There are two types of comic book boxes. Short ones that hold roughly 200 books, and long boxes that hold about twice that. There’s not much difference between a long box and a short box, except for the size. I prefer to store my collection in short boxes.
As my collection was growing, I had to make a decision about storage early on. Would I use the long boxes or the short? I chose the short. The reason was simple. The short boxes can fit inside a closet side by side, and be opened front to back. Yes, I may fill a long boxes one day–but what good would that do me if I can’t get to it because the closet floor gets cluttered. Another reason, is that they are easier to transport. With the Army moving my family every third year, I need to make sure my collection is mobile. The short boxes also allow me to slowly grow into having one title per box, ie Superman, or Action comics. One day, when I get a bigger house or find more room in the outside closet, I would like to line all my short boxes on a shelf where I have easy access to them all.
I like the short boxes, they make my small collection look big. The long boxes might look tempting and may look like they save you money, but they are just not worth it to me.
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This post is a fresh rewrite of a post from September 2006, titled “Long Box, Short Box“.