New Gunsafe-Size or Strength?

[slimster]

Well guys, I've decided to bite the bullet and get a quality gun storage unit. I have decided to purchase a "Sturdy Safe"(company's name http://www.sturdysafe.com/ ) as soon as uncle Sam pays back my interest free loan. What I'm trying to choose between is a 36" x 27" model made with a 5 guage steel (roughly .209 in. thick) body and a 5/16" plate steel door, or a slightly smaller 32" x 24" model made from 4 guage steel (roughly .224" thick) body with a 3/8" thick plate steel door. The smaller, stronger model will actually cost me about 100 dollars less. Neither size will hold all the things I would like to put in them, but either one will hold the things that I am most concerned about protecting. Both are fire-lined, and are in the 2500 dollar range. Help me with some trusted opinions, please. Thanks for y'all's advise.

[Chris83716]

Either will work against the honest and the ignorant. Neither will work against a determined or intelligent thief. I would buy the largest one you can afford since you are all ready out of room. Safes are never big enough.

Chris

[jnyork]

Figure out how big a safe you need and then go up at LEAST 50% if not double. Seriously.

Bolt it to the floor and the wall.

[AJMD429]

I know this much, fortunately not from bitter personal experience, but from knowing several whose homes were burglarized and/or who had fires:

Placing a 'fairly strong' safe in a protected location (bolted to walls and floor, with said walls being concrete or block if possible, and as much non-combustible material surrounding them as possible, and if possible, at least semi-concealed) will serve you better than a 'super strong' safe out in the open, whether from fire, thieves, or whatever.

If you have to, get a $99 Wal-Mart wood cabinet to go with it, and put that out 'in public' with some guns you wouldn't miss all that much.

Of course the usual "don't advertise your hobby" and "have lots of dogs" and "have two burglar alarm systems (but the decals for a third you don't have)" all apply...

[Tycer]

Build a 4" thick, cavity filled, rebar reinforced room right up against it with a strongish door with good deadbolt. That way you can get a big one with just the minimum of a good S&G lock.

[RIHMFIRE]

Whatever size you decide to buy....
it will not be big enough...
An advertised 24 gun safe ,actually only holds
16 to 17 long guns...less if they have scopes
and if you install the shelves, its even less...
not to mention important doc...and other stuff...
The taller it is, the better, if you want the shelves...

[slimster]

Thanks for the replies so far. I'm covered as far as having everything contained so far. A couple of lower end RSC's are carrying the load. All containers are ALWAYS bolted down. What I want is something considerably stronger than the basic "tin box" 12-14 guage steel wrapped around sheet rock construction like the basic "gunsafe" has. Unfortunately, I can't afford, (nor will the floor support) a Graffunder, Brown or similar 2 ton steel and concrete monster. I'm just looking to get a reasonable sized safe to hold the guns that I would most hate to lose. (B.T.W. the ones I'm looking at are 5' tall).

[M. M. Wright]

I know, most people don't have the equipment to do this but I built one from 5/16ths T-1 armor plate. It is 24 x 36 x 60 inches and no way big enough. I then bought, from a friend who was going bigger, a Browning which I put through the wall in my bedroom. Trimmed it out like the rest of the house and it looks natural there. I did put two layers of 5/8ths sheet rock on the outside of it just for longer burn time. It is lag screwed to the oak studs in my house and bolted to the concrete floor with a little pedestal I made where it protrudes into the garage. Even have enough room for a nephews stuff.

[Tycer]

Any way you can keep access limited to tools will help. The sides of even good ones can be opened with and axe like a can opener and heavy doors can be folded out by prying in the middle of the top if there is no bar there. Putting it in a wall or a tiny room adds much protection from both heat and thieves.

[aragornelessar86]

Buy a Pendleton. Best gun safe available. Get the biggest safe you can afford, you'll need it sooner than you think.

http://www.pendletonsafes.com/about/#

[Ysabel Kid]

Figure out how big a safe you need and then go up at LEAST 50% if not double. Seriously.

Bolt it to the floor and the wall.

+1, learned the hard way, twice.

[gcburt]

Well guys, I've decided to bite the bullet and get a quality gun storage unit. I have decided to purchase a "Sturdy Safe"(company's name http://www.sturdysafe.com/ ) ***snipped text***.

Thanks for the link - spent over an hour on their site and I like what I read.

Are you going to add their fire-protection option?

ADDITIONAL SAFE QUERY FOR ANY READER: I have concern about water. If I put it in either my basement or garage - I see a potential water problem. Any one of y'all bolt your's down on top & through the shipping pallet to provide a bit of water avoidance??

I guess I could pour a raised cement platform.

[Sigmar]

Just a tip, don't put it against an outside wall. I dont care how big it is I can have it out of there within 30 min.

[Sixgun]

ADDITIONAL SAFE QUERY FOR ANY READER: I have concern about water. If I put it in either my basement or garage - I see a potential water problem. Any one of y'all bolt your's down on top & through the shipping pallet to provide a bit of water avoidance??

I guess I could pour a raised cement platform.

Both of mine are in the basement and sit on top of 6 X 6 boards. Even though our basement has never experienced water in close to 40 years, like firewood, its good to keep them off the ground.


Slimster,
Like others have said, buy the best you can afford. There's no way I would even think about buying one that does not weigh at least 500 pounds. The heavier they are, the thicker the steel and the harder they are to move by thieves.

Don't tell anyone you don't want to know, keep visitors to only people you can 100% trust and if any of those visitors have friends or relatives who are druggies, thieves, or other thing, don't even let them in. Build walls around it---cheap. Let people who do know about your safe that you would love to test out a 45 on individuals who make a living out of other people's sweat............and mean it. If you have a basement, keep it there. Never near a garage or other easily accessible area where thieves can get to undetected. Dogs, dogs, and more dogs.

Most of all, be aware of your surroundings, even at home. If someone really wants them, thats all they got to do is put the gun to your head and you will open it for them.----------------Sixgun

[slimster]

Well guys, I've decided to bite the bullet and get a quality gun storage unit. I have decided to purchase a "Sturdy Safe"(company's name http://www.sturdysafe.com/ ) ***snipped text***.

Thanks for the link - spent over an hour on their site and I like what I read.

Are you going to add their fire-protection option?

ADDITIONAL SAFE QUERY FOR ANY READER: I have concern about water. If I put it in either my basement or garage - I see a potential water problem. Any one of y'all bolt your's down on top & through the shipping pallet to provide a bit of water avoidance??

I guess I could pour a raised cement platform.

Yes sir, I did elect to go with the fire lining. I ordered the 3224 with the 4 ga. option. ETA is 8 to 12 weeks. I liked what I saw too. They seem to be a real workhorse of a safe vs. a lot of the others with the fancy paint and interiors, but with much thinner steel.

[pokey]

a little late, but an interesting watch.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ltK-bDbADa8

also, if [god forbid] you ever have a house fire, all the water the f.d.
pumps onto the fire will find it's way into the basement.
just food for thought.