I am also looking for a safe

[Glenn]

Like so many others here I am in the market for a safe. After reading all the posts here I have decided against a safe from a big box store. There is a Champion dealer near my house so I went looking there. I like the Champion Medalist series. Seems likea a decent safe at a reasonable price. Does anyone have any comments on these?

Glenn

[56FordGuy]

A safe is nothing but a metal box with sheetrock inside. As long as the metal gauge (thickness) is comparable, in my opinion very few of the consumer grade gun safes offer a huge difference in strength.

If you do a search here, you'll find that The Safe House (one of our vendors) did a torture test of a Champion safe by attacking it with everything from prybars to a forklift. While they tore the crap out of it, they didn't get in. I happened to get that very safe a bit later, and did my own testing on it. I attacked that safe with a reciprocating saw, an air powered die grinder, a 4" electric angle grinder, and a sledgehammer. It took me about two hours and an awful lot of saw blades/ grinding wheels to get that safe open to the point that I could shovel out the destroyed sheetrock.

I really like the Champion line. Were I to buy again, I would probably buy a Champion.

[Mike.357]

Blake that is a good of a testimonial as I have ever read.

Suprised you did not try a torch

[56FordGuy]

Suprised you did not try a torch

At the time, I don't think I had a functional torch. If I had, I would've used it.

My original goal was to torture test the safe. After about half an hour of hacking at it, I just wanted to get it cut open by whatever means I could so that I could clean it out and get rid of it.

[Mike.357]

I would have loved to have a few beers in a cooler and a comfortable chair to watch from. I could have offered suggestions, helpful or humorous to you in your quest to open it.

[Glenn]

That is a good testimonial. That may have just made up my mind.

Glenn

[56FordGuy]

Don't just take my word for it, but continue to shop around. The gauge of metal and fire ratings were similar when I was shopping, so just ask what are you really getting for the extra money? Is the locking assembly that much better? If it's just as easy to cut through the side, does the locking assembly being better (if it is) really matter that much? Is a different interior layout or outer finish worth the cost? Sometimes, it is. I bought my Browning largely because it had an organizer, complete with long gun racks on the inside of the door. The problem is, the long gun racks on the door prevent you from being able to use the slots in the interior closest to the door. The lower portion of the door rack eliminated the use of about 6 spaces inside the safe, if I recall properly.

[Guest safes]

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