The Energon Pub

First, I bought some cheap shelves for my movies and games. Then, the TF fever caught me. The movies and games were stored elsewhere, and it quickly filled with TF. Then, I bought a high quality shelving space for my Optimus Prime collection. It took me some hours to build the thing, but once I was done, I was quite proud of myself. The Primes feel right at home there!

I have quite an extensive Starscream collection. I bought the G1 Color Masterpiece Starscream on Ebay for a reasonable price. Then, I wanted a ghost version of him. The takara ghost classic was not under a whopping 75$! For just 20$ more, I got a Masterpiece Ghost Starscream.

But now, to find a lamp that will make him shine from under whithout burning him down... The small led base for Gundam failed hard. He's with my G1 Optimus Prime now. I boughtm two base-lamps with a small light bulb in it. Fail again. They are now used for lighting two cute and sexy faeries-stitting-on-glass-ball.

Today, I had some spare cash and I finally did it. I went to the hardware store and I built my own. Just look at pictures related:



I used three "LED sticks" that use the power outlet. No batteries. They are under a sheet of plexiglass, supported by six clear hooks glued under. The whole thing is framed to cut the glare. Finally, FINALLY, MP Ghost Screamers finally get the lightning he deserves. That lamp cost me nearly 100$ total. Almost 60$ for the LED-sticks alone, plus over 27$ for a 24"X24" sheet of plexiglass that I used only a part of 8"X12". Of course, I had to buy the whole sheet anyway. Finally, a over 14$ extention cord to plug it in.
(on a completely unrelated note, today was also the day I found the last HftD voyager Seaspray and the last HftD scout Breacher. Both the last in town. At full retail price. I don't give a damn. Today was a good day.)

Anyway, what kind of special display you use for your Transformers toys? Did you spent much?

While that lighting display does look incredibly badass for Ghost Screamer, you should be careful of what type of light you expose your figures to. I'm not 100% sure about the types of lighting, but I'm sure some LED lights cause figures to yellow (just like sunlight does). You might wanna look into that incase you need to buy a different type of light for your Ghost Starscream.

Also, you mentioned that you built a display case for your Primes. Would that happen to be the glass cabinet display case with the Ultimate movie Prime on top?

WolfDawg wrote:(...)but I'm sure some LED lights cause figures to yellow (just like sunlight does).(...)
Also, you mentioned that you built a display case for your Primes. Would that happen to be the glass cabinet display case with the Ultimate movie Prime on top?

Yup, that's the one.However, it's far from being glass. It's made out of solid hardwood. Only 100$ at Walmart. It was not complicated to build. But it took time. Obviously, the drawer/bottom part was the longuest to build. That drawer space is used to store instruction manuals and miscanleous parts.
I do hope Ghostie will not yellow out. No matter. Ghostie will SHINE no matter what!

My whole collection on display. The top need a Primus and Unicron. But to get them, I need money. Please support my Transformers obsession by bidding on my Ebay items! Right now, I have a few uncommon games for sale. Only a few days left!

Im like MEH, i go to IKEA XD

I'd rather spend my money of TFs than shelves! I'm quite happy with the shelves I have, and the racks I'm gradually adding to the other wall.

WolfDawg wrote:(...) you should be careful of what type of light you expose your figures to. I'm not 100% sure about the types of lighting, but I'm sure some LED lights cause figures to yellow (just like sunlight does). (...)

It's the fluorescent bulbs (with mercury vapor) you should be careful with, as those emit UV-light like the sun.

That's a nice Prime setup Kranrabat. I saw one exactly like it on the /toy/ section of 4chan. I thought it was you at first, but when I asked if he was the same guy who was complaining about Energon Prime's prices on Ebay he swore he had no idea what I was talking about...

WolfDawg wrote:That's a nice Prime setup Kranrabat. I saw one exactly like it on the /toy/ section of 4chan. I thought it was you at first, but when I asked if he was the same guy who was complaining about Energon Prime's prices on Ebay he swore he had no idea what I was talking about...

Nonono, that was me. But you said a strange name I did not recognize, Instead of just plain "energon Prime". And thanks for the compliment! ^^
By the way, the big trailer behind MP Prime (last shot) is the cardboard one. No way I'm paying 200$ on a big gray box.

And ultimately, I'd like to replace these wooden shelvings (not the one with the Primes) by all glass shelving with neon lightning. But it will take a loooooooooooooong time...

As for if my LED sticks are UV emitting, I don't have a clue.

Here's the manifacturer webpage:
http://www.lightingexperts.ca/en/miscel ... binet.html
I'll try to ask them.

Kanrabat- wrote:

WolfDawg wrote:That's a nice Prime setup Kranrabat. I saw one exactly like it on the /toy/ section of 4chan. I thought it was you at first, but when I asked if he was the same guy who was complaining about Energon Prime's prices on Ebay he swore he had no idea what I was talking about...

Nonono, that was me. But you said a strange name I did not recognize, Instead of just plain "energon Prime". And thanks for the compliment! ^^
By the way, the big trailer behind MP Prime (last shot) is the cardboard one. No way I'm paying 200$ on a big gray box.

And ultimately, I'd like to replace these wooden shelvings (not the one with the Primes) by all glass shelving with neon lightning. But it will take a loooooooooooooong time...

As for if my LED sticks are UV emitting, I don't have a clue.

Here's the manifacturer webpage:
http://www.lightingexperts.ca/en/miscel ... binet.html
I'll try to ask them.

Someone on another website used glass shelving along the walls and it looked pretty nice (no neon lights though, that would be pretty awesome). Basically, he bought a bunch of Detolf displays (you can get them from Ikea for about 60 bucks), fused all the individual cabinets together, and used the spare glass sides as the glass shelving. Pretty clever IMO.

Edit:
Forgot the pic.

I removed Ghost Starscream from his stand and he's now on his landing gear.
He's now 20% more shiny!

I updated my Ghost Starscream dispay.

I added 3 LED disks on the top of that cubicle, and I spray painted it with 3 layers of flat black to cut off most of the reflecting light. I also added 2 wooden parts to cut of the LED's glare.
With the classic deluxe version of both Starscreams, the display is now PERFECT!

I added for the rest 6 battery powered LED lamps for some part of my shelves. It give a very soft glow that add a lot to the display at night. The batteries last a ridiculous ammount of time in those things!

DAYLIGHT:


BELOW LIGHTS LIKE BEFORE:


UPPER LIGHTS ONLY:


BOTH AT THE SAME TIME, AS I USUALLY DISPLAY IT:



THE WOLE THING SANS FLASH:


WITH FLASH:




Come on, you must have some special means to display your Transformers collection. SHOW IT!

That looks really cool, you need to display the ehobby G1 ghost Starscream with those.
I like how you don't crowd all your figures too, it's classy.

DISCHARGE wrote:That looks really cool, you need to display the ehobby G1 ghost Starscream with those.
I like how you don't crowd all your figures too, it's classy.

Thanks! But some of the less important ones WILL get overcrowded eventually. Like the movie deluxes amd some classics.

I have a 20 foot loong passageway. So I could install a few 5" wide by 20'long shelves to display them!

....

Yeaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh................ the more I think about it, the more I like this Idea. This could be EPIC! I could put up 4 of them up!

HELL YEAH! I'M GONNA DO IT!

But it will take some time. First, I'll have to clean up the carpet and repaint the passageway first. I'll need some money to do it. And I just recently went crazy and loaded up my credit card with various purchases.

Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm...............

-Kanrabat- wrote:I have a 20 foot loong passageway. So I could install a few 5" wide by 20'long shelves to display them!

....

Yeaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh................ the more I think about it, the more I like this Idea. This could be EPIC! I could put up 4 of them up!

HELL YEAH! I'M GONNA DO IT!

But it will take some time. First, I'll have to clean up the carpet and repaint the passageway first. I'll need some money to do it. And I just recently went crazy and loaded up my credit card with various purchases.

Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm...............

Sounds like you have a plan, go for it, you should work all through the night! (ps I've had a little to drink so don't take any advice from me, I'm gonna finish these beers and then open a bottle of wine...)

I would go to Ikea and back. Sadly that's as far as i'm willing to go to get display shelves.

DISCHARGE wrote:I'm gonna finish these beers and then open a bottle of wine...)

Don't be a damned fool, you should never mix your drinks!

waaaaghlord wrote:

DISCHARGE wrote:I'm gonna finish these beers and then open a bottle of wine...)

Don't be a damned fool, you should never mix your drinks!

Too late, the wine is almost gone, it's a choice between another bottle of wine or the Patron and there's not much left of that either

I live in Manhattan, so I take my TFs out of their boxes and cram them into other boxes. It's sad really.

That Ghost SS display reminds me of this Sunstorm custom which I bought last year



The LEDs really worked wonders.

Anyway, I'd customed a full-wall display cabinet for my collection a few years ago and wel...it's safe to say I need another one since it's already completely filled up. Not sure where I saved my other pics. only managed to dig up these pictures which were taken probably about 2 years ago





The display room is almost always sealed up, blinds drawn, etc. The lights are on only when there are visitors to minimise any chances of yellowing, etc

My perfect display is one that is huge enough to house all my figures (I collect many different toy lines other than TFs) without cluttering (which is happening right now...)

Pretty awesome display you got there. But such a collection need to be enjoyed more.

You could remove the neon lights and cram a whole lot of LED lamps into the empty neon lamp cases. It might cost a fortune but seeing you have 2 FortMax, you'll have no problems. Unless you got the FortMaxes years ago when they were only 50$-250$....

Anyway, yeah, LEDs are still at a rape price. But it's totally worth it. They take almost no power to run, generate no heat, and best of all, no UVs.

Damn it, you people are inspiring me to buy some shelving and space out my meager collection some. I have *only* about 100 TFs, and they're all crammed on my desk and on top of 1 dresser.

I bought four Atlantic Allegro CD/DVD Media Cabinets with a glass door to keep loose Transformers in. They're relatively shallow but can fit a fairly large number of deluxe and smaller figures well. I can also fit a few Binaltechs, Voyagers, and even Ultras, but it limits the capacity for other toys as I have to rearrange the shelves meaning some will only fit very small figures.

I also found a nice glass door cabinet that's small and only has two shelves, but is made of solid wood and can fit leader size figures in vehicle mode, at a white elephant sale.

I am careful when I open packaging so I save all the packages and hang anything with a card from a nail on the wall. All the voyager and larger figure boxes are now stored in bookcases.

Each glass door cabinet cost me about $55, except the last one which I got for $16. The bookcases were free from my office, or the now $12.49 Alder colored 3-shelf bookcases from Wal-mart.

In the end I find that, while I do spend as little as possible, almost no price is too high to pay for things that help you stay organized and keep your stuff in good condition, 'cause the alternative is chaos and deterioration.

Anything that doesn't fit in my cabinets goes back in its package until I want to use it again.

Ive been scouring craigslist for glass display cases. Picked up a one that is about 5' by 4' with 3 shelves and this really sweet case that is 7' by 5' that was in a camera shop. It has a lockable storage below the display area. Once I get it hope and set up in my basement office/nerd room Ill post some pics.

I dont have a ton of figures yet, maybe 75 or so but want to geek them all behind glass to avoid clutter and dust.

tmk9883 wrote:Ive been scouring craigslist for glass display cases. Picked up a one that is about 5' by 4' with 3 shelves and this really sweet case that is 7' by 5' that was in a camera shop. It has a lockable storage below the display area. Once I get it hope and set up in my basement office/nerd room Ill post some pics.

I dont have a ton of figures yet, maybe 75 or so but want to geek them all behind glass to avoid clutter and dust.

I've been hoping to find some cheap glass cases too because, as you said, it'll help avoid dust. Plus, my wife and I got a puppy a few months back and she just loves to hang in the ol' man cave. She's a really well trained puppy, but it's hard to trust a teething dog around Transformers that costed more than she did! Glass cases would save me a ton of worry, but they're so damn expensive...

I'm not sure if this is what you meant when you created this topic, but I've started buying doubles (and sometimes triples) of many figures so I can display one in each mode.

Needless to say, I'm fairly selective about which figure I add to my collection at all.

(Fortunately sometimes I can take shortcuts: for example, City Commander and Shadow Commander KOs for display in trailer mode instead of the real deal. The profit I made from selling my duplicate original Fansproject items helped fund further third party purchases.)

I'm not putting serious effort into display design into a move in a couple of months; I'll have to see what sort of cabinetry I'll have space for in the new place.

Andrius wrote:I live in Manhattan, so I take my TFs out of their boxes and cram them into other boxes. It's sad really.

I feel your pain. I'm in the SF Bay Area, which is not quite as dire as Manhattan but still makes space at a premium.