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Any recommendations on the best bang for your buck gun safes? Looking at 24-36 capacity

I like Champion Brand myself. But with any safe you get what you pay for so results will vary

Good luck in your search

What's available local?

Shipping is expensive.

Buy bigger than you think you need....You'll probably find a bunch of stuff besides guns to put in it.

Buy at least twice the capacity you think you will need

I’ve been considering the 26 gun safe at harbor freight for $499

A room in the house with a lock on the door.

If you want cheap look at Canon sold at Tractor Supply. They serve the purpose and are fairly inexpensive but they don't have the quality of a Champion, Fort Knox or Liberty safe. I got a 36 gun Canon wide body safe for 699 a few years ago.

liberty makes a very good safe. not cheap but not ridiculous either. you get what you pay for.

Exactly, buy bigger.
Which is best, the devil is in the details. How thick are the walls and door, number of locking lugs, etc. Lots of brands make them for different price points, be sure to compare apples to apples.

Sturdy Safe.

Just get some big heavy lock boxes.

Most gun safes are just lock boxes with a little carpet and sheet rock inside.

To get any meaningful fire protection you have to spend an assload of money...and the safe will be small.

You can be inside most gun "safes" in a few minutes with a cordless grinder and a cut off wheel.

So, a locking cabinet is going to keep the guns safe from honest people and cost way less.

Sturdy Safe.

They have greatly expanded their cosmetic options as of late. Maybe still not as 'pretty' as others, I believe they offer much better protection.

I know a 45 gun safe wont hold 45 guns .

The last one I bought is a Zanotti. It’s well made and modular so it can be assembled anywhere….a closet for example. The heaviest component is the door.
Whatever you decide on, as everyone has said, get larger than you think you’ll need. Or just plan on getting another later. 😊

Champion, Liberty, Fort Knox, and Sturdy Safe are American made. Most others are Chinese. A decent quality safe or safes backed up with a gun specific insurance policy is the best way to go IMO.

Jim's right on the money.
Few have worthwhile fire protection.
Very few don't have thin enough sides that one can't quickly
start a cut with a grinder and peel it with a pry bar.

A safe buys you time and noise.
Things a theif doesn't usually want to spend.
Live in an apartment or duplex, you're fine with a locker.

Live out in the sticks?
You and your wife gone at work everyday?
Or, church? Religiously?
Ain't a safe you are likely to buy that can stand a couple hours
of a guy with a few tools.

Which brings us back to wasting money on false security.

Grafunder
Browning Superior
Fort Knox Rino

Personally I just use a Lyon locker. If someone wants to get into your safe, they will do so, given enough time.

This

What the other guys have said. There is not a safe on the market that will stand up to a 10 amp, four inch grinder and cut off wheel. That big heavy door and ten one inch SS locking lugs look good, except that is not where the thief will make entry.

But a good, HEAVY, safe will give some fire protection. Mine weighs 800 lbs. (36 gun Chinese safe) Maybe 100 pounds of that is steel and wood shelves. The other 700 lbs is sheetrock.

All that Gypsum is not there for insulation. You would have to have 8 inch concrete wall to protect the contents from heat via insulation in the event of a house fire.

The Gypsum actually prevents the contents of the safe from combustion by producing water vapor and displacing the Oxygen inside the safe in cases of extreme heat.

That is how the fire protection rating for temp protection and duration are determined. That is how long it will take for all the Gypsum to be consumed and water production to cease.

The caveat is, even if the fire dept can put out the house fire quick enough to prevent combustion of the safe's contents, you may take one look at the water soaked and rusted remains of your firearms and wish they had just burned up.

A good friend had a house fire several years ago. His guns were all salvaged. But he spent almost the cost of replacement getting them all refinished and reblued.

But at least the safe will keep curious little fingers away from your arsenal. And will deter the quickest of "snatch and grabs".

I think your last point is well taken, Idaho. That makes sense to me.