Graffunder safes Archives - Page 2 of 3

Buying a Gun Safe: Where’s the Beef?

Posted on December 12, 2014January 16, 2019

“Where’s the Beef?” That famous line sold lots of hamburgers for Wendy’s because it pointed out that their competitors’ burgers had very little meat. In the same way, when it comes to gun safes sold by big box stores, you could ask “Where’s the Steel?” Gun safes found in box stores usually have very thin steel in the doors and bodies, in spite of the manufacturers’ claims of security. The doors appear to be strong because they are up to 1 ½” thick, but that is usually just thin steel wrapped around drywall. One manufacturer brags that they have “thick 12 gauge” steel. Really? 12 gauge steel is barely one-tenth of an inch thick! And that is supposed to protect your guns worth thousands of dollars? Steel that thin is easily cut by power tools, or pried open with basic tools.

Try this test with a gun safe in a box store: With the door open, put your knee into the front of the door and then pull hard toward you at the top. You can probably feel the door flex a little. Imagine how easily it would bend if someone used a pry bar!

The picture on the left is Brand X. The door looks good because the edge is 15/16”, but the steel is only a roll formed 12 gauge, just .1046 of an inch. The center picture is Amsec’s BF gun safe. The edge is only ½” thick, but that is a solid steel plate – 4.7 times thicker steel. On the right is a Graffunder Castle series door edge: 1” solid steel plate, 9.5 times thicker than Brand X! If you want to protect your valuables don’t settle for 12 gauge steel. Gun safes with steel plate all the way up to 1 ½” is available. You won’t see them at a box store, however; you will need to go to a safe dealer. Will they cost more? Of course they will. But it does not make sense to keep your gun collection (or silver, gold, cash, jewelry, etc.) behind a flimsy safe door that can easily be pried open or cut.

One other thing . . . Safe manufacturers that do put lots of steel in their doors will tell you that! They want you to know it. If a brochure (or salesperson) won’t tell you specifically how much steel is in the door it will be 12 gauge or less. Visit a knowledgeable, honest safe dealer – not a box store – to be sure you are buying real security.

American Made Gun Safes

Posted on May 23, 2014January 16, 2019

Does “Made in America” mean anything to you? It does to us. We proudly take a stand on this issue. Of the 45 gun safes we have in our showroom, only one is imported. We do not sell that model very often, but comparing it with U.S. made safes helps to sell higher quality products. The differences are huge.

Shopping for cars may be different. American cars are full of parts from China, Mexico, Korea and who knows where. Likewise, foreign car brands have significant American content. But a Chinese made safe is all Chinese. We as a country are too anxious to sacrifice quality — and American jobs – to save a few dollars. And then we complain about lack of jobs, low wages, etc. Do you think that we get a fair “social trade” with China? Our shop sells American made Fort Knox, Amsec and Graffunder gun safes, for good reason. But if you don’t like these, then buy a U.S. made Browning, Champion, Heritage or Liberty. Check closely for country of origin because they all have imported models, too. Take a stand to help keep jobs in The States – BUY AMERICAN!!

Gun Safes and Fire: Seals, part 2

Posted on April 24, 2014

Below is a smaller portion of the test curve which was shown in the previous blog. Note how with the three inferior safes the inside temp shoots almost straight up at the beginning of the test. Then at about four minutes the curve turns back down slightly before shooting up again. This momentary reversal happens when the expanding heat seals get hot enough to expand. It does help, but it is clearly inadequate.

If there is a large gap between the door and the door frame, or the door does not close snugly, then heat and smoke will just pour in. In theory when the insulation gets hot enough to release moisture it provides a degree of cooling. And the resulting water vapor should create a positive pressure to keep really hot air from coming into the safe. But these affects are not enough to overcome poorly designed doors which do not seal.

So why did the American Security safe perform so well? First, these safes have plate steel doors that have tight tolerances so the doors fit properly. Second, these units have two types of seals. They have an expanding seal like other safes (top edge of door in photo above). But they also have a cold seal (in door frame) that keep out heat and smoke even before the expanding seal gets hot enough to work. Makes perfect sense, doesn’t it? None of the test safes were by Fort Knox, but most Fort Knox gun safes also use double seals. The inner seal (see photo below) expands, while the outer seal is a fin-type which is very air tight all the time. Graffunder gun safes use double seals, too — see earlier post.

Why don’t other safe manufacturers use double seals? Some choose to sacrifice real protection in favor of lower costs. When buying a gun safe, make sure the door fits properly and make sure it has both hot and cold seals

Graffunder Gun Safes, part 3

Posted on February 20, 2014January 16, 2019

Tight fitting doors and heavy steel construction of Graffunder gun safes were discussed in earlier posts. There are many other features that make Graffunders the very best safes you can buy. For example, the bolts are machined stainless steel rather than just chrome plated steel, making them more difficult to cut with standard tools or torches. The boltworks are controlled by a heavy gear driven system, rather than by a simple cam system like most gun safes. Locks are protected by being completely encased in thick hardened steel. There are also hardened steel ball-bearing anti drill barriers in the door. In addition, on Emperor and Fortress models the safe bodies also have ball bearing anti-drill barriers in critical places.

Graffunder Safe 009 — Machined stainless steel bolts, 1″ thick solid plate steel door, 1 of two heat seals, Made in U.S.A.

Fire rated Graffunders are rated for 1 hour/1750 degrees. The insulation is concrete based composite material, which is poured in between the heavy exterior steel plate and a 14 gauge inner steel liner. More steel! As tight as the doors fit there are still two smoke/fire seals between the doors and frames. (I plan to write about the importance of having two seals in a future blog.)

Once you have decided on the model and size you want, designing your customized safe can be fun. You can choose from six textured paint colors for the exterior, three styles of handles, chrome or gold hardware, six interior fabrics, six interior shelf configurations and four different locks. Really dress up your safe with a beautiful high gloss door insert in one of four colors. Still can’t get exactly the look you want? Just tell us what you want and the good people at Sage Safe will make it happen your way!

Visit our shop to see Graffunders on display. We will help you to design your special one-of-a-kind high-security gun safe.

Graffunder Gun Safes, part 2

Posted on January 30, 2014January 16, 2019

Aside from having doors that really fit, Graffunder gun safes feature plenty of steel. And you need lots of steel for high security. The Bishop series have a ½” of solid steel plate in the door and ¼” throughout the body. The Castle series has twice as much – 1” steel plate on the door and ½” plate on the entire body. What other gun safes can claim that? Emperors have 1 ½” steel plate in the door and a full 1” steel plate throughout the body. Move up to a Fortress and the door is 1 ½” of steel and manganese laminations. Manganese is for torch resistance. These safes are impressive!

Graffunder Castle with 1" solid steel plate door — Graffunder Castle with 1″ solid steel plate door

Door jamb: 1" plate steel safe front; 3/4" plate steel reinforcement — Door jamb: 1″ plate steel safe front; 3/4″ plate steel reinforcement

Even the door frame is extra secure. Instead of the thin roll formed steel door jamb that most safes have, the door of a Graffunder gun safe closes against a welded ¾ steel plate.

The only downside of Graffunder safes is that they are heavy. Here in Michigan where everyone has a basement, placement is an issue. Neither Castles, Emperors nor Fortresses can be set on a main floor above a basement unless the floor is braced from below. They can rarely go downstairs either unless the steps are concrete or steel. We frequently install Graffunders in homes which have walk-out basements, where the safe can go into the basement through a ground level door. Other common placements are in homes which are on concrete slabs, garages and pole buildings.

More on Graffunder Safes in another posting soon . . .