[smokestack]

I am looking to buy a gun safe and need some sage wisdom. Listed below are some items / features I would like or desire in the safe I purchase.

1. 20 - 30 gun safe approximately

2. External hinges

3. U.L tool attack

4 U.L Listed lock

5. 10 or 11 gauge steel body and door

6. 14 or more locking bolts

7. Relockers

8. Drill resistant plate

9. Nice interior / upholstery / not cheap looking

10. Fire / Water (Florida)

11 Budget $2000.00 +-

The list is just a wish list. I have never owned a safe and I am just looking to find a safe that is both functional and of good quality for the amount I am spending. I have looked on line at several different manufactures, Winchester, Browning, Cannon, Hollon and Rhino. Please help me out with any personal experience or industry knowledge. I will be using this to store my firearms, the wife's jewelery and important personal papers. This safe will more then likely stay in our garage.

Thanks for any help!

Paul

 

[headhunter]

My advice is, Get a big one..

 

[moore5833]

Tractor supply has a 30 gunner reasonable. you DO NOT want exterior hinges-they can be compromised. Cannon is their brand. i have one and love it.

 

[g7777777]

You can get what you want for half your budget easily

Just as tractory suppy has Canons

Lowes has some big Libertys

Now- remember you have to move this sucker

Move it in and maybe move it after you get it in to a different place

Keep that in mind

Regards from Iowa

Gene

 

[vpr80]

all of that is fine for your budget except the water proofing. i am no expert, but i don't think the big safes come waterproof. just the smaller ones.

also i have the big horn from costco for half your budget and i really like it.

 

[Brian in Oregon]

Get a safe at least 25% larger than your gun collection, as you'll eventually fill it up.

Don't worry about outside hinges *IF* the safe has deadbolts on the hinge side with a thick plate to bear against. If the hinges get cut the deadbolts will prevent the safe from opening.

Fire proofing, while nice, attracts moisture. You may have to install a dehumidifier, like a Golden Rod. Plan on installing an outlet or running an extension cord into the safe if it doesn't already have one.

Outlets are also useful for lighting. Or at least add a couple of stick on battery operated LED lights. Safes are usually quite dim inside.

Plan on bolting the safe to the floor and possibly the wall as well. After watching two huge guys pick up a large refrigerator and carry it around the outside of the house to the kitchen, it's a no brainer that a couple of guys with a handtruck can roll your safe out the door.

Interior - Doesn't matter how nice it looks if it's made from particle board. Any kind of weight on the particle board will cause it to sag sooner or later. I had to replace mine with plywood. Used what was left of the particle board as a template.

The wife will want to put jewelry, etc., in it, and you may want to put cameras et al in it too. Nip that in the bud and get a smaller safe for those items.

If you have tools that can cut into the safe, like torches or cutoff wheels, lock them up. Why make it easier?

If you have an alarm system, put something near the safe. On carpeting, put a switch pad under the carpet in front of the safe. In the garage, add a motion detector. Etc.

 

[Barry C. Roach]

zanottiarmor.com. Try this.

 

[gspointer]

I just got a 50 cubic foot Liberty Safe from john deere with deere logos. Its big weighs 1200 pounds. Has a lot of room. It will cost you around $2000. I moved it with a skid loader to get it off the trailer, and rented piano mover dolley for 9 bucks to get it in the house.

 

[twoatloweight]

Second for Zanotti.

 

[chiefjon]

Go on gunbroker.com and look at what is available. Get as big a safe as you can afford. I am very happy with my Cannon.

JON

 

[Borg]

I have had a browning safe for more than 20 years. We are in an out of it several times a day for documents/firearms. Many safes will be made by the same manufacture and branded by others (Browning does not make any safes). Just get a Liberty or other branded name. You will not have gone wrong.

As others mention. Get it bigger than you need now. I have a 36 gun safe with well over 36 guns in it. Never figured I would have that many. Want to buy a gun?

Don't get hung up on the number of locking bolts (it's a sales pitch). If a few penetrate each side of the door, a thief will not be able to get in. Having said that, external hinges are not an issue if locking bolts penetrate both sides of the safe. If the hinges are torched off, the bolts will hold the door in place. Having said all that, if a safe cracker gets into your house it doesn't matter, he will get into your safe. You don't have that much good stuff for a pro to give your safe a try. You want to keep a thief out. Any of the safes mentioned will keep a thief from you goods.

Make sure the supplier will move it for you, or get a safe company to move it unless you have a VERY easy move. They are heavier than they look, and precarious when tilted on a dolly. Save yourself the greif.

Peter

 

[kraiza]

I just got a 50 cubic foot Liberty Safe from Gander Mountain. It weight about 1200lbs. Get the largest one you can get. They fill up fast not just with guns.

 

[locdoc]

If you plan on moving it yourself then I suggest, if possible, that you remove the door. It represents at least 30% of the total weight. Utilize moving quilts for paint protection, too. If its final location will have ANY chance of water exposure then a 4" to 6" platform under it will be some protection from flooding. Makes access a little easier, also.

Doug Whiton, P/W dealer/dist

 

[smokestack]

Thanks for all the good info, I did not know that Costco and Sam's carried safes. One of my main concerns is the quality of the interior. I don't want to have to cut and rebuild the shelves of the unit. No particle board with carpet covering.

thanks!

Paul

 

[ColtM1911A1]

My advise is simple if you plan to stay at your current address for many years.

1) Get a quality made safe...
2) Get the largest safe available with that manufacturer...
3) Plan where you'll place the next safe you plan to buy when the first one is full...

Good Luck:


Jack

 

[rennerize]

I like my Browning 40 gun safe. The door comes off (which is 1/3 of the weight). It has big locking bolts that go all the way around the door. But I do not think it is water proff.
Don

 

[Auctioneer]

I have looked at Fort Knox and I'm please with what I see. Cannon makes one hell of a size safe that holds 60 or so guns. Its a double door safe.

Google gun safes and look at the spec's of each makers safe. That will tell you alot on each safe.

When you do buy one bolt it to the floor. That way it will not walk off whe you don't want it to.

 

[In plain view]

I've got a Cannon, model P-240. Had it slghtly over a year. Began having problems with unlocking (digital) for several months. Sales company in Corona, California have been great but Cannons customer service department is steadily pissing me off. Have experienced unlocking problems for some time. Before pressing the 4 numbers I usually had to shake the handle 3 or 4 times to get the click. All I get now is after 4 times red light comes on and blinks 2 fast times and nothing. Customer service tech tells the sales company he left messages on my cell number. NOT TRUE. I cant leave him a message because his recorder is full. Isnt that as blast of b.s. Cant shoot for 2 weeks because my guns are in he safe..... I'm not happy. Bob

 

[Barry C. Roach]

What's nice about the Zanotti safes is they come to your house "knocked down." They can be brought to their resting place in pieces and assembled there. If you move, the reverse procedure makes it a lot easier than any other safe brand. Once the door it hung and locked closed it is as secure as any other top quality safe.

They aren't as pretty as some of the other safes but if you aren't going to put them in a room as a furniture
piece then they are excellent.

 

[brownk80]

Make sure you can lag it to the floor in the garage. Almost any safe can be compromised but a way to slow that down is to have a motion detector mounted in the area and leave it on when you aren't using the safe. Mine is connected (eletronically) to my central alarm so if I am gone and someone gets into the area where the safe is the alarm goes off before they ever get to the safe.

Cannon is a good one.

brownk80