Do you store ammo in your safe?

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Yes. I have a lockbox inside my safe sitting on the shelf supports that holds my ammo. Gives another layer of security in keeping unloaded firearms unloaded.
 
I bought one of these a few years back for storing all my ammo. I added some LED motion lights to the shelves and it works perfect for my needs and I can store a lot of ammo in it.

ammo.jpg
 
If you're thinking about a "safe" meaning a residential security container, and you're "on the fence" about it, consider a security cabinet instead. The RSC's they sell for under $1000 are basically a sheet steel box lined with gypsum drywall. They won't protect the contents in a major fire, nor will they secure the contents from a thief with a basic battery-operated power tool that will zip through the steel in seconds or a few minutes at most. What they will do is weigh hundreds of pounds making it impractical to move it conveniently when you want or need to. They'll also cost you too much for what they offer because they're so expensive to move through the supply chain.

What else they can do if you spend a little more, perhaps $1200 to $3000, is to become a sort of practical showcase. Get one with glossy paint or even a starburst fade or filagree and display it prominently in your living room. It's not my style, but I get why some people would prefer that to the bedliner finish that sits next to a shelving unit with used paint cans and lumber stacked in the garage. You can have dazzling LED lights and a plush carpeted interior. Or if you have all black guns, the interior can be lined with ballistic nylon and molle loops everywhere.

You can get meaningful security with a TL-30 rated safe, but while the weight and expense are both immense, the interior space is not. Even for the cheap RSC's, capacity claims in gun-count are often overstated by 4X. A 30 gun safe is likely to hold 7 or 8 long-guns with optics if you want to get one in and out without banging them all together.

If you just want to store some guns whose total value is less than your homeowner's insurance deductible in a child-safe container that also keeps them out of sight, then all you need is a locking steel cabinet. You can buy more to expand your capacity. Buy an extra one for ammunition. You can get a Stack-On from Tractor Supply or Sportsman's for less than $200. They claim 18 guns, but plan on 5 per cabinet. Rather have a bigger one than more little ones? Get a Sandusky cabinet or several of them from Grainger (or similar retailer). They come 36" or 48" wide and can hold 180 pounds per shelf -- plenty of capacity to hold pistols or a modest amount of ammo. Another good storage box for ammo is the orange Rigid job site boxes from Home Depot. The Knaack ones are even better but a lot more money -- the Rigid's are cost-cut Knaacks. My advice should not be taken for storing huge quantities of ammo at your house. Build a shed far out on your ranch or move it off site.

The steel cabinets use a cheap key lock -- far, far better than a cheap combo lock on a cheap gun safe (got to be the #1 job for residential locksmiths). If you have kids or teens in the house, don't hide the key(s). Secure the keys in a small safe. I like the Fort Knox pistol safes with the KABA simplex combo locks. I've heard good long-term reviews on Barska biometric handgun safes too. Since this is an easy business to get into (unlike gun safe makers, they can ship via UPS), there are lots of players in the pistol safe marketspace. I'm sure there are other good ones out there. Don't get tripped up by the low security of these jobs. Low security is pretty much a fact of life unless you're stepping up to TL-30. If you have a higher risk then by all means get more security.
 
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I didn't use to store ammo in the safe.....then ammo became more valuable than the guns! Safe is packed with all kinds of ammo now. Got it piled and balanced wherever it can fit. Same with primers for reloading! Previously I had all my ammo on nice labeled shelves, was really convenient, I hope to go back to that method soon, but I need to harden the room it is in first.
 
I store my cases of ammo stacked on top of other cases in my garage. I would need a pretty big safe for all of it, along with my primers and powder.
 
I have a few magazines handy for the up front weapons, otherwise, no. I actually coverted a StackOn pistol 'safe' (if you can call it that... mild steel with a keyed lock...) into my ready ammo locker, near the safe. It has my factory ammo stash (boxed commercial ammo, not bulk surplus, etc,) a few bandoliers of rifle ammos, and my stash of work knives (I buy them 5 at a time.) The bulk of my ammos is upstairs in the bat cave, however.

My safe is quite small... there is no room to spare.
 
I use a repurposed parts cabinet and two smaller cabinets:

FLsIaJYl.jpg

None area secured, but the whole setup resides in a 'safe room' with a vault door. I honestly don't store that much in loaded ammo, just my hunting, practice and match stuff. I've got quite a bit in components and two Dillons standing by to assemble what I need.

For my black powder I bought an actual commercially made 'magazine' with liner.
 
Ammo cans or cases stashed in a closet and in a stand up storage cabinet. Safes are for weapons...
 
I store almost all of my ammo as components. I may have 1-200 of a few most used cartridges loaded and stored in ammo cans, as is the .22 ammo. Components are a lot easier to store.
 
I store my ammo in steel ammo boxes sitting on my basement floor with a desiccant bag in each one.
I figure if the house catches fire the water will end up in the basement keeping the ammo boxes cool.
 
I'm using a fire rated locking file cabinet that my local Legion was getting rid of. The things a beast. It's not super secure but it holds full 1200 rd cases of surplus ammo and thousands of others and doesn't tip over.
 

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horsemen61 said:
How/what did you do to support them?
Click to expand...
I supported the bottom shelf with all the ammo cans by stacking scrap plywood underneath until it sat touching the bottom of the lowest shelf. (Those cans are all full, double stacked. They weigh a lot!)

I then cut pieces of 5/8” Plywood that fit under each particle board shelf. On center I screwed in place an upright 2x4 brace with a 4” square 5/8” plywood topper so that it basically makes a straight column from the upper shelf all the way to the bottom. All of the shelves are stacked full, 2’ deep and 4’ across.

I’ve had this set up in my garage for at least 15 years with no warped beams or shelves sagging, etc. :thumbup:

Stay safe.
 
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