Just moved into my first safe / security locker

[gsbuickman]

Hiya Guys ...

I'm old school , I've always preferred purdy' wood & steel when it comes to my guns and I've always preferred good-looking vintage wooden cabinets to keep them stored in. Don't have kids at the house anymore (their on their own) and when my nieces and nephews come over there still under lock and key and they're all under 5 so they don't pay any attention to them anyway.

I've been Switching gears lately and trying to make some more room in this apartment and I finally decided to let my vintage gun cabinet go and switch things up to a safe to save some more space. At first I was looking at the 18 gun Stack-On for $150,, then I was looking to see what was available on my local Craigslist and found a better deal.

It doesn't hold as many long guns, but it's a it's a Kennedy brand KenCraft 14-gun security cabinet with 4 keys. It came with a shelf with two slide out drawers & Hanging containers on the door. It's 55" tall x 20" wide x 18" deep & weighs about 120 pounds. I'm familiar with Kennedy's rollaways tool chests and jobsite Tool security boxes so I'll gladly take their quality over stack on any day of the week and twice on Sunday. Their about $275 & I got it for $150 so I think it's a pretty good choice for a first-time Buy ...

 

[Steve S.]

I am an old school now safe guy; transitioned from wood and glass to a fire resistant steel container several years ago. At the time, I had younger children (with lots of younger friends) constantly in/ out of the home; wife said get a good safe and I did not argue. Safes are not a sexy container but a good idea in these times for many good reasons; you will like your new locker. Good shooting.

 

[gsbuickman]

Thanks Steve . I'd like to get a nicer fireproof safe when I can but since I live upstairs I had to take that into consideration when shopping for one because I don't know anyone in their right mind that wants to move a fireproof safe upstairs. I worked with Atlas and Allied Van Lines for a number of years so I don't blame them, been there done that. Until I move out of this apartment and into a house this is definitely heavy duty enough to get the job done. On a side note it's nice to have the extra space back in my computer / reloading room that the wooden gun cabinet took up . This takes up about 1/3 the space that cabinet did.

 

[MidRoad]

Nice buy,layout is better than mine. I like the bins!

Mines an older 14 gun fire proof sentry that I got from my father it's .Not sold on "fire proof" idea. My safe is on the second floor and if my house goes up that 30 minute fire proof rating don't mean a thing. I think I rather have a locker like yours because you can fit more. Not to mention moving them. I had to bring mine up a flight of stairs with just me and my brother. Couldn't use the hand truck or slide it on the stairs because just had carpet installed on them two weeks prior to moving in. Them fire proof suckers are so friggin heavy.mines gotta be 350-400lbs.

My brothers was even worse ,his is bigger by about mine plus another half in weight. Our hand truck wouldn't fit with the safe on the landing. So we atried sliding it up the stairs on coardboard on it's aide (his stairs are narrow) made it a few steps and I ended up trapped between the wall and the safe and put my elbow through his wall holding the safe so it didn't pop my hip out . After we got the safe back up ,we borrowed a friend's barrowed furniture hand truck that was lower profile. Much better....LOL

 

[ontarget]

Lowered my new safe down the stairs with 3 men, a girl, a Polaris Sportsman quad, and several tow straps. If we sell the house the new owner will love their new safe cause it ain't coming out.

 

[gsbuickman]

I've moved just about anything and everything you can think of in just about any situation you can think of and quite a few situations you wouldn't believe even if I told you about them.

On another note if you have a gun safe downstairs in like a basement area that you would like out , and if you have a door to the outside parallel with the stairwell you can usually use a truck with a winch to get it out. You get a couple 2xx12's & you cut them about 3 ft taller than the safe is. Then you dog year or 45° one end of the 2xx12's then you lay them down against the stairs and lay the safe down on top of them kind of centered, then use a block and tackle on the safe and run the winch cable through the door down the stairwell around the block and tackle and backup to the winch on the truck. Then you slowly use the winch to pull the safe up the stairs and the skids will act like skis to make it slide easier and the dog ear cuts on top of the boards will slide over the edge of each stair without catching it and tearing them up or snagging. Also be sure to lay a couple burlap sacks over the top stair for the cable to slide over so it doesn't get out into the stair and the floor . Take it slow and easy and if need be use a pry bar for leverage and lift up the top of the safe slightly to make it easier to slide it up the stairs as you go. When you get the safe to the top of the stairs throw a blanket down on the floor for the safe to slide onto and you can slide it right across the floor on the blanket and right out the door .

They've also pulled basement windows out and used winches and A-frames to pull safes and stuff out of basements through the window wells if they were big enough rather than trying to drag them up the stairs on skids , sometimes it's much easier .

 

[FL-NC]

Moving safes is NOT fun. I got to move 2 (along with everything else I own) from NC to Fl. Should have sold them and bought new ones.

 

[luger fan]

Drill a 3/8 hole in back and one on each side. 2 feet down from top and 2 feet up from bottom. Get some eye bolts, nuts and washers. Put them in all 6 holes. Take a heavy chain and thread it through the eye bolts. Secure with a big pack. Makes prying it with a crowbar impossible past 10-12 inches.

Aint as good as a Liberty BUT it will help.

 

[boom boom]

If you want to spruce up the gun cabinet (also makes it a bit harder to get in and conceals it a bit more), build an outside box shell of furniture grade plywood with an external cabinet type door so it looks like a wardrobe or linen cabinet.

Snapsafe is one possibility for those having issues moving safes as the safe is built in modular form (and can be taken down the same way) but the prices have really went up since the original owners were bought out.

 

[luger fan]

Got a friend who put his in his garage. He then put a old refrigerator box from Menards over the top.

 

[Scooter22]

Safe vs security cabinet depends on where you live IMO. If your rural where someone can get in and take their time thats where a good bolted down safe shines. I'm in a great city neighborhood with neighbors all around plus regular police patrols. 99% of home robberies here are a smash and grab. Looking for something to pawn or sell. Home robberies are uncommon. Mostly cars. So my Stack ons bolted down and placed so you can't get leverage on the door, in a locked room w/ home alarm work for me. I leave a couple old, junk laptop, tablet and a couple disabled cell phones out for bait. jmo

 

[Guy B. Meredith]

My Sturdy 2419 is plain, but I like it's appearance. It is bolted down to the floor and I am fantasizing adding a claymore mine just inside the door.

 

[luger fan]

ANYTHING can be stolen. you just need to make it harder. I read about a guy who put a bottle of Crown Royal, choice of home boys, along with $500 on top of his safe. Theory is that that will be enough for a quick 'grab and go.'

 

[gsbuickman]

ANYTHING can be stolen. you just need to make it harder. I read about a guy who put a bottle of Crown Royal, choice of home boys, along with $500 on top of his safe. Theory is that that will be enough for a quick 'grab and go.'

Agreed, if somebody want something bad enough and they have the opportunity to try and get it there bound to eventually get their hands on it . Luckily this is an extremely low violent crime rate area thanks to the local Leo's because they prefer to go gangbusters and Tackle small issues before they become big problems and boy does it work . Burglaries and home invasions are practically non-existent in this Valley but on the rare occasion that they do happen it's almost always drug / payback related & even those are few and far between.

As far as my situation goes I live in a little private cul-de-sac type neighborhood and all my neighbors have firearms and they all know I have firearms as well because we have firearms coming and going from our homes all the timetime, that's just how things are in Idaho . This place was built in the mid-to-late 50s and it has rough cut 2x4 studs. I already have this anchored to the wall with lag bolts but I still need to lag bolt it down to the floor with some self tapping bolts .

Just For Kix I'm pondering painting it black and building a wooden frame and covering it in Black fabric like speaker grills use and putting it on hinges and using some magnets to hold it closed and making it look like a vintage speaker cabinet ...

 

[JeeperCreeper]

I personally believe that disguising/hiding a cabinet is more of a theft preventative than having a beefy vault.

Plus it's easier to move. I'd rather demo a wall or door frame to make installing a big safe easy than fight with a steel monstrosity in close quarters.

 

[Teachu2]

When I moved, I contacted the company I bought my gun safe from and made a deal. I packed all my long guns in cases, gunsocks, and blankets and packed my 500lb Cannon safe tightly with them. I emptied my 1800lb Summit Denali safe completely. The movers took the Cannon with the household goods. The safe company came to the old house and took the Denali out without any damage to the safe or the house, loaded it in their truck, and stored it securely until I was ready for it at the new house. They brought it to the new house, placed it inside the house where I wanted it, and bolted it to the concrete slab. They set the Cannon right beside the Denali, and bolted it down as well.
Both houses involved crossing fragile flooring (granite and ceramic tile) and door thresholds. The team used two pallet jacks to hand off across the thresholds and heavy plywood to protect the flooring. They moved slowly and deliberately, and communicated with each other every step of the way. They were also bonded and insured.

My son bought a Rhino safe at Costco, about 475lbs. He and two other guys were killing themselves trying to get it upstairs, so he called me. I told him to open the door and lift it off. He called back and said it was like cheating....

 

[Stevie-Ray]

My son bought a Rhino safe at Costco, about 475lbs. He and two other guys were killing themselves trying to get it upstairs, so he called me. I told him to open the door and lift it off. He called back and said it was like cheating....

Last time I moved my 600lb RSC, I did that as well, and what a blessing that was! Far better than the first time. Guess it's something you don't think of when it's new. Nearly half the weight.

 

[OneFreeTexan]

ANYTHING can be stolen. you just need to make it harder. I read about a guy who put a bottle of Crown Royal, choice of home boys, along with $500 on top of his safe. Theory is that that will be enough for a quick 'grab and go.'

I’m not so sure that is a bad idea.
I like to see my guns, not have them hidden away in a safe. I want to sit with a drink and a good cigar, just looking at them, enjoying the beauty of the walnut and steel,,,
So if they are secured with security clamps and aircraft cable.. then have one of those pull down security doors or gates, like they use in the malls, for when I am going to be away.

STll use the Crown Royal & $500 as a decoy.