• Watch Out for Scammers!

    We've now added a color code for all accounts. Orange accounts are new members, Blue are full members, and Green are Supporters. If you get a message about a sale from an orange account, make sure you pay attention before sending any money!

Liberty Gun Safes?

kthomas

Sergeant
Full Member
Minuteman
Jun 17, 2009
7,278
9,630
36
Tucson, AZ
I'm looking at getting a gun safe, and right now have my eyes on a Liberty Franklin 25. I have four bolt guns with scopes and bipods, a couple ar15's and some pistols. A 25 (30" width) would fit perfectly where I want to put it, but could go up to the 40 model (36" width) if needed.

The Franklin 25 is around ~$2k. Is there any other safes I should be considering, for that price range and size?
 
i have 2 Liberty's and like them. go as large as you can or you will wind up with 2 like me

That seems to be a common theme. I may buck up and get the 40. The 25 would fit a lot better in the space, between that and the price it's a bigger driver to go to the 25.

But I also don't want to regret getting too small of a gunsmith later on down the road, and end up with two.
 
I'm looking at getting a gun safe, and right now have my eyes on a Liberty Franklin 25. I have four bolt guns with scopes and bipods, a couple ar15's and some pistols. A 25 (30" width) would fit perfectly where I want to put it, but could go up to the 40 model (36" width) if needed.

The Franklin 25 is around ~$2k. Is there any other safes I should be considering, for that price range and size?
I have a Franklin 40 and love it. Glad I went with the extra size over the 25. I think you'd be better off with the 40 as well considering your collection is a similar size as mine.
 
  • Like
Reactions: kthomas
I got a fatboy jr. it’s far from full but it’s nice to be able to space out the guns right now instead of having to stack them on top of each other or move one to get the others out.
 
  • Like
Reactions: kthomas
I have a liberty presidential. Given times being what they are I would consider the next size bigger presidential and go see your local dealer with cash/check and ask him what kind deal he is willing to make to move one today. If you are not equipped to move, unload and install it make sure you talk package price.
 
Also, do you have a local dealer? Mine saved me about $500 versus ordering direct from Liberty.

I do. I just came back from the store. I don't think they were really any cheaper then Liberty themselves, though they are having a sale during memorial weekend.
 
I would get the largest safe you can afford and have space for, I have two and still don't have enough room always seems like a lot of other stuff gets thrown in there, the wife's jewelry title's to all my rigs etc. etc. I'm going to try & find some kind of organizer so I don't have to pull everything out when I want to shoot the rifle that is in the back, Liberty Safes are great, don't have one but know people that do and they are nice, Cabellas safes are pretty nice too and I think they are made by Liberty, maybe a little less $$$
 
What else are you gonna put in there?

I have the Lincoln 50. I have 10 rifles, 7 handguns, and lots of ammo (10k ish rds)....its pretty full. Before long, I will have to find new places to squirrel away ammo to make room for more rifles. You will fill it up. Go as big as you can.
 
First, Liberty's are residential security units and not safes. OK now that the semantics are out of the way, Liberty does provide good value. Bottom line is, better security, better fire ratings, thicker steel (if they are still talking "gauge" and not "of an inch thick- like 1/4"-- then it's not all that), size, inside vs outside hinges and etc., price just goes way up. If you feel that Liberty provides all you need from a storage unit, then rock on. But there are better units and worse units out there for sure. Liberty provides a lot of choices and customizations. It's not at all bad, it's not terrific either.

Full disclosure: I own a Liberty Fatboy Jr. It's too small and wish I would have gone full Fatboy. As I look at my waist, perhaps I already did....
 
What else are you gonna put in there?

I have the Lincoln 50. I have 10 rifles, 7 handguns, and lots of ammo (10k ish rds)....its pretty full. Before long, I will have to find new places to squirrel away ammo to make room for more rifles. You will fill it up. Go as big as you can.
I wish I had room for ammo in mine. Damn you AJ!!
 
  • Like
Reactions: kthomas
The store, well they should have someone who can make you a deal. It might be hard see who that is.

Another thought. Are you married? My wife packs all kinds of stuff into the safe that don't belong in the safe. If your finances permit buy two and let her have one. Its better than having to move all her crap to get at my pistols.

When you get it home don't just store your guns, get a bunch of dessacant in it for and reactivate it every day for a week. The drywall (that makes it fireproof) has a lot of water in it when its new.
 
I own a liberty... I went bigger... and still wish I would have gone bigger still.

One more thing, is that I wish I would have done a digital vs manual dial entry.
 
  • Like
Reactions: kthomas
First, Liberty's are residential security units and not safes. OK now that the semantics are out of the way, Liberty does provide good value. Bottom line is, better security, better fire ratings, thicker steel (if they are still talking "gauge" and not "of an inch thick- like 1/4"-- then it's not all that), size, inside vs outside hinges and etc., price just goes way up. If you feel that Liberty provides all you need from a storage unit, then rock on. But there are better units and worse units out there for sure. Liberty provides a lot of choices and customizations. It's not at all bad, it's not terrific either.

Full disclosure: I own a Liberty Fatboy Jr. It's too small and wish I would have gone full Fatboy. As I look at my waist, perhaps I already did....

Haha, I am aware of the fact that they are RSC's.

Any other brand you would recommend over Liberty? I want to keep it under $3k all in (delivery, installation).
 
What else are you gonna put in there?

I have the Lincoln 50. I have 10 rifles, 7 handguns, and lots of ammo (10k ish rds)....its pretty full. Before long, I will have to find new places to squirrel away ammo to make room for more rifles. You will fill it up. Go as big as you can.

Perhaps passports and the like.

We don't have fancy jewelry, gold bars, fancy watches or anything like that to store.
 
Honestly, this is like recommending a specific caliber on this forum. It's not going to go over well regardless of the recommendation.
I have a Liberty and am happy with it but also am mindful of its shortcomings. Like I said, it's a middle of the road product. But, lots of dealers and you can find some good deals. My Fatboy Jr was $1500 delivered and installed (bolted to the floor).
If you're satisfied with that level of performance, then it's all good.
 
  • Like
Reactions: kthomas
My recommendation is buy way larger than you ever see yourself needing. I mean WAY LARGER!
Oh, and be sure you can get rifles or shotguns in there that have longer than standard barrels and/or muzzle brakes.
Does fire rating mean anything? My first sat I didn't get one with any fire rating. The others do. Will "fire-proofing" save contents? Actually, not likely to save them all but still worthwhile.
 
  • Like
Reactions: kthomas
Large as you can, starting to crowd my fat boy already. Good bang for buck set up especially if your available options are limited.
 
Honestly, this is like recommending a specific caliber on this forum. It's not going to go over well regardless of the recommendation.
I have a Liberty and am happy with it but also am mindful of its shortcomings. Like I said, it's a middle of the road product. But, lots of dealers and you can find some good deals. My Fatboy Jr was $1500 delivered and installed (bolted to the floor).
If you're satisfied with that level of performance, then it's all good.

That's fair.

This decision is one of the few that is a bit overwhelming, and something I've been mulling over for years.

I've been holding off on a safe purchase for a while because unless you spend big money, you really aren't getting a "safe", and you have a multi-thousand dollar heavy item that can maybe hold someone who knows what they are doing back about ~5-10 minutes.

On the other hand, I doubt many robbers are showing up to heists with plasma cutters, and most jobs are "smash and grabs". It would prevent that tweaker that's looking for any easy pawn shop sale score so that he/she could pay for their next hit, at least they wouldn't be doing it with my TacOps rifle. I'm not sure how many of them carry tools and the knowledge to allow them to break into a Liberty "safe", I really don't know.

It's literally a big purchase - it's a large, heavy, space consuming object, and a few thousand dollars is a lot of money when I currently don't work. It would certainly piss me off if a robber peeled it open like a tuna can in a short time, and makes me ponder what I need.
 
I've been holding off on a safe purchase for a while because unless you spend big money, you really aren't getting a "safe", and you have a multi-thousand dollar heavy item that can maybe hold someone who knows what they are doing back about ~5-10 minutes.
Sure, anyone smart enough or resourceful enough can crack the safe.
Those aren't normally the dudes that break into your house though.
Safes keep them away from prying eyes and busy hands and are much better for organization than hiding them under the bed or in a closet.
 
I’m in the market for a safe myself. I figured I would wind up with a sturdy safe. No they aren’t UL listed and yes the Graffunder in your basement full of $100,000 of NFA collectibles is probably thicker and better built. That being said I feel like it’s a good blend of value and security for me and my “poors” collection.
 
  • Like
Reactions: kthomas
I have the Liberty Fat Boy Extreme for a couple years. Go as big as you can get because you will outgrow it and need more. I have been looking at the National Classic Extreme 60 for a second safe.

 
  • Like
Reactions: kthomas
That's fair.

This decision is one of the few that is a bit overwhelming, and something I've been mulling over for years.

I've been holding off on a safe purchase for a while because unless you spend big money, you really aren't getting a "safe", and you have a multi-thousand dollar heavy item that can maybe hold someone who knows what they are doing back about ~5-10 minutes.

On the other hand, I doubt many robbers are showing up to heists with plasma cutters, and most jobs are "smash and grabs". It would prevent that tweaker that's looking for any easy pawn shop sale score so that he/she could pay for their next hit, at least they wouldn't be doing it with my TacOps rifle. I'm not sure how many of them carry tools and the knowledge to allow them to break into a Liberty "safe", I really don't know.

It's literally a big purchase - it's a large, heavy, space consuming object, and a few thousand dollars is a lot of money when I currently don't work. It would certainly piss me off if a robber peeled it open like a tuna can in a short time, and makes me ponder what I need.
That's kind of the attitude I had. Anyone that has those kinds of tools and skills necessary to break into my Fatboy aren't likely to waste them on what I have anyway.
 
A friend of mine somehow screwed up his electronic lock bad enough that we couldn't fix it or get through safe open. It was a cannon or liberty or something along those lines, don't remember exactly. Anyway, after quite a few beers we talked him into letting us break into it so he could get his stuff out. We thought about plasma and skinny wheels on grinders and everything else you might consider in a well equipped shop. We started simple figuring we'd work up to cutting into it.

We slid it out where we had some room, played it on its back, and 2 drunks pried the door open with tire mounting tools in 45 seconds.

Sure, we moved it and had took to work, but I think the moral of the story is that it doesn't take anything fancy to get into them. I have my thought about fire ratings too, but any of the nicer safes have them, so its not like you can save any money ignoring them.

Im not trying to say don't buy a liberty or whatever you want. I've got to get a new one and I'll go the $1500 direction too. Just don't expect it to keep criminals or fire out. If they've got time to get to the safe, they've got time to open it. Hell, one of the neighbors claims that someone loaded his entire safe into a truck while he was in mexico on vacation Lol.
 
Maybe a better way to say that is get the biggest safe you can for the cheapest you can because they're all the same shit until you drop a ton of money.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Radar20
One thing I do not understand about any of these safes, especially the Liberty safes and any similar brand, is why do they all have terrible organizational systems in them. The shelves seem to take up way too much real estate for a "gun safe", and the area to hold rifles always looks like the designer has never seen another gun besides a single shot shotgun.

Is there a company out there making improved innards for these things? Are people just making due? Or are end users customizing the storage themselves.

It seems ridiculous to spend several grand on a "safe" and it has has the same terrible storage "solutions" as the cheapest unit in the product lineup. When I pull the trigger on a nicer safe I want to make sure I am getting good value from it.
 
Last edited:
One thing I do not understand about any of these safes, especially the Liberty safes and any similar brand, is why do they all have terrible organizational systems in them. The shelves seem to take up way too much real estate for a "gun safe", and the area to hold rifles always looks like the designer has never seen another gun besides a single shot shotgun.

Is there a company out there making improved innards for these things? Are people just making due? Or are end users customizing the storage themselves.

It seems ridiculous to spend several grand on a "safe" and it has has the same terrible storage "solutions" as the cheapest unit in the product lineup. When I pull the trigger on a nicer safe I want to make sure I am getting good value from it.
I've been wanting to reconfigure the inside of my safe for a while. I agree the way they come configured is terrible. I did remove a row from each side of my "48 gun" safe. It helped, but it's not ideal. When I get the time blah, blah, blah... Who am I kidding, I barely have time to shoot, reload, shoot, reload, shoot, reload...
 
I have had a Liberty for 15 years and no problems with it.Money well spent.
 
  • Like
Reactions: kthomas
I also have a Liberty Fatboy Jr. Like several have said it’s more of a liability protection and perhaps some fire insurance. I had two smaller safes that my brother now has and one was free... it was locked and the owner had lost the combination. It was a liberty 25 gun can’t remember the model but that’s not the point. I found a lock smith who broke in it and reset the combination to match the other safe I had at the time and it took about 20 mins and 150 In cash. 5 to get in it the rest was him smoothing up the components and resetting the combination.
 
  • Like
Reactions: kthomas
I have a Liberty Fatboy JR with one of these organizers from Secureit. For me needs it’s bee perfect.


I keep the long guns on one side and ARs on the other with a pistol peg hanger above them.


This setup limits the safe capacity but makes getting stuff in and out easy.
 
  • Like
Reactions: kthomas
One thing I do not understand about any of these safes, especially the Liberty safes and any similar brand, is why do they all have terrible organizational systems in them. The shelves seem to take up way too much real estate for a "gun safe", and the area to hold rifles always looks like the designer has never seen another gun besides a single shot shotgun.

Is there a company out there making improved innards for these things? Are people just making due? Or are end users customizing the storage themselves.

It seems ridiculous to spend several grand on a "safe" and it has has the same terrible storage "solutions" as the cheapest unit in the product lineup. When I pull the trigger on a nicer safe I want to make sure I am getting good value from it.

I agree 100%. First thing I would do is rip out their shitty shelves and install something different.
 
A friend of mine somehow screwed up his electronic lock bad enough that we couldn't fix it or get through safe open. It was a cannon or liberty or something along those lines, don't remember exactly. Anyway, after quite a few beers we talked him into letting us break into it so he could get his stuff out. We thought about plasma and skinny wheels on grinders and everything else you might consider in a well equipped shop. We started simple figuring we'd work up to cutting into it.

We slid it out where we had some room, played it on its back, and 2 drunks pried the door open with tire mounting tools in 45 seconds.

Sure, we moved it and had took to work, but I think the moral of the story is that it doesn't take anything fancy to get into them. I have my thought about fire ratings too, but any of the nicer safes have them, so its not like you can save any money ignoring them.

Im not trying to say don't buy a liberty or whatever you want. I've got to get a new one and I'll go the $1500 direction too. Just don't expect it to keep criminals or fire out. If they've got time to get to the safe, they've got time to open it. Hell, one of the neighbors claims that someone loaded his entire safe into a truck while he was in mexico on vacation Lol.
The biggest most important thing to do is anchor the safe properly to the floor.
Also take into account anchor it as close to.a solid wall as you can on the non hinge side.
This will slow who ever down considerably but if they want in they're coming in.
 
The biggest most important thing to do is anchor the safe properly to the floor.
Also take into account anchor it as close to.a solid wall as you can on the non hinge side.
This will slow who ever down considerably but if they want in they're coming in.
Like someone said earlier, it's a RSC. Knowing it's limitations is helpful. My biggest thing is I have a safe place to put my firearms when I got a house full of children and their friends running around doing the things that kids do. I have some minimal fire protection as an added bonus. Most importantly, it looks bad ass...
 
I need another one...thanks to the amount of JUNK (aka paper, hard drives, and other crap that is backup for the backup in the safety dep box). I'm likely to buy smaller this time as the larger one could only go in one room and how they got it in I'll never know. Just realize 1) if you think you need a 40 gun safe, you likely need a 60 gun safe.

Furthermore, AR's take the most space if sporting an optic/scope, then anything with an optic/scope, then plinkers and shotguns. At the risk of folks that don't like the Pro-Steel safes, they do have a clever feature (for Browings) that have the door framed to where it holds scoped guns. Pretty clever and they own a patent on it (simple idea...but patentable).

I kick myself every time I open my safe for not getting the AMSEC that I found for 2200 (40cu ft) and a real one...not an imported model . Wasn't in the financial position to cough it up.
 
  • Like
Reactions: kthomas
I bought an 8-gun safe and 6 rifles barely fit, it's a pain in the rear to get the door to shut without interference. The scopes really do make a difference in how many rifles you can store. Also, I had a rifle built with a 30" barrel, and length isn't something I'd considered when I bought the safe. So, I agree with the others - get a much bigger safe than you think you'll need, then up-size it a little bit more. A thought though - maybe we should bar all wives from reading this forum. Reading the messages a theme becomes clear - a guy can never have enough rifles. A savvy wife, reading this forum, might suspect she should discourage her hubby's hobby if finances are not unlimited, and none of us wants that. This reminds me of a boat gag I heard once, "Always have lots of boats. When your wife gets mad you can sell a few, and still have lots of boats."
 
  • Like
Reactions: kthomas
First, Liberty's are residential security units and not safes. OK now that the semantics are out of the way, Liberty does provide good value. Bottom line is, better security, better fire ratings, thicker steel (if they are still talking "gauge" and not "of an inch thick- like 1/4"-- then it's not all that), size, inside vs outside hinges and etc., price just goes way up. If you feel that Liberty provides all you need from a storage unit, then rock on. But there are better units and worse units out there for sure. Liberty provides a lot of choices and customizations. It's not at all bad, it's not terrific either.

Full disclosure: I own a Liberty Fatboy Jr. It's too small and wish I would have gone full Fatboy. As I look at my waist, perhaps I already did....

I am under the impression, from my research not first-hand experience, that Sturdy is a pretty good step-up from Liberty and the like.

Any opinion?

 
Last edited:
I am under the impression, from my research not first-hand experience, that Sturdy is a pretty good setup up from Liberty and the like.

Any opinion?

No, I have little knowledge about Sturdy, so no comments.
 
Anything short of a AMSEC BF series is a cheap RSC, even those fancy liberty safes.

My recommendation is this. A safe does not protect your valuables for anything other than a smash and grab. Anything short of a real safe (Which start at about $4K and go up quick) can be cracked in less than a minute with an angle grinder or a pry bar. Fire ratings mean jack shit in almost every real fire the safe will be in hot coals and soaked in water so everything will be destroyed anyway.

The first step is to ensure everything with a personal property or collectors insurance. Its cheap, usually less than 1% per year of insured value. With USAA it doesn't matter if its stolen, burnt up or I drop it out a boat or just plain lose it, its covered.

Now that your stuff is fully insured you need to decide what kind of storage. You can get a Big quality safe that will cost thousands and weigh thousands. It will be harder to break into, more fire resistant ect. But even then, until you get up into the TL rated safes, most can be cracked without too much time or tools.

So the logical answer is buy the biggest safe you can store. The fatboy is a great example of an inexpensive safe that will deter smash and grabs and keep the kids dick beaters out.

Even then, if something does happen, House floods, fire, tornado, stollen, lost....whatever... you are covered for full replacement value.

If you have other valuables, look into a real safe and document bags. Gun safes are shitty document/jewel safes and get way to hot too quickly. Something with alteast 2 hour 1800* rating and TL15. Small used TL safes can be found for $1-2K and usually weight about 2-4K lbs. If you have silver/gold ect they are g a good investment.

Then add a nice alarm system and cameras and you have enough layered security you shouldn't have to worry.
 
I'm looking at getting a gun safe, and right now have my eyes on a Liberty Franklin 25. I have four bolt guns with scopes and bipods, a couple ar15's and some pistols. A 25 (30" width) would fit perfectly where I want to put it, but could go up to the 40 model (36" width) if needed.

The Franklin 25 is around ~$2k. Is there any other safes I should be considering, for that price range and size?
As others point out below, locks and Residential Security Containers are illusions of security. A friend owned a locksmith company for years always said: "Locks only keep honest and stupid people out." Don't spend the money for the pretty shiny finish....it shouldn't be brag about furniture sitting in your family room. It is nice to have a "strong" safe (RSC), but it is better to have a RSC that no one finds so can't even attempt entry. (Kinda like the best way to win a gun fight is don't get in one.) Find a location where the safe is hidden...not sitting out in plain sight....preferably behind a serious hidden access panel. AND, DON'T SHOW YOUR COOL HIDDEN SAFE TO ANYONE!!!! AND, THAT GOES FOR YOUR WIFEY AND CRUMB CRUNCHERS TOO BEING SHUSH!!! Then, set a cheap Stack-On "safe" (tin can) in plain sight. Buy some old beater guns for dirt cheap sans paperwork/NICS, remove the firing pins, lead the barrels, and put them in the safe. (Or leave the firing pins, lead the barrels, and sit back and watch the news for giggles.) A typical burglar or smash-n-grab junkie will pop the tin can, grab the junkers, and scram......not even looking for or finding your good RSC. Bolt the good RSC to the floor in your cool hidy hole. Protect the walls, top and back of the safe....much easier to penetrate than the door.....with built in walls and over structure (cabinets, etc.) to make access more difficult should the safe be found. While safe movers should be bonded, they aren't any more trust worthy than police. (They will all spill the beans for a few bucks.) If possible, move the safe with very trusted friend so no one knows where the safe is delivered and installed.....pay cash and don't give your true address to the store either. I bought an used UltraLift powered stair climber with several accessories, from a belly up moving company, to move my numerous safes and friend's safes. Rated at 1500lbs and 41" lift (as I recall), we've moved well over 40 safes.....Browning , Liberty, Amsec, and others...... up/down stairs, across yards, etc. I've accumulated quite a battery of safe moving gear. Even built a version of Roll-A-Lifts using four 1500lb boat trailer dollies. Learned and developed many techniques for safe handling. ....fun challenge. Paid for itself several times over in saved mover costs, optimized my illusions of security (I tell myself anyway), and made made some memories with trusted friends along the way. Just some old guy thoughts. YMMV.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: kthomas
What is everyone’s preference on the locking mechanism? I hate combinations (always have) but paranoid about the digital not working in crunch time. Like Fort Knox option for redundant (both) but they are pricey.
 
I'm looking at getting a gun safe, and right now have my eyes on a Liberty Franklin 25. I have four bolt guns with scopes and bipods, a couple ar15's and some pistols. A 25 (30" width) would fit perfectly where I want to put it, but could go up to the 40 model (36" width) if needed.

The Franklin 25 is around ~$2k. Is there any other safes I should be considering, for that price range and size?
I have a Liberty Presidential. It is super nice; especially for the money.

I have electronic locks...mine have never failed. Make sure it is an S&G electronic. I use the same lock on my giant Graffunder safe.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: kthomas
That safe is already almost too small. Your scopes bolt guns with bipods take up 3 slots . Look at the Fat Boys . Cheaper , bigger .
That Franklin is a great safe , but too small for you
 
What is everyone’s preference on the locking mechanism? I hate combinations (always have) but paranoid about the digital not working in crunch time. Like Fort Knox option for redundant (both) but they are pricey.
I agree with you here. I worry about the Digital’s as well. I think combination is the best, or spring for both.
 
Folks have given a lot of great advice. Go big. Go heavy (from the thickness of steel), get the best you can. As is the case with many other facets of precision rifle, buy once.
 
  • Like
Reactions: edub1309
I have a liberty fat boy 64 gun safe and could use a bigger one . if you can wait till fathers day a lot of places have them on sale . mine was marked down from 1750.00 to 1150.00 . prices probably have gone up since I bought mine .