Large Pistols-Only Safe

[HecklerNKoch]

[HecklerNKoch]

[ATTACH]800259[/ATTACH][ATTACH]800260[/ATTACH]

[Cortelli]

Sorry in advance for long post.


The most important question is why do you want the safe? What are the needs you have / risks you're mitigating?

Some will want a basic security cabinet to comply with minimal firearm storage requirements under law, or to simply keep kids / visitors out (i.e., just want to keep non-thieves' curiosity at bay).

Others will want a safe that is primarily targeted at frustrating burglar's attempts. And then the question is burglars at what level of competence? Are you willing to pay for something that a reasonably sophisticated burglar might struggle to open in 5 mins or 15 mins or 30 mins versus something a tweaker might be able to crack in 60 seconds with a tool he finds in your kitchen / garage?

Others will want a simple strong box but one that is easy to conceal and secure to it's location, relying as much on the concealment as the strength of the box to avoid losses.

Some will consider fire risks, and want or need a safe that provides a cushion for fire response times.

I went through a bunch of effort trying to figure out what I felt I needed a few years back. Thread here: http://www.calguns.net/calgunforum/s...php?p=20810942

For my needs, I also didn't need long gun storage, and I wanted my smaller safe to be difficult for a single or pair of burglars to take away and crack at their leisure. I also wanted to store valuables other than pistols with some significant value, and had a need for some fire resistance, but not for the entire contents of the safe (you can often check your local FD for average response times to your property / area and get a sense of whether going full bore on fire resistance is worthwhile in your circumstances).

Long story slightly shorter, I wanted a safe large enough for multiple pistols + other valuables + a small fire resistant chest into which I would store those smaller items that would be more painful to lose to fire.

My primary concern was around security from theft -- I wanted something that was not easily cracked with ordinary tools one might find in my garage or on a burglar, that could buy enough time to frustrate an attempted theft long enough for the cavalry to arrive. I spent a chunk of money to do so (well beyond what a less penetrable safe would cost), but also focused on measures to reduce the time available to a would-be thief --- in other words, having good security aside from the safe itself that would allow me to know of an attempted breach and to allow the cavalry to arrive before the safe would be breached, like home / office security systems generally, and real-time access to active attempts to breach the safe (every safe is crackable with time and tools).

I ended up with a "b" rated safe - which is generally thicker steel all around and greater anti-theft features than an RSC, but would still be easily opened with enough time and knowledge. I might have been / would be fine with a simpler RSC-type safe given concealment efforts, and external security efforts, but still feel comfortable having spent the extra money for greater security on the specifications of safe itself. I didn't feel comfortable spending the money needed for an even stronger safe like a "c" rated, TLR-15 or -30 or -30x6 even if I'd love to have one (my circumstances just wouldn't justify the expense).

You need to assess what your needs are, and your risk tolerances, and then look to compare safe options that meet those needs and tolerances. You've figured out the size specs - once you settle on the additional features of the safe you want, you can narrow your search (and prepare to be frustrated - lots of the details you may consider important may not be readily discernible from web listings!)

[caliberetta]

I've been thinking about this one for a few weeks now: Sentry Executive 6 cubic foot Safe $547 shipped.






Alternatively, there's this too: BARSKA Biometric Safe


.

[1911_Mitch]

Sturdy safe, cube

[HecklerNKoch]

Sorry in advance for long post.


The most important question is why do you want the safe? What are the needs you have / risks you're mitigating?

Some will want a basic security cabinet to comply with minimal firearm storage requirements under law, or to simply keep kids / visitors out (i.e., just want to keep non-thieves' curiosity at bay).

Others will want a safe that is primarily targeted at frustrating burglar's attempts. And then the question is burglars at what level of competence? Are you willing to pay for something that a reasonably sophisticated burglar might struggle to open in 5 mins or 15 mins or 30 mins versus something a tweaker might be able to crack in 60 seconds with a tool he finds in your kitchen / garage?

Others will want a simple strong box but one that is easy to conceal and secure to it's location, relying as much on the concealment as the strength of the box to avoid losses.

Some will consider fire risks, and want or need a safe that provides a cushion for fire response times.

I went through a bunch of effort trying to figure out what I felt I needed a few years back. Thread here: http://www.calguns.net/calgunforum/s...php?p=20810942

For my needs, I also didn't need long gun storage, and I wanted my smaller safe to be difficult for a single or pair of burglars to take away and crack at their leisure. I also wanted to store valuables other than pistols with some significant value, and had a need for some fire resistance, but not for the entire contents of the safe (you can often check your local FD for average response times to your property / area and get a sense of whether going full bore on fire resistance is worthwhile in your circumstances).

Long story slightly shorter, I wanted a safe large enough for multiple pistols + other valuables + a small fire resistant chest into which I would store those smaller items that would be more painful to lose to fire.

My primary concern was around security from theft -- I wanted something that was not easily cracked with ordinary tools one might find in my garage or on a burglar, that could buy enough time to frustrate an attempted theft long enough for the cavalry to arrive. I spent a chunk of money to do so (well beyond what a less penetrable safe would cost), but also focused on measures to reduce the time available to a would-be thief --- in other words, having good security aside from the safe itself that would allow me to know of an attempted breach and to allow the cavalry to arrive before the safe would be breached, like home / office security systems generally, and real-time access to active attempts to breach the safe (every safe is crackable with time and tools).

I ended up with a "b" rated safe - which is generally thicker steel all around and greater anti-theft features than an RSC, but would still be easily opened with enough time and knowledge. I might have been / would be fine with a simpler RSC-type safe given concealment efforts, and external security efforts, but still feel comfortable having spent the extra money for greater security on the specifications of safe itself. I didn't feel comfortable spending the money needed for an even stronger safe like a "c" rated, TLR-15 or -30 or -30x6 even if I'd love to have one (my circumstances just wouldn't justify the expense).

You need to assess what your needs are, and your risk tolerances, and then look to compare safe options that meet those needs and tolerances. You've figured out the size specs - once you settle on the additional features of the safe you want, you can narrow your search (and prepare to be frustrated - lots of the details you may consider important may not be readily discernible from web listings!)

Thank you very much for the well-thought out reply. Sorry about my delay in getting back here - I do appreciate your input. You bring up many strong points - the needs are for long-term storage of many handguns only, as a few will not be locked away, as you mentioned 'security from theft'.



The current safe I have now - I've actually built into a concrete wall - it's embedded but the collection outgrew it, so I'll need something a little larger. I'll put more thought into this as I weigh out how much I'm willing to spend because I really don't want to re-do this. Thank you, again.

[HecklerNKoch]

I've been thinking about this one for a few weeks now: Sentry Executive 6 cubic foot Safe $547 shipped.






Alternatively, there's this too: BARSKA Biometric Safe


.

Thank you for posting these two safes. I haven't had a chance to reply until now but since your post I've had a tab open on the 'SentrySafe T0-331' - it looks damn good. The weight at 100 lbs looks good and I honestly don't know if the price is good or bad because I haven't spent much time yet looking into this but the dimensions are spot on. Wish it was a tab bit less expensive but I'm probably going to circle around this recommendation as it does seem like a good match. Thank you.

[FAS1]