Gun safe

[Colby]

We are in the market for a gun safe. Would like to stay under $1000. Looking at some of the 20 gun models but in reality only have 6 long guns at this time. Considering liberty revere, costco big horn, or possibly tracker. I realize you get what you pay for but kinda looking for best bang for the buck suggestions.
Thanks
Colby

 

[digger]

Check out the cannons from tractor supply co. They are always running a special.

 

[Shrek]

Another place to look is a local locksmith. I know that the big one in town here has used ones from estates and such for sale at some good prices.

 

[Ray]

I'll second cannon. It fills up fast and with it mostly empty, you can store other valuables.

 

[5MilesBack]

My buddy has the largest Fort Knox vault made, and I have the Liberty Big Boy. It does fill up fast, but I have all guns, optics, family photos, jewelry, papers, etc, etc in mine. Personally I would opt for a larger one and higher fire rating than some of the cheap options out there. We've had two MAJOR fires in the area the last two years with over 600 homes burned combined, and many safes didn't fare so well.

 

[Colby]

Now I'm kind of leaning towards liberty fat boy jr. There are no tractor supply's in my area. Fat boy jr is a little more money than I originally wanted to spend but I probably won't ever outgrow it and it's made in USA. Anyone have a better idea?
Thanks

 

[Sea37]

Cabelas has a version of the fat boy jr. at a better price. It's called the Classic.

 

[Colby]

I'll check it out thanks

 

[boom]

i wont buy anything that uses sheetrock as a fire layer. no thanks.

i figure this..chances of my home burning is greater than some smash and grab thief..i spent the money on real fire proof insulation. i got a custom safe from Sturdy. it is ugly..so you cant stand it in a living room as a center piece. it looks like a dull gray bank vault. outside hinges..nasty burly handle, plain jane dial. i think i paid $800 delivered..but my safe is small. small and heavy.

a pro thief wants a crack at it..all bets are off. there isnt a safe i cant get into with a portable band saw.

 

[Hawkeye]

There are very few safes on the market that are going to protect your guns in a fire. I was involved in disaster restoration for a couple years and saw house fires first hand a few times a week. I saw high dollar 12-15K safes fail just like the $250 stack ons. Your safe may have a fire rating but the smoke is going to destroy your contents long before the fire does. House fires get extremely hot and the smoke is full of heat, toxic fumes and LOTS of moisture. The somke will penetrate the seams in your safe in seconds and will instantly etch the metal on your guns, accelarate rust, corrode, etch your glass on optics, and stink up the plastic or wood stocks. Your best bet is to buy one that has a solid door on it to prevent burglars and kids from breaking into it.

The best thing you can buy to protect your guns is insurance.

 

[Bughalli]

Interesting info from Hawkeye and something to consider. I went the Costco Bighorn route. More to protect against the grab and go thief than anything else. They're on sale pretty regularly and a great value. As everyone said, the safe fills up fast. Once you have one you'll put all kinds of stuff in there - documents, cameras, jewelry, laptops, iPads, even my Sage fly rods and reels. I figure heck, they're worth as much as some of my guns!

One thing to consider - it's pretty easy to sell them if you want to upgrade. I looked for months for a used one. I figured someone would be moving and not want to move it. Never got one. They sell quickly. Buy it on sale, keep it in good condition and you'll get almost what you paid for it.

 

[Travis Bertrand]

Colby, I wouldn't cheap out on a gun safe, my dad talked some sense into me thankfully when I bought mine, I was going to buy something you are looking at and he asked me few questions that got me thinking.

1) how old are you?
A- and how many guns are you going to own when you are my age?

2) how much is your trap gun worth and you want to protect it in a safe that costs less than half of the value?


After that I went out and bought the the biggest baddest gun safe I could afford. It's an investment! You will likely own it for the rest of your life and expand your gun collection during that time.

I don't know where you are located but I would take a look at halls safe co. They used to be out of auburn Cali I'm not sure now as they moved. Also Visalia safe co down in Visalia Cali

 

[boom]

There are very few safes on the market that are going to protect your guns in a fire. I was involved in disaster restoration for a couple years and saw house fires first hand a few times a week. I saw high dollar 12-15K safes fail just like the $250 stack ons. Your safe may have a fire rating but the smoke is going to destroy your contents long before the fire does. House fires get extremely hot and the smoke is full of heat, toxic fumes and LOTS of moisture. The somke will penetrate the seams in your safe in seconds and will instantly etch the metal on your guns, accelarate rust, corrode, etch your glass on optics, and stink up the plastic or wood stocks. Your best bet is to buy one that has a solid door on it to prevent burglars and kids from breaking into it.

The best thing you can buy to protect your guns is insurance.

you are right.. i am about 14 buildings away from my fire station.. home they can get to my stuff quickly. full blown scorcher..i bet the safe slumps in the heat. i factored in response time.. nothing in my safe is priceless..it all melts..i go gun shopping. at this point, i would be more bummed if my bow burns..

 

[boom]

i do have some double guns that are worth a fair amount. i am insured...

 

[husky390]

My advice is to figure out what size safe you think you'll need and then buy a safe one to two sizes bigger than you think you need. I bought mine thinking it would be big enough to grow into and it didn't take long to fill it up. Especially if you throw in a couple MSR's and scoped rifles. The pictures in the brochures of neatly organized rifles is a flat out lie.

I bought mine from a factory rep store in Az. If you're in CO, there's a store off of I70 and Monaco. If you have a bunch of buddies with strong backs and weak minds you can troll craigslist and see if any deals pop up.

 

[nflesher]

There are very few safes on the market that are going to protect your guns in a fire. I was involved in disaster restoration for a couple years and saw house fires first hand a few times a week. I saw high dollar 12-15K safes fail just like the $250 stack ons. Your safe may have a fire rating but the smoke is going to destroy your contents long before the fire does. House fires get extremely hot and the smoke is full of heat, toxic fumes and LOTS of moisture. The somke will penetrate the seams in your safe in seconds and will instantly etch the metal on your guns, accelarate rust, corrode, etch your glass on optics, and stink up the plastic or wood stocks. Your best bet is to buy one that has a solid door on it to prevent burglars and kids from breaking into it.

The best thing you can buy to protect your guns is insurance.

A former coworker of mine lost his house to fire. He had a HUGE safe with all his guns in it. The guns did not burn with the fire, but the heat ruined them all. Warped the barrels, the wood on them burnt up from the heat that was inside the safe, all his papers that he had stored inside burnt (including money), and he was very upset to say the least. The insurance company jerked him around for so long trying to replace his guns. Some were passed down to him from generations back, and you can't replace those. I never did hear if he got anything out of them. He told me to use a video camera and record everything in your home of value, including guns, and store the video at a bank safety deposit box, or someplace you can get it from after a fire and use as evidence to show what you lost.

 

[JustOneMoreShot]

Very smart to have the video of your valuables stored off site. A list of all of the serial numbers and the video(s) could be stored in a safe place at a close friend or parents house as well if you dont have a safe deposit box.

 

[nflesher]

I say this, yet I haven't done it myself. I know a guy who built a new home last year and built a cement vault in his basement to keep all his guns and valuables in. No matter what happens unless he unlocks that thing himself, its sealed and protected. To most that seems like a doomsday prep-per thing, but I like the it. After all SHTF is a username on here.

 

[Liljozie495]

I got a summit Teton forgot the specs but I spent 900$ on it it can hold 30 long guns no problem (I got 15 on one half and the other half same width is shelves) but for the price and I paid 70$ more for a combo lock instead of electric pad I think it was more then well worthy! Nflesher if you do that you gotta post some pics, be the ultimate safe haha!

 

[nflesher]

I will have to see if he can send me some pics of his. It is the ultimate safe for anything, not to mention you can walk in it and admire you collection. Talk about a man cave!