moparoutlaw

I've been researching gun safes online...... Lot's of good choices out there. We already own an American Security 2hr fire safe that we keep valuables in, and I like the brand. My question is this, is fire rating for a gun safe a choice of budget and personal preference, or should we buy the highest fire rating in a safe we can afford? I'm planning on buying a bigger safe than I think I need, so we can have a bit of growing room and extra secure storage. Advice is welcome. Thanks.

NC Buckeye

For me it was a factor or where it was going and how long I thought it might possibly be on fire. Mine is "only" 30 minutes at 1200 degrees. If my safe was on fire for 30 minutes it would be a) in my garage, b) my roof would be smoldering on top of it and c) the rest of my home would be gone too.

I live less than a mile from 2 fire stations, fire alarms built into my security system, we are 100ft from a hydrant, the safe is in an area with few items that could sustain a burn.

If my safe was in a barn with lots of hay, I had no pond and lived 20 miles from town with well water, a volunteer fire department and there was a mile plus to to my neighbor I would have bought something different.

retsupt99

This should help...

Gun Safe Buyers' Guide

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highoctane

I havent reseached fire resistance but +1 on buying the biggest you can.

moparoutlaw

Any particular brand offer excellent value/features for the dollar? I'm looking hard at AMSEC "SF" series (already own an AMSEC fire safe and really like it), and Fort Knox Maverick series...

jwhite75

I really think the Browning are a great brand. Very well made.

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HKkid

Browning are good safes. They are made by Prosteel. The biggest drawback to a Browning safe is that you pay 10 to 30 dollars more per cubic foot for the deerhead to be on the door. I've had numerous customers that wanted a browning come talk to me and I sold them something that was similar or better than what they wanted for a lot less. Like I said, great safes, but you are paying for a name when you could be getting a better safe that just doesnt have a name on it.

To OP: Not sure on AMSEC, Never really delt with them so I can't say yea or nay, Fort Knox makes a good safe. You might also look into the Libery line. The Lincoln, Presidential, and National Security lines are very Nice safes. All are very good security and fire ratings. Just my 2 cents.

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edr9x23super

Fort Knox......

I bought mine based on advice I got from an LEO who had worked many burglaries during his long career (he is retired now since 2000). He told me to stick with a safe that had a minimum 10-gauge wall thickness, because the cheaper safes that use sheet metal are very prone to breaching; Typically he said thieves would take a pickaxe and use it to punch a hole in a side wall, then use a regular axe or maul to literally open the hole like you would open a tin can. Once they had the hole large enough, they would use a pry bar to widen the hole so the valuables could be extracted.

Anyway, mine weighs about 1300lbs and is bolted to the slab in my home. there are structural walls on either side so no one can try to work on the side walls to get through, they will have to go through the strongest part of the safe, the door. It has a 1300 degree fire rating for one hour, so I am not worried about anything getting burned too badly.

Good luck with whatever you decide, but Fort Knox has worked great for me.

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ltc-usa

I have a Fort Knox.

They are so darned good looking they could be funiture in a den. I bought mine because of the fire rating. My brother-in-law liked it so much he got one in dark blue. The gold plated fixtures are perty.

JungleJim

I picked up a nice one on costco.com. It had a $200 coupon and they delivered it at no extra cost, good thing being it weighs 550 lbs or so. It has a 1 hour rating.