Sentry Safe products-real world adequate?

[mjrodney]

I'm beginning to see more Sentry Safes in local stores.

First they were just the low document safes but now I see gun safes as well.

I'll assume they are not built to the level of a Ft. Knox, but for the usual and prevailing smash and grab, eight minutes and gone type of burglary, are they enough if bolted down securely?

I know they would not likely survive a sledge or a heavy axe, but how many of those type of attacks actually take place in an urban environment?

Anyone have any real world experience with this sort of thing?

[ITEOTWAWKI]

You get what you pay for. Any other gunsafe this size would weigh twice as much. But that being said, I feel it's an adequate storage for my guns...better than behind doors and in closets.

[mikejonestkd]

I have a sentry 12 gun model, its ok but not up to par with the ' real ' gun safes out there.

I did a few things that will help deter the average crack head trashing a house looking for easy items to steal.

1. It is bolted into the concrete floor in 4 places with 3" masonary anchors.
2. It is bolted into the corner that I placed it in into the masonary blocks on both sides that touch the block in 4 places per side with tapcons.
3. It is positioned so that the hinge side is towards the room and the opening side is closer to the wall - it makes it impossible for someone to get a long pry bar into the door opening side.
4. There is a steel pole that supports my Ibeam in my basement that it located right near the safe - it makes it very difficult for someone to swing a sledgehammer and pound on the safe.
5. I built a wall on the exposed side of the safe and poured concrete in it, with rebar and mesh inside.
6. The whole thing is concealed behind a false panel in a room - concealment is very important...

All in all it is a decent product but not a " real " safe. There are better options and I am looking into a better product in the near future.

[OneInTheChamber]

It is way better than any gun cabinet; which is way better than nothing.

Properly bolted down, it isn't going anywhere without major force (like using a tow truck to drag it out... I heard of that happening).

As far as prying and smashing go, I don't see that helping. That will only bend the frame and really make the door stuck.

With a good torch, pretty much any safe is fair game given time.

No smash and grab burglar brings a torch with him.

The nicest thing is you can move it with a few buddies (me and my dad moved mine in with a dolly).

I won't disclose how mine is bolted down (you never know), but it is very, very secure.

[ITEOTWAWKI]

I managed to move a 10 gun safe into my house by myself. Only 185 lbs and a not a friend in sight...

[hksigwalther]

I have one of the 22 gun models. (500+ lbs empty)

IMO, if you get one of the bigger ones, it'll do OK if all you are looking for is something the non-hard core burglers won't bother with other than beating on the handle. Certainly not as well built as a regular gun RSC.

[a1abdj]

It depends on which model you are looking at.

Some of the unlined Sentry safes use thicker steel than some of your big name options. Their downside is that many of these same safes do not use mechanical locks, and lack additional vital security measures.

Sentry also produces some higher end type gun safes which are probably just as good as many of the similar brand names available.

The "You get what you pay for" is definately true, especially with safes. Although there are exceptions, you should plan on spending 10% of the value of the contents on the safe.

[ITEOTWAWKI]

I would have gotten a larger one but I figured that trusting your guns to an electronic keypad was a bad Idea. Trusting it to a plastic walmart keypad was really bad idea. And 10-gun was the only one they had with a real knob (still plastic).

[rem33]

Know a guy that is using construction job boxes like you can buy at Home Depot for 2 to $300. He has two bolted together and to the floor. Not perfect but roomy and would stop snatch and grab which is what most burglaries are.

[dfaugh]

Well, I've been out of the security business for a few years no, so take it for what its worth. Sentry safes were always budget-minded, with low cost of materials and easy manufacturing being primary, with security being secondary (Theirfactor is right here in told, and I've toured it. They're typical home firesafes can be opened in less than 10 seconds, if you even have a clue. But, I've not examined their gunsafes, so its hard to say how good they might be. But (to me) history suggests that they may be OK, but you're probably better off spending some extra money on a bit better model.

P.S. Realize that I was a "legal" safecracker--we'd open damaged safes (by attempted burglars) or mechanical failures, or just plain lost combinations. And you'd probably be SHOCKED to see how easily I could get into even some pretty heavy duty safes. But, there's knowledge and tools involved that your average home burglar isn't gonna have. And if he DOES have them, and the appropriate know-how, he's more likely to be in the jewelry store down the street!