UTMC

what is considered adequate safe storage of a pistol in a house?

does one need to buy a gun safebox? or is a locked drawer in a desk adequate? i don't know how sturdy a gun safebox is, to be honest.

opinions?

Depends on what you're comfortable with. Depending on the firearm, you could use a trigger lock or a pistol safe. Or you could leave it ready to go in a drawer.

http://www.safetysafeguards.com/

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templ ... hasJS=true

The price range seems to be from $25 to $250 depending on all the bells and whistles.

Oops, forgot my opinion. Since I don't have kids, I keep mine handy in a drawer if it's not on my person. I think it's safe, unless my dogs grow thumbs. If that happens, I'll teach 'em how to use it.

I prefer a safe, couple years ago left 2 handguns in a lock box with trigger locks, it did not stop couple of scumbags from stealing them... Really miss my target pistol.

Oops, forgot my opinion. Since I don't have kids, I keep mine handy in a drawer if it's not on my person. I think it's safe, unless my dogs grow thumbs. If that happens, I'll teach 'em how to use it.

If dogs grow thumbs, we are so fucked.

piccini9 wrote:

Oops, forgot my opinion. Since I don't have kids, I keep mine handy in a drawer if it's not on my person. I think it's safe, unless my dogs grow thumbs. If that happens, I'll teach 'em how to use it.

If dogs grow thumbs, we are so fucked.

dogs i don't worry about. it's CATS growing thumbs that scares me.

I used to keep the Glock in a drawer, but the magazine was kept in a jacket pocket hanging on the back of the door, like three feet away. I'd considered a trigger lock but sold the gun eventually. Now I have to try to stuff an AR 15 in my sock drawer.

I finally got the "Daddy, do you have a gun?" question the other day and had the gun talk.

I keep my Mossberg and SKS locked in a case under the bed and my 9mm in my dresser. The mag for the 9 is kept seperate but close at hand in a location only accessible to me.

The safest place to keep my gun? In my hand. The second safest? In a well educated house. The same old adage for Sex and drugs of “teach you children, before they teach themselves” holds true with guns too. Educate, educate, educate.

They are not toys.
They are not to be pointed at others.
Always treat them as if they are loaded.
Do not look down the god damn barrel to see what‘s down there!!

How often have we heard on the news, after a child accidentally shooting someone (or themselves), the statement “I didn’t think it was loaded”? (This goes for drunken rednecks too)

If it is burglary you are concerned for. A large safe, MOUNTED TO THE FLOOR, is the best. A burglar will take the WHOLE lock box, and just open it and sort the crap out latter. They want to get in and out quickly, and will assume (mostly correctly) that if is valuable enough for you to lock up, then it will be valuable to someone else too.

Just my advice and two cents.

Sorry for the threadjack but I have "I didn't think..." story I wanted to share:

A while back there was a guy who used to bring his howitzer to our gun clubs open house. I was a volunteer that weekend, so making small talk, I'm waiting for the range to open, he's setting up an exhibit (army jeep with mounted 50 cal, 45mm cannon, some anti aircraft machine gun, you get the idea) I see the howitzer shells in the box, just a bunch of shells with news paper stuffed in them and I pick one up, he tells me how to load it, careful not to get the fingers caught and before he cays another word I yank the cord.

BOOM!

Shells were loaded with powder, news paper was keeping it in, I hit the deck so hard that I left impression in the dirt. Everyone laughing their asses off apparently I was the only one who never seen him fire the howitzer before.

At the risk of sounding like a broken record,
Everyone in the house knows where they are and how and when to use them.
I suppose being stolen would be my only fear, but insurance will cover them.

.357 loaded with Hydroshocks in the nightstand.
.380 loaded with Hydroshocks in the desk drawer.

That's what I got.

If not on your hand, on your belt is also a solid option.

You can pick up a decent sized locking plain metal cabinet if you have/want long guns and can't afford the full safe as well. They're really pretty cheap.

/RM

http://www.gunvault.com/handgun-safes/m ... eluxe.html

I've got one of these with a racked-and-ready Ruger P95 DC inside bolted/cabled to the bedrail on my side of the bed.

They had some quality control issues years ago, but those have long since been remedied. I like that it's not a keypad you have to look at to get open, and if anyone enters the wrong combination too many times, it locks down.

I check it once a week (when rotating clip), and replace batteries once a year just to stay on top of it. 100% happy with it.

-Rench

PS/Edit: the prices on their site are WAY high, you can get the regular one for like $95 online or most places in person.

Whatever you do, make it secure.

I say this because Heather, a girl I know back east (25), just buried her little brother George (23), who was accidentally shot in the head while he and his friends were playing with guns (her wording).

http://somd.com/news/headlines/2010/12051.shtml

...at least some good came of it since her family donated his organs as per his wishes, so that others might live.

I know that his death had a lot more to do with his and his friends' stupidity and carelessness than anything else, but it's still a high price to pay and one accidental death is one too many.