Recommendations? Electronic lock or tumbler? Fire rating - time & temp?
Manufacturer?
Anything else?
\\Thanx.
Manufacturer?
Anything else?
\\Thanx.
- Thread starter garandman
- Start date
I bought a fatboy jr. from Liberty to stick in the shop. It's made in America and was decently priced for a cheap safe. I prefer a tumbler over an electronic lock. Old fashioned I guess. I'm happy with it. Only other advice to give would be buy one that's 1 or 2 sizes bigger than you think you need. 64 guns(long guns) won't fit in a 64 gun safe comfortably.
I would suggest going with a tumbler. Electronic locks can go on the fritz, whereas good quality tumblers are simpler and less likely to just break. As for brand, I have a Liberty that is nice, good fire rating and the fit and finish is nice. One thing I woud say is get the biggest one you can afford/fit that is still good quality, the number of guns you can fit in there has little resemblance to what is advertised, unless you like having guns bash up against each other (or count handguns).
Hope this helps.
Apparently [MENTION=17160]McCrazy[/MENTION] read your mind and just started a thread on selecting a safe in the Equipment Forum: http://www.snipershide.com/shooting...766-gun-safes-how-select-why.html#post2893547
Drake makes top of the line and he will deliver. Good guy to deal with.
+1 on the Liberty Fatboy Jr. American made and mine was on special with an electronic lock included.
Gary
Gary
I depends on how much worth of property you are protecting. If its $10,000 or less it probably doesn't make sense to spend 4 to 6 thousand on a safe but if it's $50,000 or $100,000 then a higher end safe makes a lot more sense. There are some nice instructional videos on youtube that show you how easy it is to break in to lower end safes, witch will scare ya a bit! I would also recommend a digital lock personally, if you ever need some thing out of there quickly its defiantly the way to go. I can get in to any of mine in a couple of seconds and thats not happening with a dial.
I have a Fat Boy Jr with a tumbler lock. Love it!!! Get one bigger then you think you need. This is my second Liberty safe because I didnt follow my own advice.
ANy opinions on a Winchester safe? They are rated 1400 for 1 hr.... can get a good price with pretty low cost delivery....
I second the Drake. One of the highest quality safes on the market. Heavy as a fat mans coffin! 
Liberty makes Cabela's safes and they are cheaper by the way. When researching safes I made this discovery and bought safe from Cabela's when they had a sale and saved hundreds of dollars.
Whatever brand you decide on, figure out how big you need then double the size. Seriously.
I have the ranger 19. My only wish is that I would have gone with a larger model. They fill up quick with scoped rifles. I'm at the point to where I will be replacing my current safe with the ranger 45 or buying a smaller safe for storing my pistol/AR mags and ammo.
I am very happy with my Sturdy Safes. They are not the prettiest things in the world (although they are nice in an industrial sort of way), but they are hell-for-stout. Likely the thickest steel you will get for the money. Precision of the door gaps has to be seen to be believed. Interiors are NOT plush, but highly functional. You can order them with a number of options to suit your particular needs. I like the ceramic fire-wool insulation over any gypsum wall board-type insulation. I use the same stuff in high temp applications at work (WAY hotter than a house fire) and it works great. They are made in the US and you can talk to a real person about your order. Yes, I am a big fan...but they earned it with their product.
When it comes to gun safes I prefer combination locks to electronic. More than a few electronic locked safes have been opened merely by fishing out the "motor" leads and unlocking with a 9v battery.
Make sure the door is strong enough that one can't merely defeat the locking mechanism with a couple of well placed smacks from a 12# sledge.
Lastly, just having a heavy safe is no insurance that it won't just be drug off with a chain and a 4x4.
My safe(s) are bolted to both floor and foundation wall. Want the safe? You have to take a huge chunk of concrete too.
For the ultra security conscious, I've seen many clever means of hiding gun safes. False walls with swinging storage/book shelves are the neatest. Walk into a room and you don't see any safe. The owner can close the door, then "open the wall" to access his goodies. Sometimes the "wall was no more than some heavy plywood, strong hinges, and some inexpensive shelves with a few books that were actually fakes (like home decorators often use).
Make sure the door is strong enough that one can't merely defeat the locking mechanism with a couple of well placed smacks from a 12# sledge.
Lastly, just having a heavy safe is no insurance that it won't just be drug off with a chain and a 4x4.
My safe(s) are bolted to both floor and foundation wall. Want the safe? You have to take a huge chunk of concrete too.
For the ultra security conscious, I've seen many clever means of hiding gun safes. False walls with swinging storage/book shelves are the neatest. Walk into a room and you don't see any safe. The owner can close the door, then "open the wall" to access his goodies. Sometimes the "wall was no more than some heavy plywood, strong hinges, and some inexpensive shelves with a few books that were actually fakes (like home decorators often use).
Do you want a safe or a POS security cabinet?
If you want a safe you can find a used Diebold or Mosler for around the cost of most decent entry level security cabinet.
For RSC's I've had AMSEC BF, Liberty, Stack on, and Heritage. The only one I would recommend would be the AMSEC BF line. It's the only one that has a steel plate and has steel inner and outer walls with a concrete like fill in between. It is constructed like a REAL safe, the walls give the jam much more strength against attacks vs a drywall lined safe that often just has the jam turned back, and it has real insulation, not drywall that steams your guns while its heated.
If you want a safe you can find a used Diebold or Mosler for around the cost of most decent entry level security cabinet.
For RSC's I've had AMSEC BF, Liberty, Stack on, and Heritage. The only one I would recommend would be the AMSEC BF line. It's the only one that has a steel plate and has steel inner and outer walls with a concrete like fill in between. It is constructed like a REAL safe, the walls give the jam much more strength against attacks vs a drywall lined safe that often just has the jam turned back, and it has real insulation, not drywall that steams your guns while its heated.
I am going to make a dry-stacked vault when I get back....I'm done with safes...
Check out Sturdy Safes. Family owned business manufactured here in the USA. In addition to what you see on the website, thy do a lot of custom work if you need something a little different.
I too am a fan of AMSEC. Every time I walk through stores like Cabela's and look at their massive safes I'm amazed at how thin the metal is with little or no attention to real strength. Most look like they could be breeched with a Fire Ax or Halligan.
+1, You can not go too big.
+1 for the Liberty Fatboy Got mine from Gander MTN on sale for $1899. I can't say anything for or against the durability of the electronic lock on it as my other safe has a S&G tumbler on it but it's certainly faster to get into. I really like the door organizer that came with it though.
I have the Winchester Ranger 31 with electronic lock. I've had it for about 2 years with no issues. I really like having the e-lock because it is convenient which means I will lock it even though I will get back in it within the next 30 minutes when cleaning guns. This makes sure the little ones can't get into it. Always get a bigger safe that you think you need.
I bought my Winchester locally which saved quite a bit on shipping. I like that it has a 1 hr fire rating too. If the fire department can't get the fire out within an hour, I have bigger problems. I also like the pockets and pistol slots on the door because it saves a bunch of room and gives a good place to store the important paperwork.
I bought my Winchester locally which saved quite a bit on shipping. I like that it has a 1 hr fire rating too. If the fire department can't get the fire out within an hour, I have bigger problems. I also like the pockets and pistol slots on the door because it saves a bunch of room and gives a good place to store the important paperwork.
1. Get bigger than you need by at least 2x-3x, you'd be amazed how fast it fills....guns, important documents, jewelery, cameras, binos, spotting scope etc
2. Get a tumbler, electronic is convenient..but eventually you wear out the number buttons giving away the combination digits, I'm sure with 4-6 digits their are a ton of combos....buy why even give them that info.
3.Get the best quality you can afford... based on the value for what you plan on putting in.
I can personally attest to Graffunder safes. Best in the market....IMHO. Expensive though. I have a big Browning platinum at my parents house.
2. Get a tumbler, electronic is convenient..but eventually you wear out the number buttons giving away the combination digits, I'm sure with 4-6 digits their are a ton of combos....buy why even give them that info.
3.Get the best quality you can afford... based on the value for what you plan on putting in.
I can personally attest to Graffunder safes. Best in the market....IMHO. Expensive though. I have a big Browning platinum at my parents house.
I bought a champion with electronic lock for faster access. It's a 39 gunner. I would suggest whatever safe you bye, buy bigger! You'll want the room later. 
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I got my safe from a friend. It is actually an old pharmacy safe from im guessing the 60's. Got it for 250$ and its perfect for what i need. could probably use a coat of paint... It took 8 guys and a case of beer to move it off the trailer and into the garage. Its HEAVY. The doors are as thick as my hand. 2 pins on each side of each door. If someone can break into it or move it themselves, they have earned it.
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depends what hazard you are trying to protect against, and the value you are protecting.
Nearly anything you can buy, and bolt down will protect against your 12 year old, and his friends from getting in, and will also resist the 10 mininute in-and-out smash and grab residential crime.
If you are in a residential/urban area and have resonable fire department response time.. either the fire is out in 30 min or less... or its going to be a basement and chimney job, and will burn for 3-4 hours.
If you are buying the mass-market safe, buy based on steel thickness. Lots of big locking bolts are BS marketing gimmicks if they mount into a safe made of tin-can thickness metal.
Mechanical locks only. Ask any locksmith the electronics vs mecanical and they will tell you the electronics generate 20x more service calls.
If you are serious about a safe, that will resist all but the most determined thief, take a look at brown, or graffunder and be ready to spend $5000+ and find a place to put a 3000lbs+ box.
I got a Browning for the guns and have outgrown it. I'm currently looking to sell it so I can upgrade to something larger.
I bought a small Liberty safe just for my reloading components. I needed something secure with decent fire rating.
I bought a small Liberty safe just for my reloading components. I needed something secure with decent fire rating.
Liberty
As far as general principles go:
One thing is fire protection. You can look up statistics on house fires, but the fact is they're very rare, and you can try to ascertain your particular risk of a fire based on factors such as whether you smoke, if you have a woodburner, the age of your home, smoke alarms, the location of the safe, etc.
As far as theft is concerned, I have taken the approach of diversity like investing in stocks. I prefer several smaller safes to one large one. Not only does each one need to be breached to steal what's in it, but smaller ones are easier to move (a liability or an asset depending on the situation).
Any safe can be breached by dedicated criminals. So, I also have the safes in a room with an independent alarm so that room is alarmed even when we're home, when the cleaners are here, etc., and even if we forget to set the total house alarm when we leave.
Finally, if you look for collectibles insurance, you can insure $10K for about $35 per year. I think mine is through Eastern Insurance Group. It also protects me if somebody takes something from my car, or when travelling/flying.
In summary, think of protecting your firearms holistically, against all liabilities in all situations. The more redundancy you have in your total security setup, the less likely you will experience a loss. IMHO, you are better off having several cheaper safes and a security system and some insurance, than you are to drop several thousand on one large "bombproof" safe.
I have well over $50K of firearms in 3 safes that cost about $1000 total. The safe is only part of the picture.
One thing is fire protection. You can look up statistics on house fires, but the fact is they're very rare, and you can try to ascertain your particular risk of a fire based on factors such as whether you smoke, if you have a woodburner, the age of your home, smoke alarms, the location of the safe, etc.
As far as theft is concerned, I have taken the approach of diversity like investing in stocks. I prefer several smaller safes to one large one. Not only does each one need to be breached to steal what's in it, but smaller ones are easier to move (a liability or an asset depending on the situation).
Any safe can be breached by dedicated criminals. So, I also have the safes in a room with an independent alarm so that room is alarmed even when we're home, when the cleaners are here, etc., and even if we forget to set the total house alarm when we leave.
Finally, if you look for collectibles insurance, you can insure $10K for about $35 per year. I think mine is through Eastern Insurance Group. It also protects me if somebody takes something from my car, or when travelling/flying.
In summary, think of protecting your firearms holistically, against all liabilities in all situations. The more redundancy you have in your total security setup, the less likely you will experience a loss. IMHO, you are better off having several cheaper safes and a security system and some insurance, than you are to drop several thousand on one large "bombproof" safe.
I have well over $50K of firearms in 3 safes that cost about $1000 total. The safe is only part of the picture.
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