Homemade Gun Safes
Many states have passed laws requiring gun owners to keep their firearms securely locked up when not in use. Dedicated gun safes are expensive, and are too heavy for many interior floors. Creating a safe firearm storage area is a simple and inexpensive project. It should take less than one hour of work for a competent do-it-yourselfer. Any hardware store will have necessary parts, and with a bit of shopping and patience suitable cabinets can be found.
Things You'll Need
- One heavy duty, two door steel storage cabinet
- 2 heavy duty clasp locks with smooth headed bolts/matching nuts
- 2 heavy duty locks with matching key or combination
- Electric drill with drill bit set
- (optional) Drywall
- (optional) Drywall cutter
- (optional) Measuring tape
- (optional) Dismantled wine racks
- (optional) All purpose glue
- (optional) Vinyl wood veneer covering
- Steel job box, heavy duty
Instructions
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Steel Storage Cabinet
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1
Obtain a heavy duty, vertical two-door steel supply cabinet that will provide ample storage for your guns. Plan for expansion if you think you may obtain more guns in the future.
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2
Remove the lower two shelves if you are storing long guns. If simple fire protection is desired, glue drywall onto the interior walls.
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3
Disassemble a wine rack and mount the part that held the neck of the bottles to the rear inner wall of the cabinet at the proper height to hold the long guns upright.
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4
Paint the cabinet, or cover with wallpaper or vinyl veneer if desired.
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5
Drill front door holes about two feet from the bottom of the cabinet and two feet from the top. Use bolts and nuts to attach clasps to the doors, making sure that the smooth top of the bolt is outside the cabinet. Place a lock on each clasp and secure the doors.
Steel Job Box
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6
Obtain a heavy duty, steel job box that has deep wells instead of multiple storage cabinets. This is the kind of box workers might keep tools in at a job site. Make sure it is either long or high enough to fit any long guns you may want to store.
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7
Modify the interior to provide separate storage for the long guns to avoid knocking the guns together. Each job box is different and will have to be modified to fit the particular box. This type of storage is often already provided in more expensive job boxes.
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8
Attach locks on the front of the job box, in a manner similar to the storage cabinet if there is no existing lock.
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1
Tips & Warnings
Drill up to 12 2-inch screws through the back of the cabinet or job box and into wall studs for extra security.
A gun-safe dehumidifier is an inexpensive investment that protects your firearms.
Make a simple long gun support by cutting one half inch "v grooves" into a 2-inch by 4-inch board.
Used storage cabinets and job boxes often can be found in the classified ads.
Do not depend solely upon a gun safe to protect your firearms. Use a layered protection with high quality door locks, lighting and an alarm system.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit gun image by dinostock from Fotolia.com
