Safes

[Fadeingstar]

Hello Forum,

Recently I have been aquireing more and more precious metals and the time has come for me to have a serious think about how to store them long term. Currently they are in a couple of coin boxes with moisture absorbers inside. I am thinking that a safe of some description would be the best way to go. I was wondering if anyone had any recommendations of decent safes.

Thanks

[BrumChris]

All I can suggest is to get something sturdy rather than the ultra cheap ones. Also consider a decent level of fire protection.

Have you considered a bank safety deposit box rather than storing precious metals at home?

[Stacktastic]

If i was to buy a safe I think I would upgrade my shotgun cabinet to one of these (I will probably have to if i get a firearms certificate).
I would say it has more than enough security & possibly a lot more room for a silver stacker with KG of stuff. 
Failing that I would possibly look for a second hand one. More importantly I think how much of a deterrent is the premises its stored in?
Can you put a heavy door with a deadlock on the room you have the safe in and other security like CCTV. 

 

[dicker]

49 minutes ago, Stacktastic said:

If i was to buy a safe I think I would upgrade my shotgun cabinet to one of these (I will probably have to if i get a firearms certificate).
I would say it has more than enough security & possibly a lot more room for a silver stacker with KG of stuff. 
Failing that I would possibly look for a second hand one. More importantly I think how much of a deterrent is the premises its stored in?
Can you put a heavy door with a deadlock on the room you have the safe in and other security like CCTV. 

 

I have a firearms safe which I don’t use for PMs - all mine is in a vault. 
 

I lost the keys a few years ago and I was surprised how quickly the locksmith was able to pick the lock - and it’s a decent firearms safe!

Best

Dicker

[Stacktastic]

23 minutes ago, dicker said:

I have a firearms safe which I don’t use for PMs - all mine is in a vault. 
 

I lost the keys a few years ago and I was surprised how quickly the locksmith was able to pick the lock - and it’s a decent firearms safe!

Best

Dicker

Same here. Ah OK then. what's the safe out of interest?
I know the cheaper ones can be easily cut open with a disk cutter, although that makes quite a bit of noise LOL. 

[dicker]

It is a Brattonsound - 5 gun safe.  Not sure which model it is however.

Best

Dicker

[tpcob303]

Safety deposit boxes are a big no for me, during these difficult financial times my concern would be a run on the banks, followed by them closing and stopping access to them. Get something big and sturdy and very difficult to lift. 

[Stacktastic]

20 hours ago, dicker said:

It is a Brattonsound - 5 gun safe.  Not sure which model it is however.

Industry standard then (the police officer recommended that brand), that's very surprising! 

[Fadeingstar]

I do have a firearms safe that I keep mine and my dads shotgun in the only problem being is that it is at his house bolted to wall. I think a firearms safe will be the way to kill 2 birds with one stone as it were. Not that my girlfriend will be to happy about it!

[Stacktastic]

2 hours ago, Fadeingstar said:

I do have a firearms safe that I keep mine and my dads shotgun in the only problem being is that it is at his house bolted to wall. I think a firearms safe will be the way to kill 2 birds with one stone as it were. Not that my girlfriend will be to happy about it!

Look into the Lokaway series for sure, they are very affordable & come quite well regarded too. I do wonder if a keypad safe is far better as there are no locks to pick?
I only have one gun in my safe (£300 ATA), but the keys are in a key safe elsewhere as I have two children, My wife does not even know the code. 
Im planning on buying some collectible shotguns at auction when I have some spare money, so it might be worth looking at a safer storage solution? 

I would suggest perhaps splitting things up. Get a key safe for proofs & gold for example & put it under floor boards or something?? 
If anyone was to target you they would probably find it easier just robbing you at knife or gun point tbh. At least they will think they have everything.

[dicker]

11 hours ago, Stacktastic said:

Industry standard then (the police officer recommended that brand), that's very surprising! 

Interestingly, most locks are relatively easily compromised without much experience and basic tools.  
 

The locksmith I used was one who fitted the safe for me in the first place.  
 

I think I have mentioned before that if you get a safe professionally fitted, this may make you a target - depending on who does it.  I have a friend who was robbed of a lot of jewellery 18 months after having a safe installed in a very unusual place.  I have also heard the same for insurance and paintings.  When you let people know you have valuables at home you could be a target.  I know this is rare but from what I have heard this does happen....

Best

Dicker

[Robda1986]

Look at 2nd hand vintage safes not built to a cost, weigh a frigging tone cost effective and little to no chance of an unlocking video on YouTube 

[Stacktastic]

22 hours ago, dicker said:

Interestingly, most locks are relatively easily compromised without much experience and basic tools.  

i have a lock picking set and I can get into our bedroom lock in very little time. With some practice I could do more complicated door locks, although i have A £85 one on my front door & thats supposed to be very difficult. 

1 minute ago, Robda1986 said:

Look at 2nd hand vintage safes not built to a cost, weigh a frigging tone cost effective and little to no chance of an unlocking video on YouTube 

Wise words with regards to Youtube, cost in the heavy duty sack truck to move it LOL. 
You also dont have to pay the VAT second hand, I bet a lot of commercial properties are being left at the moment, so decent safes are probably rife, especially in Bars & Nightclubs. 

[jonrms]

I am not only a retired Paramedic, but I still am a RCO and Instructor for firearms.  

I have NEVER seen anyone get through the safes and I don't think the make you a target. After all you do not need " professionals " to install it. Raw plugs 6-8 inches hidden in a exterior wall and floor. Concealed if possible.  Oh and you can even disguise them too. Double locks are best. 

Manual no computers!!! If you have an alarm be sure to set up something specific for that room. My firearms is wired to contact the police. 

Its best to buy a few smaller ones if you can not afford 2 larger ones. Because spreading the locations helps. 

Never put them in areas a plumber or gas heating engineer might have to go. oooh I remember British gas opening the wrong door 🚨 

 

Scared him and he never got to see anything 😂😂😂😂😂

[Foster88]

My parents have an old safe in their garage, it was already there when they bought the house and I’d say it’s 1920’s or a little earlier, Edwardian maybe.

It looks like the one in the film Titanic.* 😂

Its about 3ft x 2ft but nobody can shift it. The bolts on the lock are over an inch thick. I often wondered why somebody would keep it in a garage of all places but then again it would need a forklift truck to move it.

It must be worth a bit for its antique value alone.

* The 1997 Titanic film, when Jack paints Rose as one of his French girls. If you ignore the scene when she’s got her melons out and look behind her it’s a safe like that. 😆

I’m sure those who’ve seen the film noticed the safe. 😂

[Oldun]

Please tell me they have a key and opened it, just in case there was treasure inside

 

[Bratnia]

On 25/09/2020 at 11:23, Stacktastic said:

I would suggest perhaps splitting things up. 

If anyone was to target you they would probably find it easier just robbing you at knife or gun point tbh. At least they will think they have everything.

Even the toughest of safes can be opened with a knife - under threat of open it or else, and .. you want to leave enough in the safe for satisfaction. Creatively you can hide things amongst everyday items, search around and you'll see things like inside vacuum cleaners, paint tins, clocks, flower pots, fake plumbing, ironing board, old tower PC/other old electronics devices, curtain rails, torches, loo roll spindle, holes bored into tops of doors, bookcase shelve ...etc. Perhaps even buried in the garden - a pet cemetery 'here lies Goldy' :) 

[Stacktastic]

6 hours ago, Bratnia said:

 under threat of open it

Creatively you can hide things 

Thats the reality of things. If someone wants to rob you in a targeted raid, they will do it by force. best thing is not to be flash! A good offence is also a good defence. 
That would be the key I recon, but it would have to be a lockable device, you dont want to window cleaner or local neighbours child finding it. 

9 hours ago, Oldun said:

Please tell me they have a key and opened it, just in case there was treasure inside

 

My thought precisely.

I have to say that there was a spurge of safe blowing, picking, cracking, scoping and drilling with the old safes back in the day, because the old locks were just not great. 
Makes me wonder how good the old safes are when you ignore the weight? It fell out of favour at some point as technology caught up. 

On 28/09/2020 at 21:30, jonrms said:

Because spreading the locations helps. 

Thats what I think - I recon you could put a lot of gold in just one of those Key safes. 

[HighlandTiger]

As someone who in a past life worked as a new store project manager for a retail company, we always installed floor safes. So unless you rent, live in a flat or a caravan, I'd always recommend something like this. (thieves arent going to get into this unless they have a jackhammer to hand)

 

[MrTT]

7 hours ago, HighlandTiger said:

As someone who in a past life worked as a new store project manager for a retail company, we always installed floor safes. So unless you rent, live in a flat or a caravan, I'd always recommend something like this. (thieves arent going to get into this unless they have a jackhammer to hand)

 

Very awesome 👍

[coinz123]

I use to be a safe locksmith for approximately 5years, there are safes and there are safes. 

for example a Dudley safes is probably top of the mediocre safes not to cheap and not too expensive.  Most of these have Maurer locks. 
 

An extreme example from  here is safes like your Chubb isolators and Chubb sovereign.  These safes usually a lot heavier and thicker walls. And have glass in the doors that smash if you drill them. 

Something that fits in the middle of these two types of safes is a make called the SMP safe, its heavy, thick walls, anti drill glass in the door with wires and drop pins and small enough for residential.

These safes are key operated, if you want a combo wheel operated safe look for something like the Sargent & green leaf.  Or you can get something like the LaGuard 39e lock installed for things like dual control and time delays. These locks can even be plugged into a laptop to tell you when your safe was last opened.
 

Something else to also take into consideration is that safes all have different insurance ratings. 
 

hope this helped.
 

 

[silenceissilver]

My advice would be, dismiss anything:
that costs less than 1000 Pounds
that weighs less than a quarter of a ton (some recommend half a ton or even 3 quarters of a ton as minimum)
that is old (and thus has an outdated lock and generally outdated technology)

Buy a second cheaper safe and put some fake jewellery in it, some first class Chinese fake coins and bars too, if you want. Hide it in the house too but hide the primary safe a bit better.

As for knifes or guns pointed at you - there are time locks and alarms - and the second safe for handing over the fake jewellery.

No one can open my safe in less than one hour, including myself, unless you blast the whole house into a million pieces. By that time, the police should be at the scene.

 

[coinz123]

2 hours ago, silenceissilver said:

My advice would be, dismiss anything:
that costs less than 1000 Pounds
that weighs less than a quarter of a ton (some recommend half a ton or even 3 quarters of a ton as minimum)
that is old (and thus has an outdated lock and generally outdated technology)

Buy a second cheaper safe and put some fake jewellery in it, some first class Chinese fake coins and bars too, if you want. Hide it in the house too but hide the primary safe a bit better.

As for knifes or guns pointed at you - there are time locks and alarms - and the second safe for handing over the fake jewellery.

No one can open my safe in less than one hour, including myself, unless you blast the whole house into a million pieces. By that time, the police should be at the scene.

 

👍 yes this exactly. 

[Foster88]

On 01/10/2020 at 23:14, Oldun said:

Please tell me they have a key and opened it, just in case there was treasure inside

 

I’ll have to get back to you on that. 🤔

[Foster88]

Speaking of safes and hiding things. I once knew a man who wanted to hide some cash, I think from you know who.

Anyway, he had a few acres of land on his property so he bundled a load of £50’s in bin bags all wrapped up safely, or so he thought and he buried it on his land.

One day I noticed his land looked like he was struggling with a problem with giant moles. Holes and mounds of soil everywhere. So I asked what had happened and like a sketch from Laurel and Hardy, he’d forgotten where he’d buried the bloody thing. 😂

He only had a few acres to dig!! You couldn’t make it up.

Thats a true story.

He did find it eventually and you’ve guessed it, all the notes were wet and soiled. No plastic money then.