The previous post talked about cheap lock systems on Chinese made gun safes being shown at the 2015 SHOT Show. Another disturbing thing I saw there was flagrant lying and intentional misrepresentation about steel thickness on these safes.
At past shows I was suspicious about claims of steel thickness. So this year I carried a micrometer. With the door open you can measure the edge of the safe’s frame to get an accurate reading. In the picture below the micrometer is measuring steel on an American Security FV model gun safe, which is imported. It shows .105”, exactly correct for the 12 gauge steel Amsec advertises. Amsec is a reputable company and does not exaggerate.
Four of the vendors I visited at SHOT over-stated how much steel their Chinese built safes have. The worst offender was the company I wrote about last summer. One safe which they claimed has 10 gauge steel actually had less than 11 gauge. After I talked with them last year about their bogus claims, and proved that they were not telling the truth, they still lie about what they are selling. No one holds them to account. Stores buy these units without verifying critical specs, then pass them on to consumers who get less security than they think.
This same company was showing a new safe which they advertised as “Made in USA With American and Global Parts”. When challenged on this statement they admitted the safe was made in China, but said “It uses enough American parts that we can legally say it is made in the US”. Wow, that is interesting! And shameful.
I cannot mention the names of these companies for fear of being sued. But if you plan on buying an inexpensive safe from a box store, don’t believe everything you read, and I recommend that you take a micrometer when you shop. Please — pay attention to what you buy and buy a REAL gun safe.