Gun safe or hide them?

My thought is that the safe could be disguised, especially if you only have so many guns, you'd probably buy a smaller variety. Said small safe could be hidden in a "fake" stack of cardboad boxes that were hollowed out/glued together. Said boxes could be marked with "books" or "kitchen stuff" that a thief wouldn't care about, especially if it's just in you basement.

A safe only advertises gun ownership to those who might enter your home. 99% of those people will have no ill intentions. The other 1% who might want to steal your guns are going to have a hard time doing it.

I personally think hiding guns through out the house is a silly idea. Carry one with you, or even two if you feel you must.Then you'll have a gun with you in every room of the house, and you won't have to pull it from it's hiding place if you need it. the rest can be snug safe and secure (provided you get a decent safe).

Get a heavy safe and either screw it to the studs or anchor to concrete. That's about as far as you can possibly go.

I have to agree with the USAF Vet. Getting a safe will allow you to remember where your firearms are, instead of when the time arises, and your mind is racing to remember where the needed one is! Like the Vet stated, carry one with you, holstered if need be, but getting a quality safe is your best bet. You can tell others, friends and family, about your safe, but not everyone needs to know.

If you decide to get a safe do not place it anywhere near anything that generates heat or has water plumbed into it or in a place where water or condensation forms (like a basement or attic). Or near a humidifier or water heater or refrigerator. You want a nice dry warm location. I have a small safe that fits into a small closet so it is out of sight when the closet door is closed. Hiding guns is actually pretty easy and will usually keep them from being stolen by the smash and grab type of thieves who will only spend a few minutes going through your house. The smart ones know not to spend any more time than necessary. Walk around your house and use your imagination and you will find lots of places to hide stuff. One easy way is to buy a couple of heating/cooling grilles and cut a hole in a wall (interior walls only with no water pipes in it) between studs and mount the grille over the hole. Place it down low and it will look just like a cold air return grille. You can place items like handguns inside. I have cut walls open with an opening tall enough to get long guns in and covered the opening with a cheap dressing mirror. Most thieves won't even look at things like these. Bedroom closets with sliding doors will have a hollow wall inside above the sliding doors that you can open up and hide stuff in. When someone is looking in your closet most will never look up and back out to see the wall above the sliding doors. Electrical outlet boxes can be mounted and will hold cash and jewelry. Use your imagination. If you get a safe absolutely bolt it to the floor and wall studs and set it so that the side where the door swings open is against a wall so that they can't get a crowbar in the opening. If they can tip it over on it's back so they have room around it to work they will get it open.

A safe not only protects your weapons from unauthorized access but also gives you environmental protection from humidity, dust, dog/cat hair (if'n ya have critters) and children (visiting family/friends yanno). A good safe that's bolted down deters theft and/or unauthorized handling of your stuff. Hiding or squirreling guns here and there really isn't a good plan. IMHO

You can't "hide" anything. Something might be missed by a meth head moron, but any pro burglar knows where to look for certain things and he will find it.
Safes are for keeping honest people honest. Gotta be bolted down, and again, a pro will open it up like a cracker box.
I go for the safe and insurance.
Security is about inconvienience.

My dad has an American Security door where there is a safe inside. The door is bolted to the concrete. It isnt going anywhere

Invest in a quality safe. It can be set up to house long guns as well as other valuable possessions. I keep cameras, important paper work and binoculars in mine as well as a couple of firearms. If my long guns are ever ripped of at least I'd know I did everything I could to keep them secure. Kids are more of a concern than pros when it comes to break-ins in this area... and nothing is hidden from a teenager (least that is what I remember from my youth)...

If a professional thief wants your guns, it doesn't matter if you hide them or have them in a safe. He'll get them no matter what you do. The best way to deter a thief is to make them have to work so hard they'll give up and look for easier pickings. Buy a good safe and anchor it down. You'll protect yourself from liability and know exactly where your guns are a all times.

Valnar, any decent sized safe should be to Heavy and cumbersome for a crime of opportunity, which most residential burglaries are, to be carried off. So a safe should be much safer than hiding your weapons. Yes a burglar may not find all of them, but what happens if he finds your favorite weapon. Or your grandfathers irreplaceable registered magnum.
Unless you feel strongly that quests in your home don’t see a safe they are the most secure form of storage. If you get a safe and someone mentions it, simply explain that is where Jimmy Hoffa’s remains are, or some other silly explanation.

Everybody knows that fort knox is full of gold and other goodies. They still can't get close to it, unless they're Goldfinger. I've never understood the reasoning behind keeping your guns a deeply hidden secret like Area 51.

Get a safe and anchor it. A 200 pound safe that is not anchored would not deter thieves. 2 of them could carry that out themselves very quickly, or even one man could if he's got the back for it. If it's one of those 700+ pound varieties, I would probably not worry about anchoring.

To add on to my earlier post, the door weighs around 1,000 pounds. Also, if you hear theives breaking into your safe, chances are you will shoot them before they take anything. Just make sure you always have a firearm right next to you, if most are in the safe.

And to my earlier post....we have a triple threat so it'll certainly give a bad guy pause if nothing else: security system, rottweiler (and 3 other 100+ lb dogs), gun safe

Yoy are about as likely to loose your guns (and other valuables) in a fire as in a theft. Fire alone is a good reason to get a safe. If you do buy one take the time to properly conceal it. If service people see it and talk this could make your home a target for burglry. The safest safe is one nobody knows about. The box idea is a good one. Nearly every home owner has boxes of Christmas stuff stored somewhere. That would make a perfect disguise.

Most of what we call 'safes' are really residential security containers, rated by UL to be proof against hammer and screwdriver for up to five minutes.

I tried to combine the 'safe' with the inconspicuous approach by renting a storage unit and putting the 'safe' there. I only go there during hours of darkness, and cover my stuff with a blanket or tarp to keep prying eyes away, when I move stuff in or out.

With luck, this combines the best of both approaches.

A real safe would be best, but they are rather pricey. Hopefully, a used jeweler's safe will become available sometime soon...

I know they are much more expensive now days. I bought mine back in 1989 for only about $500.00. But believe me gun safes are worth it. Intruders will either have to use a torch to cut the door off or carry it out. Carrying it out is a pain even with a dolly and some one to help. Like an earlier post said no one will know it's even there unless they come in and see it and then they don't see the contents. Who wants to take a chance on breaking into a house in order to break into a safe that they don't even know the contents of. As far as being armed around the house. When it is dark early in the am or the pm I am carrying. I routinely take my dogs out for their business and carry a flashlight and handgun while doing so. I have always done so but even more so since something was stolen from under my carport and car broken into a couple of years ago. My wife and kids see me carrying and treat it as a matter of fact and no big deal. If you get a decent income tax refund you may want to set it aside for a safe or do it the hard way like me and save some money for it.

After several burglaries I can assure you there is no place to hide guns that crooks will not find. I came home the first time and everything I owned (that wasn't taken) was dumped on the floor. Drawers were pulled out and the contents dumped. Closets were emptied on the floor. Everything was torn apart.

I bought a safe and two subsequent burglaries have resulted in zero lost guns. If they don't know they are dealing with a safe they will be defeated. If they know to bring tools, it may be another matter.

For the $1000+ these things cost, that is just sad

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He's talking about those small safes that only 3 - 4 pistols could fit in it and the box is intended for things like cash and jewelry.