Gun cabinet

DeltaRed

Well-known Member
I bought a locking gun cabinet today.A 'real'fire proof safe is not possible at this time.Put the cabinet in the shop,as there is not room in the house. Bolted it to the shop wall.The shop is not lockable.Dont like it much,but that's just the way it is.Thinking of painting it to look like an 'old' steel parts cabinet.I think it's still better than in an unlocked closet in the bedroom.Steve
 
There's a void under the staircase to the basement in my home that is partially taken up by a ventless propane fireplace. The other part of it is a gun safe so to speak. It's lined with four sheets thick of gypsum to make it fire proof. To what temp? I don't know. It's covered by a sliding wall that no one knows is there. I'm certain that most homes have voids in walls to hide stuff just fine with some imagination.

Do what you feel is best for you and yours.

Mark
 
We have a neighbor who bought a big, fancy, fire-proof gun vault. Keep it in the living room. Thing must be 4' wide inside! However, he doesn't even close the door unless he has company during hunting season. :shock:
 
Most guns safes can be cut open in very little time. I new a lady that inherited a safe full of guns. She didn't know the combination. Locksmith quoted her $5-700 to open the safe. I told her I would get her guns out if she gave me the safe. I cut a 2x3 hole in the back and got all the guns out in less than a half hour. I then took the back of the door off, got the locking mechanism open, changed the combination and welded a new back on.
They recommend having your safe bolted down and walls on 3 sides. Then again how long does it take to cut open a wall.
Friend just had a large safe stole that was full of guns and ammo. He figures they put it on carpet and drug it to their truck or trailer. Looked like they tried to open it but didn't have enough tools. Locked doors or a safe will only slow crooks down
 
The manufactures of new Fire proof gun safes tell not to bolt through back of safe but through bottom of safe. Best place to put them is in
a basement.
 
"Very little time" is more time than "grab and run." It also requires tools. It also makes noise.

Sure, it won't deter the determined thief, but it will turn the average "smash and grab" thief away. Most thieves are not sophisticated despite what you see in the movies. They just bust in, grab anything that looks valuable, maybe check a few of the common easy hiding places, and get out.
 
At least it will keep curious kids from getting them.
We always seem to have kids coming and going at our place and then in the past my wife baby sat/kid watched. So I always keep them locked up. Sure is a pain if you need one in a hurry. But I could not handle it if some kid got ahold of one and hurt someone with it.
 
Better off to make something that camouflages what it is. You might make something like a work bench with the top that has a hidden hinge to lift up with a compartment for the guns. That way is someone breaks in they may not find them. A cabinet on the wall they will just break into thinking there may be tools to steal.
 

Got some extra time read this...

http://gunsafereviewsguy.com/buyers-guide/best-gun-safe/

A good gun safe is gonna cost ya expect to pay 4/5K... All in said and done if someone comes with the intention of getting into it they will bring what they need all you can do is make it harder for them... They will bring what they need maybe they will leave there tools...

When buying a safe you are spending your money on fire protection are how hard you are making it for someone to get into it, To have both its gonna cost ya...

If you are ever around Roxboro NC stop in at Drake Safe Co. he has a good supply of other brands that have been broken into it will amaze ya how EZ they are to get into... If you don't want to part with your money stay away from his place he's not cheap but you will see why he gets the big bucks for his products...
 
Troopers in Alaska just arrested a guy dragging a gun safe down the road behind a car. Bolt it down.
 
First job out of college was with the Navy. Pretty much every office had a safe, a Mosler that looked like a armored file cabinet. What we were told in the security briefing was that the safe wasn't designed to keep people from getting into it, it was designed so it took time to break into. Time for armed security to show up. Your safe is probably the same, either make it easier for the thief to go elsewhere or take long enough so the thief is caught. Keep that in mind as you set things up.
 
Agreed. Buying a $1000 to $1500 gun safe is pretty much a waste of money - except for the possible benefit of fireproofing. While the door on many of them in that price range seems impressive a thief that wants in can cut the entire front off the safe in a couple minutes - probably using your own tools.
 
just hook a 110 wire to the safe. Have it sitting on rubber and plastic to insulate off the floor. Hook an electric fencer to the building or a fence around. most people can't take the zap of good fencer and are to stupid to know how to disarm. Only other way is to have a hidden wall were it can't be seen. That's what i did.
 
The single most important thing to do is to anchor the safe to the floor(concrete). If its bolted to the floor it makes it harder to pry the door which the main type failure for your typical $1000 to $2000 gun safe. I keep all of the important cutting tools in the safe. So if anyone ever wants to cut their way in, they would need to bring their own cutting tools. Most of the break in's around here are by the Meth heads and they usually aren't that smart or prepared. Anyway a safe is only meant to slow the thief down, nothing is theft proof....

OTJ
 
That's why you never bolt a safe to wood outside wall. All your good fire proof safes tell to bolt to floor and best if bolted to a concrete floor.
 
Throw a paint drop cloth tarp over it. Don'r remove the tarp when others are around (any others). Knowledge spreads like the flu. Leaning an axle up against it is also a nice touch. Jim
 
The safest way to protect your guns is to not let anyone know where they are period. Have a space between two walls a walled off space in a closet ect. Had a wealthy guy here who bragged about the cost and amount of his weapons. He built a new house with a gun safe in the middle of it bolted and mounted to concrete floor by the safe company. Went on vacation for a week came home to find his house pretty much destroyed. Someone took a truck wrecker wrapped the cable around the room with the safe and pulled the safe out of the house. They never caught the thieves.
 
A few years ago an older fella near Athens, Al. had 2 gun safes in his garage. One day 2 men showed up and beat on his wife till he opened the safes.
 
well i always heard just to put 5 lbs black gun power in you safe i guess so it provide light for the guy cutting into it
 
Most thieves fall into two categories - 1. Someone you know and who knows what you have, where you keep it, and when you won't be home, and 2. Someone who pulls in, see no one is home, and grabs what they can in 5 minutes.

A gun cabinet of any quality isn't going to deter the first type, but it should deter the second type. Buy a second smaller super cheap "dummy" safe and put it in a conspicuous spot. Make it hard enough to steal, but not so hard they can't make off with it without destroying the place. Fill it with junk so it's heavy enough to make them think it has valuables. Then disguise the one with the actual valuables. You don't really need to do much more than throw an old blanket over it like mentioned earlier. They should be focusing on the obvious one.

Frankly, they're more likely to focus on small easy-to-grab easy-to-sell stuff. My friend was burglarized Christmas day a few years back. They broke out a basement window, came upstairs, grabbed about an armful of stuff and left. Cops figure they were in the place about 5 minutes. Took an old laptop, but left the NEW camera that was sitting right by it. Didn't bother his gun safe at all.
 

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