Cannon Safe vs. Granite Safe?

[bcurry]

I'm looking at 2 similar safes (residential security containers):
1) Cannon American Eagle 60"x30"x24" 12/24 gun capacity weighing 530lbs. with dial lock. Rated 1200 degrees for 30 minutes. Price $587 with 6 mos. no interest.
2) RedHead by Granite 60"x26"x20" 11/22 gun capacity weighing 450lbs. with digital lock. Rated 1200 degrees for 32 minutes. Price $494.10 with 6 mos. no interest. This safe is identical to the Sam's Winchester safe at $581 (both by Granite).

My question, is there a noticeable difference in quality between Granite and Cannon and will I really miss the 960 cu. inches for the $93 difference?
Thanks,
Bruce

 

[Snarlingiron]

Ok, here goes. I'm sure you will get posts from lost of people some saying that the Cannon is junk, some saying the Granite is junk, some saying both are junk, some saying both are better than Fort Knox. Anyway, I worked for Mosler Safe Company for about 8 years, and spent a fair amount of my time there opening locked safes, changing combinations, etc. Fact is all of these things are basically a minimal fire safe. They really don't offer a great deal of burglary protection against someone that knows what they are doing and wants in. That said, for my nickel the biggest difference between the two is the locks. The electronic lock should be quicker to operate than the mechanical one. If the batteries are dead, then the mechanical would obviously be faster. For me, I am looking into this also, and I would buy the mechanical lock unit. A mechanical lock can be operated pretty quickly with a little practice, and I think they are more reliable. If I did go for the digital, I would only get one with a key override. I am of the opinion that if you are storing your primary home defense weapon in a locked safe, and you are planning to go the the safe, quickly open it, and deploy your weapon to proctect yourself, then you are probably never going to make it anyway. So, reliablility is tantamount for me. I will always have my loaded weapon close at hand, so when I open the safe, speed is not an issue for me. From what I can tell from their respective websites, they are pretty much equal.

Since I am also considering this, where are you thinking of purchasing yours?

 

[Bongos]

I work for a battery company and we supply Cannon, their electronic lock has a safety where if the batteries dies in midst of entering a combonation, you can replace the battery years later and enter the rest of the combo and the safe will open, Cannon has both mechnical and electronic combo on their safes

 

[a1abdj]

I believe Cannon imports some of their safes, and I know that Granite builds all of their safes in the US.

If US made vs. Chinese made is important to you, I would ask Cannon where their safe is made.

Otherwise, the safes are very similar. Thin steel construction, thin steel door. Same locks, similar locking methods.

 

[Bongos]

Cannon builds their safes in California from scratch and with US steel, I've been to the factory, very cool water jet cutting tool. American Security also build their safes in California but uses Chinese steel.

 

[bcurry]

Guys,
Thanks for all the great info. Snarlingiron: the Cannon I'm looking at is with Academy Sports...the RedHead (Granite) is with BassPro Shops/Outdoor World. I've had the doors open on both-modular/convertible interiors-and I'm kind of partial to spinning the dial too. I've read horror stories on some other forums from locksmiths responding to dead digitals. Links for both safes are below.
Thanks,
Bruce

http://www.academy.com/index.php?pa...arm_safes&start=6&selectedSKU=0340-00542-0022

http://www.basspro.com/servlet/catalog.TextId?hvarTextId=78600&hvarTarget=search&cmCat=SearchResults

 

[a1abdj]

Almost all of the safe companies build safes here in the US, however, many also import some of the lower lines because it's cheaper to import them from China than it is to build it in the US.

I was speaking with a Chinese safe company, who at the time, specifically listed Cannon as one of their US based importers.

AMSEC also imports foreign safes, as do many other companies. I know for a fact that the Granite safes are built in Denton, Texas.

I do not have a new Cannon catalog, but their 2004 catalog shows a number of Chinese manufactured safes, mostly those in the sub $1,000 range.

 

[bcurry]

alabdj,
I will definitely look more closely at the documents in the Cannon. I prefer not to fund any overseas economies if I can help it.
Thanks,
Bruce

 

[a1abdj]

When you look in the catalogs, they will show a "MADE IN USA" logo of some sort under the safes made here.

They don't say that the others aren't made here, they simply exclude the "MADE IN USA" logo. Anything with the logo is local....anything without the logo is from overseas.

I will also add that imported safes have been sold in the US long before gun safes were even thought of. There are plenty of companies that build very good safes which are located outside of the USA. Chubb, Fichet, ISM, and many others are extremely high end burglary units that are imported to the US.

I even sell a line of Chinese safes, and they aren't bad safes at all, although I'm not a big fan of China.