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Home/Office safes for coins
seateddime
Posts: 6,180 ✭✭✭
Does anyone have an opinion on a great safe for home or the office?
I imagine more than a few of us keep things around for a short while between trips to the bank.
I imagine more than a few of us keep things around for a short while between trips to the bank.
I seldom check PM's but do check emails often jason@seated.org
Buying top quality Seated Dimes in Gem BU and Proof.
Buying great coins - monster eye appeal only.
Buying top quality Seated Dimes in Gem BU and Proof.
Buying great coins - monster eye appeal only.
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Others I am sure will offer other viewpoints.
i looked at 200lb safes over the weekend and smacked myself for even considering something so light. my friends weighs 2-3k lbs. i don't recall. they can crack it but it ain't moving
if/when i get one, it will be a minimum of 750 lbs. safe deposit boxes will suffice till then and perhaps even after then.
hide it as well as possible and hope they don't find it while you are there.
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there are standards: tool, torch and some number of minutes it takes to crack with those implements. there is also the "X" component - explosive.
do NOT get one that has only a digital keypad.
personally, go all out.
These things are heavy as mentioned. a few thousand pounds each, but they are worth it.
just make sure where you put it is rated to hold the weight.
as mentioned, if you are home and they are armed, it's as good as opened unless you're the tough type.
<< <i>.i looked at 200lb safes over the weekend and smacked myself for even considering something so light. >>
Smaller/lighter safes are designed with recessed holes in the interior floor of the safe so they can be bolted to the floor. They may be able to eventually break into it but they are very unlikely to move it without demolishing the floor.
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<< <i>
as mentioned, if you are home and they are armed, it's as good as opened unless you're the tough type. >>
Also, have a loaded .357 in it, ready to rock and roll. Heaven forbid, if some complete loser forces you to open it, reach in and plant one squarely between his eyes.
Dave
In no particular order, I'd keep these things in mind:
1) Electronic locks are convenient, but can fail. An electromagnetic pulse (from an airburst nuke, solar storm, or random static) can make it a great big box that even you can't open.
2) Built-in & concealed are best.
3) Even if it weighs 2,000 lb, bolt it to the floor, preferably to a concrete slab.
4) Get one with a decent fire rating. Do some research. Not all safes are created equal in this regard and you usually get what you pay for. A poor safe might be expensive or cheap, but a good safe will always be expensive. You're paying for metal, workmanship, and fire-resistant material (usually some form of gypsum).
5) I'd stick with a bigger company - someone who can service it if/when the lock mechanism fails. Sure a local locksmith can get it done, but that's one more person who knows you have it.
6) Forget anything that weighs less than 800-1000 pounds. Anything smaller can be carted off.
7) A safe is just one layer of security. Don't forget an alarm system, a concealed smoke detector nearby (a torch will activate this), don't blab about your collection, don't keep anything at home that you can't afford to live without.
8) Always get a larger one than you think you'll need. It will be full in a couple of weeks.
9) Most cheapie gun safes (from big box stores) can be defeated in a matter of seconds. Lower-end gun safes sold at furniture stores and such are only slightly better.
10) Go big or go home. Spend the money once and enjoy it for a lifetime.
11) As others have said, an armed person in your home will simply force you to open it.
12) A decoy safe which is visible and holds a few cheap, inoperable or damaged firearms, a few bags of clad coins, a few cheap coin folders, and a few stacks of important-looking papers is a good idea.
13) Any security is better than nothing. Random acts of theft do occur, but they're actually quite rare. Usually it's family members, ex-spouse/partner/friends, valuables left in plain sight, etc.
14) Have some sort of off-site inventory of what you have in the thing. Photos, serial numbers, cert numbers, and such can be useful If a robbery is successful.
15) Some safes are fire rated by the manufacturer. Look for an independent rating.
16) Don't leave the combination anywhere it could be found. Under the keyboard, on an envelope which sits on top the safe, in your sock drawer, or in an unprotected file on your computer / smart phone are terrible hiding places.
17) Change the combination once in a while, especially if you have a keypad. Wear on the pad is easy to detect and it rules out many potential combinations.
18) Don't forget to close and lock it!
-The harder it is for you to install and conceal, the harder it will be for the thugs to find it and get into it. (i.e. build it into your house in a concealed place or hide it in a kid's closet if applicable). Theives don't like to spend alot of time in one place unless they are professional theives and KNOW you're not gonna be home or are not coming home anytime soon. In this case, alot of the safes out there are gonna get cracked. You've exposed yourself as a target somehow someway and they want what is yours. Loose lips, housekeepers, and relatives sink ships.
-A cheap Walmart decoy safe in your bedroom or closet is a good idea. Put it in plain sight and stick some items in it (like some papers and a half full ziplock bag of pennies) that rattle around so the thugs think there is actually something valuable in there. Hopefully they will grab-in-go and miss the real safe.
-While you can't know the exact scenario for a home invasion, you can prepare for one by training yourself with a firearm and strategically placing firearms in certain areas of your home that is both accessible to you AND out of reach and sight for kids.
-There are lots of YouTube videos and online ideas of building a functional bookcase that swings open to reveal a small concealed closet or room behind it. If they can't see it and don't know it's there, they won't take it. A nice 500-600 pound fire/gun safe bolted to the floor will work nicely for this, even on a wood subfloor built home.
Too many positive BST transactions with too many members to list.
<< <i>
<< <i>.i looked at 200lb safes over the weekend and smacked myself for even considering something so light. >>
Smaller/lighter safes are designed with recessed holes in the interior floor of the safe so they can be bolted to the floor. They may be able to eventually break into it but they are very unlikely to move it without demolishing the floor. >>
Whatever happened to the collector in the Columbus, Ohio area a few years back where the thieves put a cable around his safe and basically used a pickup or other truck to just jerk it out thru the wall of his home? Did he ever recover any of his stolen coins? I believe one was a 1893-S Morgan in ms65.
No Way Out: Stimulus and Money Printing Are the Only Path Left
<< <i>I use a safe.... at home.... No SDB, I like my possessions in my possession. My safe over 1200 pounds, concrete slab mounted. My security system is awesome and I am armed and trained. I do not worry. Cheers, RickO >>
The moment I first saw your avatar photo Rick, I had no doubt that you were "armed and trained".
was murdered because a the safe installer went to prison for some crime and told another inmate.
When the inmate was released he and an accomplice killed the 4 family members after
forcing them to open the safe.
(Inmate and accomplice were captured, convicted and hanged in 1965 in Kansas.)
I had only one house with a safe and I never put anything in the safe and left the door
open.
Here in the US I don't have room in my apartment for a good safe.
I use a SDB and a couple of small cases or diversion safes hidden around the house.
In this way I can always save part of my collection (unless thieves have time to look everywhere really carefully).
Though, I would love to own a big safe, I have always been fascinated about them, as well as vaults, etc...
RAD#306
<< <i>A monitored home security system is equally important. >>
And finding one that thinks using the internet to communicate with home base is a BAD idea is impossible
edit: find one that uses mobile or copper landlines instead of the internet. internet = can be hacked
<< <i>this bad boy will handle anything >>
Coin Rarities Online
<< <i>So at what point does one need a secured safe at such a high cost. I can see if one has a valuable coin, but for the collection of semi-rare coins, I would have to think twice! >>
that is a decision for you to make.
I also like the look of safes believe it or not.
<< <i>
<< <i>this bad boy will handle anything >>
cannon ball safe
They have many interesting forums, one of which is dedicated to safes and security.
<< <i>
<< <i>In my house in Italy we have a hidden wall safe. My dad worked in a hardware store, he brought the small safe home and installed it himself.
Here in the US I don't have room in my apartment for a good safe.
I use a SDB and a couple of small cases or diversion safes hidden around the house.
In this way I can always save part of my collection (unless thieves have time to look everywhere really carefully). >>
Is it really a good idea to post this sort of thing on the internet? >>
You shouldn't have quoted it as well (in case I wanted to delete my post).
Anyway, as I said I have a SDB and my collection is not that valuable.
I am sure most of people have higher value in watches, jewelry and cash than me in coins.
I am not paranoid and I highly doubt that thieves are reading forums and investigating on what people say on the internet.
Thank you though for your piece of advice.
This place has a great selection if you live in PA/NJ/DE area