Gun safes are an integral part of gun ownership
The individual responsibility to control the possession of your firearms is tantamount. Having raised three children, I understand the importance of teaching our youth about the incredible power of a fire arm whether it be a handgun or long gun. I encouraged my children’s interest in fire arms while fully understanding a child’s curiosity. I knew that beyond all the hands on time and safety instruction that there would come a time that an accessible firearm left unattended would prove to be too much temptation for my children de
spite their age. This fact brought me to the point of purchasing a simple metal two lock gun safe. Purchased through a discount retail store, it was a simple affair, as cost was a defining factor at that age of my life. I found a safe that would keep the kids safe from their eternal curiosity, but did nothing to protect my firearms in the event of fire or flood. I anchored the safe to the floor to keep the neighbors from walking off with it during the next Zombie apocalypse that would inevitably occur. DONE!
Today, some 30 years later, I still have that original safe, although I have added many more suiting individual needs. Securing your firearm is not simply a home issue today. Once you make the decision to exercise your Second Amendment Right you place yourself in a position of having to secure your fire arm in many, shall we say, odd circumstances. No guns in schools, no guns at post offices, no guns in Government buildings….no guns at the K Mart. While one can always choose NOT to spend your hard earned dollars at any business that does not support the Second Amendment, there will be times that you will find it necessary to “disarm” yourself while out and about.
As a concealed carry permit holder one must entertain all the different scenarios that will require you to disarm yourself before they occur. State Laws are specific about what constitutes “Locked” in vehicles. Some ay your glove box is sufficient. Others require lockable boxes. Check your States requirements to be in compliance. I have purchases and installed a box type safe in each of my vehicles that is operated via a “Bio Metric” fingerprint reader. I bolted this box in the trunk of each of my vehicles so it cannot be easily removed. I choose to NOT trust my plastic glove compartment door to a criminal. At home I have the same safe located in my bedroom to facilitate a “quick” place to store my Concealed Carry fire arm when I chose not to have it on my person when I am at home. This keeps my children, because at 30, I still consider them my “children” and now Grand children safe from their own curiosity!
For storage, as my collection of long guns and handguns grew over the years, I needed to invest in a more secure system for the “protection” of my fire arms. Collecting unusual and odd firearms over the years began to weigh on my mind and drove me to investigate how not only to really secure my arms but protect them from fire and water. Size became a concern as my collection grew and became one of the largest driving factors.
Safes, and just about everything in our lives come in many different sizes, shapes and flavors. Deciding what I needed drove me to compile a simple list to determine what fir my needs. Size, Physical size. Could I fit it into the space I had available? Size, How many firearms and what type would fit inside? Construction, Thickness of wall steel, cement linings to protect from fire, Humidity control to keep my arms from rusting, door locking mechanisms and entry systems. Interior Design, Could the shelves be rearranged to facilitate my changing needs. Mounting or Anchoring, Did the safe have predrilled mounting holes and hardware? Interior Lighting, Did the safe have, or could it be lighted? ( A safe can be a very dark place! ) Weight How much does the safe weigh? It is vey easy to find yourself in a position of needing a professional mover to install your new safe! Some of these monsters are extremely heavy! Cost, My first metal safe cost just over $100.00. My last was an investment of several thousand. I have seen safes that approach Ten thousand. All of them afford the place to secure your firearm from little hands and prying thieves. Be responsible! Secure your firearms!