I keep everything Japanese as mint as possible. I like to display my Takara TFs in their boxes, and crack open one every so often to play with it. Hasbro stuff get flattened. The figures are displayed loose or stored in ziploc bags in cardboard boxes to save up on space. Carded figures get the bubble thrown in the recycling bin and cards stored in large binders.
I've kept all of the boxes. I get larger boxes from wal-mart and put the smaller ones inside, then store in the attic. All of the boarded ones get the plastic bubble cut off, then the board goes into a folder in a file box. Any accessories go into a ziploc bag with the transformers name on it and goes into the file as well. Only exception to the above is the takara reissue boxes. They are on a bookshelf.
Personally, I keep only the backs of the boxes from 'standard figures'. They just take up far too much room for storage being a complete collector. I have 2 plastic tubs in my closets that are just filled with the instructions/box backs. The only boxes I have kept would be for the statues from Diamond as they are extremely fragile to move without the original boxes. I also have a bunch of random g1 boxes that I have no idea what to do with.
It's funny I was going to ask this last week. I keep my reissues in their boxes even after I open them since they go back in nice and make it easier. I am slowly but surely starting to toss my other wierd shaped boxes. My kids took great joy in ripping Movie Ratchet's box to shreds. I still have the cardboard from my deluxe and smaller purchases.
I keep some of my boxes, mainly Voyagers and Leader class ones, but most I just chuck. I guess for me it depends on how nice the box looks and if I really want to keep the artwork. I never keep deluxe boxes, mainly due to the fact that I have to rip them open to get at the figure.
Since my purchases will be largely limited to G1 reissues until the new Classics (Japanese and Universe 2.0) are released, all of the figures I'll be purchasing this month will remain MISB. The Classics' packaging will be recycled.
The G1/G2 boxed or carded figures I managed to locate and purchase have been kept. Beast Wars, Beast Machines and RiD that I bought in boxes or on cards have remained with me or stayed that way. Armada, Energon, Cybertron, Classics have been dumped bar a few techspecs I spotted. Masterpiece and Ehobby figures have stayed in their boxes, opened but put away again carefully though. My Alternators are reboxed or bubbled in every case... I have got most of them in storage as in a 2 bed flat with 2 kids there isn't a lot of room for my collection. I wish I could open many of them and display them openly, especially the Alts and BT's but do I keep the boxes?
I had to throw the box of my 2004 20th anniversary Prime away due to space restrictions . I've kept it a certain time, but it did just take up space.... All I got is the instructions
I throw most of my boxes in the trash because if I keep them & then the figure goes up in price (like Cybertron Leo Breaker or Galvatron) I might be tempted to sell it on Ebay. I tried to keep all my Cybertron boxes but they took up too much space so one day I broke'em down & threw'em out. I keep the expensive boxes though, like Masterpiece or E-Hobby exclusives.
I'm keepin all of mine for time being due to my collection count: <- But as I move along I may only keep the better ones and rid myself of the others, who knows?
For now, I am keeping all the boxes. They take up quite a bit of space, but not so much that I cannot afford it... for now.
The only boxes I keep are for my Alts, Masterpieces, Palisades statues, G1 Reissues... basically the higher end, collector and/or more expensive stuff for moving purposes. Easy to come by main line stuff like Classics, Movie, Robot Heroes, etc. all go in the trash since the packaging serves little purpose once they've been opened. I imagine it'll be the same once Animated rolls around as well since the packaging isn't much to look at imo.
I keep some boxes, but only the backs off most. There aren't really 'official' criteria for what stays, but the top cupboard seems to be Masterpiece Convoy, Alts and Japanese stuff for the most part. The rest I just take the back off and bin the rest. There just isn't room. Besides which, while I'd love to have kept all the packs right from the beginning, the fact is I was seven when I started collecting, and didn't really worry about such things.
Boxes and cards are kept, flattened down - plastic bubbles are normally thrown away. I'd like some way of displaying the cards when I get a proper display room sorted out.
I keep the reissue boxes intact, and flatten pretty much anything else. I have the cardboard box Brave Max shipped in and I keep all my flattened boxes, probably 200-300 toys'worth in there. I keep cards, instructions etc. in 3-ring binders, in bins with the toys.
I only keep Takara boxes. With the exception of the reissue PM Prime and the two 6" Titaniums I own... Didn't bother keeping Classics because the European packaging foregoes character biography in favor of a dozen different languages.
I've been keeping mine since Armada and they've piled up like a mother, so I don't know, thinking of getting rid of them
I keep my Takara/Tomy boxes because it's usually easy to re-pack the figure inside if I need to. The two TF Collectors' Club exclusive boxes that I have are also good in this regard. Hasbro's boxes, on the other hand, don't work as well for me, since you usually need twist ties to secure the figure inside, and I usually throw those away. In those cases, I just cut off the back panel, since it usually has the character bio, and toss the rest.
