Why Secure Storage of firearms

This blog will cover some WHYs and HOWs of responsible gun storage.

 

 

1. In our Utah CFP class we cover “no unauthorized access to firearms”.

This means would-be criminal theft, and/or irresponsible persons like children or their friends, guests and “contractors” working on your home/appliances.

As a security professional, we know that no system is “hack proof” and so it is with secure gun storage. We are managing/reducing risk and slowing down criminal theft.

Secure Storage Group-Buy until Feb 8th, 2019!
Tracking spreadsheet for group-buy

 

I own two “quick access” pistol boxes that are bolted down and they have tethers too (cable tied to a larger fixture). I realize these are easy to snatch and grab and worry about breaking into the pistol box later. Both my pistol boxes are no longer available, but I do recommend these fortknox pistol safes. Opening and closing them each night/morning allows even faster access at night.

 

2. “You are responsible for your safety”

(do not delegate your safety) is another thing we teach in our CFP class. This means being able to stop an attack, but more likely and statistically in my geo/demographics ensuring you are safe from your own negligence/or unexpected altered mental health due to divorce, depression, job loss, loss of loved one etc .  Being 100% safe and never compromising due to sickness, sleepiness, mood or impairments (medication etc). Taking a 4 day professional training class from MarksmanshipMatters.com will help in both contexts of “safety” (safety to defend/respond & safety from yourself).

I’ve trained with many organizations, none take your own safety from gun handling more serious thank Marksmanship Matters.

I’d like to address being responsible for your own safety in responding to a threat/attack. You do NOT have 10 seconds…or even 5 seconds to retrieve a secured or unsecured firearm during an attack while at home(certainly not from a car). I suggest you carry your Conceal Carry handgun on your person at all times, especially in your home! Even if it is a sub-compact .380 or 9mm, this is way better than a standard capacity long gun that is 5 seconds away from being deployable.

Having a long gun quick accessible during a “possible” lull in the gun fight is not a bad idea. Being able to upgrade from a handgun to a long-gun is everyones ideal “tactical advantage”, but I would not bet on it and go around my home/homestead without the ability to respond quickly to an attack.

Options for quick response with a long-gun (not acceptable to storage unsecured firearms).

 

For long gun quick access, I suggest the SecureIT fastbox.

Advantages of the fastbox.

1. quick access with buttons or key
2. vertical mount
   1. accessories available for vertical mount.
3. Horizontal mount, like under a bed or under a truck seat if that works for your truck.
4. decentralized storage (stores two long guns in vertical position).
   1. Split up long guns in different locations (different rooms or out buildings, trailers etc).
   2. having different codes for different secure storage cabinets.
   3. put some of your guns at your parents/uncles/adult sons/daughters house to “diversify your holdings”.

Checkout WrangleStar’s fastbox video for his van.

My long-gun secure storage solution:

I have several very large “traditional” gun safes, but over time I’ve learned that I should use systems like “SecureIT” gun storage instead of a “firesafe”.

 

Pros of SecureIT Agile  52

1. storage designed to protect your firearms from unauthorized access.
2. storage that protects from scratches/dents and damaged/lost zero optics
3. decentralized storage. buy 3 for the cost of one “costco” safe.
   1. actual storage of ar15 freedom rifles in a “costco” safe is not going to be “24 guns”. Ar15 are wider and deeper than most hunting rifles, so you are not going to get “advertised high density” storage, so why not pick a system that uses cradlegrid technology?
4. bolt multiple agile 52s together so it can’t be “taken” off property
5. excellent “hold down” if transporting/traveling with a secureit fastbox or agile52. Each long gun is cradled and has a bungee tether.
6. ships flat and is easy to move to your new home/apartment.
   1. the cost of a traditional safe moving by a professional mover is $500-600 per safe! Just moving the traditional safe is expensive

 

TIPS

• large screws into wood/concrete to bolt down the secure storage, use an impact drill for large wood screws with washers. Use a hammer drill for concrete.

 

• •  (motion activated LED light, magnetic, powered by AAA batteries)
  • go-magnets are great for storing pistols on the inside of the door
    • • yes, I can beat amazon prices for go-magnets if I don’t need to ship to you.

     

     

     

  • Have a loaded pistol in your safe, in the off chance a monster tortures your loved one and makes you “open your safe”. All guns are always loaded, especially in my safe!
  • Have at least one long gun with a loaded magazine and empty chamber in case quick response with a long gun is needed.
  • Do NOT have rifle cartridges in a chamber, in the event of a fire, most rifle cartridges will go through all the walls in your home and could hit an innocent person/first responder.
  • air tight/water resident steel ammo boxes for safe storage and safe transport. My flood victim friend lost all his ammo because it was in card board boxes and the ammo was swept away in the flood waters.
  • label any “odd system”. not sighted in would be a good label. Or WIP
  • label ammo in ammo cans
  • for high-density, consider gun storage poles
    • 
  • Audit. wether it is a game camera (hidden best you can) or some other technology, you should audit your safe’s access.
  • temperature alerts, like la cross  https://amzn.to/2S4SJmy
    • https://amzn.to/2Wv4f9n alert if water detected
  • professional firefighters say a firesafe is not really going to protect your assets.  storing lots of ammo inside will explode a fully enclosed safe (you need release of gases to avoid gun-safe-bomb.)
  • kids are not responsible 100% of the time over long periods of time. I teach my kids the correct policy, but I put in place controls to protect life if there is 1-2 seconds of irresponsibility.  AKA, your kid could be responsible for thousands of hours, it only takes 1 second to do it wrong and…”I taught them correctly, will not help in a legal situation or worse your kid is depressed and mis-uses your firearms. Buy your kids a secureit, if they get depressed, change the code.
    • I do not believe there is a kid that is not susceptible to risk to the point I would give them full access to deadly weapons.
    • One of my best friends only child, as a teen had an accident and died as a result of not locking up the gun. He was one of the most trained and responsible youths I’ve ever known. I think he had at least 12 days of professional training.

Go-Magnets

• I did notice even with putting the seam side to the firearm, if on thin sheet metal, like the back of my secureit …it would still pull the magnet off WITH the gun cuz the gun metal is so much more “attraction”.
  But on thicker metal, the 2x more strong side of the magnet stays put :
• go magnets are ideal for storing .22 LR because 22 won’t fit on my pistol peg (see below photo).
• if you plan to secure a long-gun, you’ll need two magnets and depending on your gun, you need enough metal and “flat spots” to anchor your long gun to the magnets.