Originally Posted by hamsterhats

and absolutely no one has access to them(except a robber that makes it past the gauntlet)

That statement alone should make you consider getting a safe. Burglar breaks in, steals your unsecured guns, and now they're on the street in the hands of God-knows-who. Being a responsible gun owner means being responsible in all areas, not just the actual shooting part.

Not sure about your 50%. Seems like there are too many variables (size of basement, moisture in basement, efficiency of your dehumidifier) to give you an exact answer.

too true. safe shopping here we come. just have to figure out how to get one down here.

Assuming you intend to use your guns for home defense, you may want to consider having a safe in a more accessible location.

The nice thing about safes, besides the obvious safety, is that they are a much smaller space and the atmosphere can be controlled to be higher degree than a large room. That, along with the safety, are all good reasons to own a safe, but the first, best reason is to keep them secured. There may be a "gauntlet" in your home, but I'm assuming that's only there when you are, and you probably aren't home all the time. Criminals may be dumb, but they aren't stupid, they'll break in when no one is home if they can.

Zhur

ive been lookin online at safes. I am 29, i cannot afford 2000 dollars. i'm in the 500 dollar range. do i need one of those monsters? any ideas on maybe modular design, is that possible?

http://www.gunsafes.com/SW2020-Gun-Safe.html#

this is more in my range. i do not have any rifles as of now, prob. won't for a while. delivery curbside is 118

See if you can find a Safe Outlet store. I bought a 800lb 20 gun safe for about $700 delivered. Think of it this way, If you prevent one gun from being stolen by having a safe, you've already saved what you would have lost. If money is an issue, something is better than nothing, buy a Stack-on if you have to for now.

Zhur

Build your own safe in your basement use 2 outside walls and block up 2 more walls with a steel door. Cost is as you can afford.

Buy a lock box. Thet are cheap, they are light, you can easily move it down the stairs. You can buy them at any sporting goods store.

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/te...set=ISO-8859-1

stack ons are nice, but look to be more rifle oriented. i could always build shelves. building a safe room, nice. i like building.

Good idea Tony!
Vault doors are less expensive that big safes and you can make it as big as you want. That'd be a good idea for my basement! Muahahahaaa

BTW Tony, my wife is going to officially hate you without ever having heard of you, as I'm going to blame it on you that I'm taking over the unfinished basement!


Zhur

I bought my "Gun Safe" for $485.00 at a discount office supply store. They had a scratch and dent lockable steel fire proff document safe that takes all my handguns and stores my M1A broken down. I use a dessicant pack and once every two weeks put it in the oven at 150° for about 2 hours to restore it, though with the drought in Georgia until the tropical storm remnants hit a couple days ago, humidity was not a concern. It would take a very determined thief to get into the box which looks like a Cherry finished cabinet on the outside with a recessed lock system. I have an alarm as well so I feel pretty confident that all is protected. The sage advice concerning open storage is well heeded as you have indicated with your safe quest. Anyway try the office equipment stores if you have some time. Mine works great. I use a lock box in the master bedroom for the home defense Beretta 96 and 5 extra mags. Concealed and opens easily and quickly with a minimum of fuss if needed. Thanks for being responsible.

You mean my gun-hanging-on-a-key-rack is a bad idea? just kidding. A good safe is worth millions, maybe not in what it saves you if your fireamrs get stolen, but for the peace of mind

You really don't have to spend a lot for a reasonable handgun safe. To open quickly in the dark avoid key and knob combination safes, biometric is best but digital keypads will do as well.

This one is about $250 at lowes:



Most of these safes will bolt down. Or you can run a cheap cable lock around a stud or joist.

Believe it or not, Home Depot has a fairley nice gun safe, rifle size, for $500.

def. will check out the hardware stores. that is something that i could buy tomm.

Did I miss something.....how many guns are we talking?

I bought a nice little Stack-On that holds two handguns for $62.00. Combination keypad and it would take some considerable effort to "break" into it.

http://www.stack-on.com/securityplus...es/ps-514.html

+1 on Submoa's comment...bought mine from Walmart...$99.00, has two shelves for handguns (2 full size per shelf) and enough room under those for eight or ten boxes of ammo.

walking out the door now to look at wal mart, lowes, and the depot

Originally Posted by zhurdan

Good idea Tony!
Vault doors are less expensive that big safes and you can make it as big as you want. That'd be a good idea for my basement! Muahahahaaa

BTW Tony, my wife is going to officially hate you without ever having heard of you, as I'm going to blame it on you that I'm taking over the unfinished basement!


Zhur

She will hate me even more when you spend time cleaning,oiling or reloading there.

I picked up a used safe for 50 bucks. It will cofortablely hold 6 pistols. As for the humidity problem you will just need to keep them oiled a bit more in damper climates. Buy some of those dehumidification bag thingies and change them out on a regular bases and you'll be fine. I'd check the "For Sale" adds in your local paper or even run a "Want Add". You just never know what might pop up for the right price.

been looking at safes. a lot of safes. here is my dilemma. I am starting to get kinda crazy with the gun thing, like i'm catching a disease. I probably have a second job working pat time at a local gun shop, find out tomm. If this is the case, i will be getting everything at cost. that means that their paycheck(my fun money) will be given back to them every week in gun purchases. thinking bigger safe.

Don't skimp just to save a few bucks. make sure it is fire and water proof. Tell the wife she can put her good jewels in there to. It might help on your insurance rates also. Also good for important papers such as insurance policies, marriage certificate, and stuff you cannot replace. Get the best you can afford. it will be well worth it. Just my .02 By the way, it is a disease. One of the best you can catch!!!!!!!!!

Some addictions can never be broken!!!