Safe for an Apartment

[Comrade Mike]

So I'll be moving in July and taking a few rifles and handguns with me. I will be buying a safe once I get down there. My predicament is I cannot purchase the big heavy safe that I want as this is likely temporary housing for a year or two at most. So I'm in the realm of lighter cheaper safes or locking cabinets.

I'm not concerned with children as I live alone. More with overly curious guests and thieves.

I'm on the first floor so I can probably accept delivery of a safe with some decent mass, but I don't want to draw attention to myself. My favorite kind of safe is the well hidden one no one knows you have.

Suggestions? Must fit a couple long guns and a couple hand guns.

 

[CB900F]

Comrade Mike;

If the area you're moving to is urban, I'd contact the better locksmiths in the area & see what they might have in a used documents safe. Our shop used to include delivery in the price given that it wasn't some wild scenario. Definition of wild scenario: Get to the condo building with the delivery, an approximate 300 lb. container. Building super tells us we ain't takin' that danm thing up the elevator. Called the condo owner & told him we were in the lobby & the situation. By the time he came down, we'd worked up a cost to drag the danm thing up the stairs & quoted him. Then we sat back & got entertained while he argued it out with the super. It was stupid on the super's part as the total weight was well within the elevator's rated capability. But it was so entertaining that we didn't charge for the extra half hour it took to get the super into the realm of reality.

You'd have to put your own interior in, but that shouldn't be too big a deal if you're at all handy with tools. The nice thing is that most of those older, smaller fire/document safes are much better built than the big-box store's offshore sheet metal containers.

900F

 

[OYE]

I'm not concerned with children as I live alone. More with overly curious guests and thieves.

Loose lips sink ships. The biggest problem you have is who sees you coming and going with the rifles and who they happen to talk to later. Same with the guests. Maybe they are o.k. but who they talk to or over hears who they talk to
may not be. So choose guests carefully and resist the temptation to show and tell.
I guess whatever safe you choose will be a little safer from an acetylene torch
in an apartment building than in a house in a city or a rural area. Our torch here on the farm will cut 6 inch steel plate with the proper tips and has 75 feet of hose. And it's a fairly common setup in most farm or welding shops. I have my doubts there are many gunsafes that could stand up to one. Have always figured anyone in the gun safe cracking business would either have one
or know where to pick one up in a hurry if need be. Or just plan another visit for another time. OYE

 

[Comrade Mike]

I'm not one to ever play show and tell and I'm a fairly private person. I'm looking more for advice on the hardware side of protecting my firearms

 

[jlr1962]

I have known people that had safes in apartments. They use lag bolts in the carpeted floor. The carpet fluffed up when they moved without issue.

 

[g.willikers]

There's a couple of manufacturers of safes that are made in seperate pieces.
Easier to move and install than regular ones.

 

[Ohen Cepel]

The take down ones are an option, couple different makers out there. Less noticable when you move it in and will stop smash/grab types.

V-Line also makes one which can slide under a bed. Cable lock it to the bed frame and it's again OK to stop some people. Also, has a Simplex lock to allow quicker access.

Something like a Stack On bolted to the wall in the corner of the closet could also work. Especially, if it's a tight fit to keep them from being able to pry at it much.

I would get settled in and make careful measurements so you can stash it in a hard to get to place.

I used to move a lot and never had a landlord upset about a few random holes in a closet wall.

 

[Sol]

Maybe a hiding spot instead of a safe?

 

[RustyShackelford]

Off site, storage place....

If you have a large # of firearms you don't plan to shoot often or leave unsecured, I'd look into a local storage place. Many offer short term deals; 3mo/6mo/12mo. You can always check on the secured guns or pick them up on the way to a hunt or gun range.
You won't need to worry about thefts, accidents or problems and only you could get access to the firearms/ammunition. When you buy a new home or move, you can take the firearms with you.

Rusty

 

[osprey176]

I brought my full sized safe with me when I moved to an apartment for a couple years recently. I wrapped the safe in a refrigerator box to conceal it from my neighbors.I used one by fours to protect the door jamb,as I didn't want to lose my deposit. I brought my guns in wrapped in blankets, clothing,and whatever else looked normal and concealed them. Bolted to the floor in a closet in a spare bedroom,it stayed out of sight to the few guests we had inside.

 

[bersaguy]

I had the same issue a few years back. I had to learn the hard way. I had my small collection in a Stack On steel gun cabinet...that is not a safe. We had a break in, the theives were able to pry the door open, not all the way but enough to get a hand gun out of it. So when I moved I bought a 14 or 16 gun liberty safe and crammed it in the closet of my bedroom. Main thing I learned is it does not pay to advertise. I natively took my guns from the apartment to the car in their cases, I figure thats how I was targeted. After I moved I bought a soft sided bass guitar case, that's what I transport my long guns in. Pistols move about in a non-descript tool bag. Also, I never, ever post anything on Facebook about gun ownership, and absolutely never check in on Facebook from the range. I had to have a buddy of mine take a post down because he "checked me in" from the range. Probably overly cautious, but I figure thats basically broadcasting, "Hey everybody...I have guns...and I'm not home right now...just thought you'd like to know"

 

[herrwalther]

Take a look at Snap safe. I know a few of my former soldiers who went active duty, living off base who use them. A certain captain I know has had the same Snap safe after living at several different bases. I keep them bookmarked if my military situation changes and I would have to give up my full size PITA to move safe.

http://www.snapsafe.com/

 

[Manny]

The first safe I bought was a Browning sized to fit in my closet. I put it in sideways and it worked very well. About 250lbs IIRC and I moved it in myself. I mainly upgraded because it had no fire protection. My brother still has & uses the safe.

As has been mentioned elsewhere in this topic, I think the biggest problem is avoiding advertising that there are weapons (or anything else worth stealing) on the premises. Non-descripte box or moving blanket if needed to move the safe in and some means of discretion in moving the guns themselves.

 

[OYE]

After I moved I bought a soft sided bass guitar case, that's what I transport my long guns in.

Good idea ! OYE