Behold the gunsafe! (Lots of photos)

[Dedicated_Dad]

Here's my thoughts on storage - I HOPE I can explain this well enough in writing since I can't draw...

I'm sure you've seen the huge filing-arrangements where shelves can be cranked together so they completely fill a room, with just enough empty space between to allow someone to walk between 2 rows? All the shelves are moved aside until one gets the opening to the row they need...



Now - imagine something similar inside the safe, except in this case it's running front-to-back instead of side-to-side... This would allow packing a bunch of rifles into a small space. To get them out, one pulls all the racks forward of the target-row out until he can reach the opening containing the rifle he seeks.

This would require building frames (from, say 2x4 stock) with slots for the butts and some sort of retention for the top to keep the rifles from tipping over. Something as simple as a hook-and-eye closing each slot would do...

With such a method, it would seem to me one could fill a space with minimal distance between the rifles and thus get more into your safe than you'd imagine...

Alternatively, they could be mounted on the sides using bearing-slides like are commonly used in server racks in a data center. Each rack mounted to its own set of slides on the side-walls...

This is clear in my head - I hope it makes sense here...

DD

[BadgerAZ]

What a great safe, Denis! And it weighs 2900 lbs??? That thing's HUGE!

I've owned some cars that weighed less than that. In fact I think I've lived in apartments smaller than that.

Nice!

[BadgerAZ]

Denis,

Since you're trying to make your safe as theft-resistant as possible, you'll find interesting a draft university paper I found some time ago:

Safecracking for the computer scientist
by Matt Blaze
Department of Computer and Information Science
University of Pennsylvania

It's a rather lengthy paper (34 pages) but I found it as gripping as a good novel. It's a very well-written analysis of safes, safe locks, traditional and novel ways to defeat them, what makes one setup safer or stronger than another (subtle things can sometimes make a huge difference), and what can be done to make a particular setup stronger and more crack-resistant. I think anybody who uses a safe for serious purposes or who just has an interest in clever mechanical things would find this paper indispensable.

[Combat Controller]

Now, is this the right safe? I recall there was a mixup at some point.

[1911Man]

Congrats, Denis. It looks good in its new home. Glad this little Odyssey is over.

[Denis]

Thanks, all!

There's these too:

http://www.gun-racks.com/

It makes them more accessible, but it takes up more room.

Haha. Lazy Susans for guns. I like it...

I'm sure you've seen the huge filing-arrangements where shelves can be cranked together so they completely fill a room, with just enough empty space between to allow someone to walk between 2 rows? All the shelves are moved aside until one gets the opening to the row they need...

That makes perfect sense, DD. We use those sliding shelves for the archives at work. I was also thinking about something along those lines for the safe, but my handyman skills would probably not be up to implementing it - constructing sliding rails would probably be beyond me.

You'll find interesting a draft university paper I found some time ago...

Another "great minds" moment! I read that paper yesterday - I found it while Googling for information about combination locks. It was fascinating. The other thing I want to read is the chapter on safe-cracking in "Surely you're joking, Mr Feynman". This How Stuff Works article with an animation is pretty good, too.

I think I've lived in apartments smaller than that. Nice!

Considering what moving it cost, Mrs Denis is probably right now planning to have me live in the new safe... Let's call it a "secure doghouse".

Now, is this the right safe? I recall there was a mixup at some point.

Actually, this is the wrong safe. They one they actually advertised for auction was the higher-security, even heavier version! I think this one will do for the time being, however...

[Darrell]

I imagine it's damp/humid where you live. You should give some thought to addressing humidity inside your safe, so your guns don't rust up.

[mekender]

Ok well I didnt know the background of the safe or the company that made it. From the looks of it was my judgment.

That safe will be far more secure than it needs to be to keep thieves out, you wont have to worry about it.

[Denis]

I imagine it's damp/humid where you live. You should give some thought to addressing humidity inside your safe, so your guns don't rust up.

Indeed. I don't fancy trying to drill a hole into the new safe to get in a power cord for a lamp or one of those "golden rods", so I'm just going to put a chemical dehumidifier in it (or maybe one in the bottom and a second in the top).

The dehumidifier is a ventilated plastic box which contains a cloth bag of some hygroscopic chemical. The stuff traps moisture out of the air, and the water drips into a tray below, which can periodically be taken out and emptied into the drain. The bag of chemical needs changing occasionally too. I have one in the current gunsafe, and it seems to do the job - no signs of rust or damp (touch wood).

Ok well I didnt know the background of the safe or the company that made it. From the looks of it was my judgment.

mekender, I'm sorry - I didn't mean to sound supercilious with my desciption of the safe in reply to your comment, but I see it does read rather like that. I thought inquiring minds might like to know, and I didn't mean it to sound like a put-down. I do appreciate your thoughts!

[Aglifter]

Be sure to check if the water coming out of your chemical dehumidifier is caustic -- the old ones I used in a closet were.