Who Makes the Best Gun Safes?

Purchased a New Gun?

After purchasing a new gun, one of the first thoughts is, “Where can I safely store this?” With hundred of different models, brands, sizes, features and pricing, finding the right gun safe can feel like an overwhelming task. That’s why we’ve taken the time to compare some of the most popular brands and styles, so that way you don’t have to! We’ll be showing you options from AMSEC (American Security Products), Stack-On, and Honeywell to give you a battle of the brands!

Round One: Which safe Do I choose?

So one of the first questions that needs answered is, “How many guns, and what type of guns, do I need to store?” From small and hidden drawer safes, to large, free-standing units, having options is key!

Stack On: Stack On has about 77 overall options for safes, and 39 of those are specifically for guns. Having 39 different varieties to choose from mean that you can really get specific with your needs. Overall, we rate this great.

Honeywell: Honeywell has about 67 overall safes for sale, but only 12 for of those are gun specific. Having such a limited quantify means that beggars can’t be choosers, and you may have to sacrifice some of your wants and needs. Overall, we rate this poor.

AMSEC: This company knows safes! With over 200 different models company wide, and over 45 gun specific safes, AMSEC has a safe for what you need! Overall, we rate this great.

Round Two: Fire Rating.

When protecting your valuables, and valuable information, it’s important to always be prepared. That’s why fire ratings have become such and important thing to consider when choosing the correct gun safe. The national recommendation for Fire Protection is one hour. The purpose is to give you the peace of mind, in the horrible case that you ever suffer through a fire, that your valuables are safe. The absolute last thing you should be having to worry about during a fire is if your valuables are going to be ok. Of course with companies with so much inventory, there is going to be a range. Here is what we found:

Stack On: On average, most had a 30 minute fireproof rating for a heat up to 1400 degrees. Several units didn’t have any fireproof guarantee at all, although a large handful of options did have a 75 minute minute rating. Overall, we rate this average.

Honeywell: On average, many of Honeywell Safes didn’t have any fireproof protection at all! The ones that did had either a 20 minute or 30 minute fireproof rating. Simple put – that’s just not enough time. Overall, we rate this poor.

AMSEC: While two, yes – a literal two, safe options have a fireproof rating of 30 minutes, and an additional handful with a 45 and 60 minute rating,  every other safe has above a 90 minute fireproof rating!  (Remember that national recommendation of 60 minutes? AMSEC crushes that.) Significantly more than 50% of all AMSEC safes have a whopping 120 minute fireproof rating. The peace of mind that 2 hours of safety can give you is priceless. Overall, we rate this excellent – and our clear winner of this round!

Round Three: Lock Options.

Now this one is a big one when it comes to what kind of safe you need, and it is completely preference based. Some people love the secure feeling that there is only one way to open that safe, and they hold it in a single key. Others find key-only locks to be too risky and outdated (What if you lost the key?), and want something with a bit more ease. With so many varieties to choose form, let’s compare.

Stack On: Stack On offers four different styles of locks: biometric, combination, electronic, and a key system. These are all pre-determined as to which safe gets which lock. This means, you are unable to customize if you desire to have a different lock on your safe. While having options is great, it doesn’t feel like you can utilize those options to fit with the safe you want. You are stuck picking the safe with the pre-determined lock. Overall, we rate this average.

Honeywell: Honeywell offers combination dial, digital codes, and a key system, Only offering three options with their safes, and none of them are customizable. This means that you have to factor in the locking type into your description, and hope that it meats all of you other needs. With the low variety of options, and no way to customize, this just misses the mark. Overall, we rate this poor.

AMSEC: Almost every AMSEC gun safe has multiple options for locking! Close to all of their gun safes are customizable, offering a plethora of lock options for your comfort and preference. Lock options include: Simplex Mechanical Push Button, LP Rotobolt Redundant Lock, Mechanical Lock with Key-Locking Spy-Proof Dial,  Mechanical Lock with Key-Locking Front-Read Dial, Mechanical Lock with Spy proof Dial,  Mechanical Lock with Front-Read Dial, ESL5 and ESL10XL. All of their safes, except three, offer at least an ESL5 digital keypad lock. This offers the ability for multiple people to have the code to the safe, and no need to hunt for keys during an emergency. These lock options mean you wont have to sacrifice the perfect safe, because it has the wrong locking mechanism. You get to choose! Overall, we rate this excellent!

So? Which brand wins?

As you can see, the options seem to be endless when searching for the perfect gun safe. When you factor in all the brands, sizes, fireproof ratings and lock choices, the options can feel endless! But when comparing these three popular brands, there is no doubt who are clear winner is; AMSEC! With having the largest variety of gun safe options, the highest fireproof timed ratings, and the plethora of locking options, this brand really ranks supreme.