Whether you are buying guns for hunting, target shooting, personal protection, or a myriad of other reasons, they are an investment. By locking them up in a controlled space not only do you protect your investment but also keep them out of untrained or unsupervised hands. One of the ways to do this is by buying a safe. Buying a safe can be overwhelming and costly, but we will break it down and hopefully make the whole experience more enjoyable.

One of the first things to consider is the size. Most people will only look to buy for what they currently own not where their collection is headed. When considering safe sizes always go bigger than what you currently have so you don’t have to buy another safe. Plan that if the company advertises it as a XX number gun safe, it may not fit XX modern scoped rifles. I have taken my guns to a local store and test-fit them in a safe before purchasing. I learned very quickly what the options were for me. My current gun safe which is a 32 comfortably holds 10 guns. After going through the process of picking one out, you really don’t want to have to find another one because you bought too small.

After you have figured out the perfect size for your setup you want to look at the construction of the safe. The biggest price point between cheap and expensive safes is whether or not it is fire resistant.  Many guns are lost in house fires each year, so that’s something to consider when protecting your investments. The construction of the safe can come into play here, the thicker the metal the better. You also want the thickness to be even throughout the safe, not just the face and door. A robust and heavy safe will be harder to move and break into. Another feature would be the layout or setup on the inside. Make sure whatever you’re going to put in there is going to fit and is easily accessible.
There are 3 mainstream options for opening a safe. Mechanical Dial, Electronic Keypad, and Bio-Metric. Looking at the first a Mechanical Dial, the pros are it has worked for hundreds of years and does not require batteries. The cons would be that its slower than electronic setups. The other two are for the most part in the same boat, Electronic Keypad, and Bio-Metric. They both require a battery that will run out of power at some point. And the internal electronic wiring can have a short or failure causing the lock not to open. This is rare, but it is something to consider. Pros are that they are much faster to open.

After you have taken all of these things into consideration make sure you don’t go for the cheapest option. Well-built safes last for years and years and can be passed down from generation to generation. This safe is protecting your firearm investments. If you are spending thousands on guns, you can spend at least a thousand on a safe to protect them.

Here are a few things to consider after you have bought your safe.

Where are you going to mount it? Make sure it’s in a spot that doesn’t say “hey look at me! I’m a vault with valuables inside.” Some spots to consider are in a closet, bedroom, or possibly in the garage. You don’t want the safe to be easily stolen with a hand truck, so, make sure to anchor it somehow. This will also prevent heavier safe doors from pulling the safe over when they are open.  Depending on where you live a humidity control device may be a necessity or just an option, to prevent moisture build-up and guns rusting. The Goldenrod brand has been a popular choice used in gun safes for years, but there are many others. And one last thing that has become much cheaper over the years is lighting. This is in no way dire and can be added later, but some type of lighting in your safe is nice when you need to grab something out of it.

Hopefully, this helps when you go out to purchase your safe or at least window-shop for one. If you were one of the lucky ones to get a firearm for Christmas to go out and get a safe. Happy New Year, and practice good firearms safety.