Coins in Gun Safe
mickeyd415
Posts: 26
I relize that this may be a topic that has already been discussed, however I was wondering, Does it have any ill effect on coins if they are stored in a safe with guns in them? I guess I mean, Do the chemicals on the guns harm the coins or vice-versa?
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Comments
Tom
Good point. That darn Hoppes does a good job on the copper and everything else if your not careful. I always use a gun scrubber and a good cleaning to remove all of it when I'm done cleaning. You know if you don't because of the smell. It sure can stink up the house.
But since I don't have the room for 2 safes they have to be put in with the guns.
I'm curious about the fumes affecting copper. If it's just the Ammonia or alcahol(booze) evaporating I'm thinking it dissipates quickly. I think I'll do an expirement with the Copper Solvent and a unc penny and see if the fumes affect it.
Tom
My safe is a full size gun safe weighing 1800 lbs if I'm not mistaken. I'm talking about a safe for lots of full size guns, not a handgun or two! It has a key locking mechanism as well as a combination and 10 one inch hardened colts on the door. When our home burnt down in the summer of 2002 it took a licensed locksmith 6 hours to open the old one!!!!...JMO...Ken
I wish you were my neighbor.... I think we would be at the range every other day.
Tom
But seriously folks, the lubricants, cleaning solvents and oils (blued finish guns should be kept well oiled) cannot be good for coins. I agree that the coins should be very securely sealed and kept away from these chemicals, including any cloths used for the guns. And make sure solvents are securely sealed and don't leak.
That would be to close for me. I'd never be home, my mailman would have to deliver my mail to the skeet fields or to the pond.
Was it there before you moved in or is it a newer club?
Tom
<< <i>sounds like a very bad idea to me! Not only because of coin damage but because a burgler will just open the safe or take it with him. >>
A "real" safe is UL rated and a burglar is not typically going to have the expertise to defeat hardplate and relockers. Thiefs usually spend an average of twenty minutes in the home and rarely bother with safes.
<< <i>had a problem with their safe from the 1920's a couple of weeks ago and an anti-theft vial of mustard like gas broke inside the safe and a few city blocks were evacuated >>
That would have been teargas, unless Nazis built the safe.
Home on the range?
I can think of a dozen reasons not to have high capacity magazines, but it's the reasons I haven't thought about that I need them.
As far as fire resistance goes, most coins would be ruined that are slabbed in even in flips. Perhaps any very valuable ones could be conserved but the lion's share of them wouldn't be worth the cost on an individual basis. Any special considerations when looking at temps and length of time that the safes can resist fires?
I've heard that these times that are given for safes are for survival of paper. Paper can withstand much higher temps than plastics. I did have an experience with an old A&P store safe that I was using in my business 10 years ago. Place burnt to the ground totally. Temps well over 1000 degrees since aluminum was melted in window frames and such. Plastic cash register drawers were melted in the safe, clad quarters puffed up to over a 1/4 inch thickness and everything was very discolored. Paper money was just fine. Rolled quarters made it ok. This was NOT a fire safe but rather just a very large, very heavy safe for security.
Does anyone have any real life info on collectable coins and fire safes? Frankly I hope none of you have gone through it, but it would be great if you could share.
A safe deposit box is NOT an option. If I can't enjoy my collection when I want I don't want to collect!
Coin Show Schedules - www.CoinShowDates.com
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<< <i>All this talk tells me that I need to reconsider my purchases and invest in a safe! No need for a gun safe (just one gun in the house and never any kids) so I just have to consider: size, weight, fire resistance, means of securing to floor or walls and cost.
As far as fire resistance goes, most coins would be ruined that are slabbed in even in flips. Perhaps any very valuable ones could be conserved but the lion's share of them wouldn't be worth the cost on an individual basis. Any special considerations when looking at temps and length of time that the safes can resist fires?
I've heard that these times that are given for safes are for survival of paper. Paper can withstand much higher temps than plastics. I did have an experience with an old A&P store safe that I was using in my business 10 years ago. Place burnt to the ground totally. Temps well over 1000 degrees since aluminum was melted in window frames and such. Plastic cash register drawers were melted in the safe, clad quarters puffed up to over a 1/4 inch thickness and everything was very discolored. Paper money was just fine. Rolled quarters made it ok. This was NOT a fire safe but rather just a very large, very heavy safe for security.
Does anyone have any real life info on collectable coins and fire safes? Frankly I hope none of you have gone through it, but it would be great if you could share.
A safe deposit box is NOT an option. If I can't enjoy my collection when I want I don't want to collect! >>
Can't say I've had real world experience in this matter,but I tend to think the same as you as far as safe
deposit boxes. I do have one,and keep a few items in it,but the majority I want in hand and easily
accessable 24/7.
I got 2 of these http://www.sears.com/sr/javasr/product.do?BV_UseBVCookie=Yes&vertical=TOOL&pid=00957393000
and they are quite satifactory for the average sized collection.
Each can hold upwards of 12 of them tupperware boxes,with room to spare for various rolls,paper money,
important papers ect.
They allow no fewer than 8 bolt down points. I put them on a bottom shelf of a large metal cabinet with
twin doors (which has a lock itself) used 6 large self tapping screws to secure the bottom,and 2 big bolts through the back.
Theres no practical way of getting at the contents without combo and key,short of a cutting torch or putting a gun to my head.
I was thinking about the ones with the digital touchpad combo,but was a bit leary,for the long run,of having
to rely on eletrical means for access,and opted for mechanical.
I didn't see fire/moisture proof info on that page,but I sure recall it was on the boxes.
As suggested,they should optimally be secured somewhere on the lowest floor of your dwelling,to
minimize the odds of any heat damage in a fire.
Sentry® Fire-Safe® products are not for weapons storage, not for computer disks, audio-visual media or photo negatives, delicate items which need special protection such as stamps and collectibles, and pearls. Please consult your owner's manual for additional details.
UL 1-Hour Fire Endurance Test
Product is subjected to temperatures of 1700° F (927° C) for 1 hour. The interior remains below 350° F (177° C) to protect documents.
UL 2-Hour Fire Endurance Test
Product is subjected to temperatures of 1850° F (1010° C) for 2 hours. The interior remains below 350° F (177° C) to protect documents.
Sentry Fire-Safe products which offer fire protection have a patented insulation. Any fire resistant safe contains insulation, which in turn, contains water crystals; thus the high content of moisture. In addition,the Sentry advanced safes close airtight to offer water resistance, which may also cause moisture to accumulate inside your safe.
Anyone know at what temps slabs start melting or when metal will start to discolor?
Maybe if I just move next door to a bank and end up with a safe deposit box it will be easier. Or maybe move to Kentucky and see if Ft. Knox will rent out space.
Coin Show Schedules - www.CoinShowDates.com
Sentry Fire-Safe products which offer fire protection have a patented insulation. Any fire resistant safe contains insulation, which in turn, contains water crystals; thus the high content of moisture. In addition,the Sentry advanced safes close airtight to offer water resistance, which may also cause moisture to accumulate inside your safe.
Interesting.
Where did you get the info that insulation contains water crystals ?
I haven't noticed any high content of moisture in my sentries.
Its always a sensible precaution to put some moisture absorbing silica in any closed environment
that houses collectables.
I'm all for researching a product,and I think its a bit premature to rule out fire proof safes because one
might have visions of the walls dripping water like the inside of a cave.
Such,I assure you,is not the case - Unless,perhaps,its stored in a high moisture area in the first place,and
the moisture gets trapped inside upon closing the door.
Water in safes link
Thanks for the actual real life performance info, there is also an address there to request a desiccant pack to control moisture in your safe.
Coin Show Schedules - www.CoinShowDates.com
When we are planning for posterity, we ought to remember that virtue is not hereditary.
Thomas Paine
<< <i>I got the info from the Sentry site ...
Water in safes link
Thanks for the actual real life performance info, there is also an address there to request a desiccant pack to control moisture in your safe. >>
Good info thats worthy of consideration.
Seems to me that if they don't,they should,have a model that strikes a balance between reasonable heat
protection and an overly moist interior.
In my case,the walls of the safe are smooth metal,yet I distinctly remember the boxes they came in
listing fireproof/moistureproof as a feature.
Either my memory is faulty,or they use the same box for fireproof/non fireproof safes.
The only non metallic feature in them is a strip of felt lining the shelf.
Brain storm - I've still got the boxes in my garage.
I'll have to check that out.
I keep my coins in a safe and my gun where I can reach it.
For those of you who keep your coins in the gun safe, how would you get to the gun to shoot the burglar while he's stealing your coins?
Keep all your guns in the safe . . . except one. For me, that would be my Colt 1911 .45ACP. The bullet is slow and large, like tossing a concrete block at somebody. The classic trench gun.
<< <i>For those of you who keep your coins in the gun safe, how would you get to the gun to shoot the burglar while he's stealing your coins? >>
Burglars typically hit in the early morn hours (8-10am) and prefer unoccupied homes, most of the time. For those who prefer occupied homes, Glock Model 20 with Federal Hydrashock 180Gr.
I still have a few black talons. They will work well too!
I keep a few extras out.
And which firearm works best at cracking slabs?
(Just think of city streets clogged with a hundred thousand horses each generating 15 lbs of manure every day...)
Its OK to use Hoppes on nickel plated guns, but just be sure to clean it ALL OFF before you store it and DON'T let it sit around for days or weeks. If you lack access to suitable solvent to remove it with, the don't use it. I have a revolver with a removable underlug on the barrel and unbeknownst to me a little Hoppes crept/capillaried in there and now it looks terrible. Simichrome polish or Gun Brite works well to remove burnt powder stains from nickel plated guns.
As for my coins most of the good ones are in a safety deposit box; a pain in the tail; but worth it.
Yes, my 44 mag is used for deer hunting.
I also have a Ruger Mark II Taget with a scope that was used for hunting out west.
"The silver is mine and the gold is mine,' declares the LORD GOD Almighty."