Quick access handgun Biometric/finger combo safe recommendations?

OcelotZ3 · Jun 28, 2013

I have a biometric. I scanned my finger in numerous positions, maybe 10 times, and I don't have any issue with it recognizing my fingerprint. My wife can also open it easily without trying to remember the code.

OLDNEWBIE · Jun 30, 2013

OcelotZ3 said:
I have a biometric. I scanned my finger in numerous positions, maybe 10 times, and I don't have any issue with it recognizing my fingerprint. My wife can also open it easily without trying to remember the code.

Had it very long? What brand? If you had a cut or a dirty finger would it still work?
That last question sounded weird. :s0131:

8ball · Jun 30, 2013

GunVaults are Chinese junk and even a child can open one. I wouldn't store an Uncle Mikes holster in one.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/marcweb...-gun-safes-can-be-opened-by-a-three-year-old/

Fort Knox is better quality. Simplex locks can be defeated easily with a strong magnet but they are at least reliable.

http://youtu.be/5hHKVvUdPx4

Nick Burkhardt · Jun 30, 2013

That was one style of door handle Simplex lock with a flaw that was later fixed and not representative of strong box Simplex locks surrounded by heavy steel.

OcelotZ3 · Jun 30, 2013

Mine is a Gunvault, and I've had it for about a year and a half.

I don't expect this to keep determined folks out (all they have to do is cut the cable and haul it off).

8ball · Jul 2, 2013

Nick Burkhardt said:
That was one style of door handle Simplex lock with a flaw that was later fixed and not representative of strong box Simplex locks surrounded by heavy steel.

Sure, the magnet was a shortcut. But I've seen a regular Simplex lock opened in about 15 minutes with no tools and no magnet. The search space is just over 1000 combinations. It might seem tedious but it can be done. I wouldn't trust a Simplex to keep out a smart kid with Internet access.

http://www.tech-faq.com/how-to-open-a-simplex-lock.html

Nick Burkhardt · Jul 2, 2013

Thanks, we got it for car storage as we are licensed to carry in Washington, Idaho, Utah and 28 other states, but not our native Oregon yet since our local Sheriff is too under funded to process CCW applications in a timely manner.

Wouldn't electronic Guntvault type locks be subject to the same guessing sequence?

I really like the Shotlock and am thinking of getting a second one to mount on the side of our nightstand. Faster than jumping out of bed and unlocking the six digit code on our big safe which is where guns go when we are gone from the house.

edogg · Jul 2, 2013

Two things about a 3 year old opening on of these safes:

1) if the safe is attached to a wall, a kid can't pick it up and drop it to pop the mechanism. So attach it to a wall. Also, that keeps someone from just walking off with the safe to open it later.

2) in the video, no GunVaults are used. Not sure if the video maker didn't have one on hand or if the kid couldn't open it. For what its worth, the SpeedVault opening mechanism is in the back. And I don't think the DeluxeVault has the little holes in the front to stick a screwdriver through.

As for guessing the combination, a GunVault electronic lock can reuse the same number. A Simplex lock cannot. For example, you can use a combination of 1212 on a GunVault but not a Simplex. Also you can press multiple buttons at the same time on a GunVault. A valid combination could be 1+2 together, 3+4 together, and 1+2+3+4 (all buttons) together.

DeanfromOregon · Jul 2, 2013

8ball said:
GunVaults are Chinese junk

Sturdy, but hard to fit under the bed...

8ball · Jul 3, 2013

Nick Burkhardt said:
Wouldn't electronic Guntvault type locks be subject to the same guessing sequence?

No, because it's a function of the mechanical Simplex lock. But a Fort Knox with a Simplex is still better than a Gunvault. The problem with Gunvault is poor design, cheap materials and lack of QA. Apart from that, I'm sure they are fine.

8ball · Jul 3, 2013

Marc Tobias, a gun advocate and security expert wrote a detailed report last year highlighting the issues with Stack On, Gun Vault and other cheap Chinese safes, after a young child in Vancouver WA retrieved a gun from a Stack On and killed himself. There is blow by blow video on this page showing exactly how each of these safes fail in multiple ways.

http://www.thesidebar.org/insecurity/?p=793

This paragraph is particularly instructive on how much the manufacturers care about the quality of these products.

In April of this year I initially contacted the Vice President of Marketing for Stack-On, Steve Martin to ask if I could visit their facility near Chicago to do a story on gun safes because they were the leader in the industry. He told me that their company generated $100,000,000 a year and that “they did not talk to the media.” I then told him that we had examined several of their safes and found every one of them to be easily opened, even by kids. He did not ask one question. I offered to send him links to the videos that we produced. He was not interested. I offered to come to Chicago to brief his engineering team on the design problems. Again, he was not interested. There has been absolutely no follow-up by Stack-On. In my world, that means that they either know of the problems and were concerned about their liability, or they do not care. Either way, it places any consumer at potential risk if they purchase these Stack-On containers until the security flaws are remedied.

...

I have had discussions about the DOJ standards with Office of Attorney General in California in the past in connection with gun locks. I have also met with senior crime lab personnel for DOJ who were on the standards committee. Those standards are woefully inadequate and do not address any of the issues that we found in any of the gun safes that we tested. If the Standards do not cover a method of entry, then they are meaningless.

I contacted Kent Kelsey, the General Counsel for Cabelas, headquartered in Sydney, Nebraska and had a detailed discussion with him regarding our findings and furnished his company with all of our videos. He indicated that he clearly understood the liability of any vendor that would continue to sell such products. I have attempted to call and email him several times since our discussions but the company has refused to respond and will not issue a statement. They continue to sell what we believe are defective products.

After reading that report, does anyone still think these products represent a good choice to secure your firearms and your safety?