Drawer Safe

M

markt99

New member
Hello Everyone,

Up until now I have been keeping my loaded SD handgun in my large gun safe leaving the safe open at night so that I can easily get to it. the safe is in my closet 2-3 paces from our bed. The idea is that in the morning I arm myself with my SD pistol for the day's concealed carry and lock the safe.

I have to admit I often forget to lock the safe when I get the pistol out of it.

My wife and I have just welcomed our first daughter into this world, and although she can't move on her on yet I'm starting to think of her safety. I would like to keep my large gun safe locked barring range trips, and have another smaller safe specifically for storing my SD weapon while I am sleeping, in the shower, etc.

I would like to get a drawer safe for my night stand and have been looking at biometric versions. The nightstand drawer is 4" high, 21" wide and 15" deep.

The purpose of the safe is not really for theft protection, but more to keep children out. It will hold either my LCR or Glock 30 and maybe occasionally one of my full size 1911s. The bulk of my collection will remain in my regular safe which I will always keep locked unless I'm switch out my SD gun or taking some guns to the range, etc.

I've seen one by GunVault called the Biometric MicroVault (MVB500) but it has mixed reviews and complaints about not always opening the first time.

Any advise on these types of safes? Brands? Should I get biometric, or are keypad drawer safes just as easy to get into quickly in the middle of the night.

Thanks in advance.

mark
 
No kids of my own yet but I can remember my fathers pistol being in his nightstand all the time. The best way he kept me out of it was to not draw attention to it by putting it in and out of a fancy finger scanner. Instead he taught me that it was dangerous from a very young age. Needless to say my sister and I both made it 18+years without any accidents. There were guns all over our house we were just taught not to touch them unless we HAD to.
 
Safe--good idea

As a retired teacher, I applaud your decision. The safe will also keep out dumb adults who may be visiting. In your search, visit some of the larger locksmith companies who stock safes. I've seen gun safes in these places.
 
We have a couple of these http://www.deansafe.com/vli-279-s.html same reasons, although I have always kept the guns locked up for fear of stupid adults as much as kids.

They are great. Mechanical locks are a must for me. No this models is small / thin so you are basically gonna get one handgun in there and maybe a spare mag.

All in all I love the ones we have.
 
Recommend you keep the present set-up...

for I find the distance allow you to be FULLY at situational awareness and the mind in gear.

Recommend that you attach car keys to safe key so to REQUIRE you to close it.

When my daughters arrived, they never were aware of the HD firearms, until Jr. high and AFTER going thru firearms training.
 
your setup sounds good to me i know its not for hardcore thieves which will just take the whole safe but rather to keep kids out. As kids we never knew of dads colt .38 all we knew was that there were places in the house you were not to be seen anywhere near. i.e dads closet,dads dresser,dads nightstand. The penalties for being caught even close to any of these were extremely severe while the whole time we were being taught the ways of firearms.
 
My coworker and I have both discussed our dads always leaving a gun out on the night stand.

Teaching your kid what it is and what it can do are the ways he kept me out of it. It was no great "mystery" or item of curiosity.

Similarly, my coworker said his friends would ask to play with his dad's guns and he would just say "no, we can't if he isn't here. Sorry" because he knew if he broke that level of trust his dad wouldn't take him shooting anymore.

The GunVault is nice, but it is no substitute for good parenting. Because someday your child might be at a friend's house who's mom/dad doesn't keep guns locked up all the time.
 
+1 for the good parenting...

Definitely no substitute for good parenting. Teaching kids about gun safety should be priority #1 as far as this subject is concerned. Several months ago when I picked up my springer, my brother and I were upstairs checking it out (unloaded, of course) when his 5 year old son wandered upstairs (he was supposed to be downstairs with grandpa and the other cousins) and opened the door to see what we were doing. My brother being a good father took a minute to explain in terms his son would understand what we were doing and reminded him about gun safety, then sent him back downstairs.

I don't worry about his kids and my gun when they're at my place because they've been taught properly, also my gun is usually on top of my dresser where they can't begin to reach it.

HOWEVER, I'm sure we all had that one stupid friend growing up. You remember, the one who ALWAYS wanted to do something ridiculous? I worry about that kid, and the adult he grew up to be. For that very reason, I'm looking into a nightstand safe. Just because that kid grew up, doesn't necessarily mean he grew a common sense bone.

The fact of the matter is that we won't always be able to control our surroundings (isn't that why we CC?) and your home is included in that. You can, and should, teach your kids properly, but that doesn't guarantee accidents won't happen. Keep the guns locked up or safely stowed.
 
I have a Stack-On PDS-500 drawer safe mounted to the floor of my truck. Excellent unit- works well, made well, inexpensive. I highly recommend it.

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I don't care for electronics of any kind on my handgun safe. It's a matter of reliability for me. For a drawer safe, the V-Line is a good choice. Why not secure it better than in a drawer and have it mounted more solidly? My HD gun is always here VIDEO CLIP and I don't worry about who is in the house. At least someone will have to put some effort into taking it and it is available to me anytime.

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I've got two of the stack-ons. One is a drawer model that keeps my night-stand gun. The other is a cabinet style that keeps my "door" gun. Both work perfectly for what they are designed for. They are NOT going to even slow down a thief. They will, however, keep a gun out of the hands of a curious kid. The push-button lock can be operated in total darkness and there is a key backup if the battery dies (I find that the batteries last about a year).

As to teaching a kid not to pick up a gun, it doesn't always work. Science has proven that children just don't have the brain function necessary to make those kind of rational connections until they are much older than us parents would like. The biggest problem is that it really isn't your kid you have to worry about - it is the neighbor kid that comes over to play.
 
"I have a Stack-On PDS-500 drawer safe mounted to the floor of my truck."



Ditto... and fully agree. I have a second screwed to the floor between bed and wall for home defense (works in my house, fits in a drawer as well though). These are not expensive, very heavy duty, and excellent units. The one in my Van is bolted down between the two front seats and has been absolutely satisfactory for storage and security. Best $70 I ever spent.


Willie

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a vault/ safe is great but even better is teaching you kids.
when our kids hit about three(every one is different) we had that talk. keep it simple and take them out to the range as often as you can. if it is a common place item in the home they are less likely to vest interest in it. take the novelty out of it. again i fully agree on keeping things under lock and key but it helps that you kids know what firearms are at a young age. taking them to the range is a great way to help them understand about safty and handling a firearm and that it isnt scary or COOL its just a gun dad keeps for hunting or for what ever. the more they have the chance to shoot the less likly they are to want to get into it. we had a firm understanding that guns dont leave the safe unless mom or dad is carrying or putting them in the car to go some where and shoot. if our kids ask to go shoot we pick a time and go. this helps to teach the kids that there is a time and place for it and that the time does come instead of putting it off and never going. we found if you wait too long to take them they are more inclined to be "independant on the matter. we have two kids and they are very different people. the boy is very stubbern and bull headed the girl is curiouse but patient. find what works for you. we tried to take the wow out of shooting for now it might come back in the picture later though. :D
 
Doyle "The biggest problem is that it really isn't your kid you have to worry about - it is the neighbor kid that comes over to play."

agreed
 
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