Is there a good/affordable gun safe?

Steve Smith

New member
I have quite a few guns, but they're stored pretty poorly. I'm really getting worried about that. I don't have a grand to spend on a safe. I don't need fire protection, as I have no "collector's guns" and my home insurance is pretty beefed on the gun department. I just need a good safe with a good lock for cheap. Any suggestions?

Moderator, I know this belongs in the gear/accessories forum, but no one reads that.

[This message has been edited by Frontsight! (edited July 31, 2000).]
 
You don't need a "gun safe" necessarily. What you need is a way to lock your guns up. Safes are nice but they are not the only security.

Pick a closet in your house and fit it with one of the steel-clad solid-core doors made for outside entrances. Hang it so the hinges are on the inside, so people can't drive out the hinge pins. Add a hefty deadbolt lock, or two (top and bottom) if you can swing it. Probably cost you about $100 if you do the work yourself

Go to a big hardware place like Lowes or Home Depot and look at the big tool boxes contractors use for storage on site. Couple to three hundred bucks and you can bolt it to the floor.

Know a welder? Get him to whip you up a heavy gauge steel box you can lock with big padlocks. Fit the size to your gun collection, plus a generous fudge factor. Bolt it to the floor.

In any of these, silica gel cannisters will take moisture out of the air to fight rust. Change them avery few months.
 
I ran an eye bolt through the floor and soldered it to a metal plate. Just run cablelocks through the actions and padlock them to the eye bolt.

------------------
Abandon your animosities and make your sons Americans. Robert E. Lee

Beware the three D's: The dumb, drunk, and deranged.

chadintex@hotmail.com
 
The only thing wrong with the door with dead bolt locks, thieves use chain saws to gain entrance through dry walls in quick order. Probably a nice steel rebar mesh cage might slow them down a tad or something on that order. Or, find a hidden closet area that can be changed to look like a normal wall.
 
I've decided to go with a real safe, and suck up the price. UI've found a pretty good one that has space for the future...thanks, guys!
 
frontsight,
Good decision. I hated to spend the, almost a grand, on something that didn't go bang when I bought my Browning safe, but sometimes you have to do what's best despite the cost. One piece of hindsight for you though. Buy the next size up from what you're looking at. It doesn't matter what size you're looking at, just buy the one the next size up.
 
Good advice RAE and good insight Frontsight. Two things about gunsafes. First, they tend to propagate guns. I'm at a loss to explain why or how it happens, but once you put one gun in there, more seem to pop up and then you're overflowing with guns. This may not be so bad. Second, since they're hidden out of sight, the missus don't know what you've got or that another gun seems to have appeared.
 
From AR-15 list archives:
=============================
Date: Tue, 27 Jan 1998 09:34:17 -0600
From: "Corbin, William J., Ph.D." <william.corbin@vanderbilt.edu>
To: AR 15 List <ar15-l@edward.questra.com>
Subject: [AR15-L] Safes -- my personal FAQ

Safes -- My personal FAQ

Before I bought my safe, I called every manufacturer and dealer listed
in Shotgun News to get brochures and prices. I'm one of those folks
who reads everything he can get his hands on before making a major
purchase.

I ended up buying a Fort Knox safe at the Nashville gunshow. I went
that route because the "show price" was the cheapest I had seen (by
$150) and I didn't pay freight -- I simply took the safe home in my
pickup. One company quoted almost $300 shipping to get a 800 pound
safe to the street in front of my house. Inside delivery would have
added another $100 or more. I rented an appliance dolly and got help
from two of my adult sons. Although it was not an easy task, the
dolly, my sons, and a properly placed rug made it happen. (Yup, you CAN
slide a safe on a rug).

After all reading through brochures and many articles, my take on safes
is this:

1. Most burglars come equipped with a large screwdriver and/or
crowbar. They seldom attack a safe. So, unless you have a rather
expensive collection OR you have advertised the fact that you have a
safe, you don't need the "top of the line" safe with 32 locking bolts.
Mine has 16 and I think that's enough. However, don't skimp on the
thickness of the sidewalls. In my opinion, that is the most vulnerable
part of a safe.

2. You don't need the fancy paint jobs. They simply increase the
cost. However, if you plan to put your safe in a prominent location,
you would be wise to check with the spouse before hauling a big, gray
slab of metal into the room. My wife and I decided on a mid-range safe
with a nice burgundy finish.

3. The electronic lock is worth it! When I picked up my safe, it had
a regular dial lock. I paid for the electronic lock which they shipped
to me directly from Ft. Knox. While I was waiting for the electronic
lock to arrive, I confirmed my dislike of standard dial locks. Most
locks require that you go to the first number three or four times, then
go to a second number two or three times, etc. It takes forever and
one slip up means you start all over again. I would not want to
try it in an emergency situation.

With the electronic lock, I have a master code and can give up to 9
codes to my spouse and sons. If someone enters a wrong code three
times, the safe locks down for 15 minutes (except for the master code
holder). It takes less than 5 seconds for me to get into the safe with
the electronic lock. It was closer to 60 seconds with the dial lock.
There is also a feature that might come in handy for shop owners. It
is a delayed opening that you can program for up to 9 minutes.

4. Don't get a safe that is just large enough for your current needs.
You will very quickly grow out of it. What do you do then? Buy a
second safe or try to sell yours sa you can pay for a larger one?
Neither option is cost effective.

5. I didn't have to sell my wife on the idea of a safe, but if
yours is hesitant, tell her that you will be happy to store her jewelry
and the wedding photos in there. If you have children or
grandchildren, the safety factor is important. I also like the fact
that my ammo is probably not going to explode in case of a fire. You
may also get a reduced rate on your firearms insurance rider (your guns
are insured, aren't they?). I used to hide my guns around the house.
I never felt good about leaving home or the idea that the wrong person
would find one of my guns.

6. Unless you live in a humid area, you probably don't need a
heater/dehumidifier. Just use silica gel and "renew" it occasionally
in your oven. One of the little cards or gauges that tells you the
humidity level is helpful for monitoring purposes.

7. Don't pay $150 for a light kit. Most safes have a small hole for
an electrical cord. I went to Home Depot, got some strip lights,
attached them to the top and sides with foam tape and then used a
refrigerator door switch to turn the lights on and off when the door is
opened/closed. Total cost: about $35. Of course, you have to cut the
end off and re-attached it, if you use an extension cord to get power
into the safe. BTW, don't forget to do that BEFORE you shove the safe
up against the wall (and the help has gone home). Also, be sure to
write down the serial number (if the safe has one) before you shove it
against the wall. My safe's serial number is on a little plate on the
BACK.

8. Be careful where you put the safe. The best place is in a dry
basement. However, that may not be very convenient for frequent
access. I put mine on the main floor in the corner where two load
bearing walls come together. Since my house has Poplar supports and a
24" thick stone foundation, I wasn't that worried to begin with. The
basement is best because the safe won't fall through in case of fire.
If you put your safe in the basement and the basement is not very dry,
I would leave it on the wooden pallet and install a dehumidifier. You
can cover the pallet with carpet if you want everything to be pretty.

9. Keep your safe locked! I know that seems obvious but most safes
that are compromised were left unlocked by the owner. That's another
reason for the electronic lock. Once you close the door and turn the
handle, the safe is automatically locked.

Just my opinion,
Bill
-------------------------------------------------------
Dr. William J. Corbin, Assistant Director
Learning Technology Center
Peabody College of Vanderbilt University
Email: william.corbin@Vanderbilt.Edu

"When it comes to trading projectiles, it is more
blessed to give than to receive."
=============================
Date: Tue, 27 Jan 1998 11:18:13 -0500
From: Julius Chang <jchang@alum.mit.edu>
To: AR-15 List <ar15-l@edward.questra.com>
Subject: Re: [AR15-L] Safes -- my personal FAQ

Corbin, William J., Ph.D. wrote:
> I ended up buying a Fort Knox safe at the Nashville gunshow. I went
> that route because the "show price" was the cheapest I had seen (by
> $150) and I didn't pay freight -- I simply took the safe home in my
> pickup. One company quoted almost $300 shipping to get a 800 pound
> safe to the street in front of my house. Inside delivery would have
> added another $100 or more. I rented an appliance dolly and got help
> from two of my adult sons. Although it was not an easy task, the
> dolly, my sons, and a properly placed rug made it happen. (Yup, you CAN
> slide a safe on a rug).

A friend of mine bought an extra-wide, extra-tall Ft. Knox
that weighed close to 1000 lbs. Fortunately, base housing
had only one story. The hardest tasks to move the safe
into his house were 1) tipping the safe over onto the
dolly and 2) getting the dolly over the front door threshold.

To tip the safe over, we first walked the safe off of the
pallet so that the safe was partly on the dolly and partly
on the pallet. Then we used a car jack to tip the safe
up. Finally we slid the safe onto the dolly.

To get the dolly over the threshold, we basically had to
get a rolling start and let momentum carry the dolly over
the hump. The tricky part was steering the safe straight
through the door opening without hitting anything.

Using a three-wheeled dolly was the most important thing
to move this size safe. A regular two-wheeled refrigerator
dolly wouldn't have cut it because it would not have been
possible to control the safe once we had it tipped over.

Once the safe was inside, we were able to slide it around
on carpet.

> 8. Be careful where you put the safe. The best place is in a dry
> basement. However, that may not be very convenient for frequent

I think that the best place is in the MBR where you
can use the open door as hard cover. But a big safe
can be very hard to move up a flight of stairs without
damage. If the stairs have carpet, you can lay the
safe on its back and slide it up. I've done that with
a 700 pounder and a bunch of guys (probably four strong
guys are enough). Ft. Knox told me that their guys
have some sort of "stair walker" to move their big
safes without damaging uncarpeted stairs.

> access. I put mine on the main floor in the corner where two load
> bearing walls come together. Since my house has Poplar supports and a
> 24" thick stone foundation, I wasn't that worried to begin with. The
> basement is best because the safe won't fall through in case of fire.
> If you put your safe in the basement and the basement is not very dry,
> I would leave it on the wooden pallet and install a dehumidifier. You
> can cover the pallet with carpet if you want everything to be pretty.

I think that it is worthwhile to put the safe in a spot
where it isn't visible to just anyone who comes into your
house (people like the cable TV guy, plumber, etc). No
disrespect to any of those professions but there is no
good reason for people you don't know to see your safe.

> 9. Keep your safe locked! I know that seems obvious but most safes
> that are compromised were left unlocked by the owner. That's another
> reason for the electronic lock. Once you close the door and turn the
> handle, the safe is automatically locked.

That is probably true for an electronic keypad lock. You
have to spin the dial for the regular style dial lock.
If I recall correctly, you also have to spin the dial for
the Mas-Hamilton electronic locks used to store classified
information.

-Julius



------------------
LowClassCat
Always willing to calculate my chances
 
Safes

I have for a long time been thinking about this. I know its an old thread, but here is my take. Putting a steel door on a closet is a foolish thing to do. You can cut or punch through the drywall in about 10 seconds. Most of the real cheap walmart type safes are good for about 10 min of real break in attempts. There are many ways to keep guns safe. Every home is different. The biggest thing you have going for your is most robbers are only in the home for a few min. then leave. If you have an alarm they don't' want to hang around for hours. When I build my next home it will have a cement room that has a steel door and then safes inside bolted down. That is only about half of what I have planned but don't want to make public what my defenses are. One other thing is if you put parts of your valuables in several parts of the home the chances of them getting them all are nill.
 
edteach said:
I know its an old thread, but here is my take.
Old? 6 months is old... 15 years is necromancy! Hahaha.

Steel door on a closet/deadbolts etc... great to keep the kids out, and the average home invader is going to look at a steel door and think "grab something else" not "lets knock through some drywall to I can access whatever is in here instead of the TV that is in the open in the next room" ...

I have a closet in my house in the office that is too small to be very useful for clothes, so I converted it into a locked room for confidential files, guns, some valuables. Fort Knox? no sir... Fire protection? no sir... Adequate for my needs? For now yes!
 
They may not take the time to get through the drywall the first time they get inside your house, but they certainly may come back and be prepared to do so the next time around.

If you have just a few guns, the value can easily be several thousand dollars. A small collection of twenty guns, unless it's all Glenfield Model 60 rimfires in every variant, is probably worth $10,000 minimum.

Spending the money on a quality safe is just being smart. Better yet, buy two of them.
 
I have two safes. External hinges, internal locking bolts all around. They are bolted to the floor. They are heavy. Buy the best you can afford. There is nothing like peace of mind.
 
I got a good cheap, $599, at Tractor supply. It has a digital lock that gives me fits sometimes. The internal hinges are more to my liking. But I feel secure knowing my firearms are as safe as I can afford. It is the cheapest Liberty Model with an industrial finish but is adequate to hold my modest collection of 8 long guns and about 30 handguns. You owe it to yourself and society to keep your firearms secure. I just do not feel the sheet metal models offer sufficient protection. I miss my Canon "box" but it went (along with half my collection) in episode of domestic discord.
 
I have a Cheaper gun safe. Its thoroughly bolted to the cement floor and the wall studs. It's well hidden, you must know where it is. It is also well disguised.

What I do: I have several cheapo but tempting pawn shop electric guitars and amps for easy pickens to the Theifs and other tempting goodies in plain view as a distraction. I know from experience that they only have a limited amount of space to haul out booty. a barking dog also helps more than you'll ever know.
 
I knew a guy who kept his goodies in a locked room, with a long recording of a barking mutt rigged up. Jiggle the knob and the tape would start and run.

He swore it would work, don't know if he ever needed it.
 
Are you a Costco member? They usually have good sales on gun safes around this time of year, some of them are an entry level safe, but they are priced pretty well.
 
I have a fairly inexpensive 16 gun "Stack On" cabinet. I have it hidden in my basement closet bolted to the wall and floor. Not it's not a $4000 Browing safe but I don't own safe queen guns, I own weekly shooters. I think I payed $200 for the Stack on , and they are adequately beefy. The "16" gun claim is total BS , I can get 8 or 9 in there reasonably with out banging the crap out of them upon removal. At this time I am waiting for my CPM M1 Garand , and when it arrives it's time to get a bigger (or a second) cabinet.
 
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