Record Shelving / Storage

[mynameismatt]

Need help with record shelving units for my music collection... What are some good options?

Thanks

[mynameismatt]

No replies... :(

Here are some good sources, but I was curious to hear from others.

Dual SF

Hard To Find Records

Boltz

Deconomix

Ikea

Westelm

Red Displays

[K-Bee]

Oh so this was all about funiture....I actually bought my LP shelves in Ikea back in the day. They were originally ment for storing shoes!! :lol: and they are ugly looking as hell too! (think: Miami Vice office interior!) but they sure do the trick.

[Bernie]

Hmm, not sure how I missed this post. For vinyl record storage I've been using 20 modular racks by a company called Rack-It / Per Madsen Design. They are made out of solid oak and assemble with an allen key. More importantly they are sturdy and stackable and can be transported without having to remove the records from the rack-a major plus. I've had them since 1990 and have moved 10 times around the country and not one has broken on me even with the full weight of thousands of records. I have them set up 4 high and on ther dollies so it's easy to move around or reconfigure. Each rack holds 100+ records. Highly recommended.

In addition I have an Expedit cabinet that has 25 cubicles that each hold about 100+ records. Can't remember the name of the cabinet, but the frame is black laminate while the shelves are oak colored. It is an open back design, which is annoying as the records do mark up the wall behind it. I'm not a fan of Ikea furniture, but I bought this a few years ago real cheap and it has held up extremely well. Only problem is that I had to empty all the records into boxes in my last move because this thing is massive and unmovable with all that weight.

The rest of the records are in good old fashioned plastic milk crates! They are indispensable.

[originalbigm]

The rest of the records are in good old fashioned plastic milk crates! They are indispensable.

They were the greatest thing till we went metric and they reconfigured the crates to fit 1 litre bags.This made them slightly smaller than 12" square :evil:

[Mixmachine]

The rest of the records are in good old fashioned plastic milk crates! They are indispensable.

If anyone is still looking for this old dairy plastic crates(USA or online order I guess), they are available again at the Container Store.

I was there looking for a solution for storing my 7" collection and to my surprise this plastic stackable crates made exactly for "Record Albums" (and so labeled) were right there for sale.

Last time I saw any was back in the 80's (at least in my area) and I checked many Retailers through the years without any luck, including the local Container Store.

The bad news is that they are selling for twice as much as they did in the 80's, they are now 9.99 USD each, but still a bargain (IMO) when compared with the other available solutions.

As far as 7" singles go, I found this nice stackable plastic containers 8" wide/high that hold about 225 singles each, separate casters can be attached and even a lid will fit perfectly to keep most of the dust out, (openings on sides), they sell from 5.99 to 8.99 depending if you find old stock on the shelves, the Lids are a bit expensive in comparison selling for 4.99 USD, but if you stack'em up you'll only need one lid.:icon_mrgreen:

[Westwood]

What are these milk crates? Can someone post a picture? I don't think we have them here in mainland Europe ;)

[canadiantire]

What are these milk crates? Can someone post a picture? I don't think we have them here in mainland Europe ;)

Find below a picture of the milk crate storage container as it used to be some years ago.

It had all the qualities that a disc jockey was looking for:

• I was rugged
• It could be stacked
• It was a perfect fit for 12" and as you can see on the picture, there was about 1 1/2" of the record stickin' out of the crate (just enough to let someone easily scroll through the titles without too much finger gymnastic).

The party ended when the milk companies realized that more and more of these crates were stolen from the store consignment areas.

These crates were often left outside of whichever store was selling dairy products. The milkman would swap the empty crates with the arrival of the new dairy products. They were mostly used for carrying milk cartons, cream, etc.

The first attempt to reduce the wave of theft was done by engraving a warning sign on the crate notifying that the containers were the property of the dairy and it was illegal to own them.

It didn't really do much to avoid the stealing.

The death of genuine milk carton used as record storage happened when they changed its size to about 11" on the inside.

I just don't know if the change in size was also done outside of Canada.

I don't know either if the change in size originated from the adoption of the metric system in 1977 (in Canada). It meant that we went from milk pints to milk liters changing the dimension of the container.

No one could use them for vinyl record storage anymore :icon_sad:.

The original crates were made of plastic resin that could withstand extreme heat and cold and could be exposed to UV without breaking.

Some pale copies of these milk crates came on the market some years after, for the "storage" market but they were NO CLOSE to what was manufactured for dairies. I am sure that there are still some copies still being made.

There's one thing for sure; having to copy the old style crate the way it was made BITD would just make them out of price for today's average customer.

- Marcus

[BrunoRepublic]

The death of genuine milk carton used as record storage happened when they changed its size to about 11" on the inside.

I just don't know if the change in size was also done outside of Canada.

I don't know either if the change in size originated from the adoption of the metric system in 1977 (in Canada). It meant that we went from milk pints to milk liters changing the dimension of the container.

I read that it was due to the change to metric. Are American milk crates still vinyl-friendly?

[Westwood]

Hmmm, from that picture it seems that stacking them isn't really danger-free, I mean, if they would stand on top of the outer "lines that stick out" of the box, with the top crate's own bottom "lines that stick out", doesn't really make them stable? Altho I guess you could tie them together...?

[canadiantire]

Hmmm, from that picture it seems that stacking them isn't really danger-free, I mean, if they would stand on top of the outer "lines that stick out" of the box, with the top crate's own bottom "lines that stick out", doesn't really make them stable? Altho I guess you could tie them together...?

You guessed it right.

Milk crates were originally meant to be stacked with the opening at the top. The content (dairy products) would not stick out and you could stack 6+ without too much trouble.

Of course in this case, there is a portion of the vinyl's jacket that sticks out so they should not be stacked the same way (but I have seen careless mobile DJs doing it).

What I did myself was to put them side-by-side in a metal shelving.

[Videoskooter]

I got this tip from a great friend (M-miss you )

The Container Store > Shop Closet > Cubes & Bins > Supreme Crate

[canadiantire]

I got this tip from a great friend (M-miss you )

The Container Store > Shop Closet > Cubes & Bins > Supreme Crate

I can see that this system addresses the issue of the jacket being exposed outside the box.

These crates can actually be stacked regardless of their position.

Depending on the jacket type (paper, single or double albums) they can hold from 90 to 100 vinyls per crate.

I wish I could migrate to this system but it would require about $800 worth of crates to hold my vinyl collection.:icon_cry:

[TheLordOfFlatbush]

I got this tip from a great friend (M-miss you )

The Container Store > Shop Closet > Cubes & Bins > Supreme Crate

Thanks so much for this post, Videoskooter!

Excellent Tip, Indeed!

[LostVinyl]

i found a storage cabinet that works great. It's made just for LPs. i have 600 Lps in one.

www.lpbin.com

[Timothy Kiah]

Hmm, not sure how I missed this post. For vinyl record storage I've been using 20 modular racks by a company called Rack-It / Per Madsen Design. They are made out of solid oak and assemble with an allen key. More importantly they are sturdy and stackable and can be transported without having to remove the records from the rack-a major plus. I've had them since 1990 and have moved 10 times around the country and not one has broken on me even with the full weight of thousands of records. I have them set up 4 high and on ther dollies so it's easy to move around or reconfigure. Each rack holds 100+ records. Highly recommended.

In addition I have an Ikea cabinet that has 25 cubicles that each hold about 100+ records. Can't remember the name of the cabinet, but the frame is black laminate while the shelves are oak colored. It is an open back design, which is annoying as the records do mark up the wall behind it. I'm not a fan of Ikea furniture, but I bought this a few years ago real cheap and it has held up extremely well. Only problem is that I had to empty all the records into boxes in my last move because this thing is massive and unmovable with all that weight.

The rest of the records are in good old fashioned plastic milk crates! They are indispensable.

This site that you have recommended in 04, seems to be gone. Would you happen to have any other suggestions??

[Bernie]

Timothy,

Welcome to DiscoMusic.com!

Unfortunately, it appears that Per Madsen Design is no longer in business which is a shame as their record racks are tops. I have 20 of them which I bought around 1989-1990 and have moved several times across the country without ever removing any of the records from the racks and they are still as sturdy as the day I bought them.

Although not modular like the above, the Expidet bookshelves with multiple bins are perfect for storing vinyl records. I have one of the Expedit units in black with 25 bins/cubes with each holding almost 100 records and it is a beast, but they do make smaller versions. It's inexpensive, easy to put together and very sturdy.

41nK-zKQP-L._SL500_AA300_.jpg

[discodevil]

Hi Bernie,
I have been looking at these Expedit units for a while.
Did you need to put backs on the unit so the records don't hit the wall?

[Bernie]

I still have the 25 cube Expedit chuck full of records without a back to it nor have I tried to rig up anything as the shelves are pretty deep anyway. Having had them for more than ten years, I've just learned to live with it :-)

My friend recently bought two of them in white. She put one in her home office and a smaller one in her living room and they look pretty good. I did notice that the sides appear to be hollower than when I bought my unit. Otherwise it's still a good bet for inexpensive record storage.

http://www.amazon.com/mn/search/?_en...ch-alias%3Daps

[Cdnbob]

Hopefully IKEA here in Canada carry these as they look like they might solve the shelving problem. Thanks for the tip Bernie.

[BrunoRepublic]

They do, Cdnbob. At least in Ontario, anyway.

[SandraDee]

I've recently bought 2 of those Expedit units & they are excellent! I've got 1 arranged vertically & the other horizontal with my record decks on top.

[Cdnbob]

They do, Cdnbob. At least in Ontario, anyway.

Cool. Thanks for the tip Bruno. I'll have to check it out then.