OT: Gun Safes/ Gun storage.

Most of us own more then 1 gun. I own 7 long guns. However I have a locking gun cabinet, a Homak. I bought this instead of the large fire resistant safe for 2 reasons, I wanted to be able to move it and I didnt want to spend $1,000 on a safe. The Homak gun cabinet was $90 I think.
But with regards to gun safes and storage for guns what do you guys have? I have all long guns, no handguns.
I am thinking about making a tucked away cabinet in a 1/2 bathroom above the door so that if any punk was to break in he wouldnt think to look through a 1/2 bath for things of value, especially firearms. I would like to put my M-15 Armalite assault rifle in this makeshift cabinet. I am insured for $2,500 in firearms on my homeowners insurance, but I still dont want my M-15 ripped off. Floor safes are okay but cutting out a section of subfloor doesnt seem like a good approach, ripping up the floor/carpet and then a make shift storage box. Has anyone made a hidden safe in a wall? A hidden safe behind a bookcase, (like in those mansions in a scary movie)? When I designed my home I should have made a small section in my master bedroom for a hidden gun storage area. I have a lot of thinking to do about this.
If you have made a hidden safe or have a great setup for gun storage then chime in or post a picture. I need more ideas.

I refuse to talk about my firearm collection in public, except to say I have about half hand guns and half long guns and they're not all stored in the same place, or even the same building.

I am in the process of moving and I had to move 2 gunsafes. One is 450 lbs and the other is 900 lbs (empty) ....Yep not so easy to move! I made up some short 1/2 inch pipes and used them as rollers...very slick. The forks of the tractor just reach in the front door to do the actual heavy lifting...Thank goodness!
The lighter of the 2 is a Treadlock and the other is a Browning.I like them both, but the Browning is far better.
I have around 100 guns and if they were to be stolen, no amount of insurance could replace them, thus I figure instead of paying for the insurance , I would use that same money and invest in a couple of good safes...not sorry I did!
There is/was a company in East Hampton, Conn. (nesci industries)that made some really cool safes. One was a coffee table in the center of the room...pull a latch and the top would hinge up to reveal a metal safe built in, opened by a key.
another was a grandfathers clock with a false front and electric movements. This also opened to reveal a vertical lockable safe.
The 3rd that I remember was a living room end table that had a little lazy susan of sorts that when unlatched exposed the safe(handgun sized) and the top drawer pulled 2/3rds of the way out , although it seemed that is was fully open. By reaching a small latch on the underside of the drawer it fully opened, showing that it had a false back , leaving enough room for a single handgun.
My dad always wanted to cut the back side of a cold water tank out to store guns. He figured no thief would be messing with an old water tank...probably would not even have to lock it.
3 dogs in the house help too....
Cal

How much is the yearly fee for the Class 3 permit for the assault rifle? Have always thought it would be too big a hassle, plus giving BATF unlimited/unrestricted access to your home.

That"s the way it is in Canada if you have an old sigle shot .22 squirrel rifle.

Those of us who believe in a strict interpretation (it means what it says and if we don't like it, we.....not some Federal judge.....can change it) of the U.S. Constitution have followed with great interest the shenanigans of the gun confiscators in the other 3 major English speaking nations of the world. Sadly, I think it's just a matter of time for us, also.

I have an M-15A4 semi-automatic rifle in .223 caliber. I only had to pass the 4473 background check. (no felonies on my record) Not even a drunk driving or any arrest of any kind. No permit needed for the M-15.
I am quite sure that only automatic firearms are illegal along with specialized shotguns and a few of the military and police versions of the semi-auto rifles.

It is sad that Canada is run by socialists.
I am sure that many guys in Western Canada, (the wilderness) have a few firearms that are not registered.
The amount of guns held by US citizens is staggering, about 300,000,000 or more.
Uncle sam wouldnt be able to get all of them, registered or confisicated. The engineering manager at where I work has a son who is in Afganistan now and is in special forces.
His son was shown test results of tests given to career US army guys and one of the questions was: "would you take guns out of the homes of Americans" (basically full confiscation) 90% of the guys said "no" So it would be real tough for uncle sam to get all the guns from us.

The coffee table idea is cool, grandfather clock is neat too. One idea that I have had is to make a built in wood bench seat in front of a window and have a place for gun storage inside, hidden of course.

So.......it's sounds as if you're using the (abundant) media's definition, rather than the military's definition, which came from the German Sturmgewehr..............
Assault rifle

That is true, a select fire rifle is an assault rifle. I thought that an assault rifle was defined as a semi-auto rifle with a high capacity magazine, basically over 10 rounds.

If you get a safe, be sure to get space for double what you"ve got because you can barely fit over half the advertised number in there, so one of those 10 gun safes would hold MAYBE six. I"ve found it"s hard to fit the guns in there without having a jigsaw puzzle with the buttstocks.

We settled for a Sentry 14 gun safe without fire protection. Internal hinges, 5 bolts, combination lock. If I remember correctly, its around 250 lbs and cost $300-400, that number I don"t exactly remember. Out of sight, bolted to the floor, but still easy access.

Now, just like all the other robbery/thief issues, given enough time and determination if that thief wants it bad enough, the thief will get it. The same is true of these safes.

Kevin

If you build a cabinet into a wall and surround it with about 4 layers of drywall, including the door that covers the front, you should have 1 or 2 hours of fire protection. A cheap way to protect your guns.

I built one of the cheaper Homark style safes into my wall 20 years ago, It looks good, I set it about 18" off the floor, then screwed lag bolts into the studs, trimmed around it and it worked fine until I outgrew it. I added one of the liberty safes for about $900, knowing that they are really not "fireproof", but no one is going to carry it off either.

As for the class 3 permit, you only need that for full auto stuff. It is really a tax for each gun transferred. It used to be $200 per transfer.

I think some of you are confusing terms. There is an AR-15, semiauto, no permits required. Then there is an M-16 that gernerally is full auto, that is the so called "machine gun" That would require at least a class 3.

a regular Federal firearms permit for dealers does not give them the ability to own full auto.


Gene

Not really any good ideas here....We just store our 6 long guns and 1 handgun in a cheap ($100 I think) gun cabinet with the ammo stored in it's own compartment up top. The cabinet is in a secluded little spot under the stairs, so unless you knew it was there it would be hard to find.

Couple of pistols under the bed. .30 carbine propped near headboard. Pistol in truck. Shotgun and .22 rifle in barn. Others scattered in various closets. To quote Alfred E Newman "What, me worry?" TDF

I would stay away from bathrooms due to the moisture and possible rust problems. Mine are stored in locked gun cabinets, secured to the wall and floor with lag bolts. While they're not vandal proof, it'll slow them down a bit. Best I can afford.

I have one of the cheap homaks in a closet. It is hidden, and the cheap homak cabinet looks, cheap! Most burgalies are done by family, neighbors, and aquantineses. Somebody, usually a kid, breaks in during the day, or when they know you are not home. A few years ago, a local dectective compared home break ins to the local middle school attendance records. They monitored 3 suspects, caught them in the act, busted. The oldest was 15. Only problem was they had previously broke into 42 homes before getting caught. We had a case in Fowlerville, that a 15 yr old kid picked up a 45 and shot his 15 yr old friend in the head. The kids were alone in the house. I think leaving a loaded pistol around 2 children is stupid.

I've got a wood cabinet that I bought way back in high school some 20 plus years ago. It has six slots, all full, with a few guns in the corners, night stand, truck, tractor, etc. Bottom line for me is that they are all insured and all replaceable so I dont worry about it. 60 bucks a year adds 10K of listed property coverage on my farmowners policy.

I have a room on the lower level of the house that is about 8 x 8 feet. It’s made from cinder block that has re-bar running through the holes and then the holes were filled with concrete. The door is heavy steel with the hollow part of the frame filled with concrete. The roof of the room is poured cement 4 inched thick. It was made as a tornado shelter but serves very well as a safe room.
I usually have some guns stashed around the house but this past weekend I had my 5 yr old granddaughter over so all the guns got locked up.

When I built my cabinets, I mounted the kick panels on magnetic latches. The kicks are covered in tile, but can be pulled out, with lots of storage underneath. I did the same with a window seat in our bedroom. I can probably get 3-4 guns in cases under each.

That is the best, a basement Vault. With a heavy door (bulletproof, sort of)
A Vault is expensive to install but is real good for wealthy people that have lots of guns, jewelry, Silver/gold Bullion, paintings, collectables. I would not do a vault cause of the cost to install besides I dont have that much valuable stuff, just some guns.

I used to have one of the cheap gun safes, but then I stopped to think and realized that I had over $15,000 worth of long guns in a $90 safe, it didn't take me long to figure out that those $1,200 gun safes were well worth the money. I haven't worried about the guns since, especially with two kids in the house. I've heard too many horror stories and didn't want to end up another statistic.

There are safes sold to fit between 16 inch on center studs.All you do is cut the drywall out preferable in a hidden place.Mark

Not to change the subject...but how'd you get your name, Two Dogs?