So I Am Cleaning Out The Safe......

[rcmodel]

RC, in your picture, what are the white storage containers you have there from

The white buckets are frosting containers from a backery.
They amass huge quanities of them, and they are generally free W/lid if you ask nice.
Otherwise they are .50 cents, to a dollar at most.
I use them to store empty shotgun hulls.

Do you recall what brand your wire shelf rack is and where you got it?

NSF heavy duty from Home Depot.
I think it might be similar to this one?
Except mine is 36" x 18" shelves.

http://t.homedepot.com/p/Trinity-4-...helving-in-Dark-Bronze-TBFPBR-0901/203619581/

rc

 

[heeler]

AKElroy,what brand and model safe is that?
That is a lot of weight on that top shelf and it's hardly even bowing which indicates too me your safe is pretty well constructed.
Anyway you did a nice and neat job of organizing it.

 

[AKElroy]

It is a Cannon safe from costco. I got a decent deal on the safe, but they only deliver it to the curb. When I heard that was their policy, I assumed I could persuade the delivery driver with a "C" note to get it in my house. Not a chance. They literally delivered it to the top of my driveway. It sat there for the six hours it took me to find a locksmith willing to come quickly.

That took another wad of cash to get it in my door, bolted to the slab. It weighs something like 900 lbs empty, so this was not a do it yourself deal. The man helping that locksmith wrestle this thing in my house is to this day the largest human being I have ever seen.

As for the shelf strength, they are decent, but I still bolster them with 2x2's to take the weight. They might hold it fine; I just don't want to find out they might not.

 

[CB900F]

Fella's;

What RC has said is the same thing I've been saying, it's good advice. What I wouldn't do though is pay the price of a dedicated "Arms Locker" such as a Stack-On or Kenco, etc. If you've got an Army surplus store, get a lockable double wall locker. Sometimes scrap steel yards will get office supply cabinets, they usually lock also. It's been several years ago, but I picked up a locker for $25.00 from a scrap yard. Nothing at all wrong with it either.

900F

 

[Bobson]

Because I Would Never keep that much ammo in a safe in the first place.

What's the option for people who want to protect ammo from theft, the same way we protect our guns? I mean, it doesn't make a TON of sense to store 10-20 guns in a $10,000 safe, but keep another $10,000 in ammo on open shelves in the basement where a burglar can just have at it - especially when ammo is often harder to find than guns themselves these days.

If a $50 metal wall locker is going to protect my ammo from theft, why the heck should I spend $10,000 on a Graffunder or Brown safe (versus a Cabela's RSC)? Let's have some consistency here.

 

[AKElroy]

Theft is my primary reason for keeping it all in the safe. I get the risk of fire, but frankly, if it gets hot enough in that safe for rounds to be cooking off, then I doubt the weapons I have in there will be salvageable any way, and one could make the case that if they are to cook off, that might be the best place for it to happen.

It is not an uber expensive safe, and I am not concerned about pressure building to the point of a large detonation. That said, space is going to force some of the ammo out, particularly the next purchase.

I already store all of the shotgun ammo separately, both for space as well as value. I'm just not that concerned over potentially losing a few cases of shotgun shells in a theft. If they can get past me, my wife, our dog, our alarm, and then actually carry it out, they earned it.

 

[Bobson]

How do fire ratings work on safes anyway? I mean, a specific safe has a 1700 degree rating for 90 mins. What does that mean in terms of protection? Is loose paper inside going to be blackened at, say, 60 mins of a 1500 degree fire? Point is, could ammo inside realistically cook off inside a safe like this, if the fire is put out within 90 mins? And if the answer is yes, what is the fire rating protecting against?

Surely the temp it takes for a round to cook off (when merely exposed to heat, rather than direct flame) would be enough to also damage wood and paper beyond repair, no?

 

[BSA1]

NSF heavy duty from Home Depot.
I think it might be similar to this one?
Except mine is 36" x 18" shelves.

Thank You.

 

[CB900F]

Fella's;

The time/temp ratings put out by the various RSC manufacturers mean nothing. This maker rates according to the Pyro 3000 test, that maker rates by the BTU method, and a salesman for either cannot tell you the test parameters. Omega Labs test, Science Labs test, Uncle Fred's Redneck test, doesn't make any difference if you don't know how the various tests were conducted. If you don't know the test parameters you can't make an accurate comparison between any of them.

Bobson, and the rest of you; Go to the Underwriter's Laboratories site & read the U.L. 1 hour thermal protection test parameters. They publish, you can believe them. I'll also tell you that there isn't a single RSC maker in the U.S. market that can meet the U.L. test standards.

Hah, I'd like to know where some of these inflated figures for Graffunder come from, they didn't come from me, I know that. Yes, Graffunder will sell you a safe that costs that much, or more. But, for the average guy with a decently valuable collection, he has no need to go there. There are much more affordable options available, not in RSC territory mind you, but a long way from 10K also.

900F

 

[heeler]

For those worried about your ammo being stolen in the event of a home break in,which is very possible,get a job box.
You can buy a Ridgid (made by Knaack) at Home Depot or find a used one on Craigslist.
I found a used Knaack a few weeks ago I purchased for $120.
These things are pretty tough.

 

[hso]

I'm skeptical about concerns for ammo theft considering the thieves will see ammo and look for gun which have the greater pawn value, BUT run a security cable through the can handles and you can assume that will deter them long enough to find a bolt cutter in your garage somewhere.

Remember that the key is time. Make it impractical for a thief to spend the time picking through your valuables and they'll look for someone else's valuables to pick through. Protect your perimeter, harden your doors and windows, alarm your access points and interior, further harden the access to the valuables, add camera and interior alarms for those points where the highest value items are stored. Make the thief spend time getting through each layer and make sure they know the alarm has sounded and they will look for easier prey.

 

[Legionnaire]

Am I the only one that winds up needing another gun after cleaning a safe that is already stuffed with stuff?

Nope. I just did a bunch of reorganizing. I didn't find ammo, but did find 2,000 bullets in a caliber I no longer have a gun for, along with many hundreds of once-fired cases in the same cartridge. I could sell it all, but I think I'm going to buy another rifle.

I didn't find it in my safe, though. No ammo in the safe; ammo in a dedicated ammo cabinet. Found the projectiles in my reloading stash, and the brass in a box I had not processed since my last move.

 

[InkEd]

Hahaha!
I have a small metal box that is labeled "Assorted Ammo" too!

I though I was the only one that did such a thing. It's where I toss leftover random ammo from when loading magazines or whatever. "No sense in keeping a 50rd box with only 4 rounds left in it. Throw them in the Assorted Ammo box." The next time I'm loading magazines I try to use them up or just wait on it to be enough to completely fill a magazine to something in said caliber. Then I just use it as range ammo.

 

[AKElroy]

I have several .30-30's; my son hunts with a scoped model 94AE, I sit my blind most often with a Marlin 336 w/ a Leupold 2x7x33, and our ranch vehicle is a Suzuki Samurai, with a Winchester 94 trapper riding in a scabbard on the dash.

All 3 get loaded with fresh ammo for our monthly trip to the lease, all get unloaded when we get home. Since the tube mags compress a spring, the bullets tend to seat deeper and deeper into their cases. Since having a consistent length likely plays a part in accuracy, I cycle them out. That's why I now have 10+ boxes of the stuff.

 

[Lex Luthier]

Getting organized is an incredible and rewarding blessing to one's serenity.

After cleaning out a rarely used bench area in my old shop I found 150 rds of 9mm, two sets of handcuffs, four padlocks with keys, about $20 in change, and a variety of usable stuff that I had collected and forgotten about.

 

[orionengnr]

No, I have never "found" any ammo that I did not know about. Then again, when I return from a range session, I take care of all unfired ammo, and sort all spent cases, etc.

But I did learn one thing a long time ago...when RC speaks, I listen.

 

[Praxidike]

Put it in GI ammo cans with good lid seals, and it don't matter where you put it.
Or, leave it the unopened sardine cans most com-block ammo comes in.
It still doesn't matter where you put it.

(as long as it is not in the attic, or lawn storage building in the sun & snow.)

Your average kiddie can't lift one, or get it open if they wanted too!

GI ammo cans are hermetically sealed against moisture, or a flood covering them for days.
And they are designed from the get-go to release pressure before they can become pipe bombs!

Shown here in my reasonably damp basement when we get 4" of rain in half a day.
View attachment 202207

rc

You all do not worry about hundreds to maybe thousands of dollars of ammo being stolen? Some of these ammo collections cost more than many of the guns are stored in the safe.

 

[GBExpat]

No, I have never "found" any ammo that I did not know about.

I have, when reorging shelves or stacks.

I love that feeling of, "WHOA! I forgot I had that!" ... sorta like Christmas, y'know?

Even finding something that you remember that you have ... somewhere. Most recently I was tickled to rediscover my cache of 1937 Portuguese Contract 7.92x57 SmK ammo. Sweet!

 

[GoWolfpack]

You all do not worry about hundreds to maybe thousands of dollars of ammo being stolen? Some of these ammo collections cost more than many of the guns are stored in the safe.

Ammo is very heavy and its value is difficult to translate into cash.

My ammo is hidden because it doesn't fit in with the rest of my decor, but I don't lose a minute of sleep over it being stolen. Once someone has broken into my house, there are more valuable things they might make off with.

 

[heeler]

I worry about my ammo being stolen because after three home burglaries over the last 30 years they took all manner of big and bulky items.
Ammo is just as easy to take out to their vehicle as power tools or your 60 inch television.
Hence my ammo cans are locked up in my job box.

 

[BSA1]

You all do not worry about hundreds to maybe thousands of dollars of ammo being stolen? Some of these ammo collections cost more than many of the guns are stored in the safe.

Ammo is very heavy and its value is difficult to translate into cash

Is it ever. Especially 50 caliber cans full of ammo. One on each arm with multiple trips up and down the basement stairs wears a person out pretty quick.

 

[GBExpat]

Interesting. I have never (in any organized way) thought about the current value of my ammo stockpile. Most of it was acquired from ~2000-2008 when prices were really low, compared to the current market.

Something to consider.

 

[jrdolall]

My guns are stored in 4 different areas of my home. 2 RSCs and two safes. The safes are old and squat and are used to hold handguns. Rifles and such are stored in the two RSCs that are bolted to the floor.
My ammo is stored along with all my reloading equipment in my shop. All finished ammo (reloads and store bought) is stored in ammo cans of varying sizes and then placed on a wire shelf much like RC shows. If a burglar has the time then he can take many $1000s in ammo that merely requires him breaking a lock and hauling it off. He would first need to get past a couple of dogs and work around a truck that hasn't run in 3 years but, with time, he could get it all.

 

[Praxidike]

Interesting. I have never (in any organized way) thought about the current value of my ammo stockpile. Most of it was acquired from ~2000-2008 when prices were really low, compared to the current market.

Something to consider.

Yea, ever since the prior ammo shortage, it seems like ammo wouldn't be to hard to sell off and would be even harder to trace back to the original owner vs stealing firearms.