[bogie]

Okay - I'm in the market, and thinking obvious stuff so far...

Need access to basement that's large enough, and sturdy enough, for a safe or safes. Areas that can be walled off/fortified enough are also being considered.

Looking for a working area that has enough power, stable flooring for construction of a small machine shop. I don't know how much stress a good-sized lathe can put on flooring, but I suspect, given their size, that it is considerable. My "loading room" doesn't have to take up that much of an area, but I _definitely_ want a dedicated area. I'm also keeping an eye on basement windows, in hopes of being able to install an exhaust fan, so as to be able to clean my toys indoors without killing myself.

I'm also looking at neighborhoods (can't afford a gated community - have a far from huge budget, but hey, I'm hoping to get a place where the majority of the neighbors actually have jobs...), and accessibility. I've decided that I'm going to avoid "french doors," sliding glass doors, etc., since they're easy to open with malicious intent. Before you suggest it, I don't make enough $$ to afford enough property to put a range on and still be within a hour's drive from work. I don't enjoy the traffic here, and would like to minimize my exposure to the idiots on the roads - IMHO, I'm _far_ more likely to fall victim to someone trying to find a lit cigarette while talking on a cell phone, taking notes and spilling coffee than I am to be a "gun violence" statistic.

Looking for a "loading zone" - an area where I can schlep these long skinny black boxes from dwelling to vehicle without giving the whole neighborhood a show.

What am I forgetting?

[Kharn]

For the "Machine shop", definitely put that either in a large attached garage, or in a detached outbuilding (such as a detached garage-looking structure). Anything requiring a change of elevation is very bad when you're considering machine tools that weigh over 500lbs. My workshop is in the basement (Actually my dad's woodworking shop, but I've been taking it over with my mill/drill (a 800lb bare-bones milling machine) and gun parts & projects strewn about), and it was a total pain in the butt to disassemble the mill, carry it down from the garage on a furniture dolly to the walk-out basement, get it past the pool table, through the storage room and into the shop and then reassemble it.

I also suggest an attached garage so you can load up without half your neighbors seeing you throw all the goodies into your car.

A set of double walk-out basement doors is a plus so you can have extra large gunsafes just brought in through the doors. Along with a pool table, widescreen TVs or whatever you or your significant other could come up with when redoing the basement. A vertical drop deadbolt will make sure the two doors cant be forced apart without a lot of effort.

Kharn

[gun-fucious]

good drainage away from the house & out buildings

[Dave R]

Overlapping fields of fire...enough land on all sides of the dwelling for a decent moat...

Just kidding.

2nd the attached garage. Very handy. Big garages and big basements are "cheap" space, so get 'em if you can.

A fireplace is extremely handy in the Winter if power goes out.

Regarding security--just case the place like a burglar would and you'll see the weak points. Use motion-detection flood lights and "PC barbed wire" (rose bushes) to harden those points.

Make sure you have space set aside for the dog. There is no better home protection than a good dog.

[Chris Rhines]

Do not put your machine tools in an outbuilding/garage unless you have some degree of climate control out there. You don't want to head out to work on the guns one day and find a nice coat of rust on your expensive mill/lathe/shaper.

Installing machine tools in the basement - find a local rigger with machine shop experience and pay him to move them. It'll be worth the money.

My Dad and I are finishing up an oversized, detached garage. The way we have it planned, everything that's either real messy (table saw, horizontal bandsaw, belt grinder) or dangerous (salt-pot furnace, welding gear) goes in the garage. The basement has the mill, lathe, Rockwell tester, and the electronics shop.

Other stuff to look for - a means of seeing the area around the doors. Sturdy doorframes. A big room with good acoustics, for the home theater. A way of seperating the master bedroom from the rest of the house (a dedicated hallway with a gate at the end, for example.) Cool neighbors.

- Chris

[Zach S]

For me, big basement, big garage (or room to put one), at least one big closet. The rest is just details.

[WAGCEVP]

a big basement for lots of guns and maybe a shooting range ????????????
:evil: :neener: :p

[Hutch]

Don't know how the lots are, but a fenced back yard you can still get a pickup truck in would be great. Think about running antenna leads, cable outlets, phone station wiring and LAN cable to your secure room downstairs. A really good ground rod would be handy in there, too.

[Norton]

Something that I'm particularly happy about in my new house is that it has poured concrete basement walls. Seems much more secure than concrete block, particularly in a walk out basement.

[standingbear]

drainage and construction.i have a dehumidifier in my basement jus in case,good to know.moisture can kill your guns.power service,what kind of box is there and adequate for your needs.you dont want to be popping the circuts if you washer is running the same time as your other high usage equipment.wiring all up to code?older homes used that cloth wrapped wire(which rodents also love till they get fried)the heavy duty rubber stuff is what you want.security?you want to check location and possable entry ways for someone wanting your guns.you can fix that with glass block windows or something else for your basement.i have an older home,very solid and had the elect updated and all the plumbing.no damp basement,no popping circuts or fire hazards.newer homes dont seem to be as solidly built,alot of that fiberboard sub for good wood and plaster walls(noise is not an issue here)i have my basement set up like a rec room with a very large freshwater fish tank built into the wall.people using the other side of th3 basement can see whats going on in the rec room through the glass but not the other way.

[Mike Irwin]

Roof construction sturdy enough to mount large guns that can be used to repell the Hottentots when they go on a rampage...

Underground utilities that are resistant to interruption where they enter the house. Important if you get an alarm system that uses phone line monitoring.

[Bill Hook]

Looking in St. Charles Co.?

Last time through on 40/64 it seemed like a mess right at Chesterfield. I lived around there many years ago and it seems St. Louis Co. is really too built up.

[TheeBadOne]

LOCATION LOCATION LOCATION

[Pendragon]

You have to consider what your family is like - married? kids? how old?

After we had our son, we grew to absolutely HATE the stairs. Up and down with a baby is scary and when he was really little, my wife fell down the stairs rushing to him when he was crying. Later, he always wanted to go upstairs and almost nothing could keep him from going up (short of building something). Once I saw him start going up and he slipped and fell back down the stairs.

Anyway, our next home will be here in Texas and we are adamant about it being a single story.

Better to buy the worst/smallest home in a better neighborhood than the best/biggest home in a lesser neighborhood.

Find out what your taxes will be in advance.

A rear door of some kind is code in most places - 95% of the time it is a sliding glass door or french doors. Sliding glass doors can be fitted with a really nifty film from 3M that makes the glass come to work much like a winshield. It adds a large degree of safety if the door breaks (all shards remain stick to film) and you cant just kick your way through - you need an axe or something like that - and then its going to be some work. They use this stuff in places where bombings happen (Ireland) and it saves people from being killed by imploding windows. So consider this stuff for your windows.

Also - think about where the bedrooms are - if there is a threat, can you round everyone up, or will you be "cut off" from other people in the house.

[Sylvilagus Aquaticus]

An 800 meter KZ in all directions is a very good thing. I hate surprises.

Regards,
Rabbit.

[bogie]

Well, there's no kids. And I may be looking at a small house (but a 2-car garage...) in an unincorporated area that's in/near a good neighborhood later today.

Downside: No basement

Upside: Not $150,000

[SkunkApe]

Whatever you do, do not get a home that includes multiple buildings, such as a house with a detached garage. More than one building is a "compound". You don't want that.

[bogie]

I'm also going to check to see that I can get zoning (if applicable) approval for construction of one of those "garage on steroids" kinda things... I'm thinking that I can semi-easily climate-control the attached 2-car garage (while retaining the door so that I can move big stuff in and out), but I'd _really_ like a building that would be large enough to park four vehicles indoors.

So gotta figure addition of driveway extension, concrete pad, etc.

Again, I'm not going to be able to afford to live within reasonable driving distance to work, own enough land to shoot, and not live in a mobile home. The place I'm looking at is about 45 minutes from my club - that's doable. And once I've got a place to park it (also checking on zoning, etc...), I'm gonna get a small RV to replace the van, and keep it loaded with the shooting rests, loading stuff, etc... Optimally, Garage #2 will be large enough to house it, and I can use it as my loading area.

A climate-controlled garage area will also likely be a lot better for ammo and powder storage (altho I may fabricate an "ammo cellar" for storing stuff too....) than having to schlep stuff up and down basement stairs.

[bogie]

You know, "Bogie's Compound" sorta doesn't have the same sort a "ring" to it that "Bogie's Bunker" does...

[IAJack]

As a single guy, I always thought one of those "Morton" type buildings with an upper level apartment would be ideal. You know the metal pole barn sheds that can be finished on the inside and built in about any configuration you want. You could have tons of storage downstairs and finish it at your own pace and design?

[bogie]

Well, part of me wants a monster pole barn-type building (but insulated and weather-proofed) and a 35' fifth-wheel to go inside...

Benchrest shooting tends to involve a LOT of heavy stuff, that's also too darn expensive to leave in a vehicle, and that, more than anything else makes me want to lose the apartment. I mean, when I load my van to go to the range, it triples in value.