Tag: safe construction

Insulation in Chinese Made Gun Safes

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Part of what you typically get with cheap gun safes / Chinese made gun safes is insulation made up from construction scraps.  The pictures below show a new Chinese made safe in our shop for service.  Notice that the drywall is pieced together from different kinds of drywall.  The light and dark pieces are even different thicknesses.  They are glued into place and the seams are mostly covered with tar-like glue.  Some of the gaps are quite wide, which naturally allows heat to pass in a fire.

Dry Wall in Chinese safes 002 Dry Wall in Chinese safes 005

In the light colored pieces at the lower left, you can see hammer marks from when these pieces were broken out from whatever they were previously nailed to.  Look close and you can see boot prints.  In a number of places the paper backing is loose – it pulls away from the gypsum when the pieces are broken apart carelessly.  Frequently with this type of junk safe, the drywall pieces will be smaller than what is in this safe, as small as 5” X 5”.

Remember a few years ago that many homes, especially in the southeast U.S., were left uninhabitable by Chinese drywall with very high levels of formaldehyde?  Well, that same drywall was (still is ?) used in Chinese gun safes.  I have read that those formaldehyde emissions promote rust (guns), as well as lung cancer, heart disease, etc.  Do you suppose they still use that crap in gun safes?  What do you think happened with all that high-formaldehyde drywall?  Where in the world could you possibly re-use that stuff?  Think about it.

Do yourself a favor:  Buy an American made gun safe.

Gun Safes at SHOT Show, Part 2

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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.

measuring steel 003

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.

Gun Safes at SHOT Show

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Two weeks ago I attended the Shooting, Hunting and Outdoors Trades Show in Las Vegas.  Most attendees of SHOT are there for the guns, ammo, knives and other cool outdoor gear.  I go to see what is new with gun safes.

One of the things I discovered this year was that some of the sellers of Chinese-made safes know almost nothing about what they are selling.  Visiting with the folks selling Chinese safes I made it a point to ask whether their safes had a lock system with a real lock body or just a solenoid plunger.  Most were puzzled by the question and did not know the difference.  I would get referred to someone else, who sometimes referred me to another person.  They would question back “what difference does it make?”  After a short explanation, it was suggested that they should read what I posted on my previous blog post ($700 Gun Safe).

People selling safes are asking customers to trust them with protection of their most prized possessions.  Doesn’t it make sense, then, that the sellers should actually build in a reasonable amount of security?  Shouldn’t they at least know what kind of lock it has?  Buy American!!

$700 Gun Safe — What Can You Expect?

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People always point out to me that they can buy a gun safe at box stores for $700. “There can’t be that much difference between the one for $700 and the ones you sell for more than twice the price,” they say.  Well, today we got in another one of those $700 gun safes.  It is the third one brought in to us in the last three months with failed locks.

Note:  Bringing these safes in is not that hard for the customer because they only weigh about 300#.  Lack of steel y’know, makes for light safes.  Note #2: Almost every $700 safe is Chinese made junk.

External Relockers 003JANUARY 2015 004

The picture on the left is from an American made real safe, which offers real security.  You can see the S&G Group 2 lock which has the internal relocker.  You can see the external relocker next to it.  Behind the lock is the heavy steel mounting plate, which holds in place the ball bearing hardplate to keep someone from drilling into the lock.

Now look at the picture on the right showing the electronic locking arrangement on the $700 Chinese made gun safe.  (The all-American name on the front of the safe is a well-known one that you would recognize.)  See the lock body?  No, there isn’t one – just a solenoid with  .305” diameter plunger.  No internal relocker, either.  Or external relocker.  Or mounting plate.  Or hard plate.  Sometimes people accidentally ruin this solenoid mechanism just by putting pressure on the safe’s spoke handle when the safe is closed.

So how did our safe technician open this “safe” when the lock failed?  High powered drills or expensive specialized equipment?  No, he took off the keypad on the front of the safe.  A piece of wire about twice the thickness of a coat hanger was bent in a particular way, then run through the hole which is there for the lock cable.  Without even being able to see through the hole he used the wire to punch in the solenoid plunger.  You don’t need hammers, screwdrivers, drills, scopes or anything except the wire.  By the way, all three of these which have come to our shop in the last two months failed between 12 and 15 months after purchase, so – you guessed it – they are off warranty. And THAT is what you get when you buy a $700 gun safe!  So spend more money and buy your gun safe (or a vault door) from a safe store.

Pistol Safes Make Great Christmas Gifts

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Today being December 23, I am obviously way behind in posting this message.  But if you are like me maybe you will still be Christmas shopping on December 29.  Or perhaps someone was so good to you that you feel guilty and want to get them something more.

Anyway, many folks that carry a pistol still leave them sitting on the dresser at night, or under the car seat when they go into restricted buildings.  We regularly talk with customers who have started to worry because their kids or grandkids are now getting old enough, and curious enough, to get into trouble.  This always seems to be an issue for off duty police officers.

FORT KNOX PISTOL SAFES 007

A good, quality handgun safe makes a great present.  We sell a number of brands but we recommend the three models offered by Fort Knox — they offer real security.  Most units on the market are pried open easily because they are made of very thin steel and because the latch mechanisms are weak.  Fort Knox handgun safes are made with steel that is two to four times thicker than other popular brands.  And their dependable mechanical locks, rather than electronic locks, mean there are no batteries to worry about.  Tight tolerances on the fit of the doors and very secure latch systems make them almost impossible to pry open.

So if my poor timing on this Christmas post kept you from buying someone a Fort Knox pistol safe, you could always give it to them for Valentine’s day.  Very romantic!