Does your 20-gun safe really hold 20 guns?

Y

yankytrash

New member
Barring pistols, does your 20 or 40-gun safe really hold as many guns as it was designed to hold?

I've got 8 rifles in my safe now, and I really can't see it holding more than 2 more without removing a couple scopes.

It's got me thinking about redesigning my storage technique. Maybe I could lose the pistol shelves, make a lower shelf with U-shaped notches for the longer guns, and put the shorter carbines on top.

What do you do for more space?
 
I had to buy another safe. I really don't think the safe manf. test to see how many guns will fit in a safe. The number of guns rating is for how many gun notches are in the safe. Scoped guns and guns with pistol grips eat up a lot a space in a hurry.
 
Shelves in safes are typically of poor design when it comes to organization. I had limited space and way too many guns. Gutted a couple of small safes, redesigned them and doubled their capacity. Now I can purchase more guns!

Robert
 
I am real good at sneaking a new gun past the boss. However, she would definately notice a new safe. This is the age old question for all of us, how do you squeeze more in? Try staggering them. That helps. You can store them muzzle down or you can store the stock separately. I have done that with a Garand or two. You can buy a separate $100 cabnet that is obviously not a gunsafe. Throw a simple lock on it and fill it with tons of shooting supplies. Then, use an empty pillow case to wrap around a smaller carbine and hide it behind a bunch of stuff.

Is there a 12 step program for gun buying?
 
Sam

That is a great idea and it works also. My Mom and Stepdad run a Machine shop.

The last building that they had was an old bank and the safe was still there the lock had been removed( safety Probably), but there was still a trick to getting the doors open. And we were told that new internal parts could be installed. They just call it their storm shelter.

In a nearby town a small cafe bought an old bank and had the safe converted into a walk in cooler.
 
Robert the41MagFan, would you provide us with some details on your redesign?
 
I took out the entire bottom of the safe.

I took out all of the bottom rack material. I just set all of my guns in their cases in the safe. They are stacked in there pretty good. I don't remember how many long guns it was supposed to hold, but it has 20+ in there and I am now at capacity. :(
 
Based on my experience it can be done, but only if you don't care about beating the hell out of them trying to squeeze em in. Put o scoped long gun in there and you are really SOL. :D
 
I am so glad that I am not the only one who has a problem with this. I do not have a single scoped rifle and there is NO way I can get a rifle into every slot. I think that when these safes were made that the builder used several of the same rifle to fill the safe. In that case I think i could fill every hole. Every rifle being different cuts the cap in half.

"gut the safe for double cap" Hmmmmmmm you have got me thinking. :)
 
I don't think the manufacturers take charging handles into account(or scopes for that matter. I've managed 9 in a 10 gun before, but it was tight.

Zane
 
I built a 10x12 ft room in my basement , concrete block with 1/2" re-rod and blocks poured solid. Lined the interior with styrofoam insulation and pine boards. steel door that I found in a scrap yard for $35. de-humidifier to keep the climate controlled, small space heater on a thermostat. got racks all around the room with a desk and workbench and a lock on the INSIDE ! small tv for football and nascar viewing and I turned one drawer in the desk into an icebox for refreshments........
 
Hmmmmm, got you beat, poodleshooter. I've got 11 guns in my 8-gun safe. Two are pistols on the top shelf. Three long guns have scopes. (I confess, two of those are .22s).

The whole trick is to alternate bolt-actions with pumps or semi-autos. The bolts are "wider"; the pumps/semi-autos are skinny. Especially .22's

Also, all the scoped rifles are at one end. The butt of a scoped rifle goes all the way forward, close to the door. That helps keep the scope off the back wall.

Then, all the scoped guns go on one side. The shotguns/non-scoped go on the other side. I can fit that 9th rifle sideways, in front of the shotguns. Its an AK, so it doesn't need any foam padding ;) The AK's sling provides minimal protection to the other guns behind it.

Its kinda like a jigsaw puzzle. Work all the "airspace" to one place, then fill it up.
 
fireforged
thats exactly what I been telling the finer-half for years now. We spent almost 8 years in the land of cotton while I was in the service. We were going to stay but the parents, hers & mine, were here and getting on in years so we came on home. I keep telling her that we could ride the harley every day if we lived in the south.

Well maybe in a few years , gotta get the last kid thru high school and college...............
 
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