Moving gun collection across the country while towing a camper

It all depends on "how many guns you're talking about". It is always safer to haul them yourself if it is possible. There is always the potential for someone to break into your trailer or where ever you are storing the firearms. Just keep an eye on it. Leave it hitched to your pickup at night with a lock on the hitch.

Once you get there, you can put them into climate controlled storage if you don't want all of them in the trailer. There are always risks.
 
I84 over Deadman Pass kills travelers every winter, mostly out of state drivers underestimat Oregons snows after the Rockies. By Thanksgiving is pushing it but you might get lucky is my benchmark for first snows.... give or take.
 
Most moving companies do not move firearms.
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Sure they will - they aren't a hazardous substance. I have had moving companies move my guns several times - all were listed on the manifest, wrapped/cased securely and placed in one big box, all edges/seams taped and marked to show any tampering. All were insured with the extra insurance (not the standard few cents per pound) and all came through just fine. I have also moved them myself several times, along with all my ammo, reloading components, gasoline, etc. Just had a blue tarp over the load in the pickup. Moved cross country, no issues, no theft, etc.
Some folks seem to think because you guns hidden in a vehicle or camper, that thieves magically know to break in because there are guns - they don't. Use common sense, stay in nice campgrounds on your way and all should be just fine. If you want extra piece of mind, list them on your homeowner's policy, even if it means a rider.
 
I84 over Deadman Pass kills travelers every winter, mostly out of state drivers underestimat Oregons snows after the Rockies. By Thanksgiving is pushing it but you might get lucky is my benchmark for first snows.... give or take.
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Stupid drivers die all the time.

Snow can be driven in.

It's up to 2DaMtns to decide whether he has the skill, attention, and patience to take the 'nasty' route, or the easier coastal route. ...If there even IS a snow storm when he rolls through.

It's not like there's 5 months of continuous snow... :rolleyes:
 
I spent a cold night in Deadman's pass in Jan of 77. The last couple miles to the rest area were a couple hours at a slow crawl following a semi through the snow in near zero visibility. When he stopped for the night, so did I!

NONE of the mountain passes in the dead of winter is something inexperienced snow drivers should tackle without overwhelming need. The southern and coastal routes are safer, especially when the greatest risk can be from other drivers in the snow.

Check your insurance policy about theft from your vehicle / camper, see what they will cover, and especially what they don't! Get limited time specific insurance for your guns, if the cost is worth it to you.

Personally, I would just pack them well, (guns can, and DO shift inside gun cases, and can bang into each other) Bury them underneath EVERYTHING, and drive on.

Check the state laws of every state on your route, avoid those which require their own paperwork to possess firearms. (FOID cards, permits, etc)

If you must travel through an area where you do not have the needed local paperwork, the FOPA federal law provides you some limited protection from prosecution, BUT you have to meet certain qualifications to be covered under that law.

Essentially, you must be travelling as close to straight through as possible. If you have a "destination" in the restricted area, you are breaking the law if you don't have the legally required local (state) paperwork. Best to avoid the risk completely.
 
Last time I moved guns I removed the back seats of one of the cars and loaded the guns in the car. I then filled the rest of the car with boxes marked "Books" and "Kitchen Stuff" etc. Stuff that no criminal would want to steal even by accident.

The car has an alarm on it. With most new cars these days it is really hard to jimmy the door locks. Some are easy but most are hard. The doors can still be defeated but require time. When we ate we simply found a place where I could keep an eye on the car. When we stopped for the night I moved the guns into the hotel room.

So a few general notes on how not to get stuff stolen out of your car:

The overwhelming majority of criminals that steal stuff out of cars look inside the car and see if it is unlocked. They then look to see if there is anything worth stealing in plain sight. If the car is unlocked that will probably look anyway. Don't keep stuff that is worth stealing in your car.

Practically all new cars have an alarm of some kind. If the car is locked then the thief needs a good reason to risk getting arrested like $10 or more worth of stuff in plain sight. Then a cinder block goes through the window. So if you don't follow rule #1- keep your stuff hidden if you do leave it in your car. They prefer not to set off an alarm as they would rather keep stealing stuff out of other cars in the area. But if you make it worth their while they will go for it.

If you see someone looking into multiple cars in a parking lot call the police. Seriously. Tell them you see someone going through a parking lot looking in car windows. They will come right out most of the time, unless you are in one of the cities with a really high crime rate where the police resources can't keep up with calls. Don't expect to see this activity much in the day time but it happens.

More than 80% of the time when stuff is stolen the car it was unlocked. People leave guns, money, GPS, and all kinds of stuff in an unlocked car. I call them drug addict enablers. So lock your car.
 
Get a $125 stack-on or slightly more expensive Homak un cabinet and put it in the camper secured(bolts). When you get there you will have some minimal security until you can get your new safe. Once you have a new safe you can use it to secure less valuable items. Mine holds my muzzle loader, some cordless power tools, ammo, etc. Things that aren't super valuable, but also are easily sold.
Not the best security, but properly bolted, provides reasonable protection from a smash and grab.
 
To comment on some of the posts...

I have a small metal cabinet Sentinel gun cabinet from Wal-Mart that I keep ammo in, but it's too small to fit the collection. It has been brought up a few times since I posted it, but I'm looking at moving 17 guns, and they won't fit in that little thing.

I am a very confident and experience snow driver, and have a winch on my truck. However, pulling a camper is pretty new, so I figure we'll head through the safer, southern route and up the coast, hauling ass through CA as fast as we can get by with.

We can't get packed up, get the house sold, etc., and leave our current jobs before the end of the year, so it's going to be a January trip.

I don't think that having guns in my truck automatically makes me a target. What automatically makes me a target is my truck that is obviously outfitted for outdoor sports (ARB bumper, winch, camper top, etc.), my VA plates, and the camper. No matter how hard I work to minimize risk and exposure, I can't change those things.
 
keep them unloaded and piled in the back seat or floorboard in the rear cab area of your truck. Cover with blankets. Cover the blankets with dirty or loose articles of clothing. Add various empty bottles, wrappers, and empty fast food containers on top of all of it during the trip. Stay near that truck. You'll be fine.

Be really Careful with mountain passes during the winter. Mountain weather doesn't mess around.
 
Times sure have changed over many years. In the 70's I moved from Illinois to Connecticut and the movers simply put my long guns in the wardrobe cases and the handguns got back with other household goods in boxes. Everything went on the moving van. No issues.

No on would even think of such a thing now.
 
I have a small metal cabinet Sentinel gun cabinet from Wal-Mart that I keep ammo in, but it's too small to fit the collection. It has been brought up a few times since I posted it, but I'm looking at moving 17 guns, and they won't fit in that little thing.
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Stack-on makes a 22 gun cabinet. I moved guns in one about 7 years ago. Put each gun in a silicone impregnated sock and was able to
I have lots of firearms related things that are worth enough to steal. Not too long ago I sold tapco AK mags for $30 apack about 15 in a 10 gun model.
Didn't take many to exceed the value of most of my individual firearms. I actually have three cabinets for accessories, tools, ammo, etc. I bought two off of craigslist for almost nothing, but the one I paid ful retail for has been worth the price. Helps with organization also.
 
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