I just have this to say:

Whatever size you think you need right now, go bigger. Buy once, cry once.

That's a lesson I learned first hand.

Before you buy, look at Drake Safes

quote:

Originally posted by Sig209:
lots of good videos:

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

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Wow this video is very interesting and enlightening. Thank you very much for sharing it. I want to thank all the members for all their advice I really appreciated and it is me a lot to consider.

Since I live on the 7th floor of a condo I may have to spend extra money and get to smaller safes because of restrictions on elevator doors.

Are there any dealers of the safes in northern Virginia where I could go and look at some of them?

Thanks again and happy shooting.

Typically I recommend mechanical locks over electronic. Although mechanicals do suffer from failures, the rate of failure is far lower than comparable electronic locks.

I have three. A Liberty Fatboy with an S&G electronic lock, a Diebold Cashgard with an S&G mechanical and another from the early 50's made by the Youngstown Safe Co. with a mechanical S&G.
In order of strength/safety & overall quality.
Diebold
Youngstown Safe
Liberty Fatboy

The Diebold seems to be very well constructed and the steel used is thick unlike the sheet metal used on the Liberty.
The older Youngstown safe uses very thick metal too and weighs in over 2500 pounds. Both of these are what I consider to be safes.
The Liberty is what I and Liberty themselves consider "Residential Security containers"
This isn't a knock on Liberty Safes either. For the price I feel it is great in comparison to other safe mfg.'s in the same or bit higher price range.
I have never had an issue with S&G locks, whether they are electronic or mechanical.

All of these safes can be defeated. Some will take longer than others. Whatever you purchase make sure to bolt it to the floor and most importantly don't show a lot of people your safe.

Always buy bigger than what you think you'll need. If I had known that I would probably only have two instead of three safes.

I've had an AmSec safe with mechanical lock for 20+ years. It's been in the garage in 3 different houses over that time. Same Goldenrod dehumidifier all these years in Mississippi and Alabama summers, and I've never had a corrosion problem on any of my guns.

It came down to Amsec and Fort Knox for me. I’ve been more than happy with the Fort Knox I chose. I bought the biggest I could afford, yet still somehow could use a little more room. No problems with the electronic lock. I’m in and out of it a half dozen times a day, a mechanical lock would be a real pita.

One thing I'd say about safes is that a Safe Light inside the safe is a LOT more useful than I thought it would be. I didn't get one on my first few safes and didn't think much about it until I bought my last 2. BIG DIFFERENCE to me. Any safe I buy in the future will have a light kit in it.

Electronic locks are WAY easier to use than a dial mechanical one. Counting turns past zero etc etc is a PITA. So much easier to type in a few numbers every time you get into the safe. Just change the batteries every year on your birthday or Christmas.

I'm in the bigger is better crowd. Even if you aren't a big gun collector there are plenty of other valuable papers, coins, Camera's etc that you'll feel better about being inside your safe.

Another good Idea is to take detailed photographs and/or Videos of all your guns and other valuables around the house. Put it all on a spare disk and store it and the combination to your safe in a Trusted friends safe. The first for insurance purposes if you get robbed, house fire etc and the second in case you might for whatever reason forget your combination. It happens............dj

I went with the Liberty "Colonial 30". It'll be delivered the first week of May. I did a lot of research & this fit my requirements & budget.

Bigger then you think you need.

Performance is always relative to risk when it comes to safes.

You can spend 2K on a beautiful safe - made out of 10-11 gauge steel. Have you ever seen testing results on how 10-11 gauge steel holds up vs. a fire axe in the hands of your garden variety house burglar?

If you have a few random shotguns and a pistol - and some documents - a 10-11 gauge safe is fine - you can live with the loss. If you have more than that - a safe with 10-11 gauge steel is only keeping honest people honest - it won't stop brute force from an amateur.

When you move up into the 3K+ range - you begin talking about 5-7 gauge steel. A PRO can still get in with advanced equipment, but, a PRO probably isn't coming to your house any time soon.

I recommend a fire safe. I don't care who makes it.

Why? Because they are of heavier construction right off the bat. Beyond that, don't by a safe that doesn't have a UL tool attack rating.

You're not going to be able to spend a small amount, and get a really tough safe.

So, the safe itself shouldn't be the primary safeguard.

As in:

Don't put the safe in a dumb location. Such as anywhere visible or easily accessible. A garage is the worst place.

Have a security system of some kind, it could be ADT, or dogs. Some kind of deterrence that will limit the time someone has to either defeat or remove your safe.

quote:

Originally posted by arcwelder76:

So, the safe itself shouldn't be the primary safeguard.

As in:

Don't put the safe in a dumb location. Such as anywhere visible or easily accessible. A garage is the worst place.

Have a security system of some kind, it could be ADT, or dogs. Some kind of deterrence that will limit the time someone has to either defeat or remove your safe.

Good points! A safe in the end is only a slow down. The Quality of your safe partly determines the amount of slowdown but so does your other primary safeguards.

Think layered defense. Dogs, alarms, camera's, location etc...........dj

quote:

Originally posted by djpaintles:
Think layered defense. Dogs, alarms, camera's, location etc...........dj

And insurance. And not just a homeowners or renters policy. Those policies typically limit the coverage on firearms that are stolen to $2500 or even less. Get a another policy, like what Collectiable's sells.

I love and have an AMSEC safe. Although I have a digital keypad, they give the option of a mechanical dial.

Amsec BF series for the win!

quote:

Originally posted by ed308:

quote:

Originally posted by djpaintles:
Think layered defense. Dogs, alarms, camera's, location etc...........dj

And insurance. And not just a homeowners or renters policy. Those policies typically limit the coverage on firearms that are stolen to $2500 or even less. Get a another policy, like what Collectiable's sells.

Absolutely! Another good point. Check into the insurance the NRA has available. I was lucky that my homeowners was able to extend to cover but most don't......

I have an electronic lock on my safe and it has to be 18 years old, and all I have done is change batteries.
One of my safes is made about 30 miles from me,
by Smith Security Safes and Vault doors.

My other safe is a Liberty. Both are really good safes. of all my gun friends, I have only seen two who have safes I feel are as good as mine.

I have an old "teller safe" from the bank I used to work for. They were getting rid of them and I knew the facilities guy. It's pretty substantial, mechanical not electronic.

However, it's pretty small. For rifles I just have a locking cabinet, no safe.

quote:

Originally posted by djpaintles:


Think layered defense. Dogs, alarms, camera's, location etc...........dj

This^^^, plus arcwelder76’s comments. It’s a system.

That said, I have Sturdy and AMSEC safes and am pleased with both.