in a few places to hold the piece down while the PVA dried. It went much faster than just using PVA, and no stringy bits!

[@caseythimm5522]

When you routed out the boxes for the bottom panel, it reminded me that I have a router and it would be super handy for a different project I'm doing. I was just going to do everything on the table saw. This will make things a lot easier!

[@Iliketomakestuff]

Excellent! Yes, it does make certain jobs way quicker (but usually messier)

[@thomasnewsome5923]

How does one forget that he owns a router?

[@somename371]

@@thomasnewsome5923 my thoughts exactly, I would do anything for a tool like that!

[@davethepak]

Also, he used a palm router - a smaller sized less powerful version - which is perfect when you need to maneuver in tight spaces and need to be more careful in your work.

[@darrenmcdonald9891]

for the smaller ships i would have halved the heights of the walls so then you could have made a small pull out container so you could double your storage and make it easier to get them out when needed rather then trying to get your fingers in to grab them, love the outer box they look great with the symbol on them and the different colour wood used

[@DaleHawkins]

The inlays look slick. Nice work, Bob.

[@sgsax]

This is a fun idea, and nice way to use up some leftover materials. Also makes me want to dig out my old Kenner die-cast models. 😄 Thanks for sharing!

[@Iliketomakestuff]

Ohhh yes!! I've got my die cast Falcon sitting on my desk right now!!

[@miguelkendolife8861]

Beatiful boxes for a beautiful game.

[@jeffdukeman7031]

I’ve always wanted to make my own wooden boxes for all of our “regular” board games. Make em just like these so they last and can get passed on. Good work!!

[@hrobertson4]

Keep on making Bob. Stay safe.

[@OIFEagle]

Very nice. I think a great next step would be a dedicated gamer table where these could fit on short shelves as drawer-like storage.

[@brandonejem8620]

I play dungeons and dragons and use a rolling tote to store my books, minis and dice. I meant to build an insert to keep it nice and tidy but I can use foam core to make sure I'm happy with the design. Thanks for the inspiration Bob.

[@Iliketomakestuff]

Excellent! Glad it was helpful!

[@that_benji]

The game is addicting! Have fun and may the force be with you.

[@vicmartone]

Lots of props and even sets for tv shows are made out of foam core. Cheap and easy to move.

[@thecatwasme]

Tip: when cutting foam board, if you have a blade that is new or a little used, make a slight cut into a wax candle so that your blade has a small build up on its edge and it will help keep your blade from dulling as you cut the foam board.

[@JohnMadeit]

Real cool. I like that you rounded the corners rather than using a chisel to create 90° corner. And the fact you change you design of your project to work with the materials you have is more relatable to me. Great work Bob and the iltms team 👍

[@lunarwulfe]

I'm not sure if you're into this hobby, but those ships are great for miniature painting. It's a great way to pass some time and a fun thing to do with your kids which also allows them to customize their team more.

[@JohnHuber1898]

Nice job, Bob! It has me thinking about my son’s ever expanding Cars collection. There are very few 1:55 storage containers, so we are always thinking of fun ways to store them that isn’t an eye sore!

[@ascazrael]

I make boardgame inserts with foamcore. Use a foam glue. It dries pretty quick. I pins the inserts with sewing pins while it dries then remove them after

[@jcmakes5977]

Thank you bob for showing off this game I never heard off. As a Star Wars fan I immediately both the core set and a few other ships!

[@joemakesmodels6640]

Those logo inlays are pretty fresh😍

[@thepaintedminiatures]

As a miniature painter I'm so excited by this! Thank you for this!

[@eagleyes27]

Wow my tabletop world just collide with my woodworking world. Love it. Great job. We play alot of star wars legion around my house similar game play to xwing but ground troops instead of ships.

[@ahzzz-realm]

Sold fasteners for years, I recommend you build a base for your bolt bin. It raises levels and keeps much out of the lower bins. Nice shop.

[@alBoomer19]

I've made so many foam core storage boxes (some for x wing and more for other games). This video has made me the most happy of any video I've seen in a long time. I guess I identify as a storage nerd haha.

[@MSnell]

One of my biggest issues with this game is the completely unnecessary amount of clutter that accumulates with it. This is a great project and solution!

[@dannysaunders368]

This box inspire me to make my own book the same design but not told the ships and everything else that comes with the game

[@AndrewBrinley]

I fully expect to see a custom game cupboard project into which you can slide all your custom boxes. As always, this was an informative and interesting video. Keep up the good work. I need to do something like this for my large collection of DBGs.

[@pangyarlee510]

Nice build good for keeping

[@AnthonyBowman]

Hell yeah! You play X-Wing!

[@grandy2875]

These boxes could also be made into jewellery boxes, by covering the dividers with a velvet cloth and a layer of medium density foam, or maybe precious stone sample display boxes with perspex lids...the possibilities are only limited by ones imagination... You did it again Bob..what a clever bloke you are... :))

[@Iliketomakestuff]

:) I appreciate that!

[@jymferrier]

used foam core stuff and construction adhesive to make sides for my ikea lack printer enclosure. works great.

[@RastafarianPilgrim]

For future reference, you can use something like toothpicks, barbecue skewers or pins to hold the foamcore together while the PVA dries, and just leave them in for some added structure

[@Iliketomakestuff]

Good idea!

[@TheAfroman]

Honestly, i wouldn't go to wooden inserts. The foam is softer and quieter. plus the moment you inserted the foam finished insert into the box.. WAS SO SATISFYING OOoooof

[@DobbieDize]

I was searching for this for my coin collection a few days back. And here it is, amazing thanks

[@DarkTubeToo]

Oh my gosh. Great minds do think alike. I got into woodworking because of this game. Too bad we missed GenCon this year. I usually play on the tourneys. Thank you for the videos.

[@Argascend]

I love fancy boxes. Tiny spaceships also good I suppose.

[@joelvarney5091]

Nice tip about the finger width, I see a lot of woodworkers just wing it and have half fingers left over.

[@Grendelnz]

you dont have enough ships :) very cool, you could use the boxes to hold foam trays once you get enough models/boxes . heaps of foam tray suppliers out there or you could cut your own.

[@FigmentsMade]

Those look like darned cool game pieces! And now they have such classy boxes to sit in. Foam core is a great solution for this! Nice one!

[@scottboyle7547]

As an x-wing player myself, I really love this project. Great job! Might add this kind of storage to my list of future projects. Gotta finish up my wood katana first!

[@daveclark7924]

A good way to glue foamboard, from making scale buildings, is to PVA the edge with a few dots gel super glue. Then spray with accelerator. I found it's a bit quicker than hot glue and a bit cleaner.

[@BruceAUlrich]

I never would have thought about using foam core, but it worked really well!

[@barrettdent405]

Nice build! Great techniques and materials.

[@usrzero]

Those turned out great. Always running out of stuff at the end of a project is a common problem in my shop.

[@felsebto]

Man one of my favorite KZbinrs plays my favorite game!!

[@AJB2K3]

Damn those boxes look nice. I'm sure people will want to buy them for their own faction ships.

[@gehtdinichtsan309]

my star wars heart jumps in circles every time you release a video about a sw-project of yours! :)

[@gpodgorzak]

My favourite game and the most beautiful storage - man, these engraved boxes look awesome!

[@arvinarellano2956]

Idk why im a kid who just likes seeing someone build something

[@ahmedfares2017]

as an X-wing player, I find this so amazing.

[@frozenlazer]

Bob we gotta introduce you to the world of re-sawing on your band saw. Your walnut was plenty thick to slice down into 2 thinner boards and then you would have had plenty of material. Plus no need for such heavy duty boxes for this. You've already got a planner and jointer so you'd have no problem cleaning the stock up after its been resawn. Plus, when you just need some cheap wood for shop projects, or jigs, you'd be amazed what you can get out of a 5 dollar 2x4 or 2x6 with just a few minutes work. With a good blade you can easily slice out pieces that are an 1/8 inch or even less.

[@Iliketomakestuff]

Thanks 👍🏼 I'm well aware of re-sawing. I prefer to have the boxes made of a thicker material.

[@frozenlazer]

@@Iliketomakestuff - Awesome! Maybe that's a good idea for a video or a "bits". Show people how they can stretch their materials on hand currently limited by lockdown, or just to save costs. Could even show some techniques around book matching. Start with a single 4x4 x 4ft board and show how it can turn into everything you need for a simple box. Would be cheap to produce for sure.

[@benarispe6113]

GREATEST MINATURE CASE EVER!!!!!!

[@whilehobbying]

Beautiful boxes!

[@matthewmoos5284]

A 3D printer and a laser cutter are a board gamer’s dream

[@stevewagstaff7250]

As an existing X-Wing player, I can say that one of the most common questions I see is 'How do you store the ships and gubbins?' Great to see an example like this for making storage!

[@DanSutherland]

I'd like to make some dust free storage for some game controllers and carts and I really love the foam core idea for this. It's exactly what I've been wanting without knowing what it was.

[@Iliketomakestuff]

Great idea!

[@MrBadgers]

Bob, they make foam for those minis. Feldherr is relatively cheap. You can probably upgrade your boxes with it.

[@TuesdayNightXWing]

aw man... I should have been running the UK Nationals event for X-Wing this weekends :( Lovely boxes. Welcome to the hobby. prepare to build more :D

[@FranksDIY]

Nice job. Love the contrast and magnet tops

[@Iliketomakestuff]

Thanks!

[@animemenga125]

this seems like a fantastic idea for my amiibos and d&d minifigs

[@simmonslucas]

Dude gonna steal some of this to organize my D&D minis

[@TheGonGaZ]

I dont know if it would've worked with wood this thin, but i found a channel the other day called Broinwood, where they do a lot of work with Inlays to make patterns with different kinds of wood and it looks stunning. Even if it wouldn't work for this type of project, its still a very nice idea and looks amazing.

[@Meowrose3]

You can also use straight pins to join foamcore pieces.

[@TheOutlawCrow]

Been playing X-Wing for about 3 years. It's a hell of a game! Glad to see ya got into it!

[@chrismadden1660]

Now all you have to do is make more "addon" boxes as your factions grow and stack them. 1 top, multiple storage sections.

[@Sensei_Jaq]

I love playing x-wing, and this box is an awesome idea!

[@mill0rify]

i am subscribing you just for the amount of star wars fandom you have in you! just binge watched 3 hours of your videos. Really great! Greets from Germany