"Unique" Safe recommendation?

somethingwolfpack

somethingwolfpack

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My job has me residing outside NC for a period of time. Naturally, I am wanting to bring some of the firearms I own with me but I want to be responsible and lock them up when they're not used. The area I am temporarily in isn't exactly unsafe but I wouldn't want to raise a family here, that is for sure. Additionally, I share a domicile with coworkers who are on the same assignment as me, so it just seems rational from a position of trust but verify that I avoid leaving my firearms unsecured.
I've tried looking up local stores for safes - but I noticed a plethora of issues; a lot of companies use the term "gun safe" interchangeably with "gun cabinet." I am of the opinion that those thin metal cabinets, that lock via a single long metal rod that is rotated by a key (sorta like a garage cabinet) are NOT safes since you can open one via any source of leverage, let alone someone with negative intent and a crowbar. I also just don't understand how someone like Stack-ON sells something identical to a Kobalt cabinet, albeit with cheaper materials, but slaps a rifle rack inside of it, labels it "Gun Safe" and then charges $200-$300 more for an identical product. Realistically, I just want something for 3-5 guns - that I can carry up a flight of stairs with another adult's assistance but once you get outside that cabinet price range, everything suddenly is meant for 16+ rifles, weighs 500+ pounds, and takes up the space of a kitchen refrigerator. Can't exactly use the company car to bring that home either and any delivery service is going to scream to my neighbors "HEY HE HAS GUNS IN HERE AND IS GONE MOST OF THE DAY"
Would love to hear the opinions of members on what they have done in these circumstances or if they went a different route, as I know I am not the only one who has encountered this issue. Did you just hide them under your mattress like grandma's life savings? Did you just take the L and use a cabinet style storage system or jury rig and alternative?
 
Are long guns included in this "arsenal?"
 
I do not know your exact situation, but any safe will only buy time… Any safe can BE BREACHED easily with basic tools if you have enough time. It sounds like you may be gone for extended periods of time. I might consider some less traditional options such as leaving them with a local gun shop -pay for storage. We have a great local shop that offers such a service.
Another option is to go to great lengths to conceal your safe so it cannot be seen
 
BrettB said:
I do not know your exact situation, but any safe will only buy time… Any safe can BE BREACHED easily with basic tools if you have enough time. It sounds like you may be gone for extended periods of time. I might consider some less traditional options such as leaving them with a local gun shop -pay for storage. We have a great local shop that offers such a service.
Another option is to go to great lengths to conceal your safe so it cannot be seen
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My main goal is to stop the common idiot with a crowbar. If someone is determined, I just want to buy a little more time till LE arrives. Wiring up cameras that notify me of a break in and investing in insurance have already been taken care of.
I'm not a fan of storing firearms - outside the fact the trusting someone with my possessions- my big issue is the pain of having to travel to where ever they are stored and relying on someone else's schedule to withdraw my own property. For example; there is 34 gunshops (to include pawnshops that sell guns) within 25 miles of where I am currently, ALL of them are closed on Sunday, some closed on SUN and MON, and none that I know of are open after 5 p.m. It concerns me that if I remove my gun from storage on a Fri to shoot on Sat - that I can't store that gun again till Mon/Tues and that's assuming I get off work in time to get there to store them.
I will more than likely do that option for when I am gone for weeks at a time though
 
I’d get a pistol box and keep it in the car with the bolts in it. Everything else shoved under the bed, maybe wired together and through the bed frame. Nothing is perfect.
 
out of the box idea:

two cheap "safes".
one inside the other.
double the trouble.
 
BrettB said:
I do not know your exact situation, but any safe will only buy time… Any safe can BE BREACHED easily with basic tools if you have enough time. It sounds like you may be gone for extended periods of time. I might consider some less traditional options such as leaving them with a local gun shop -pay for storage. We have a great local shop that offers such a service.
Another option is to go to great lengths to conceal your safe so it cannot be seen
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Why are you so angry??
 
Also get one of those cheapos, tuck the nicer one away, have the cheapo one more visible & put a couple pieces of pipe in it. They’ll pick it up and run off.
 
Get Off My Lawn said:
Also get one of those cheapos, tuck the nicer one away, have the cheapo one more visible & put a couple pieces of pipe in it. They’ll pick it up and run off.
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if only i had the space to pull off an ocean 11 plot like that. My entire temporary living arrangement is the size of a king size bed
 
Another "outside the box" thinking idea.

Find a "storage locker rental place." SInce this is a temporary work assignment,, a monthly rental unit isn't too expensive. And,, it's can be in a secure lot,, monitored etc. Plus,, YOU'LL have access whenever you need. It also places your stuff away from prying eyes,, or even co-workers who may be less then stellar. Heck, even then, you could put a cheaper gun safe inside that unit to give you another level of protection.
 
Want to clarify - my coworkers/roommates are good guys, they too have firearms. The intention wasn't me saying that I can't trust them, but leaving unsecured firearms while others may have access to them in my absence isn't worth my conscience.
Basically; too many variables to not play it safe, trust is just a 4 letter word that regret and hindsight aren't worth pairing with.
 
" trust is just a 4 letter word that regret and hindsight aren't worth pairing with."

🤔
 
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I had one of the Stack On cabinets a few years ago. In short I gave my wife a key to put up and I kept a key. Lost mine and she forgot where she put the spare. We just did a complete remodel and still haven't found it.

I made two unsuccessful attempts to get a new key from the manufacturer.

I decided to do a break in test. After close to an hour with pry bars I gave up and got out the angle grinder.
 
First things to come to mind for me are tool cabinets and Hornady’s Rapid Safes (various sizes and types).
 
Krusty said:
I had one of the Stack On cabinets a few years ago. In short I gave my wife a key to put up and I kept a key. Lost mine and she forgot where she put the spare. We just did a complete remodel and still haven't found it.

I made two unsuccessful attempts to get a new key from the manufacturer.

I decided to do a break in test. After close to an hour with pry bars I gave up and got out the angle grinder.
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That defiantly good first hand knowledge to know. If the angle grinder did the trick, how many minutes did it take to open it again?
 
somethingwolfpack said:
That defiantly good first hand knowledge to know. If the angle grinder did the trick, how many minutes did it take to open it again?
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I had the door all bent out top and bottom. It was still locked at each end and the big flat center latch could not be defeated with pry bars. I used the angle grinder to cut out the door around the center lock. That part took 10-15 minutes start to finish.
You aren't going to open one of these without lots of noise. It's certainly not a safe but it is a helluva deterrent.


I don't know if you can see this but there is a paddle in the center and the rods lock in the top and bottom corners. After the prying the three lock points were intact.


1676224309793.png
 
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There's a company that makes a safe that's collapsible. Maybe called Snapsafe or something like that. It's steel that can be broken down into 4 panels, a base and a door. It's held together with steel pins internally. It's kind of a compromise between a real safe and a metal storage cabinet.
 
Spartan said:
Lock’erDown makes safes for vehicles
They are EXCELLENT
I currently use their front console safe (pistol size) and their under seat long gun safe.

I have used these for years and never had an issue.

Lock'er Down Security Products

Get security vaults for your vehicle here, including Console safes, SUVault & Truncvaults
www.lockerdown.com www.lockerdown.com
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That's honestly pretty cool
 
First thing that came to mind was a small storage unit like mentioned above.
 
somethingwolfpack said:
Realistically, I just want something for 3-5 guns - that I can carry up a flight of stairs with another adult's assistance but once you get outside that cabinet price range, everything suddenly is meant for 16+ rifles, weighs 500+ pounds
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No sure your budget but high end small safes exist. Taltons has a small fort Knox on display that is probably only 20x20.

This might be what you're looking for? They are expensive though. Dimensionally they are thin compared to a "normal" safe.

How close are you to these coworkers? Does one of them have a ground floor room? I have some buddies I'd trust my life with not sure if any of your coworkers are like that and could share a larger more secure safe.
 
I would suggest a rigid job box from home depot, get the 5 ft box so it would take minimum 2 people to lift it. Buy you damn good abus locks (have security pins in them) that's the same dimensions as the lock they suggest (cheap master lock if I remember) the box itself weighs well over 100 lbs.

If you need extra weight you could buy 4 sacks of 80 lb quickcrete while at home depot to put in bottom. It would take a little while to get into it, it'd be heavier than what 2 Crack heads could pick up and have pick resistant locks. (Locks are the weak point) just my 2 cents.

www.homedepot.com

RIDGID 60 in. x 24 in. Universal Storage Chest RB60 - The Home Depot

This chest is perfect for job sites, truck beds, garages and industrial applications. Carrying a 3-year warranty, it features fully arc-welded construction and has a durable powder coat finish for long-lasting
www.homedepot.com

Well, they're about $250 more than when I bought mine, paying that much you might find a better deal on a safe..........
 
somethingwolfpack said:
Probably 3-4 and nothing with a barrel longer then 18 inches
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Like every year, we winter on the Gulf Coast of FL and I rely on multiples of these Pelican vaults - each with four (4) of the best padlocks I can fit through the four 5/16“ ID locking holes and then multi-cable locked with additional padlocks - to objects or fixtures either immovable or which make moving them impractical. During the summer months we use the same padlocks and cables to secure jet skis, marine trailers, etc.

Of course, more often than not the neighborhoods we rent in down here have elderly neighbors watching every thing that happens up or down the street practically 24/7 and most def as if under a microscope - if a leaf falls the wrong way some elderly window watcher is dialing public safety, haha!

Its amazing what we fit in them, especially when “halved“ if necessary …

Also, if I’m not mistaken, these are either the same or darn close to the same Pelicans being fire sale-d by a govt surplus contractor in another thread here on CFF.com, in the “Hot Deals” thread …

Here they are: “Surplus Pelican Cases” https://carolinafirearmsforum.com/index.php?threads/pelican-surplus-cases.131634/

DCEDCB48-7C2F-485A-990D-2C78FDDE54CA.jpeg

B23D05CC-E4C8-4F8F-8FF8-494EA0EE5327.png
 
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Bocephus said:
I can’t help you with a safe recommendation but I would suggest you look into a return or enter key for your keyboard first 😝
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🤣

somethingwolfpack said:
… I share a domicile with coworkers … I just want something for 3-5 guns - that I can carry up a flight of stairs with another adult's assistance …
Click to expand...

That won’t be a safe but, you realize that …
 
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Timfoilhat said:
There's a company that makes a safe that's collapsible. Maybe called Snapsafe or something like that. It's steel that can be broken down into 4 panels, a base and a door. It's held together with steel pins internally. It's kind of a compromise between a real safe and a metal storage cabinet.
Click to expand...
I looked into them a few years ago after a work colleague bought one. Maybe UL considers them residential security containers, but I'm pretty sure they're as much of a safe as the ones that the big box stores sell. One thing that they aren't is cheap. 😉

www.snapsafe.com

Modular Safes - SnapSafe

Modular design makes moving and assembly easy, eliminating the need for hired movers or installers.
www.snapsafe.com www.snapsafe.com
 
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www.vapensystems.com

QVR (Quiver)

The QVR or Quiver, is specifically designed for high security and fast access. Our design allows you to place the QVR in almost any location and have access to your weapon in under 2 seconds. Extremely high security. Locking mechanism and lock is in the base of the QVR. Roland Dicks VIDEO...
www.vapensystems.com www.vapensystems.com

The Gucci option.
 
somethingwolfpack said:
I can't do that - I am subject to random vehicle inspections where I work
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I think he meant using it inside your room under your bed? Or at least that’s how I read it.
 
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