I have to start this one with a short rant. ‘Hidden gun safe’ is a misnomer that annoys me much more than it should. But it does. The majority of hidden gun storage systems aren’t safes. A safe is a locked receptacle that can’t be broken into under reasonable conditions. Meaning a thief with a crowbar shouldn’t be able to gain access easily.
The average ‘hidden gun safe’ can be defeated by a steel-toe boot. Thankfully most manufacturers of these hidden storage systems label them as such. The phrase ‘hidden gun safe’ is a misnomer used by consumers to describe hidden gun storage units.
Now that that’s outta my system, is hidden gun storage better than a safe? That depends on how you look at it. In a side-by-side smash test, the safe will win. However, many modern safes can be broken into with pry bars or power saws, so they are far from perfect.
Traditional safes are obvious and scream “I’ve got valuable stuff in me!” while hidden storage options will most likely go unnoticed.
Then there’s the issue of size, weight and cost. Not everyone can afford, or accommodate a large steel safe. But most people can accommodate a coffee table that hands you your guns from a hidden compartment.
If you can afford and accommodate a top-of-the-line safe that’s difficult to break into or destroyed in a fire, it will offer superior protection for your prized possessions. Otherwise, hiding them in plain sight isn’t a bad option at all as part of your home defense plan (as long as your house doesn’t catch fire).
Despite my rant above, there are actually a few options that really do earn the name “hidden gun safe.” Tactical Walls offers a discreet concealment safe.
It’s a steel safe that mounts inside a wall between two studs. The front is covered by your choice of a mirror, a chalkboard, a dry erase board or a custom image.
It’s relatively small and comes in only one size. At most, it will hold a few pistols and some ammo. No long guns. Like most hide-in-plain-sight options, it looks like something a guy with a crowbar could defeat…if he finds it.
As a stand-alone safe (which it isn’t), it isn’t great, but its secure mounting and concealment make up for any shortcomings.
Another option that claims to be a hidden gun safe is the SecureIt Fast Box. However, their idea of ‘hidden’ is placed in a closet or under a bed.
If you open the closet, you’ll see a safe. If you look under the bed, you’ll see a safe. Not really hidden from someone with time who’s looking around for valuables.
The safe has holes in it for mounting to a wall or floor which will prevent a thief from walking off with it. And given its size, they could definitely walk off with it.
Like the Tactical Walls option, it doesn’t seem very strong. Looking at its construction, it’s basically a beefed-up locker. Don’t misunderstand me, I’m not knocking SecureIt. Just know what you’re buying and its capabilities.
In general, truly hidden gun storage options are mostly the same. They are home decor like end tables, coffee tables, picture frames, wall shelves, wall mirrors, wall clocks, and coat racks that have secret compartments.
You can definitely hide anything you want inside the storage space, but many of the following cater to firearms storage. This means their compartments usually come with foam that can be cut to match your gun(s) or magnets to hold it in place.
Most also have some type of locking system. Locks range from magnet-based to Bluetooth. These locks are intended to be simple to allow quick access in case of an emergency.
Tactical Walls
Tactical Walls offers lockable, hidden gun storage options like coffee tables, shelves and hangables like pictures or mirrors. Their products utilize magnetic or RFID locks that do their job of preventing unwanted entry (unless they smash it). Most of these products are made of wood.
Top Secret Furniture
As the name implies, Top Secret offer furniture with built-in hidden compartments. They also have shelf options and hangables.
Their locking options include magnet-actuated and RFID locks. Everything is made in-house so they offer customization options as well as various color options. Their furniture is made from solid hardwood utilizing mortise and tenon or dovetail joints. Their furniture looks pretty good and doesn’t scream “hidden gun.”
Liberty Home Concealment
These are similar to the previous options, but with a different look. Liberty’s products, like concealment clocks and hidden gun cabinets, come with a magnetic lock as the standard and have an RFID upgrade available. The price point for these products seems a little lower than some of their competitors, too.
Mirage Tactical Furniture
These products are made to order and can be customized, especially their canvas frame which will display whatever photo or image you provide. None of the products come with a locking mechanism included, but all can be upgraded. They offer locks that utilize either a wireless keypad, Bluetooth or biometrics to unlock.
Creative Home Engineering
This company doesn’t offer hidden gun storage furniture, they hide your entire safe. Honestly, this might be the truest example of a hidden gun safe.
CHE specializes in building hidden rooms. As the image above shows, some of these “rooms” are spy-level walk-in safes. No, this option doesn’t have the quick accessibility of concealment furniture. It does, however, allow you to have a full-feature safe that no one is likely to find.
This option definitely isn’t for everyone. Your living situation has to be able to accommodate it. It isn’t cheap or quickly executed either. It is freaking awesome, though.
TruckVault
TruckVault offers lockable, discrete storage options for your vehicle. Yes, technically these are true hidden guns safes as well, but since it’s car-based I count it as somewhat of an outlier.
This is a great option that prevents any kind of smash-and-grab vehicle robberies. Well, it prevents the grab part, they may still smash a window.
Since cars are usually exposed, thieves are exposed and can’t waste much time with pry bars or power tools. Again, ss with the other options on this list, that’s only if they know it’s there. Of course, TruckVaults are mounted on wheels. Steal the car and you’ve stolen everything. On that note, the car might be stolen without the thief even realizing there is a hidden cache.
Is all that too rich for your blood? Not necessarily into the whole ‘American made’ thing? Amazon has a surprisingly wide selection of affordable hidden gun storage options.
Hidden, lockable, gun storage really shines when kids are involved. It allows you to keep your weapons in a readily-accessible state, for people who are authorized. Meaning not the kids. They won’t even know it’s there unless you tell them. The wall hanging options can be out of their reach too when they’re small.
Hidden gun storage has a lot of pros. Thieves can’t take what they can’t find. It caters to gun owners who believe in decentralized storage. Multiple weapons can be hidden throughout the house increasing your odds of getting to one quickly in case of an emergency.
They lock (or should), keeping kids and opportunists out while still offering you quick access. Just rememer that they’re still not safes. You are relying primarily on concealment to protect your valuable items. Also, hidden storage may not be legal firearm storage in your state, so check your local laws.
As these products gain popularity, their effectiveness may decrease. How long until criminals start breaking shelves and mirrors as a default because goodies are sometimes hidden there? I’ll keep my traditional safe as my primary means of safe storage. But those coffee tables are pretty cool…nothing wrong with having a few guns stashed close by, right?