Storing your gun when out of town

And another thing or 2....

Here are a few more points to consider before a extended trip or security for your weapons;

1) Take a few cell phone photos of your firearms & document the serial #s. If they are stolen or the hotel has a break-in, you can quickly relay those details to the detectives/LE officers. If you haven't already fill out the factory warranty cards & retain the email(s) or copies to document that you are the owner of that property.
A few years ago, I had a security event where a young woman was upset/angry over a domestic dispute with her "live-in" boyfriend. She claimed several high value items(TV, DVD player, computer, stereo, etc) were missing. I asked her if she had any receipts or warranty cards documenting her ownership. She said no. :rolleyes: FWIW; she let her "boyfriend" live with her but he moved out & took the property. The sheriff's deputy I was with calmly explained to her that it was a civil matter not a LE issue.
2) You may want to add the new RFID chips or security tags to your cases/lockbox. If they are stolen you may be able to trace the signal or locate the stolen property quickly. These security products are fairly new but you might find more details online.
3) You might want to add your SSN or ID # to your firearm/high value item. Some LE agencies & crime prevention offices have the tools. It help you recover the items if they are lost/stolen. My PD had a big drive to ID property about 2mo ago.
4) If the hotel/extended stay place uses key cards, have them changed often. Do not get multiple room keys & protect them when you can. Some key systems can be tampered with & I've seen the battery powered system fail a few times. :mad: Many places use cheap plastic cards with local ads that are only designed to last a few weeks.

Clyde
 
Many good suggestions above.

And very importantly DO NOT mention or discuss this with anyone outside this forum!
 
I have a lock-box in my vehicle which is cabled to the seat frame.

However, until you get something like it:

Put the gun(s) in your smallest bag, take them to the bus station and lock them in a locker. These are usually accessible 24-hours/day.

I use the airport lockers all the time for my CCW when i'm going to meet someone at the gate.


W.
 
We've had many suv's. And there are a lot of easy access, not obvious hiding places:
1) pull up the console cup holder on many and there's enough space to put a couple of handguns there.
2) between the console and plushy seats on most there is enough tight space to slip a semi between, and it's generally not visible.
3) BEHIND the glove box. On many, Fords in particular, there is enough space to put a modified thin holster with a med-small semi there
4) on the seat backs of the front seats, there is often a pocket. For about $50, you can have a Velcro strip sewn into the seat side of that pocket that gives you a virtual hidden pocket between the real pocket and seat foam. A good seamstress can put the Velcro on a seam making it almost impossible for the unknowing to spot. Full sized semis will fit in there.
5) on most consoles, there is a gap at the very front. Depending upon the size of the gap and weapon, a holster may be mountable up there.
6) on the front of a seat depending upon the seat style, it is possible on some seats to have a pull up elastic matching panel that can be pulled up to reveal a concealment slit for a small semi.

My attitude is they can't steal what they don't know about. A lock box is also good but it's a possible target.
Lots of options, good luck.
 
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post 9/11 era....

Im not quite sure about the "bus depot" or train station storage.
In the post 9/11/2001 era, many bus stations & transit locations removed or discontinued storage lockers. :rolleyes:

A local short term storage unit or using a locked chest/foot-locker may be the way to go.

Clyde
 
These are all great ideas, thanks to everyone. I'm thinking that maybe when I leave the gun in my hotel room I can just put it in the suitcase and lock the suitcase with a pad lock (like the ones approved by the NTSB for airline travel). I know somebody could steal the entire suitcase or pry the lock off the suitcase but I figure that's not likely. Most hotel thieves, I figure are looking for something they can stick in their pocket. Most likely they are not going to go to the trouble unless they know what is in the suitcase.

As far as carrying the gun back and forth from the car to the range to the hotel room I thought I would just use a Nike gym bag as my gun bag instead of a "Midway" gun bag. That way it just looks to people like I go the gym a lot.
 
Not a bad idea, but bring an extra set of real locks.

You are on to something with the small non-gun gun bag. Works like a charm!
 
Don't you have any of those little cable locks they give with a new gun? Just lock it too something and cover it up so it's not in plain sight and go about your business.
 
I drive an SUV that, like most SUV's doesn't have a trunk, just a rear end compartment that you get to my opening the hatch (or reaching over the back seat). I want to take one or 2 of my guns with me so I can go to the range while I am gone plus for personal protection when I am out and about.
Click to expand...

A lot of SUV's have some room under the second row of seats to put a reasonably strong lockbox and bolt it through the floor. It would give you enough room to have a couple pistols with you or to lock them up if you can't carry with you where you are going. I wouldn't want to leave them in my hotel room.

You can mount this or something similar horizontally under the seat.

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Be cool, kitty kat....

Id agree that a Nike or athletic gym bag may be smart to carry around rather than a range bag with GLOCK or NRA or SIG SAUER all over it. :cool:
My armed security class instructor(an experienced EP specialist who sat on the state div of licensing panel for security industry issues) told our training class how he'd carry his rifles & gear in milspec duffle bags with baseball/little league team patches on it, ;) .
He also said he never discusses his work, travel plans or weapons with his neighbors/visitors where he lives.

It's a smart idea if you will be on the road for a extended period.
Clyde
 
Why is putting a safe in your car out of the question? Was that a throw-away joke about a full size safe, or ...? I ask because they do make small handgun size safes that are designed for just that purpose, and can be mounted inside the car with quick-release brackets (inaccessible unless the safe is open). This provides good, flexible security options day in and day out. I've long thought that everyone who carries a concealed weapon should have a secure lockbox in the car for just that purpose.

My own preferred travel security -- where I've usually flown in and rented a car -- involves my suitcase, a little lockbox, and a cable lock. Take one of those small, handgun sized travel lockboxes with a cable cord attachment. Run the cable through the "backbone" of your suitcase (unzip the liner, wrap the cord around the metal bar that forms the suitcase's dolly, zip the liner back up as best you can). Now your lockbox is securely attached to your suitcase with a flexible cord. Then of course you close the suitcase and lock the zipper with a little padlock, just as you do when flying. Now what you have is a lockbox that's out of sight, inside a large, locked suitcase. Someone might steal the entire suitcase from your hotel room, but that's unlikely because most hotel-room thefts are easily-hidden pilferage of small items, not blatant theft of large suitcases.

pax
 
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