Gun safe recommendations

[Expat]

Keep in mind that when they say 24 gun, they mean 24 small thin rifles with no optics. An AR takes up about two spots. Start adding optics and the butt ends up out in the middle blocking other slots.

 

[adcecil]

I would sell some guns and keep saving for a better quality safe. Anything is better than nothing I guess. Don't get the key pad.

After purchasing a large safe myself I regret it. If I could do it all over would purchase several smaller safes and hide them around the house. The big one is extremely hard to move and resides in the front room. Every contractor that comes over first question is "what's in the box".

"sell some guns", I don't need friends like you LOL.....
I do like the idea of multiple safes. That way I am not investing as much $$$ into my first safe and I can learn what I like and don't like. I am very skeptical on the reliability of a key pad. thanks for the recommendation.

 

[adcecil]

I got this one at TSC years ago. It's not my only safe but I like it as much as my liberty. My keypad has worked every time. I'd wait for it to go on sale though.


Winchester TS-22-BLK, 26 Gun Safe - For Life Out Here

That seems like a good safe for the price

 

[Joniki]

That seems like a good safe for the price

If you don't like the touch pad you can always swap it out with a combo tumbler.

Gun & Bow Safes Online or In Stores | For Life Out Here

 

[87iroc]

Liberty 64 gun Fat Boy Jr for me. I kept ammo in it for a while too but have moved most of that out in to ammo cans now. It's pricey...sounds like you are shopping in the less than a thousand range. See what kind of customer support you get too. I know one guy was struggling to get in to his Canon? Maybe? Had trouble with support I thought. Was ready to cut in to it. I would get a mechanical lock with key personally. I have digital and like it..but at lower price points not so much. I have considered changing mine over to mechanical

 

[adcecil]

If you don't like the touch pad you can always swap it out with a combo tumbler.

Gun & Bow Safes Online or In Stores | For Life Out Here

I practically like the convince of the touch pad. I also feel it would be way easier to access under stress. My concern is relying on an electronic device. I think the old school mechanical combo lock would be much more reliable in the long run. However you are right if the keypad became an issue I could switch over to a combo lock.

 

[71silverbullet]

Selling your guns to buy a safe doesn't make any goods sense to me, that's like selling your car to buy gas...
The key pad is fine. The dial is a little better but key pads are just fine.
Can you open a dial lock in total darkness?
Can you hear someone in the other room trying to open your safe with the dial? They have a very long battery life, you get plenty of warning when the battery starts going bad, they are easily replaceable, and no, someone can not switch key pads to gain entry.
Buy a golden rod for it...

 

[st8kfinger]

If I could figure out how to post pictures I would show you my liberty that went through a house fire. It was a mess on the outside but the inside was perfect other than the smell, the firefighters sprayed it and no water got in. When I got the outside clean and most of the smell gone I moved it into my new house and I'm still using it today. When I upgrade to a bigger safe it will be another liberty.

 

[Vigilant]

If I could figure out how to post pictures I would show you my liberty that went through a house fire. It was a mess on the outside but the inside was perfect other than the smell, the firefighters sprayed it and no water got in. When I got the outside clean and most of the smell gone I moved it into my new house and I'm still using it today. When I upgrade to a bigger safe it will be another liberty.

Why did you not get a new safe? Liberty will replace their safes after fire or break-in!

 

[Squirt239]

Just my opinion...

Spend the same amount of money you would on one big safe and buy two smaller. Why? Personal experience.

I bought a 48 gun safe from Liberty when I worked at a big box part time. It was a great price...clearance, on sale, scratch (can't see it when it's set up), and 30% discount. I bought it for less than the company paid for it.

Anyways, it was a deal I couldn't pass up. However, I would've rather bought two 24 gun safes; one for pistols and ammo, and one for long guns. Too, being in a smaller ranch house, having two smaller safes I could fit them in a closet, rather than taking up quite a bit of room in a bedroom.

Just my 2 cents...

 

[schmart]

I've got two smaller safes, one with an electronic lock, one with a mechanical one.
The electronic one is certainly easier to enter the combination and was easy to change the combo to one I can remember. However, it gets to be a pain when I am cleaning several guns in that it locks automatically when the bolt closes.
I got the mechanical locking safe second. It doesn't lock until I spin the tumbler, so it is easier when I need to open and close the door frequently, but the combination was set at the factory and I still can't remember it. It is possible to change the combination, but it requires disassembling the interior of the door and a special "change key" to do so. Internet forums point out that it is possible to "lose" the combination when changing it and end up with something you can't open. With the exception of my memory problem, the mechanical lock just feels more secure and should still function in 100 years. I doubt I can say that with the electronic one.

I definitively recommend paying attention to the fire rating on the safes you are looking at. I purchased the first safe when my primary concern was keeping my small number of guns out of the reach of my kids. It is rated for 30 minutes at 1200 degrees. It wouldn't take very long for a fire to exceed that rating and start to impact the guns inside. I paid more attention to the second one and it is rated for something like 100 minutes at 1600 degrees.

Finally, consider where you are planning on locating the safe and access to it throughout the door swing travel. I seriously looked at a 5 foot wide browning safe when I was looking for a second safe, but the 4 foot door made it take up too much room to operate, even it I put it in the garage... I'd have to move a car out to get into it. Simply from this aspect, 2 30 inch wide safes can be more convenient than 1 60 inch wide safe.

As far as ammo... I personally don't like to store readily flammable products in a sealed metal box. Instead, I keep it in a separate cabinet where the doors can slightly pop open to vent any combustion gasses. Additionally, it would take at least half of a safe to store my ammo. Even if that was worth $1500, I could protect way more than that value in firearms with the second half of the safe....

Hope this helps!
--Rick

 

[Indy317]

If you watch videos on YouTube, time is what it takes to break into a safe. A safe is good and all, but if you leave home for an extended period, if anyone breaks into your home, they will have all the time needed to get into the safe. For me, an alarm system should come first. There are numerous options now, from self-monitoring (text, e-mail alerts), to both self-monitoring with a monitoring center as a backup. Lots of camera options as well. Given these improvements in home surveillance and protection, I don't think the cheaper safes are as bad of a choice as they were before.

When looking at a safe, look at metal thickness. Look at door thickness. Is the door a thick plate or a very thing "two inch thick!" hollow cavity. Is the door recessed into the frame of the safe? The break-in videos show that pry-ability is the biggest issue for getting into a safe on location. Additionally they usually attack the corners first when prying, and I've seen some models come with corner bolts now.

As for the dial or electronic keypad, I would be more tempted to go with the dial if it is very strong and robust. The issue I have with the electronic keypad is that, at least on older units, you could remove them to change the battery. There was also a phone line or Ethernet type cable which could be plugged into either a computer or phone jack and a call to the company would allow them to send a signal to open the safe if it malfunctioned. That is a nice option, but I would be fearful of the idiot who in a fit of rage decides to just take off the electronic lock and cut the cable and push any excess back into the safe door. Maybe they have redesigned these locks?

I would also look for a safe that has either a hole or electrical outlet so you can plug in a dehumidifier stick.

 

[85Cosmo]

Its like a car, get the one you want and will be satisfied with. Safes are generally such a pain to get in place, make sure it is as close to the "perfect" one when you finally decide. The "MOVE" adds a lot to the total cost of a safe. Its not a deal if you break your truck or your back in the process. Therefore, as many have said, get the largest one you could every think you would need.

 

[Alamo]

I found this pretty informative, hope it is of use to you: Real Gun Safe Reviews You Can Trust - Gun Safe Reviews Guy

 

[adcecil]

I do think that I will be doing 2 smaller safes instead of a larger one.
I will probably split up the handguns / ammo in one & the rifles / ammo in the other.

 

[stern1]

I'm in the market for a new safe. As my current one is getting is getting full. Not sure if to get a bigger one to replace my existing one or get another one same size and have 2. I'm leaning towards 2 because we have guns that we don't shoot alot but will never be getting rid of. Passed downed from family. And have one for the stuff we use more often. The guns are getting more ware on them from getting them in and out of the safe than using them. Now to find a good deal on a safe

 

[Psode27]

The most important decision you made already, "you need a safe"! Going from living without a safe to having a safe is a great step. not having guns hidden everywhere is a great reeling..... My biggest piece of advice is to not buy a bigger safe than you are willing to move. I've moved mine around enough to figure out that the 72-100+ gun safes are sweet.... as long as they were lowered into your basement prior to building a house over it. My safe holds maybe 30-35 (?) and is heavy as hell. I had to do some careful measuring during a recent home renovation as if i hadn't moved my safe out of one of the rooms prior to drywall, it would have had to stay there indefinitely... My next safe will be NO bigger than this one. I've contemplated getting a second identical safe, then bolting them together, then to the floor and walls. Another perk to having multiple smaller safes is the ability to keep them out of sight.
My safe is a big box safe (Centerion? I think by cannon?) and is probably not anything special, but it wont easily be removed. If people wish to drag a plasma cutter in and work it over, well, thats the way it goes. There are things I can reasonably combat, and things that are gonna land out of my control.
My biggest fear is fire really. Placing a safe in the outside corner of your house will help a little bit anyway.