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I have a several non-ARs that are just stashed around in places they don’t belong. I thought about buying an inexpensive safe that would hold them but didn’t really have a good place to put it. I’d started this thread asking about the Union Safe Co @ Harbor Freight:
These are the firearms I was working with:
Top->Bottom:
• Rossi RB22 (22LR), in a box under a bed
• Rossi Gallery (22LR), in closet #1
• Browning 16ga, my granddaddy’s shotgun, in a single gun soft case, in closet #2
• Rossi Rio Bravo (22LR), in closet #1
• bolt .410 my dad bought when he was ~13?, in a single soft gun case, in closet #2
• RAR (22LR), in closet #3
• Henry BBX (357/38), under a bed
• CZ 455 (22LR), in big safe
Decided I was going to build a rack instead of a safe, and started thinking about where it could go. None of the three closets I had them stashed would’ve worked very well, so I thought about mounting them on the backside of a door. Still couldn’t use the three closets, but I had another one that would work. Our house is a ranch with just a bonus room upstairs. The closet in the bonus room has the small door into the attic. I’d had Christmas decorations and stuff in there for 15+ years, but it got annoying dragging those containers out twice a year for HVAC service, plus any other time I needed to go in there. So a couple years I lined the walls with shelves, built a small bench, and turned it into a reloading and ammo storage spot.
Door is hollow, so I wasn’t sure about hanging a bunch of weight on it. I did find hollow door anchors that said they were good for 40# each. Decided I’d use casters on the bottom shelf to share the load and picked up two rated at 80# each. So I’d have four anchors and two casters, which gave a total weight rating of 240#…and I weighed up the eight guns and came up with ~65#. Figured this combo wouldn’t put too much stress on any one place.
Disclaimer…before I go any further, this is absolutely a function over form project. It ain’t pretty, but it works for my needs.
Started with the bottom shelf. A 20” piece gives me eight 2.5” slots. Bought a piece of angle brace, or whatever it’s called, to use as dividers. Cut it with snips, filed the sharp edges, and screwed it into place. Here it is sitting flush against the door:
And the casters installed:
Right after that pic, I made my first mistake. I’d lined it up against the frame, but when I went to mount it I scooted it to the left a good inch or more, almost centering it on the door. Which put the far left slot almost lined up dead center on the door knob. 🙄 It worked out ok, by picking the one firearm that would slide in between the widest part of the knob and the door…but definitely made something tougher than it should’ve been.
Got real fancy on the next step. Cut some Amazon bubble mailers to lengths and stapled them in place to provide some cushioning:
Then used spray adhesive to cover it with a piece of anti-pill fleece I grabbed at Walmart. Lower shelf in place:
That was all done on Friday. This morning I started mocking up the holes I’d need to cut. Drilled four holes, and then used a jig saw to open them up.
Only had to go back and open up three of them a little more after test fitting each gun. Next up was to cover the top shelf with fleece. Didn’t bother with padding on this one.
Tightened up both shelves, then put all the guns in their assigned spots.
L->R: .410, RAR, RB22, Gallery, Rio Bravo, BBX, Browning, CZ
Door opens and closes just fine. I can add a deadbolt/padlock/something to that door if I want. For now, I think it’s gonna work just fine for what I need. Total cost was a couple bucks over $50…already had the shelving boards left from the ammo closet job.
Union Safe Company @ Harbor Freight
Anybody here have one, or have looked at them in person? I think I want one just to put bolt/lever/pump guns in. https://www.harborfreight.com/10-gun-electronic-security-safe-64011.html They do have a 10-gun Stack-On style locking cabinet for ~$120…but I’d prefer the 10-gun safe for ~$350...
carolinafirearmsforum.com
These are the firearms I was working with:
Top->Bottom:
• Rossi RB22 (22LR), in a box under a bed
• Rossi Gallery (22LR), in closet #1
• Browning 16ga, my granddaddy’s shotgun, in a single gun soft case, in closet #2
• Rossi Rio Bravo (22LR), in closet #1
• bolt .410 my dad bought when he was ~13?, in a single soft gun case, in closet #2
• RAR (22LR), in closet #3
• Henry BBX (357/38), under a bed
• CZ 455 (22LR), in big safe
Decided I was going to build a rack instead of a safe, and started thinking about where it could go. None of the three closets I had them stashed would’ve worked very well, so I thought about mounting them on the backside of a door. Still couldn’t use the three closets, but I had another one that would work. Our house is a ranch with just a bonus room upstairs. The closet in the bonus room has the small door into the attic. I’d had Christmas decorations and stuff in there for 15+ years, but it got annoying dragging those containers out twice a year for HVAC service, plus any other time I needed to go in there. So a couple years I lined the walls with shelves, built a small bench, and turned it into a reloading and ammo storage spot.
Door is hollow, so I wasn’t sure about hanging a bunch of weight on it. I did find hollow door anchors that said they were good for 40# each. Decided I’d use casters on the bottom shelf to share the load and picked up two rated at 80# each. So I’d have four anchors and two casters, which gave a total weight rating of 240#…and I weighed up the eight guns and came up with ~65#. Figured this combo wouldn’t put too much stress on any one place.
Disclaimer…before I go any further, this is absolutely a function over form project. It ain’t pretty, but it works for my needs.
Started with the bottom shelf. A 20” piece gives me eight 2.5” slots. Bought a piece of angle brace, or whatever it’s called, to use as dividers. Cut it with snips, filed the sharp edges, and screwed it into place. Here it is sitting flush against the door:
And the casters installed:
Right after that pic, I made my first mistake. I’d lined it up against the frame, but when I went to mount it I scooted it to the left a good inch or more, almost centering it on the door. Which put the far left slot almost lined up dead center on the door knob. 🙄 It worked out ok, by picking the one firearm that would slide in between the widest part of the knob and the door…but definitely made something tougher than it should’ve been.
Got real fancy on the next step. Cut some Amazon bubble mailers to lengths and stapled them in place to provide some cushioning:
Then used spray adhesive to cover it with a piece of anti-pill fleece I grabbed at Walmart. Lower shelf in place:
That was all done on Friday. This morning I started mocking up the holes I’d need to cut. Drilled four holes, and then used a jig saw to open them up.
Only had to go back and open up three of them a little more after test fitting each gun. Next up was to cover the top shelf with fleece. Didn’t bother with padding on this one.
Tightened up both shelves, then put all the guns in their assigned spots.
L->R: .410, RAR, RB22, Gallery, Rio Bravo, BBX, Browning, CZ
Door opens and closes just fine. I can add a deadbolt/padlock/something to that door if I want. For now, I think it’s gonna work just fine for what I need. Total cost was a couple bucks over $50…already had the shelving boards left from the ammo closet job.
