Let's Talk Gun Safes.

Status
Not open for further replies.
Joined
Jul 8, 2012
Messages
5,176
Location
Dickson, TN.
What do you have? What do you like/dislike about it?

What do you recommend?

What are some features to look for?

I've never owned one. I need one.
 
Save for a nice one, don't impulse buy. Buy larger than you think.
Consult the Mrs. and get something she can use too.

I've been trying to buy a top of the line Liberty for about 10 years now. Keep moving or having kids and putting it off.
Do as I say not as I do... I know.

If it was just me I'd get a huge FatBoy and call it a day.
 
I stash my guns in secret spots in the house. Don't have any youngins to worry about. I prefer stealth over cement.

Some people recommend Tractor Supply for safes.

A safe is heavy and heavy duty.

A cabinet is light and light duty.
 
A 30 gun safe won't hold 30 guns. I went with a classic mechanical rotary lock rather than a keypad after reading about people not being able to get into their keypad safes and having to call the manufacturer, etc. Glitches happen, don't need it on my safe.
 
I've got a 5 gun, bough off ebay, and bolted to the floor and walls, from the inside. Does the job, and is legal...it's a keypad, but there's a plastic cover that you can prise off to use a key.

Oz the safe needs to be more than 330lbs, or bolted to the structure of the house with 4 off half inch fixtures that aren't available to be unbolted without the safe being open.

Has passed the two yearly police inspections.

Before that I had a huge Gal toolbox, bolted to the floor, three padlockes, and a foam structure that made it look like a sofa...that passed inspection also.
 
A smart thief will get into a gun safe in just a few minutes they know not to attack the door of the safe that is to difficult so they either cut the top or sides open (Ask me how I know!) The best thing to do is to put the safe into a wall that makes it much more difficult to get into you want to make a thief attack the door. You must bolt it to the floor if a thief can get it on its back they can usually pry it open but will most likely just cut the steel out of the bottom and get your guns. The more money you spend on a quality safe the more time it usually takes to get into it.

Look into Sturdy Safe and watch the videos. Again an expierence thief will get into your safe with time but you can make it much more difficult. Bolt it to the floor and set into a wall if it's a quality safe and you make them attack the door it can be quite difficult.
 
I have a Liberty safe. You cannot possibly go wrong with a Liberty.

Go larger than what you think you need. Figure the realistic capacity is half of what the advertised capacity is.
 
Originally Posted By: billt460
Originally Posted By: Camprunner
(Ask me how I know!)


How do you know?


LOL, indeed, how DO you know?

Thanks guys. Keep the info coming. I'll probably go by a few local stores today to get an idea of how large I want to go.

The one thing that sucks is, I live in apartment, so, this thing WILL have to be moved a couple of times. That's OK though. All part of the deal.
 
I have several but I did not pick them. Gifts!
When you have many guns you dedicate rooms to them and get a great policy from a company that specializes in guns and not your homeowners. And surprisingly it isn't very expensive to get.

As an example one company I used three years ago was $100 a year per $100k of gun insurance.
Now $300k was $300 a year and no further discounts but that was a great deal.

Only the guns worth over $10k had to be logged. The rest were covered without any other paperwork.
 
Originally Posted By: john_pifer
The one thing that sucks is, I live in apartment, so, this thing WILL have to be moved a couple of times. That's OK though. All part of the deal.


You may want to check into moving costs BEFORE you buy. Many people don't discuss this. The places that sell them will many times lure customers in with, "free delivery and placement" in order to make the sale. But in moving them you're pretty much on your own. These things are very HEAVY, and somewhat clumsy. And unless you are an experienced safe mover with the proper equipment, they can be very dangerous to move. A lot of these guys aren't insured. And if one gets away from them, there can be a lot of damage. Not to mention someone getting hurt.

Sometimes, depending on the move, (up and down stairs, longer distances, etc.), they can wind up costing almost more to move than many of them are worth. Think pool tables. (Many homes come with them because they're too expensive to bother moving). Also you might want to check with your landlord about the weight, along with where it can be located. Most places that sell these things don't get into all of this. Yet it's something that most everyone who ends up buying one or more of these things, has to end up dealing with.
 
Absolutely. Great post
Like me I have to move this stuff on my own.
I had a customer that was a gun safe freak.
Problem is he had high grade guns and he about destroyed them all taking them in and out of the safe far too often.
I guess he had smaller safes and he really ruined some great guns
 
Originally Posted By: billt460
Originally Posted By: Camprunner
(Ask me how I know!)


How do you know?


A few years ago I had purchased a gun safe and come to find out the guy right next door that helped me move it into my house was involved with several thieves that targeted gun safes in the county. My safe was hit and cut into from the top they found nothing! Once a year I give my guns a total cleaning and the night before I brought them over to my parents so my dad could help me. Anyway the guy next door and the other men were caught and he is doing two years.
 
I have a nice Liberty. AMSEC makes a better safe but they aren't as pretty to look at which can be a factor depending where you put it. Any safe you buy under $10,000 can be broken into with a gas powered chop saw in minutes so keep that in mind. Bolting them down does slow the thieves down and will keep the meth addicts looking for an easy score out but if someone wants in, they can get in.
 
Originally Posted By: RhondaHonda
Any safe you buy under $10,000 can be broken into with a gas powered chop saw in minutes so keep that in mind.


You have to keep this all in perspective. Otherwise you can easily get carried away to the point of ridiculousness. Who realistically is going to spend $10K on a gun safe? I know of no one. And who runs around breaking into middle class suburban homes with gas powered chop saws, or Acetylene torches? Or even these 8 foot long, 40 pound railroad bars, you see these guys using in the demonstration videos. Where they bust into a gun safe conveniently laying on it's side in 30 seconds.

The fact is nationwide insurance statistics show over 80% of home break in's are done by neighborhood kids under the age of 16. Most are in the house for less than 2 minutes. "Smash & Grab" type hits looking for cash, jewelry, cameras, along with other easily fenced items. "Pros" aren't going to bother with these homes, because they'll hit upper class areas. The penalty is the same for breaking into a $2 million dollar home, as it is a $200,000.00 one. Which will be the better score? Another thing is to keep your mouth shut to your neighbors about what you have. People talk too much, and when they do it greatly increases your chances for an unwanted visitor. I've lived in my house for 20 years, and none of my neighbors know I have guns.

You are better off making your home looked occupied, even when it isn't. Leave lights on. Have your home look the same when you are home, or when you're not. At night when you leave, leave a TV on. Anyone approaching the door will see the picture pattern, and hear it as well. Or else leave a radio playing. When you go on vacation put lights and radios on timers. Remember, the object is to send them to someone else's house, so yours doesn't get broken into. Most police who investigate these type of things on a daily basis, will tell you that will have more desirable results, than spending a fortune trying to turn your home into a Federal Reserve Bank.
 
Originally Posted By: billt460
Originally Posted By: Camprunner
(Ask me how I know!)


How do you know?


A cordless grinder with a cutoff wheel will get the job done. The combination lock on my dad's safe broke and we couldn't get the safe open. I took a corded grinder and cut a hole in the door around where the dial went. There was a hardened plate behind the door skin that is supposed to hinder anyone from drilling through it. The grinder cut right through it and I was able to trip the lever that locks the bolts in the door and open the door like normal.
 
AMSEC for safes.

Snap Safe is a modular safe, meaning you can bolt it together. Great if you have to move, as you can disassemble it into pieces. Its a lot easier to move a side at a time that weighs 100 lbs than a safe that weighs 600 lbs.
 
Originally Posted By: AVB
Originally Posted By: billt460
Originally Posted By: Camprunner
(Ask me how I know!)


How do you know?


A cordless grinder with a cutoff wheel will get the job done. The combination lock on my dad's safe broke and we couldn't get the safe open. I took a corded grinder and cut a hole in the door around where the dial went. There was a hardened plate behind the door skin that is supposed to hinder anyone from drilling through it. The grinder cut right through it and I was able to trip the lever that locks the bolts in the door and open the door like normal.


You dont cut through the door. Its the most reinforced. You cut through the side.
 
Originally Posted By: Camprunner

A few years ago I had purchased a gun safe and come to find out the guy right next door that helped me move it into my house was involved with several thieves that targeted gun safes in the county. My safe was hit and cut into from the top they found nothing! Once a year I give my guns a total cleaning and the night before I brought them over to my parents so my dad could help me. Anyway the guy next door and the other men were caught and he is doing two years.


Sorry for what you went through but that's awesome!
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top