Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters Gun safes ?

Looking to buy a safe . Some brands have slightly thicker steel , longer fire rating ect . As long as it bolts down and locks securely is there really an appreciable difference in performance ? Thoughts and opinions ?

FWIW they have a pretty good deal at Costco, with a 60 minute fire rating. $749.99 free delivery

http://bulletin.accurateshooter.com/2019/04/cannon-72-gun-safe-for-749-99-delivered/

60 minutes is pretty good....but, at what temperature? I tried to find out on the Cannon website! memtb

14 gauge steel body, that's pretty thin...

just looked at mine......Browning Medallion

rated at 90 minutes @ 1200*

suggestion.....buy bigger than you need........delivery included ?

Stairs or basements can be a PIA for a DIY move

Buy once/cry once !

These are made from 14 gage steel. Pretty thin stuff!

From what I understand fire ratings aren't really that much different in a serious house fire. Temps can reach 4000 degrees, and if the safe is in the basement it's pretty much sitting in an enclosed oven where heat will remain trapped even after the flames are knocked down. In those conditions anything inside won't be salvageable, if you could even get the safe open.

I have a Liberty Fatboy Jr., somewhat middle of the road. The only thing I might have done different is upgrade the lock to a digital as the dial is slow to run and I'm opening it fairly often. I also need my glasses on to see the numbers. Digital lock would be less hassle, but they also run on batteries and have their own issues.

Definitely go larger than you think you'll need, you may find you also keep more than guns inside.

Few of the popular safes are really safe from professional thieves or a fire. But they they're far better than a closet or cabinet.

I second buying more capacity than you think you need, but will never again own a digital safe. Dials may be slower, but malfunction FAR less often.

Do some critical thinking when you buy a safe.


Forget the BS. What you are buying is inconvience for a burglar and time for the firefighters.
Time and noise for a burglar. The tin locker types provide that. More complex
types add to it. 14 gave steel isn't very thick, but, it will take time, tools and make noise
defeating it. Thicker is better, but how much.


And as far as being burglar proof?
Don't fool yourself.

Someone that knows their stuff wont cut your safe open.
Drill two holes, centered, near the top, vertically oriented, not very far apart.
Cut down and outward from the top one forming a triangle.
Stick a bar in the lower and pry down, the metal will peel, and you quickly have a
big triangle opened up.

Every safe made brags about door thickness. Big deal
Attack the back or sides. Only the owner needs to open the door.

Fire proof?
We are served by a volunteer department.
Several miles away.
Fortune is what will determine the outcome for me.
If you want fireproof, rig up a sprinkler over the thing.


Ok.

Logic just attacked what ever one want to believe about their badass safe.
The manufactures disagree with me.

Flame on.

But ponder my points. Even if you don't like them.

P.S. I do have a 1000+ pound 60 minute fire rated American Security safe.

After I bought it, I came to these conclusions. No remorse, and the "security" levels
are good. Just not exactly what many think.

Fire ratings on gun safes are meaningless; don't buy a safe based on the fire rating.
Your guns won't survive a serious fire. Buy what you need for theft protection and insure the guns for what you will need to replace them.
Securely bolt the safe in place to something solid that will slow a burglar down. Most thieves won't take the time or have the tools to open or remove the safe.

Myths about fireproof safes

Member tedthorn posted a picture of a safe after a fire here which reinforces what you can read in the link above.

None of them will really save your guns if your house burns down. There are videos showing how quickly an experienced and properly equipped burglar can break into a gun safe. The best you can hope for is to protect them from your typical punk burglar.

yes.......as MD mentioned.........dial lock for no issues

I'm glad to read my dial lock was the better way to go after all. Thanks guys!

I have a couple Liberty’s. Good safes!

Buy MUCH bigger than you anticipate. I have a Liberty 27 gun safe that is extremely well built...no issues with the workmanship. I have no idea how it was rated for 27 guns though...unless they were referring to Daisy BB guns. Rifles with scopes? My 27 gun capacity is about 18-20 on a good day. I learned to buy gun socks and just stack em in there like sardines.

Fire ratings are snake oil.

Have yet to hear of a single safe that made it through the recent Camp Fire

CHP friend told me he didn't see a single one that made it in the Carr Fire either.

I've been happy with my Liberty's. I would insist on a manual dial since there is much less to go wrong and I would suggest buying a safe with double the capacity you think you need.

Here is a good article from Accurte shooter. https://www.accurateshooter.com/technical-articles/gun-safe-buyers-guide/

What stuck in my mind is that a safe is only good for snatch and grab burglars, the chance of fire is higher than a burglary in most areas, fire protection can be improved and is most needed on the top of the safe. I am thinking of getting the Costco model and spending the savings on climate proofing and beefing up fire resistance in the storage room.

I think double walls will slow both burglars and a milder fire down some. An additional alarm and a sprinkler is not a bad idea. Looking into low cost climate control too.

I have two Liberty safes with dial locks. I don't know what I did before I had them. If you think you've found the size you need...….buy the next biggest....you'll thank me later.

Good friend had a home fire two years ago. Safe in the basement. As stated above.....700 LTR was simply a barreled action when done. Same with all his other rifles. Glocks were nowhere to be found. Just a puddle of ooze! Vortex DID replace his PST. We giggled at that.