GunVault Biometric Gun Safes - Worst ever

SOCOMII · January 3, 2008, 03:00 PM

I bought 2 GunVault Biometric gun safes. Wow! What pieces of junk. After 6 months of opening them about twice a week for practice, cleaning, matches, they are both broken.

GunVault will not respond to communication left via their contact forms, will not return messages left with Tech Support and customer service, will not answer their phones. I have tried for weeks to get someone other than reception to speak to me to no avail.

My advice is to steer clear of these safes for no other reason than if something DOES happen, too bad for you. At $300+ a pop, it's a mistake I shall never make again.

dan1leg · January 8, 2008, 07:11 PM

Sorry you have had trouble with the biometric safes. I have two standard models and they have been trouble free for years. I tell everyone I meet that keeps a handgun for defense at home that they should get one.

I will steer clear of the biometrics. Maybe the technology just isn't ready for real world use.

My 2 Cents Anyway.

DAN

SOCOMII · January 8, 2008, 11:05 PM

The worst part is that Gunvault appears to have a single soul in charge of technical support. He does not return calls, you cannot leave a message because the voicemail box is always full. They will not reply to queries made through their website.

The FAQ on the GunVault website says if your Biometric Gunvault make a whirl sound and will not open, call Technical Support. Clearly the problem is common.

As a business owner myself I find the way this company does business to be completely disrespectful, arrogant and mean.

I will try and fix it myself thus voiding the chance of having them fix it. What a waste of money. I am glad I did not need to access the contents to proect my family before finding out what an inferior product it is, and what an inferior company Gunvault is.

mcanders · January 9, 2008, 09:31 AM

You could always contact the better business bureau, if they (gunvault) participate. I have had to contact the BBB in the past on several issues and they got things moving for me!

hogdogs · January 10, 2008, 09:17 AM

I am a fan of fingerprint technology. The only ones on my HD shotgun are mine!
Hope you get it worked out!
Brent

ShipWreck · January 10, 2008, 05:47 PM

I think U posted this on another forum too.

The pres of the company is a member of the Beretta Forum. I saw him participate on that forum in a thread about his product.

If U do a search for gun vault on that forum, I'll bet U can quickly find his user ID there and try to PM/Email him.

SOCOMII · January 10, 2008, 07:08 PM

Yeah. Posted to glocktalk and a couple 1911 forums. I'll check out the beretta forum.

I normally take this kind of stuff in stride, as most companies will at least give you the time of day even if it's to tell you you that your SOL via email. And reception saying to leave a message and the VM box being full takes the cake. And this is a month since my first attempt. Plus it was $350 from midway, and my families life depends on it. And they could care less.

I've never experienced anything like their customer service, or lack there of.

ShipWreck · January 10, 2008, 08:49 PM

I have the standard Gunvault - I like it. But yea - I do understand why U are upset...

SOCOMII · January 10, 2008, 09:23 PM

problem found. i guess either the motor is too strong or the cable too weak. the motor spins and pulls the cable which pulls the bar which opens the lock. this will work unless your cable breaks.

Looks to be a serious defect. It appears that since the cable runs out the inside of the clamp on the spidle, the angle of the cable as it attaches to the release rod causes the edge to rub on the cable and eventually cut it.

TheBluesMan · January 10, 2008, 09:32 PM

Interesting. Do you think you can fix it? Looks like it might be a custom part.

Let us know the outcome - and don't let GunVault off the hook. Call them every hour for a day and don't let the receptionist put you into voicemail. The customer service guy obviously isn't doing his job, so you're going to have to make the receptionists life hell for a little while. Call her every twenty minutes from the time she gets there until she leaves. Start out by telling her what you intend to do and perhaps she'll put the guy on the phone so her life isn't miserable.

They should send you a replacement part for free. That is a manufacturer's defect.

Good luck!

SOCOMII · January 10, 2008, 11:26 PM

My best McGyver impersonation. I cut up an AC adapter with some thin copper and used 4 pieces of that which I kept twisting together, so its actually 4 thinner pieces. It works great.

My first attempt was with a paper clip but a solid piece was no good. Needs some inertia as the motor is not that powerful. My best guess is the sharp edge of the piece they clamp on to the motor to hold the end of the OEM cable rubs the steel cable and eventually cuts through it.

On the motor side I used some kind of hitch and soldered it to the larger spindle, then I looped it around the rod and wound it around a couple times on itself and soldered it.

In my solution the motor only moves about half a revolution and does not rub as it sits on the larger spindle instead of coming out the inside edge and rubbing. When it locks the rod is forced away from the motor and the spindle rotates back the way it spun.

It definately appears to be a defect whereby eventually the edge of the spindle clamp will cut through the cable.

I will patent my solution and sue GV if they try and use it

TheBluesMan · January 12, 2008, 09:29 PM

Good solution, but the copper is going to wear out quickly.

See if you can find some galvanized braided picture hanging wire at your local hardware store. That ought to hold up a little better than the copper.

-Dave

glennfish · January 13, 2008, 10:00 AM

I have about a dozen patents for biometrics and worked in the field for a decade before I decided to get a real job.

Biometrics work perfectly well for 80% of the population. Biometrics suck big time for the other 20%. Find out which percentage you're in before you invest in biometric anything.

If you use it in a gun safe, enroll two fingers, one on each hand, avoid paper cuts, gardening, and hand lotion, and don't ever ever sweat.

WWP · January 13, 2008, 01:21 PM

I have a regular gunvault - pushbutton type - not biometric. It had almost two years of daily use when it broke just like SOCOMII describes. I had to use the key to open it. Customer service returned my call in a couple of days. I described the problem and they sent me a brand new Gunvault with instructions to put my broken one back in the box, slap the provided return shipping label on it and drop it off at UPS. Top notch service as far as I'm concerned.

Tim Carpenter · January 25, 2008, 10:19 PM

I bought a BioVault 2.0 about 3 months ago.
Thought it was some cool technology.
I'm less than enchanted with mine also.
Unreliable read on my fingers... sometimes have to drag my finger(s) across the reader up to 10 times.
Zero customer service response.
I now just leave it open when I'm home & remember to close it when I leave the house.
I really feel foolish for buying it.

SOCOMII · January 26, 2008, 12:10 AM

I STILL have had no response from Gunvault.

I redid the mechanism with picture wire as suggested by thebluesman and I feel confdident it will not let me down. also i can check it by looking in the area to the left of the latch.

i have not had many problems with the recognition but i make sure that for the first two prints my finger is as far forward as possible and then add the same finger in different positions a few more times.

with an 8 month old son whose not getting any younger i still feel like it is less tamper-proof than a key or a combo

FreedomRings · March 30, 2008, 12:42 PM

I'm glad I found this blog, and thank you to SOCOMII for doing to dirty work of finding the problem, and maybe, solution for the "If you hear a whirling sound when you try to open your gun vault".

My GunVault GVB2000 is only one month old, one month, and I heard the "whirling" sound last night.

I'm still going to contact, or try to contact, GunVault customer service, and see what kind of spin they give me, but I'm pretty sure I'm just going to void the warrenty and fix it myself.

One month old, and they obviously have had this problem for quite some time if it is in their FAQ's, and they seem content to not fix the problem and lead people to believe that it's no big deal.

Unreal!

Freedom

yourotherleft · March 31, 2008, 12:46 AM

I have the deluxe model. It's been ok so far for 2 years. Hope some of GunVault employees see this complain, so they can get their act right. Good luck.

Jamie Young · April 1, 2008, 11:35 PM

JohnKsa- just told me about this thread because I just had a deluxe model fail on me. I was turning around and the thing would open up as I walked out of the room. I have kids around so I'm pretty upset about this. I'll report back after I talk to Gun Vault. Mine is about 3 1/2 yrs old.

SOCOMII · April 2, 2008, 06:57 AM

I would like to see what kind of support others are able to get out of GV.

Freedom rings, are you able to see the busted cable in the area left where the door locks?

UniversalFrost · April 2, 2008, 02:13 PM

Guys, I am glad i saw this thread. I was going to pick one up, but I have since decided against it based upon the issues you are having with the faulty design and the lack of customer support.

I have since decided to get a DAC safe and since they are way cheaper I was able to get 2 (one for the bedroom and the other for my living room).

Sorry to hear of the problems, but thanks for posting for others to see.

Michael A. Le Lack · April 4, 2008, 06:27 PM

Hey SOCOMII, did you apply for a patent?

contender6030 · April 4, 2008, 06:49 PM

I'll keep my protection on the nightstand or in my belt.

FreedomRings · April 9, 2008, 02:00 AM

Yes, I can clearly see the exact same broken cable that you showed upthread with a flashlight.

The safe is one month old, and same as you, no response of any kind from GunVault.

Oh well, live and learn a little more.

Jamie Young · April 9, 2008, 08:23 AM

I called Gunvault and left a message on Monday. They responded to my message in 30 minutes and I'm in the process of replacing the safe.

I have had no problems with customer service.

January 3, 2008, 03:00 PM	#1
SOCOMII Member Join Date: July 14, 2007 Posts: 39	GunVault Biometric Gun Safes - Worst ever I bought 2 GunVault Biometric gun safes. Wow! What pieces of junk. After 6 months of opening them about twice a week for practice, cleaning, matches, they are both broken. GunVault will not respond to communication left via their contact forms, will not return messages left with Tech Support and customer service, will not answer their phones. I have tried for weeks to get someone other than reception to speak to me to no avail. My advice is to steer clear of these safes for no other reason than if something DOES happen, too bad for you. At $300+ a pop, it's a mistake I shall never make again.

January 8, 2008, 07:11 PM	#2
dan1leg Junior Member Join Date: December 11, 2007 Posts: 2	+2 for Gun Vault Sorry you have had trouble with the biometric safes. I have two standard models and they have been trouble free for years. I tell everyone I meet that keeps a handgun for defense at home that they should get one. I will steer clear of the biometrics. Maybe the technology just isn't ready for real world use. My 2 Cents Anyway. DAN

January 10, 2008, 09:23 PM	#9
SOCOMII Member Join Date: July 14, 2007 Posts: 39	problem found. i guess either the motor is too strong or the cable too weak. the motor spins and pulls the cable which pulls the bar which opens the lock. this will work unless your cable breaks. Looks to be a serious defect. It appears that since the cable runs out the inside of the clamp on the spidle, the angle of the cable as it attaches to the release rod causes the edge to rub on the cable and eventually cut it. Last edited by SOCOMII; January 11, 2008 at 12:30 AM.

January 10, 2008, 09:32 PM	#10
TheBluesMan Moderator Emeritus Join Date: June 15, 1999 Location: Ohio Posts: 7,558	Interesting. Do you think you can fix it? Looks like it might be a custom part. Let us know the outcome - and don't let GunVault off the hook. Call them every hour for a day and don't let the receptionist put you into voicemail. The customer service guy obviously isn't doing his job, so you're going to have to make the receptionists life hell for a little while. Call her every twenty minutes from the time she gets there until she leaves. Start out by telling her what you intend to do and perhaps she'll put the guy on the phone so her life isn't miserable. They should send you a replacement part for free. That is a manufacturer's defect. Good luck! __________________ -Dave Miller ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒΕ! NRA Certified Instructor: Pistol, Rifle, Shotgun, Home Firearms Safety, Personal Protection. Tick-off Obama - Join the NRA Today - Save $10

March 30, 2008, 12:42 PM	#17
FreedomRings Junior Member Join Date: March 30, 2008 Posts: 2	GunVault Bio feedback I'm glad I found this blog, and thank you to SOCOMII for doing to dirty work of finding the problem, and maybe, solution for the "If you hear a whirling sound when you try to open your gun vault". My GunVault GVB2000 is only one month old, one month, and I heard the "whirling" sound last night. I'm still going to contact, or try to contact, GunVault customer service, and see what kind of spin they give me, but I'm pretty sure I'm just going to void the warrenty and fix it myself. One month old, and they obviously have had this problem for quite some time if it is in their FAQ's, and they seem content to not fix the problem and lead people to believe that it's no big deal. Unreal! Freedom

January 8, 2008, 11:05 PM	#3
SOCOMII Member Join Date: July 14, 2007 Posts: 39	The worst part is that Gunvault appears to have a single soul in charge of technical support. He does not return calls, you cannot leave a message because the voicemail box is always full. They will not reply to queries made through their website. The FAQ on the GunVault website says if your Biometric Gunvault make a whirl sound and will not open, call Technical Support. Clearly the problem is common. As a business owner myself I find the way this company does business to be completely disrespectful, arrogant and mean. I will try and fix it myself thus voiding the chance of having them fix it. What a waste of money. I am glad I did not need to access the contents to proect my family before finding out what an inferior product it is, and what an inferior company Gunvault is.

January 9, 2008, 09:31 AM	#4
mcanders Junior Member Join Date: November 2, 2007 Posts: 13	You could always contact the better business bureau, if they (gunvault) participate. I have had to contact the BBB in the past on several issues and they got things moving for me!

January 10, 2008, 09:17 AM	#5
hogdogs Staff In Memoriam Join Date: October 31, 2007 Location: Western Florida panhandle Posts: 11,069	I am a fan of fingerprint technology. The only ones on my HD shotgun are mine! Hope you get it worked out! Brent

January 10, 2008, 05:47 PM	#6
ShipWreck Senior Member Join Date: November 9, 2005 Location: Texas Posts: 1,744	I think U posted this on another forum too. The pres of the company is a member of the Beretta Forum. I saw him participate on that forum in a thread about his product. If U do a search for gun vault on that forum, I'll bet U can quickly find his user ID there and try to PM/Email him.

January 10, 2008, 07:08 PM	#7
SOCOMII Member Join Date: July 14, 2007 Posts: 39	Yeah. Posted to glocktalk and a couple 1911 forums. I'll check out the beretta forum. I normally take this kind of stuff in stride, as most companies will at least give you the time of day even if it's to tell you you that your SOL via email. And reception saying to leave a message and the VM box being full takes the cake. And this is a month since my first attempt. Plus it was $350 from midway, and my families life depends on it. And they could care less. I've never experienced anything like their customer service, or lack there of.

January 10, 2008, 08:49 PM	#8
ShipWreck Senior Member Join Date: November 9, 2005 Location: Texas Posts: 1,744	I have the standard Gunvault - I like it. But yea - I do understand why U are upset...

January 10, 2008, 11:26 PM	#11
SOCOMII Member Join Date: July 14, 2007 Posts: 39	My best McGyver impersonation. I cut up an AC adapter with some thin copper and used 4 pieces of that which I kept twisting together, so its actually 4 thinner pieces. It works great. My first attempt was with a paper clip but a solid piece was no good. Needs some inertia as the motor is not that powerful. My best guess is the sharp edge of the piece they clamp on to the motor to hold the end of the OEM cable rubs the steel cable and eventually cuts through it. On the motor side I used some kind of hitch and soldered it to the larger spindle, then I looped it around the rod and wound it around a couple times on itself and soldered it. In my solution the motor only moves about half a revolution and does not rub as it sits on the larger spindle instead of coming out the inside edge and rubbing. When it locks the rod is forced away from the motor and the spindle rotates back the way it spun. It definately appears to be a defect whereby eventually the edge of the spindle clamp will cut through the cable. I will patent my solution and sue GV if they try and use it

January 12, 2008, 09:29 PM	#12
TheBluesMan Moderator Emeritus Join Date: June 15, 1999 Location: Ohio Posts: 7,558	Good solution, but the copper is going to wear out quickly. See if you can find some galvanized braided picture hanging wire at your local hardware store. That ought to hold up a little better than the copper. -Dave

January 13, 2008, 10:00 AM	#13
glennfish Junior Member Join Date: December 11, 2007 Posts: 7	I have about a dozen patents for biometrics and worked in the field for a decade before I decided to get a real job. Biometrics work perfectly well for 80% of the population. Biometrics suck big time for the other 20%. Find out which percentage you're in before you invest in biometric anything. If you use it in a gun safe, enroll two fingers, one on each hand, avoid paper cuts, gardening, and hand lotion, and don't ever ever sweat.

January 13, 2008, 01:21 PM	#14
WWP Junior Member Join Date: January 26, 2001 Location: San Marcos, TX Posts: 5	I have a regular gunvault - pushbutton type - not biometric. It had almost two years of daily use when it broke just like SOCOMII describes. I had to use the key to open it. Customer service returned my call in a couple of days. I described the problem and they sent me a brand new Gunvault with instructions to put my broken one back in the box, slap the provided return shipping label on it and drop it off at UPS. Top notch service as far as I'm concerned.

January 25, 2008, 10:19 PM	#15
Tim Carpenter Junior Member Join Date: November 2, 2007 Location: Newhall, CA Posts: 12	I bought a BioVault 2.0 about 3 months ago. Thought it was some cool technology. I'm less than enchanted with mine also. Unreliable read on my fingers... sometimes have to drag my finger(s) across the reader up to 10 times. Zero customer service response. I now just leave it open when I'm home & remember to close it when I leave the house. I really feel foolish for buying it.

January 26, 2008, 12:10 AM	#16
SOCOMII Member Join Date: July 14, 2007 Posts: 39	I STILL have had no response from Gunvault. I redid the mechanism with picture wire as suggested by thebluesman and I feel confdident it will not let me down. also i can check it by looking in the area to the left of the latch. i have not had many problems with the recognition but i make sure that for the first two prints my finger is as far forward as possible and then add the same finger in different positions a few more times. with an 8 month old son whose not getting any younger i still feel like it is less tamper-proof than a key or a combo

March 31, 2008, 12:46 AM	#18
yourotherleft Senior Member Join Date: May 4, 2006 Posts: 105	I have the deluxe model. It's been ok so far for 2 years. Hope some of GunVault employees see this complain, so they can get their act right. Good luck.

April 1, 2008, 11:35 PM	#19
Jamie Young Senior Member Join Date: April 7, 2000 Location: SE/PA Posts: 4,834	JohnKsa- just told me about this thread because I just had a deluxe model fail on me. I was turning around and the thing would open up as I walked out of the room. I have kids around so I'm pretty upset about this. I'll report back after I talk to Gun Vault. Mine is about 3 1/2 yrs old. __________________ Find out about Gun Shows and Training activities. www.TheRallyPoint.org Get your gun club involved!!

April 2, 2008, 06:57 AM	#20
SOCOMII Member Join Date: July 14, 2007 Posts: 39	I would like to see what kind of support others are able to get out of GV. Freedom rings, are you able to see the busted cable in the area left where the door locks?

April 2, 2008, 02:13 PM	#21
UniversalFrost Senior Member Join Date: February 20, 2006 Location: Ohio Posts: 2,300	Guys, I am glad i saw this thread. I was going to pick one up, but I have since decided against it based upon the issues you are having with the faulty design and the lack of customer support. I have since decided to get a DAC safe and since they are way cheaper I was able to get 2 (one for the bedroom and the other for my living room). Sorry to hear of the problems, but thanks for posting for others to see. __________________ Lifetime member VFW and NRA "Quando Omni Flunkus Moritati" (when all else fails play dead) -Red Green

April 4, 2008, 06:27 PM	#22
Michael A. Le Lack Member Join Date: March 31, 2008 Location: PA & FL Posts: 47	Mother of invention Hey SOCOMII, did you apply for a patent?

April 4, 2008, 06:49 PM	#23
contender6030 Senior Member Join Date: May 21, 2006 Location: backwoods, GA Posts: 306	I'll keep my protection on the nightstand or in my belt. __________________ ONE SHOT!!If you miss, Reload!

April 9, 2008, 02:00 AM	#24
FreedomRings Junior Member Join Date: March 30, 2008 Posts: 2	Socomii Yes, I can clearly see the exact same broken cable that you showed upthread with a flashlight. The safe is one month old, and same as you, no response of any kind from GunVault. Oh well, live and learn a little more.

April 9, 2008, 08:23 AM	#25
Jamie Young Senior Member Join Date: April 7, 2000 Location: SE/PA Posts: 4,834	I called Gunvault and left a message on Monday. They responded to my message in 30 minutes and I'm in the process of replacing the safe. I have had no problems with customer service. __________________ Find out about Gun Shows and Training activities. www.TheRallyPoint.org Get your gun club involved!!