Biometric or RFID gun safe

I am afraid I really need to disagree with this approach!
Guns are neither good nor bad, they are simply tools to do a job. Giving them evil characteristics gives them power they don't have.
Don't go near one, also teaches the kids that guns have properties they don't really have.
Education is the key. Teach your kids that guns are tools that if used incorrectly can cause serious damage. Maybe take them shooting and shoot a full pop can and show them what it can do.
"Don't go near one" is way different than don't handle a gun without an adult present and with permission and if they find a gun unattended, they should tell an adult.

Education is the key to responsible gun safety with kids. As others have said, take the mystique out of it and the kids won't try and sneak a chance with a gun. Take them shooting and used to guns.

 

That's a very good point.

@ineedanap, I assume you're looking for something to pull primary duty as a home defense weapon. I recall a thread here years ago about just that topic. The discussion went back and forth between handguns, shotguns and rifles (ARs, to be specific). One of the major contentions for, or against, any particular type of firearm was its ability to penetrate walls, or not.
speedluvn making a point about “your backstop”, or what's behind your target, is nearly as critical as hitting your target to stop a threat. I assure you, every firearm has the potential to penetrate walls, floors and ceilings. This includes your neighbor's walls, etc. You do not want any accidents.

So the choice of weapon is somewhat dictated by the environment in which it will be used. The most limiting would be inside an apartment. The least limiting would be a very rural home with no children. The variable with the largest impact is the shooter themselves. Their experience, accuracy and judgment are all called upon.

Bullets do stranger things than what one may imagine when they strike/penetrate hard objects. There's no guarantees a backstop is going to contain it, as evidenced by shooting outdoors with tracers at a dedicated backstop berm, steel plates or even into trees.

 

Yea, I have been thinking a lot about that recently since I live in a subdivision with houses maybe 20 feet apart. My handgun is a 9mm. Thanks for the advice and info.

I also purchased my first rifle a couple days ago, which is a CZ Scorpion Evo 3 carbine also in 9mm. Although the intention was more for learning how to shoot a rifle than anything else.

 

Bought this, ironically two years ago Monday for $119.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00EXQW672/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_image?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Its ok. Reads decently quick. Seems to open faster if you enter the code, although I'm sure entering four numbers vs scanning your finger negates the time saved.

My issue is that the piston that opens the lid sucks. Reviews reflect that. I called and got a replacement one, and it was "fast" for two minutes.

Initially I was impressed that you could swipe your finger, and in less than two second the lid came flying open. Now it is painfully slow to open.

I do like that it has biometric, combo, and key.

 

My home defense weapon is loaded and round chambered in my Gunbox 24/7/365.

All I have to do is grab it and hit the flashlight button as my finger goes into its natural position.

I never worry about the kids being able to open the GB because it won't open for them. I've had them try. I've had the neighbors kids try. I've had family members try. It won't open for their fingers.

So...with that, I was confident and comfortable that the gun was secure from any unauthorized users and that is where it stays.

As for curiosity from the kids....my oldest asked about the box once when she was like 6. I told her what was in it, opened it and showed it to her. Told her she could see it anytime, but Daddy had to be there for her to see it. She hasn't asked about it since.

The youngest has no care about the box or what's in it.

 

For those with the Gunbox 2.0 or similar, I am assuming you have a larger safe for other weapons? One of my concerns of those types of small safes is how easy someone could grab the whole thing and leave with it. While someone may or may not be able to get into it over time, at that point my gun is who knows where. Granted I am extremely cautious of who I let in my house, and someone that would be there for a service call or similar circumstance I would move it. But just a thought and curious to others approach.

 

Yes, I have a full size floor safe that houses everything but my home defense pistol.

Regarding the sticky hands grabbing and going, there are two scenario's there.

1) In a burglary, and you're not home, they are going to take what they can and be gone. Yes, I'll loose my pistol and truth be told, there is a mechanical way to open the box so they will eventually get your weapon. However, by that time, I'll have it reported stolen as I have a list of all weapons and serial numbers in my big safe. It sucks, but.....not every solution is 100% full proof.

2) In a guest/service worker, etc. in the house, the Gunbox does have an alarm on it. I have mine turned off, but you can turn it on in the event that the box is picked up and moved or tilted a certain way, the alarm will go off. I've tested the alarm and it's freaking loud.....so, there'd be no way to hide/muffle that sound. Could also work in the event of kids trying to tamper with it, but again, I've tested the fingerprint reader multiple times and it wouldn't open so....

 

I personally own a gunbox, and though I don't have kids in the house, I simply open it at night. The gunbox itself sits on the nightstand. I keep the RFID in a spot that only I recognize, and only need it if the biometric doesn't work for some reason.

There's really no good solution for having the gun in a safe when there's a chance you may need it.

 

The Gunbox has the ability to attach a cable lock, similar to those laptop/docking station locking mechanisms. You can simply attach it to a bedframe or something similiarly immobile. It won't prevent someone who really wants it from taking it, but it might slow them down, or at least make it less desirable.

 

For my current needs this fills the bill;

https://www.stack-on.com/product/in-wall-security-cabinet-55/