Where/how to store gun in new apartment...

Got a decent sized closet? Walk in turn around, and look up. Hang it there loaded and on safe. No one will be the wiser unless they actually come in looking for it.

put a cable lock through the receiver and lock it around you bed, or but a commercial lockbox. Your could likely keep the tube full even with the cable lock through it


HB

If it was me I would keep it loaded and ready to go. You just have to realize that no matter where you put it, someone can find it. The harder you try to hide it might just make it harder on you to get to it quickly if needed.

I have had apartment roommates that were "snoopers", I have learned the best thing you can do is live with people whom you can trust.

Load it up and keep it between your mattress and box springs? Unloaded and with a trigger lock, it's nothing but an unwieldy club. If a bad guy breaks in, you'll need it NOW!

Do you really think you'll have enough "warning" to unlock the trigger lock and stuff it full of ammo? You're dreaming if you believe that.

If you REALLY want to be safe, move to a better part of town, and lose the roommates.

I HATED roomates. I would also go for a locker style gun cabinet in this situation. But more importantly, a new lock that needs a key to open for the door to your room.

I dont know how well you know all your roomates, but I knew mine very well when I had two others. AND they were still giving me grief lol. HD was limited to my own room since I had my friends coming home at all hours in the night sometimes with girls etc. You never knew what a bump in the night was at 3:30am (mostly it was roomates drunk). Because of that my shotgun never left my room with the door locked. if someone tried to open my door, that was the time for me to prepare my 870.

The lock on the door served 2 purposes. One was to slow down a real threat and the other to keep my own roomates from goofing arround with my firearms.

That and sometimes no matter what, they would leave without locking the front door. Drove me nuts.

Recently in FL also there was a situation where burglars broke into a home and tied up two roomates at gunpoint. The third roomate ran into his room, locked the door and grabbed his AK-47. Shot one of the home invaders and the other ran at that point.

I loved my friends, but I was glad when I could move out on own back then.

Your concern is legitimate. I have a solution.

As you know, it's irresponsible to have an unlocked loaded shotgun laying around in an apartment with roommates and their random friends. On the other hand, if you need your shotgun in a sudden home invasion, having it locked up would likely render the shotgun useless.

The following solution may not be the answer you want. It's totally awesome anyway.

While you're awake and in your apartment, carry a handgun. While asleep, have your shotgun (or handgun) loaded and unlocked next to your bed. Lock your bedroom door. For your living situation, keep any gun that’s not on or near your person locked up in a safe preferably (trigger lock otherwise).

I live by myself in a relatively secure house in a good neighborhood. While awake, I carry a loaded subcompact handgun that I don't even notice. Before sleeping, I lock up the handgun and prop up a shotgun next to my bed. The shotgun is unlocked with a loaded magazine, empty chamber, safety on, hammer down, muzzle down.

This method is simple, effective and safe. It is feasible in just about any living situation.

Jpatt., in your case, I'd keep it locked (and out of sight) during the day. In the night, I'd unlock it, load it (but keep the chamber empty), and sleep with it next to me. I don't have the issue with roomies, so I just keep it loaded (cruiser-style), in her nice little case, which is unlocked and next to my bed.

Just make (or buy) something like this...
http://www.the-backup.com/perception/index.html

FXWG said:

Just make (or buy) something like this...
http://www.the-backup.com/perception/index.html

Click to expand...

That's actually something I might buy. How well does it work?

I tried to read the comments. Unfortunately, most of the commentators seem to be anti-gunners from other countries. I don't care what they have to say. I just want to hear from customers about how well the product works. I'm not going to skim through the 50 pages of crap.

Keep the tube loaded, there is no reason not to. I agree that it might be best to keep it locked up until sometime shortly before bed, in a way that will make it hard or impossible for your roomates to play with. And for the love of cows don't play around with it in front of your roomates, if you handle it like a toy they will too, even if they don't know that you had unloaded it only temporarily that one time.

Get a long heavy type raincoat/duster coat. Rig a support out of velcro webbing for the shotgun. Hang it on a good sturdy wooden hanger with the coat over it.

The coat conceals the weapon, the velcro's easy to release.

Over the closet door works good. Put a lock on the door to your room. That's what I used to do. All it takes is one room mate dating a girl with a kid to cause an accident. Lock your door. Tell them to lock up before they leave!

I agree with Post #2... put a deadlock on your closet door. Take the shotgun down and set behind your rooms door whenever you'rehome, or by the bed when your asleep. Get one of those battery operated motion detectors and turn it on when you are going to retire for the night!

You could get a lockable steel gun cabinet (they sell them at WalMart for less than $100) and put it in your room near your bed. Keep the key on your key chain, and when you go to bed, put the key in the lock. That way you can keep it loaded and in easy access when you are asleep, but when you leave, you know it's locked because you took the key out of it to be able to take the rest of your keys with you.

Or you could spend a little more and get one of these from Harbor Freight, which is a bit sturdier and heavier and has thicker steel and comes with an electronic keypad as well.

I do the same thing with my handguns in a small electronic safe (that also has a key lock) that I keep on my nightstand.

This is what I do since I have roommates:

Keep the magazine loaded but the mag out of the gun. Mag under the pillow, gun next to the bed. Then you have no loaded firearm but it's loadable in 2 secs and good to go.

Unless you don't have a Saiga12, then I don't know what to tell you.

In response to www.the-backup.com :

I bought one back in May and I love it.. It is very sturdy and very easily accessible. Not to mention that it is actually a hard plastic, not metal, so it doesn't scratch or beat up my gun. I like the fact that it is undetectable when I have my bed made up bc my comforter goes completely over it and there's no large bump or anything bc it's very close to the mattress.. so all in all im very pleased!... Btw, I don't have any children living with me, but when my nieces or nefews come over I just put it away in a closet...

I'd say your best bet.... lock your door when you're not home, or unload it and lock it up when you'll be out for the day.

Keeping it locked and unloaded is going to make it pointless when you have less than 5 seconds to respond to a threat. I would recommend keeping it close where all you have to do is grab it, pump a shell into the chamber, and you're good to go.

If you keep it locked up, the only thing you're going to realistically be able to do is grab it by the barrel and start swinging for the fences. In that case, a nice Louisville slugger will inflict more damage and probably be less harsh on your hands...