Gun Safe Pros/Cons

Fixing to buy one and which is better. Dial or keypad. What happens when battery runs down with keypad. can you still get in? Leaning toward the dial. Thanks Guys.

A decent 9 volt battery will last a really long time with a keypad safe. I'm not certain, but I bet the keypad code reverts back to the factory setting (0000 or 1234) if the battery goes completely dead.

I like keypad. Mine has physical key entry also in case keypad has issue.

Batteries last for a LONG time.

You just missed a good sale on Cannons at TSC. I got the 64 gun for $799 (regular price $999). Keypad entry. But let me tell you, listen to everyone when they say get double what you need, theres no way I could get 64 guns in this safe. Maybe single shot shotguns.

Physical key for entry if you have a problem,, that's good, and does it (key) override the keypad if battery is dead?? Where is the best place to buy this puppy.

On my browning - When the battery starts getting low, the safe beeps at you when you open it. Then you simply install the new battery. I have had mine for almost 5 years now, and I am on my 3rd battery. Mine retains the code when I change the battery.

I can open my keypad safe in just a few seconds, and I can open it in the dark.

A lot of folks are scared the electronic lock will fail, but I talked to a safe guy and he said a quality electric or dial lock are just as reliable, and the cheap box store safes are way more prone to fail - both lock and dial. He also said that the electronic locks are easier and cheaper to replace if they do fail.

Most gun safes are just secure cabinets. You have to spend a lot of money to get an actual "safe" that can withstand highly motivated individuals.

Thanks for the heads up. Gonna measure a closet in the new house I'm closing on and install the biggest one I can put in there. Have about 50 or 60 Rifles and pistolies.

Listen to this guy. One scoped gun counts for 3 or 4 of their so called gun capacity.

I have used some really nice safe with dials that have failed not fun. Something to think about also is speed/ease of entry.
I Have a keypad big safe now and really do like it and can access it quickly in the dark. Although I was hesitant at first.

I have a keypad mini safe mounted under my bed. I can open it without moving out of bed (other than my arm) in the dark, in the middle of the night and have a loaded pistol ready to go. Just in case. Boom.

Thanks for the info guys. Don't have any kids around except my Granddaughter and she has grown up knowing and respecting them. We have always Kept guns by every door and pistols beside the bed for the wife and I out here at the Ranchito but moving to town (Granite Shoals). First time I've had a neighbor closer than a mile in years and have one now less than 50 feet. Lord help me. .

Granite Shoals, as in on Lake LBJ? waterfront?

I prefer dial type never had one fail in 50+ years, after having 4 different key pad / electronic failures and seeing how easy it was for a good locksmith to open without even being told the combo I'll never own another.

Always buy a bigger safe than what you think you need.

I have two...both dial type....just didn't care for the keypads I looked at....

Nope. Had to buy a brand new constructed home in the interior in short order as I sold the Ranchito out here. . Have 4 lots across the street from Beaver Island, throw a rock and hit the water. Across the street from a small city park. pretty nice area. They might be for sale because I think we are gonna build in Kingsland on 10 acres I bought in town.

if I could do it again I would do a digital on my big safe. I do have a digital pistol safe and mine has a key also if the battery dies and then another one of my pistol safes has a spot where you put another 9 volt battery in case the battery dies.

The key benefit of electronic keypads is quick entry should there become a sudden threat. Mechanical dial locks take longer to open but are more reliable.

The 9v battery lasted 6 years in my winchester safe. It stores the code permanent somehow. Popped in a new battery and no problem. Put your safe in a corner with the back against the wall and the non hinge side against the other. Then bolt it to the floor. For good measure drill the back from the inside and lag it to a wall stud. No this will not stop a determined and experienced thief, but it will slow him down. Most of what is needed to break into the less expensive safes is already in your garage or workshop. Look up youtube videos on how quickly these safes can be broken into with just a large pry bar. the key is getting it tipped over so you can get leverage.

I have two safes and both have dial. In a year or two I'm going to replace them with one very large gun safe and when I do it too will only have a dial. Ive heard too many nightmares from people who have keypads that had to call locksmith to break into their safe because the keypad broke.

I've had my dial safe for 25 years. It failed me the day I was moving. Had to call a locksmith and he got it open, then replaced the tumblers. He said the #1 cause of failure over time was spinning the dial like they do in the movies. Just give it a quick 1/4 turn to relock it.

Keypads are as good or better in every single way, with the exception that you have to occasionally replace the battery.

Get a Dial and buy a Champion... you wont be disappointed...

Every keypad safe I've seen has a back up key for it.

I have dial. I don't need quick access. I have 50 guns. My safe is huge. It holds about 25 of them. Caveat: a good portion (1/4 or so) is shelf space. Several are scoped rifles also. The capacities are measured with what must be unscoped .22s or single shot shotguns....

I have a dial and love it. Why would you need to get into a safe fast. I keep my protection weapon close by.

I use a physical key safe and like it.

I bought a cannon 48 gun from TSC a couple years ago. After about a month, the digital keypad went out. Cannon sent a replacement keypad, which didn't fix the problem. Safe still wouldn't open. Had a locksmith come out and drill into the door to open the stuck lock. Had the keypad replaced with an S&G dial lock at cannons expense. I'll never trust a keypad/electronic entry again. Around two weeks without the ability to access the contents of my safe was nerve racking. Dial locks aren't fool proof, but I trust it more than the flimsy plastic keypad. My 2¢...

Security products, key lock. Only way to go.

Mine, which I've had for 5 or 6 years, has a keypad. In that time the battery has been replaced 2 or 3 times. I'm typically in it once or twice a week. When I set out shopping I was not going to get a keypad model but I couldn't pass the deal despite having the keypad. I've grown to like it but still don't know that I'd get another. Like others have said, the pad will let you know when the battery is running low and will retain the combination when switching batteries. True capacity is much less than marketed capacity. At best, I'd say it's half but that's being generous.

http://www.6mmbr.com/gunsafes.html

-Mickey

I went thru this process umm last year or so. FWIW IMO the best safe I've considered is made in Elm Mott Texas, on I-35, just barely north enough of Waco enough to have it's own exit off of I-35. Can't pull the name this early in the morning but Google is your friend....and what I will buy after finishing the reno on this old house house

Uses a double key entry, with the keys inserted vertically inside an inset in the door, into the locks that are facing down and behind a panel of work hardening Steel that resists drilling the locks.

These are a low volume made on site item, and can be customized completly for Fire rating and additional steel protection, with enough different sizes & standard trim & layout levels to satisfy 98% of folks....before you get into the full custom stuff. You want it, they can build it.

Saw lot's pics on line of battery locks push button gun safes with plastic running down the face of the safe after a fire. S&G dial locks are the industry standard.

But whatever you buy, placement and fastening the safe securely to the concrete floor will help with the #1 entry by bad guys, who either turn the safe on it's back and use a pry bar or beat the door open with a sledge or simply use a powered saw to cut the front of the safe off just behind the front door hinges, which is the other soft spot in volume production safes.

PM me for a Dealer Contact that will help you with an order, when you bill your safe thru him.
Ron

Edited to add:

Security Products
555 S McLennan Dr (aka the north bound I-35 service road)
Elm Mott TX 76640
800-386-2380
www.securityproducts1.com

**Endorsed by the Texas Rangers of "One Riot One Ranger " fame on the Home Page

x2. My battery lasts about 3 years. I seriously doubt the keypads have any more problems than the dials. Plus my wife can open it easily.

I've had my Cannon safe w/keypad for 8+ yrs and never had a problem, I'm in it all the time. Replaced the battery once, and before it told me to. Just put a good battery in it (Energizer Lithium) and you'll be good to go for years.

Dial!