Review: Daiso Display Box

Are you:

• Looking for a clear case to display your beloved die-casts, but can't afford those expensive display cases or shelves 'cause you just spent the last RM7 on a Hot Wheels?
• Getting tired of wiping off the dusts off your Tomicas every weekend?
• Running out of space to display your Matchbox die-casts, and wondering if there is a way to stack them?
• Looking for a small portable case, so that you could rearrange your die-casts in any way you like, anytime you want? or perhaps send it as a gift to your friend? (in which case, I can be your friend!)

Look no further! Daiso has the perfect solution to all of your problems! Presenting the Daiso Display Box - Mini Rectangle version! (am I overdoing it?) These small display boxes are made in Japan, exclusively for Daiso. So I doubt you would be able to find it at Tesco or something. Anyway, these small display cases only cost RM5 each! (Approx. 1.5USD). I got them from Daiso at The Curve. They're available at Daiso 1 Utama as well. And they're available in various shapes and sizes (by shapes, I mean squares and rectangles. So don't come complaining to me if they don't have a case shaped like a platypus).

And here it is. The Jaguar XJ220 and the Volkswagen Beetle are not included. You could leave the wrapping on though, in case you don't have an actual car to display, although I doubt anyone with a brain would be fooled into thinking that there's actually a Jaguar XJ220 and a Volkswagen Beetle in there. Anyway, the plastic sheet is meant to protect the case from scratches prior to purchase. But I guess it doesn't do the job very well, since it's just a thin piece of plastic sheet, and it's not covering the sides of the case. If you're lucky, you might get a perfect case with no scratches at all. Even if you're not, the scratches are very minor and hardly visible. And you could always use the side with the least scratches as the front part of the case. So don't worry too much about it.

Umm... the only thing I could make out here is that it is made in Japan, and it is produced for Daiso Japan. The measurements are also shown here. The total measurement of the display case including the base is 154(L) x 75(W) x 81(H) mm while the exterior measurement for the clear part of the case is 143(L) x 63(W) x 70(H) mm.
Don't worry too much about those. The most important part is the interior measurement with the base installed, which is 140(L) x 60(W) x 64(H) mm (the base takes up a bit of space at the bottom, about 4mm). That means the clear plastic is roughly 1.5mm thick. So you'd better measure your die-casts properly before you buy the case, and make sure that it's going to fit.

There's no complex locking mechanism or whatsoever. Just pull the clear part of the case to separate it from the plastic base. So that means that if you're going to carry the case, you need to hold it by the base, and not the clear part.

They're stackable too. Make 2 tall stacks of 88 cases each, and connect the two stacks with some sort of bridge, and you'll get yourself a Hot Wheels Twin Tower! Call the Guinness World Records, get on TV, and then apply for a Datukship. And you're gonna be rich for the next 7 generations to come. Seriously.

As you can see here, you can't display a standard 1:64 die-cast aligned parallel to the width of the case, as it simply wouldn't fit (bear in mind that the Matchbox 350Z is a pretty short cast).

Of course you could align it parallel to the length of the case, but then you would be wasting so much space. It's not like the car is alive and it needs to move around, is it?

So you need to put 2 cars in order to fully utilize the available space. But you wouldn't be able to close the case if you put 2 cars aligned parallel to the length of the case.

So the best solution (for a 1:64 die-cast) would be to align the 2 cars diagonally. This only works for normal die-casts though. I tried putting the Tomica Calsonic Impul Z and the YellowHat YMS Tomica Z together, but they just wouldn't fit. You need to pair each of the GT cars with a normal car (preferably ones without huge GT wings).

Here's an alternative if you cant afford to buy a case for each 2 cars you own. Don't stack the cases, put your favourite cars in the case, and put the rest of your cars on top of the case. The top of the case should be able to accommodate up to 4 cars, depending on the arrangement, and the length of the car. Anyway, the arrangement of the cars and cases is just my suggestion. You could always use your own creativity and arrange them however you like.

This is how I arranged mine: