OT - DON'T purchase Home Depot Gun Safe!

[JohndeFresno]

I noticed a thread on CalGuns
( http://www.calguns.net/calgunforum/arch ... 16319.html )
...about a commonly sold Sentry brand gun safe - a 14 gun model that sells at what appears to be a reasonable price of $665.98.

I was happy with my purchase, as those posters are, until it was put to the test. The gun safe proved itself to be not safe, to use the phrase.

The discontinued but commonly available model, G5241-2LG, is apparently easily defeated using a certain technique with pry tools, believe it or not. The heavy duty looking locking lugs work against a not-too-heavy steel strip around the interior of the doorframe; but inside the door the lugs are supported by a flimsy channel iron that can be defeated with a little elbow grease; with the proper pry technique, the bolt can be bent, since it only goes through one hole, not two. Then, it can be pushed partly down into the door enough to defeat your security.

On the one hand I hate to mention the technique at all; but I don't want you who have one to wake up some morning with ALL of your collection gone and cursing yourself for purchasing this cheap Chinese made safe!

You had better weld or rivet a heavy channel iron behind that lip that holds the locking bolt, if you have one of these safes. You need a long length of this material on the top and on the side that swings away from the door, so the strip cannot be bent aside to allow the thieves to get to the flimsy, short little bolt that holds the door. Otherwise, you are badly fooled as to your security.

I helped purchase two of these safes for an organization that I won't name here; and thieves broke in this last weekend and handily entered both gun safes. Fortunately, they were only after money (possibly youngsters) and left the considerable collection of firearms alone!

On behalf of the organization that got hit, I just got back from a meeting with Terry Pratt of Sturdy Safe Manufacturing Company (he's on the Internet). I toured his factory in Fresno. We are going to replace our two worthless SENTRY safes with one of his, putting a little more money into one of his top quality, American made safes with 7 or 8 gauge steel on ALL sides, a tight fitting door that defeats the insertion of a pry tool, and locking bolts that actually go through two holes of heavy metal that cannot be bent. And the locking liner is tough and very thick, not just a thin strip of metal.

Just a word to the wise. I will be retrofitting a safe that was also purchased for a family member with some tough square channel iron on two sides as mentioned here. I assure you that the burglary was not done by the most professional people in the world, since they just kicked in some doors in a rural building, pried the safes, and then left with only a few dollars, despite a sizable collection of firearms that they left in the safe. It was probably teenagers; so you can apply that observation to the amount of security afforded by this SENTRY safe, and possibly others of that make.

Perhaps one of you on this forum would be kind enough to post this on CALNET, above.

[AJMD429]

...but it MEETS California Department of Justice 'Gun Safe' requirements, and the government knows what is best.
[/sarcasm off]

[1894cfan]

Anybody here know if the Stack-On brand of safes is of the same design?

[JohndeFresno]

Anybody here know if the Stack-On brand of safes is of the same design?

I have no idea; other than the fact that when I visited a site that sells them, the safe with its dial and handle looks just like the SENTRY safe.

You would have to just write the company (or visit them, like I did to look into Mr. Pratt's excellent product) and see or ask how they were made - "do the locking lugs each go through one brace piece or two?", for instance.

ABOVE: Taken from inside of door with gray backing material removed - Locking lug is at the top of the door, towards the hinge. You can see that it was bent and lowered a bit, although in this photo we finally opened the combination lock to lower it all the way to open the door completely. Note that it sits atop a simple metal flange, which has been bent downwards. The flange is at the end of a three-sided channel iron (stamped lightweight metal) that connects to the lockwork in the center of the door.

BELOW: Closeup showing bent locking bolt, which is really only a stub on a metal rail.

[El Chivo]

some people only want the safe to keep their kids from getting into their guns, they're not worried about theft. An inexpensive safe is good for that purpose.

It sounds like this one is a little more expensive than that, so it may be a cheap safe for the price of a good one. I think I've seen the Sentry line at the store starting at around $200.00.

[MikeS.]

John, I've had a Sturdy safe since April of 1992. It's been great. I did change out the combo dial to an electronic model 2 years ago.

[madman4570]

Good info! Lucky they left the guns!

[Ysabel Kid]

Chinese quality at it's finest!

[Pete44ru]

Despite good advice coming from experience, some folks will rationalize a purchase of junk in many different ways, because it's inexpensive.

IMHO, There's NO substitute for good quality, "brand name" not withstanding.

.

[Kansas Ed]

http://www.libertysafe.com/homesecurity.php?page=8

I thought this video was very revealing. I bought a Liberty several years ago. Got it at a deep discount because it had a small "hail dent" in the door where a forklift had clipped it. Look around for scratched or dented safes in stores, then see what they will discount it for...

Ed

[Old Ironsights]

Funny thing about safes...

It really doesn't matter how long it takes to get into them once you have it ut of the home and into your Chop Shop... Lots of things you can do to open a safe if you have time & tools...

IMO - assuming the safe is identified as such:

How long does it take/can the door be opened in the UPRIGHT position?

How long does it take/can the safe be REMOVED from the building?

Will it withstand fire/water?

The rest is marketing/showmanship...

[JohndeFresno]

The safes were bolted down to the cement floor with lag bolts, in a corner, making it impossible to move them without opening them up, and then using a Tig torch or other equipment to remove them. They were in fact attacked right in the room where they still stand, using simple tools. A thicker and more secure safe would have prevented this. But you can see how they were attacked if you go to the Sturdy site, since they show a similar video.

I purchased two 14-gun safes to hold around 20 guns; the price in April 2006 $369.99 each less 10% discount (plus tax), or approximately $665.98, not counting California sales tax. And that was three years ago.

Today, one can purchase an American made, single Sturdy safe that is manufactured start to finish at one factory (in Fresno). It is slightly larger than one of the twin safes, but configured to hold 20 guns per your order by stacking them in racks rows, perpendicular to the back wall. The price is around $1,000.00 - a little more for a whole lot more safe. The metal is 7 or 8 gauge all around the safe, as mentioned, not just on the door!

And it is vastly superior - tighter fit, thick rib for the locking bolts which are true bolts that are held in place by two sets of holes to make them rigid. In a word, I unknowingly purchased a cheap pair of safes at a fairly steep price when I could have purchased one safe that is quite secure for a little bit more. I sound like a salesman for Sturdy, and I know that there are some other excellent manufacturers; but my message with these cheaper safes that LOOK creditable is - Never again. And now the moaner - "You get what you pay for."