Need some help with storage options for my games? Opinions wanted.

[GrapeChelly]

Hey guys!

First of all, does anyone know the measurements of a SNES cartridge and a Super Famicom Cartridge? (I can't find a common answer online, and im going shopping after work and I forgot to measure...)

Second of all, how do you guys store your games? I play mine frequently but I am nervous about dust. So I saw people with nice shelving that look really snazzy with a full collection... but doesn't dust become an issue? Was going to try and find a shallow container at target that i can put them in and just open when I want to play something else. Does anyone else have a better idea? Do dust covers help with keeping them on the shelves? Right now I have them in a small lid locking plastic container... but it's purely temporary (they aren't stacked nice, so I have to take all of them out when i'm looking for something).

Any info you guys have or might even have an idea im all ears. Thanks in advance and I really appreciate it! <3

[Tanooki]

I have loose carts, they fit on your standard off the shelf DVD/CD media shelf right right. I've got a large one I got from wayfair propac made which is like 5ft tall, in 3 sections, and has 21 shelves you can pop at whatever height with metal pegs. It was intended for games, but as things got more foul and seedy I've backed off that and it has a good many lego on it now.

[celerystalker]

It really will end up depending on the size of your collection and what kind of space you have. I use some large media shelves I bought at Target for $100 a piece, as they hold a ton, and have adjustable shelves, which is a must for having games of all shapes and sizes. Dust isn't a huge issue, but it's just a case of dusting once in awhile. If you want them to have vacuum-seal style protection, you may want to size out some totes and use some sort of cube organizer shelving or other storage shelving. Really, it depends on how public you intend your space to be. I keep mine as I do, as my basement is a social area when we entertain, so appearance is relevant.

[GrapeChelly]

I have loose carts, they fit on your standard off the shelf DVD/CD media shelf right right. I've got a large one I got from wayfair propac made which is like 5ft tall, in 3 sections, and has 21 shelves you can pop at whatever height with metal pegs. It was intended for games, but as things got more foul and seedy I've backed off that and it has a good many lego on it now.

Loose carts? So dust really isn't a big deal then is it haha! I'm finally collecting and playing for real (when I was a kid I wasn't so concerned with storage) so it was something I put in my mind to be worried about.

Good to know they fit nice in a DVD/CD shelf!

[GrapeChelly]

I'm more about their protection than their appearance, so I don't really mind how it looks. I'm not sure why in my mind dust is such an issue. I'll check out what media shelves they have at target, and size up some totes. Maybe I can get a really nice set up with a shelf and flat drawer like totes that can be the best of both worlds. Either way, i'm glad dust isn't as big of an issue as I was thinking.

Anyone perchance know the sizes of the carts? Google is failing me today. I'm getting like 6 different sizes haha!

[bb_hood]

First of all, does anyone know the measurements of a SNES cartridge and a Super Famicom Cartridge? (I can't find a common answer online, and im going shopping after work and I forgot to measure...)

Second of all, how do you guys store your games? I play mine frequently but I am nervous about dust. So I saw people with nice shelving that look really snazzy with a full collection... but doesn't dust become an issue? Was going to try and find a shallow container at target that i can put them in and just open when I want to play something else. Does anyone else have a better idea? Do dust covers help with keeping them on the shelves? Right now I have them in a small lid locking plastic container... but it's purely temporary (they aren't stacked nice, so I have to take all of them out when i'm looking for something).

Any info you guys have or might even have an idea im all ears. Thanks in advance and I really appreciate it! <3

If you have a collection of loose carts you might want to ask for the measurements of a snes dust sleeve. You probably have a bunch of dust sleeves if you collect loose carts, and they make the carts less prone to falling over.

If you want nice shelving I wouldnt jump into anything. You might want to check Ikea, they have good variety of nice shelves. Also yard sale season is coming up, you can often find nice shelves cheap because they are bulky and people often just want them gone.

I'm more about their protection than their appearance, so I don't really mind how it looks. I'm not sure why in my mind dust is such an issue. I'll check out what media shelves they have at target, and size up some totes. Maybe I can get a really nice set up with a shelf and flat drawer like totes that can be the best of both worlds. Either way, i'm glad dust isn't as big of an issue as I was thinking.

Anyone perchance know the sizes of the carts? Google is failing me today. I'm getting like 6 different sizes haha!

From personal experience, I would stay away from totes/plastic containers. Its just much nicer to have the games displayed rather then hidden in totes. Ive gotten rid of soo many totes over the years, many of which cost 10-20$ so its just a waste of money in the long run.
I wouldnt worry about dust. You can stack loose carts on the sides so the dust wont accumulate on the labels, then you can place a piece of paper or cardboard on top so the dust doesnt accumulate on the games at all. Dust wont really damage the games, you should be more concerned about sunlight and moisture.

[GrapeChelly]

If you have a collection of loose carts you might want to ask for the measurements of a snes dust sleeve. You probably have a bunch of dust sleeves if you collect loose carts, and they make the carts less prone to falling over.

If you want nice shelving I wouldnt jump into anything. You might want to check Ikea, they have good variety of nice shelves. Also yard sale season is coming up, you can often find nice shelves cheap because they are bulky and people often just want them gone.

Ah yes! Ikea! Yard sales! How could I forget that. Thanks so much!
And yes I don't have the boxes for any of my carts, I am getting my old collection back from when I was a kid, and also expanding. So im old/new to all of this haha!
What I was thinking of initially were some lidded shallow containers. For them to sit in like baseball cards would in a 500 count box. Maybe if i score a nice dresser for cheap I can just put them in there!

Also I have no dust sleeves (If you are talking about the plastic sleeve that latches onto the bottom of the cart)
All of my games are being found through things like ebay and craigslist. All of my original games were taken by my older brother when he moved out of our house many years ago. He's a butt. xD

[bb_hood]

Anyone perchance know the sizes of the carts? Google is failing me today. I'm getting like 6 different sizes haha!

snes cart, without dust sleeve:
13.5cm long, 2 cm wide, 8.5 cm tall.
or
5.3 inches long, 0.78 inch wide, 3.34 inch tall


super fami
12.7 cm long, 2 cm wide, 8.8cm tall

Thank you so much! I am so grateful!

welcome, I would have measured a dust sleeve but I dont have any lying around.

[GrapeChelly]

snes cart, without dust sleeve:
13.5cm long, 2 cm wide, 8.5 cm tall.
or
5.3 inches long, 0.78 inch wide, 3.34 inch tall


super fami
12.7 cm long, 2 cm wide, 8.8cm tall

Thank you so much! I am so grateful!

[GrapeChelly]

So many good ideas, thanks everyone for the insight and relieving me of the dust nervousness lmao.

[Cornelius]

I wouldn't go with the totes because of the hassle of finding and getting out a particular game. When my NES collection went into plastic bins (I use those under-bed ones, and they fit a bunch) for storage in the basement, I left them where I could still get at them. But there's no way around stacking them for me, and unstacking for one game and putting it all back... just too much activation energy to bother with. When mine go into an actual game room, they'll be on shelves so I can just grab what I want and play with no fuss.

[GrapeChelly]

I wouldn't go with the totes because of the hassle of finding and getting out a particular game. When my NES collection went into plastic bins (I use those under-bed ones, and they fit a bunch) for storage in the basement, I left them where I could still get at them. But there's no way around stacking them for me, and unstacking for one game and putting it all back... just too much activation energy to bother with. When mine go into an actual game room, they'll be on shelves so I can just grab what I want and play with no fuss.

Yeah I was finding that out. I checked out those under the bed ones and they seemed nice, but I ended up with some plastic drawer storage containers. They have drawers on them that measure perfectly to fit SNES games side to side!
I bought two, one for my SNES games and one for my Super Famicom games. I put them under my futon, and they work great. I just pull the drawers out, and I can see the game titles on top of the SNES games.

Now that I don't worry about dust so much.

But like you this is temporary, when I get my game room set up going ill just get tons of wall shelving so I can show it off and have easy access!

[Steve W]

What you might do is if you go to a store like Ikea or The Container Store, you can always have a few SNES cartridges in your pockets to make accurate on-site size comparisons.