Gun Safe Advice Needed

[Bill Hollinger]

I have two huge Liberty safes. Both are full and I'm in need of another one!

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[Oyaji]

I too own a Liberty...great safe and a helluva value; only wish it were bigger.

[mhess]

I rented a set of piano dollys to move my safe. They work great. One person can move a safe, As long as there is no steps. Cost me $10.00.

[gysgt]

Another plug for Liberty. Bought the largest they made and it is still too small.

[tmark]

I suggest getting the best you can afford with emphasis on fire protection as well as anti-theft and space.

As far as size goes, my safe is cramped with rifles but I got the best size I could afford. It takes careful effort to remove and put back individual rifles as to not damage/bump, scratch other rifles while removing and putting back other rifles. That being said, get the largest you can afford to have enough room to take out and put back rifles with ease and comfort without doing all the yoga maneuvers I have to with my cramped safe.

[CTMC(ret)]

I've found that keeping some sort of "gun-sock" on the rifles in the safe helps reduce the hazards of accidental dings, dents, bruises, contusions, and worse...

I bought 2 dozen Browning VCI gun-socks - got a 10% volume discount.

[Bob - The Beagle Master]

No matter what brand you buy or how high the fire rating is, if you ever have your safe go through a fire do not open it until you are able to safely remove all the guns and clean them immediately. One of my friends had a Liberty that went through a whole house fire and the next day he had a wrecker come and hoist the safe out of the basement. He opened it, the guns were all fine so he shut the door and went back the next day to get them out. After being exposed to the air the day before, every one of those guns had rusted overnight.

I don't know that rusting overnight is a common occurance but it sure did happen to his. The insurance adjuster said he had seen it before so I know that it does happen. Just remember to have oil and rags available when you open a safe that has gone through extreme heat.

And buy a safe one size bigger than you need because a 24 gun safe only holds 24 guns if you stack them in like cord wood.

[Mizzouboy]

That guy at SturdySafe has one heckuva webmaster.....

[joem]

Check with safe dealers in you area. I got a Melink (sp) which came out of a Hospital. It was a money safe and it's a double door vault and has a UL fire rating. Weight is about 4000 pounds empty.

[Neal Myers]

A couple of points to consider:

Fire ratings are relative, not absolute. A 1 hour rated safe may or may not keep the contents safe for 1 hour; it will keep the contents safe for twice as long as a 30 minute rated safe. There are just too many variables in a fire for anyone to give you an exact time that the contents will be protected.

Fire protection needs vary. If you live in a rural area, do not have a monitored fire/security alarm system, do not have public water, do not have a residential sprinkler system, & have no close neighbors, you need a REALLY good safe; if you have a fire, your house will likely burn to the ground, & burn hot.

Consider the location of the safe in your house. Usually the basement, next to a masonry wall under a support beam, will be best in case of a fire.