So I had my first child on Saturday (a healthy boy) and have been looking around at the better ways to keep a self defense handgun. I want it readily and easily accessible but safe and out of reach of children. I've seen options, but want first hand experience from y'all. What do you dad's out there use? I thought I've seen a thread like this before but couldn't find one using search function (it sucks).
Best way to keep home defense firearm
- Thread starter Saintsfan6
- Start date
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Congratulations on the baby boy!
One bit of advice is once the baby gets older never access guns in front of children because they will copy your every move.
I have a daughter and for he most part you have about a year or so before you really have to worry about it. But that being said, keep your ccw ON you. You don't have to worry about them finding it. Also i bought two speed safes at Costco when they were on sale.
http://www.homedepot.com/p/GunVault...gclsrc=aw.ds&dclid=CInNm8XardYCFQ6-Twod1EkMzQ
This is the one I bought. Think they were 60 bucks each. Find convenient places to mount them and drop your pistol in.
https://www.sportsmansguide.com/pro...MIqOuD4tqt1gIVBAdpCh1bxQFJEAQYASABEgIMePD_BwE
You can put one of these in a closet or behind a large picture. I had one at my old house, served its purpose. Kept important documents in mine though.
There's a YouTube video on how to make your own "tactical walls".
http://www.academy.com/shop/pdp/sta...se-with-combination-lock#repChildCatid=372266
I have 4 of these. Good to loop around the frame of your car seats and lock up your gun when you go somewhere where guns are not allowed. Also can leave a gun on the counter top at home when you don't want your toddler to get to it but not worried about theft.
My daughter is pushing two now. She doesn't ever grab any of my guns but will ask to see a rifle from time to time. All guns are locked up at all times minus the one on my. Body. My guns are all in my safes though, those lock boxes are secondary places for when I'm just getting home and have not put them in the safe yet
http://www.homedepot.com/p/GunVault...gclsrc=aw.ds&dclid=CInNm8XardYCFQ6-Twod1EkMzQ
This is the one I bought. Think they were 60 bucks each. Find convenient places to mount them and drop your pistol in.
https://www.sportsmansguide.com/pro...MIqOuD4tqt1gIVBAdpCh1bxQFJEAQYASABEgIMePD_BwE
You can put one of these in a closet or behind a large picture. I had one at my old house, served its purpose. Kept important documents in mine though.
There's a YouTube video on how to make your own "tactical walls".
http://www.academy.com/shop/pdp/sta...se-with-combination-lock#repChildCatid=372266
I have 4 of these. Good to loop around the frame of your car seats and lock up your gun when you go somewhere where guns are not allowed. Also can leave a gun on the counter top at home when you don't want your toddler to get to it but not worried about theft.
My daughter is pushing two now. She doesn't ever grab any of my guns but will ask to see a rifle from time to time. All guns are locked up at all times minus the one on my. Body. My guns are all in my safes though, those lock boxes are secondary places for when I'm just getting home and have not put them in the safe yet
Congrats on the new young one. Just wait until he's self propelled, then nothing is safe! Here's my advice: Large frame semiautomatic pistol with a loaded magazine in place but nothing in the chamber. If you or your wife needs it just rack the slide. When (not if) your son gets his hands on it he can't pull the slide back. By the time he's strong enough to rack it he should know how & when to use it. I knew how to strip & shoot the Browning P-35 that Dad brought back from Europe about 2 years before I could rack the slide. Having it locked up in a safe is useless at 2AM when Johnny Crackhead kicks in your door.
Check out the Gunvault product line - I sell a lot of the MV500 bedside safes at my gun store and believe in them. They come with or without biometrics and if the biometric fails, they have a 3 to 5 finger push combination you can set. After opening and closing it regularly, you can be in the safe in 3 seconds, which should be fast enough when you hear the bump in the night.
https://smile.amazon.com/Stack-On-I...ie=UTF8&qid=1505709280&sr=8-1&keywords=IWC-11
Fits between 2 studs, hang a picture over it (or not....or remove picture when you go to bed at night).
Not a safe and can easily be pried open with tools, but will easily keep little hands off of whatever you store in there UNTIL they are old enough to know they can hold it any time they like, provided they ask you first.
Fits between 2 studs, hang a picture over it (or not....or remove picture when you go to bed at night).
Not a safe and can easily be pried open with tools, but will easily keep little hands off of whatever you store in there UNTIL they are old enough to know they can hold it any time they like, provided they ask you first.
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When my grandchildren (6 &10) are around the house it is either concealed on me or in a portable locked gun vault with the key on a chain around my neck. The oldest knows I carry a gun but never tries to see it. Whenever I get the chance I take them shooting.
https://www.amazon.com/SnapSafe-X-L...F8&qid=1505742889&sr=1-5&keywords=pistol+case
https://www.amazon.com/SnapSafe-X-L...F8&qid=1505742889&sr=1-5&keywords=pistol+case
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Congrats on the addition to the family.
I use a Fas1Safe, it features a quick manual lock and very solid construction. I have it bolted to my bed frame and am very satisfied with this option.
http://products.fas1safe.com/produc...B523.p3plqscsfapp003?productId=2&categoryId=1
I did have one of those Sportsman's Guide hallow frames for a few years when my children were no way physically able to access it.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I use a Fas1Safe, it features a quick manual lock and very solid construction. I have it bolted to my bed frame and am very satisfied with this option.
http://products.fas1safe.com/produc...B523.p3plqscsfapp003?productId=2&categoryId=1
I did have one of those Sportsman's Guide hallow frames for a few years when my children were no way physically able to access it.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Vaultek is what i use. If its not on my belt its locked in the vaultek. small enough to place on the night stand and not get in the way and big enough to hold the firearm and extra mag. three different sizes with or biometrics. pretty solid as well. i have even brought it with me on road trips to lock up in vehicle when you can't carry in certain places. https://vaulteksafe.com/index.php/s...MIsbDcnq-v1gIVjFqGCh3m0Qr6EAAYASAAEgIUXvD_BwE
I tried a small Barska biometric safe. Playing around with it I discovered it's print recognition was way too finicky. If you didn't place your finger exactly correct it would not unlock. It was worse if I had been working with my hands a lot (woodworking, landscaping, etc) causing my prints to be torn up.
That's not exactly what I would want to rely on in case I needed immediate access.
That's not exactly what I would want to rely on in case I needed immediate access.
When my kids were young I always had a quick access safe. I used a Gun Vault finger pattern safe. Worst thing was when the battery dies and I had to plug it in. I either had the gun in a holster or in that safe. If you get a reasonably sized safe you can move it around to different rooms as needed. My daughter confiscated that safe from me when she moved out and is still using it today. The biometrics are pretty good today. As an aside, I always taught my kids to include their friends about firearms emphasizing if they ever found a gun in the house they were to leave immediately. I also spoke to their parents asking them to do the same. I never had a problem.
I got a HD100 QuickVault free with my big Liberty Safe, even though I don't have kids I tossed my bedside gun in it. Pretty easy finger pattern combination and it fits a full size 1911 with light and an extra mag. It comes with a steel cable to secure it around something heavy, I used my bed frame. Pretty sure you can also bolt it down.
Congratulations on the new month to feed.
Back in the day people had gun without the fancy lock boxes and kids were not shooting their selves. But that was before guns became evil. Now if you don't keep your guns locked up, you are a bad parent.
Like stated before, you have a little time before your new little bag of fun is off exploring the deep dark corners of your living quarters.
I've got three of my own, two full grown and one that's 13. I kept the guns out of their reach or ammo locked away and somehow they survived. When they were at the age that curiosity started to get the better of them, guns were not totally off limits. Just keep in mind that Curiosity killed the cat and the kid too. They were allowed to look at guns and even hold them, but they were also thought that to look at them all they had to do was ask.
As they grow teach gun safety, just the same as you teach them not to cook their body parts on the stove, or play with electronics in the tube.
Enjoy the time while he's little because before you know it he will be asking for the car keys or shooting up your ammo stash.
Back in the day people had gun without the fancy lock boxes and kids were not shooting their selves. But that was before guns became evil. Now if you don't keep your guns locked up, you are a bad parent.
Like stated before, you have a little time before your new little bag of fun is off exploring the deep dark corners of your living quarters.
I've got three of my own, two full grown and one that's 13. I kept the guns out of their reach or ammo locked away and somehow they survived. When they were at the age that curiosity started to get the better of them, guns were not totally off limits. Just keep in mind that Curiosity killed the cat and the kid too. They were allowed to look at guns and even hold them, but they were also thought that to look at them all they had to do was ask.
As they grow teach gun safety, just the same as you teach them not to cook their body parts on the stove, or play with electronics in the tube.
Enjoy the time while he's little because before you know it he will be asking for the car keys or shooting up your ammo stash.
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LOCK LOCK LOCK it up. Gun vault and similar products are great there are simplex mechanical locks (fort knox makes one of these) if you worry about batteries and spare keys.
I once had a friend explain how his guns where so high his children wouldn't possibly be able to find them, literally in the background I watched his youngest push a chair to the kitchen table and use it to climb on top of the table to play with the light fixture above the table.
Tactical walls and "hiding" are asking for a curious kid to find them. Imagine yourself as a kid finding or figuring out how to open a secret chamber, if it's me I'm definitely playing with what is inside.
I once had a friend explain how his guns where so high his children wouldn't possibly be able to find them, literally in the background I watched his youngest push a chair to the kitchen table and use it to climb on top of the table to play with the light fixture above the table.
Tactical walls and "hiding" are asking for a curious kid to find them. Imagine yourself as a kid finding or figuring out how to open a secret chamber, if it's me I'm definitely playing with what is inside.
