What is the minimum gun safe?

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buck00

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Ok, moving to a new house and the arsenal is getting larger- I figure its about time to look into a safe. My main concern is protection from burglars.

Money is an issue right now, so here are my questions:

1. What is the minimum safe to at least have a chance during a burglary? (keep in mind many criminals like to get in and get out fast) So I am trying to figure out what would be the minimum that the wouldn't want to waste their time trying to work on it.

2. What do you think of the concept of getting a cabinet type, but bolting it to a wall?

3. Is it even worth it to get a cheap safe or should simply save up for another year and in the meantime allow my collection to be vulnerable? (neighborhood is low crime but you never know)

4. If the safe is going to be kept in the basement, is fire-resistance as important?

5. Anything from the following list that would be good? :scrutiny:

http://www.fogdog.com/family/index....fgender=&fbrandid=&fpricesort=priceDescending

I'm looking for a lot of opinions and bias here. Thank you! :)
 
1. Some folks will tell you a locked closet. Others will tell you there isn't anything you can buy for less than $30,000 that will stop them. The truth is probably somewhere in the middle.

2. Bolting it to the wall makes it harder to move. It also makes it wiggle around less when they break into it.

3. That's a personal decision. You could always get a cheap cabinet and then something better later.

4. When buildings burn, things collapse and fall down. These things tend to be on fire.

5. Well, you've covered about the whole range there, aside from "real safes", so probably.

Someone will be along in a minute to explain that almost no gun safes are real safes but they are actually RSCs.
 
Forget that link - prices are to high.

I had a sentry for years until I upgraded - my house was never burglarized so it worked just fine.

Home Depot has them for around $359 - I bought mine at Lowe's on sale for $300.

Sams Club has a Winchester Safe for around $580 - $590 if you pick it up - seems very good for the low price.

BTW, these are all RSC's not safes but will most likely stop an amatuer.

If you are going to spend $3000 why not forgoe the RSC's sold as gun "safes" and visit a safe store and buy a used safe something rated TL30 should slow most people down.

I don't worry about theives - its a constuction worker with good power tools that worries me! :eek:
 
Oh, on fireproofing - thers fireproofing and "fireproofing" you really need to study what it is not just trust the brochure.

If you live in the suburbs or city and the avg. time from sounding the alarm to putting out the fire is 30 minutes you may not need fireproofing.

If its in the basement think about setting it up off the ground (and still bolting it down) - you don't want the bottom siting on concrete it could rust and if the basement floods, which it will when the Fire Dept. starts hosing your roof...you may need a few inches of clearence.
 
Something like 80-90% of people in prison were either on drugs or trying to get money for drugs. Those are the ones that are looking for quick money and don't plan a lot. Think about it, with a gun (or without) and an hour's planning I could think up a lot better places to rob than a convenience store or house on the bad side of town, but that is where they hit most often.

Any safe will stop most of these guys. Most pros will move on to better pickings. Unless you keep a VERY expensive collection, you'll be ok.
 
Just bought a Sentry 14-gun for $329 at Dick's Sporting Goods ($70 off) I suggest buying something small first, so you can complete their online survey and get an extra $10 off.

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=4324485

I'd heard that these safes were poor quality, but mine appears to be fine. I needed something fast to satisfy the wife and keep little hands away from my rifles. I'd like to get a better safe someday, but can't just go throwing $300 around at this stage in my life.
 
Glad you posted; I've been looking for a safe myself.

I went browsing at a local sporting goods store yesterday, because I want to put my ammo in a locked cabinet and my guns in a safe. At the low end I found a Sentry cabinet about as thick as my Homak cabinet that was somehow "CA DOJ Approved." Maybe because it had three locking bars and recessed hinges?

While searching for the definition of "RSC" (rifle storage closet?)*, I found a potentially helpful article on selecting a safe:

http://www.6mmbr.com/gunsafes.html

*Oh, I see: "Residential Security Container"
 
Friend had a thin sheet metal safe bolted to the wall of his closet. Burglar came in, looked for the key, could not find it, filled a pillow case with stuff and was gone.

A millionaire dude I heard on the radio had a very expensive safe. Filled it with millionaire stuff. Jewels, money, etc. A crew of crooks came over, went to his garage, found the sledge hammers, found the crowbars, and beat the safe open.

A safe is a barrier. Good neighbors who will report banging sounds in your "empty" house are invaluable.

I personnally think my first safe, a Browning, which weighed about 300-400 pounds was a good start.
 
The minimum gun safe is the biggest, strongest one you can afford.

Woody

Look at your rights and freedoms as what would be required to survive and be free as if there were no government. Governments come and go, but your rights live on. If you wish to survive government, you must protect with jealous resolve all the powers that come with your rights - especially with the Right to Keep and Bear Arms. Without the power of those arms, you will perish with that government - or at its hand.
 
1. What is the minimum safe to at least have a chance during a burglary? (keep in mind many criminals like to get in and get out fast) So I am trying to figure out what would be the minimum that the wouldn't want to waste their time trying to work on it.
Click to expand...

Safes should be purchased based on the value of their contents.

The "minimum safe" would be something with 1/4" plate walls and 1/2" plate door (or equivalent). This would be a "B Rate" safe, and is suitable for approximately $5,000 in cash or other negotiable items, or $50,000 worth of goods.

Most people get by with 12 gauge or 10 gauge gun safes, but do not kid yourself about the security these safes offer. Any idiot capable of swinging a hammer or axe can get into these safes with minimal effort. It doesn't matter what type of lock, what type of boltwork, or what type of relocker the safe has. 12 gauge is 1/10 inch, and 10 gauge is 1/8 inch.

2. What do you think of the concept of getting a cabinet type, but bolting it to a wall?
Click to expand...

The cabinets often use steel much thinner than 12 or 10 gauge. If you purchase a gun safe and bolt it to the floor, you will be in good shape. It is much easier to beat on a safe after you tip it over than it is to do it standing up.

3. Is it even worth it to get a cheap safe or should simply save up for another year and in the meantime allow my collection to be vulnerable? (neighborhood is low crime but you never know)
Click to expand...

I think you should make some effort to secure your firearms. To me, the biggest threat would not be the loss of a firearm, but the potential lawsuits if your firearms were stolen and used to kill somebody.

4. If the safe is going to be kept in the basement, is fire-resistance as important?
Click to expand...

If you need a fireproof safe, then buy a real fireproof safe. Gun safes should be for guns only, as their fireproofing is more marketing than anything else. The gypsum lining will provide some protection, and is better than nothing, but should not be counted upon.

5. Anything from the following list that would be good?
Click to expand...

I sell safes all over the country, and give discounts to fellow forum members. If you are interested in purchasing a safe locally, I can certainly point you towards a safe company in your area.
 
What I find humorous are on the sites they show safes sitting in the middle of the living room, the first thing the thief has to do when he breaks in is find the safe and a well hidden one buys you time, one in the living room you still have time but now you have to hope the crook is not a safe-cracker.
 
I appreciate all the suggestions and ideas. I am probably going with something half decent, not a Fort Knox $3,000 type, but a $400 to $500 safe to keep away the "need-money-for-drugs" random burglar.

Thanks again.
 
I listed my priorities thusly:

Price All the justifications for spending four figures have little meaning if I don’t have that kind of money to spend. Yes, I would love to own a huge gun safe that can withstand a near strike with a thermonuclear warhead, but I need something now, not in 20 years when I have enough money for one.

Some fire resistance. OK, there hasn’t been a house that burned to the ground here in as long as I can remember. The fire department, unlike the police, has a really fast response time here in the city. All I need is 15 or 20 minutes, tops; then my house get’s flooded by a bunch of bored firemen.

Lock. I wanted an electronic lock for speed of opening, but I wanted a mechanical lock in case a fire melts the keypad or the electronics get jumbled. (The electronic locks have a plastic membrane keypad)

Room enough. I have three long guns and five handguns. I don’t need a vault with a wet bar.

Theft resistance. I don’t need something that will stop a motivated professional team of burglars, I just need something that will stop the normal smash-&-grabber or a teenager. In reality, with a high school only five blocks away, teenagers are my biggest threat. If I lived way out in the country, I might need something that takes a long time and torches to open, but here, no.

I looked at one of the $180 large steel cabinets, the ones with a key lock. That would satisfy my lock requirement since it’s quick and safe from electronic bugs. I didn’t like the lack of fire resistance and there was also a pretty wide gap around the doors. They might keep my kid out, but I had little confidence it would keep out a determined teen or regular burglar.

After a lot of looking I bought this one for $465 delivered to my house. It’s fire resistant, has an electronic lock with an emergency key backup (to use the key you have to pretty much destroy the electronic lock), thick walls and hard-plate, and at 300 pounds empty, nobody’s going to be toting it away while I’m at work.
 
Mainsail,

Do you have a pic of the front of the safe and more info on the type of lock? How fast can you open it if you need to access your firearm?
 
I just wanted to throw in my .02 but I agree with most everyone on here. A safe is definetly a better solution than a cabinet in my opinion. Bolt it up well and even cover it and make it less obvious. Your average burgler will realize he does not have the tools for it or the expertise and will move on. you basically just want to deter the average. I spent 550 on mine and that was with a 200 dollar discount. Bought it at costco made by Liberty, 18 long guns works great bolted into the concrete and the wall its up against. not to mention its relatively inconspicuous.
 
I theft is your biggest consern

Why not build a room maybe in the basement put a solid core or medal door with a deadbolt. If it is in the basement it's kind of concealed. This is what I'm thinking of doing....for the price of some of these safes I could add an addition on my house:rolleyes:
 
MajorRecoil said:
Mainsail,

Do you have a pic of the front of the safe and more info on the type of lock? How fast can you open it if you need to access your firearm?
Click to expand...
LGBasicII-200.jpg
It takes all of six seconds to open.
 
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