vehicle stoage

[hemix2]

I want to start carrying concealed more but there are many places in Washington off limits. I go to college and this is the major one for me, also I work at some of the school districts too which carrying is a no no. So I am wondering do good option for storing a pistol in my truck. I like the console vault since it is basically hidden (outta sight outta mind). But what are your guys thoughts or suggestions? I have looked at the simple lock box that you cable around your seat but that seems unsecured and kinda cheesy.

 

[CoolClownFish]

I personally will never leave a gun in a car or truck. If the car or truck gets stolen so does the firearm and therefore one more bad guy being armed for free at my expense. This is however my personal opinion. Lock boxes and all other solutions I have seen for vehicles are not fool proof. after your vehicle is stolen they have plenty of time to get into it get your firearm out.

 

[wvrider]

I have looked at the RAC and the Titan Gun Vault.

Portable pistol vault, hand gun safe, under bed desk gun safe, car gun vault safe

3?& 5? RACs » The US Rac

I had looked at the console vault but my truck doesn't have the center seat/console setup necessary for it. Seems like a good idea though.

I also do not like leaving my firearm in a vehicle; however, given the options of A) Don't bring it along, B) Risk at worse a felony, or C) Lock it up during the period of time I am at those locations, I would choose C.

 

[brickler]

Are there any sites that have reviews of these things? My wife told me she was looking at one for me, and I was kinda of the opinion of CoolClownFish. The one she was looking at she read some comments on that the lock was easy to defeat with a paper clip. Seems to further defeat the purpose of securing a weapon in the vehicle. Seems the only way something like this would work is if it were welded to the car and made of a heavy enough gauge of steel to not be easily pried or broken. And then we are back to the whole, take the car thing and they have plenty of time to get it open once they have the car to strip down...

Sorry started asking a question and drifted into an opinion....

 

[wvrider]

Well, as you all have pointed out if the vehicle is stolen they have all the time in the world to disassemble any mechanism and obtain access to the firearm. Just like if they break into your house and they have 12 hours of you not being home, they are going to get into almost anything you store your guns in if they want in. It comes down to what risk are you comfortable with, leaving your firearm in less secure place for part of your day, not having your firearm the entire day, or risk losing your right to possess a firearm if convicted while carrying somewhere off-limits.

Those safes you mentioned that go in the console - they did not look that secure to me. It looked like they would be easier to get a pry bar in to pry it open. The Titan safe would at least be bolted under the seat and would make getting leverage on it more difficult. The RAC looked the most interesting, but they could at least get your magazine it seems. I was considering something that I could even move between vehicles (e.g. wife's car, rental, etc.) and the Titan looked like it would fit that bill.

Nonetheless, if someone steals my vehicle, the gun is really one of the last things I am concerned with. If they have enough time to try to defeat a safe where it is parked, it may have been a better to leave it at home. One thing I would definitely encourage you though is not having a bunch of junk in the vehicle that makes someone want to break into it and potentially find the firearm in it. Having a radar detector, GPS, fancy car stereo, etc. is going to be an attractant, and the gun is just going to sugar coat the deal once they are in.

 

[benq]

I have one of these bolted in my truck, Link Removed. I looked at other lock boxes at the various big box stores and guns stores and they use thinner guage steel and cheap combo or key locks.

 

[SmithKoWitz]

I suppose we could go on being paranoid about everything, everywhere, everyday of our life, or we could just do what we believe to be the best choice for ourselves. How many times has your vehicle been stolen or broken into? Keep the magazine or ammo separate from the firearm, or on your person (if that is legal to do). As another wrote: Don't make your vehicle look attractive for break-in or theft. Don't put Gun Club stickers all over it. Park in well lit areas, etc., there are many things you can do to make your vehicle less of a target. PS - don't go telling everyone or anyone if or when you store a gun; it's none of their business, especially if you are concealed carrying, right?

 

[mojoman]

I don't like to leave my gun in the truck but when I do I got console vault for my 2011 dodge ram console, 4 digital combo lock and on top of that I have a viper 2/way alarm, so laders of sercuity will work for me since I don't leave my truck to long.

 

[mudshark100]

I personally will never leave a gun in a car or truck. If the car or truck gets stolen so does the firearm and therefore one more bad guy being armed for free at my expense. This is however my personal opinion. Lock boxes and all other solutions I have seen for vehicles are not fool proof. after your vehicle is stolen they have plenty of time to get into it get your firearm out.

I understand your point and have heard this opinion elsewhere. So what do you do if you have to make a quick trip into the post office? Do you leave your gun at home or do you carry it into the post office? What is the risk of your gun being stolen from your house while you are away? I'm not trying to pull your chain, I'm just wondering how you deal with places where you can't legally carry?

In my day to day life, there is rarely a day that I don't have to enter a place where my gun is off limits. I've made the personal decision that I will carry it on me and leave it secured in my car when I have to enter one of these locations. Otherwise, I would have to leave it at home all the time. If I'm always leaving it at home, what is point of having it in the first place? just my thoughts.

 

[Rhino]

I personally will never leave a gun in a car or truck. If the car or truck gets stolen so does the firearm and therefore one more bad guy being armed for free at my expense. This is however my personal opinion. Lock boxes and all other solutions I have seen for vehicles are not fool proof. after your vehicle is stolen they have plenty of time to get into it get your firearm out.

So you go around unarmed a lot? I prefer not to do that myself.
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If I'm going somewhere I'm not allowed to carry, I take my gun with me and put it in a simple lock box cabled to the seat. It isn't visible from the outside and a car thief is going to look inside the console as soon as he gets in the vehicle. As soon as he sees that console vault, his number one goal will be to find out what's in it, and he almost certainly will since he'll likely have plenty of time to work on it. He might not even see the lock box under the seat, but he'll probably get the gun either way. It's the guys popping windows and stealing stuff out of cars in the parking lot that you mostly have to worry about, not car thieves. The lock boxes aren't as secure as the vaults, but they aren't pushovers. I know two guys who lost the keys to theirs and had one heck of a time getting them open to get their gun out. Now they had to be careful not to damage the vehicle or the gun, which a thief wouldn't worry about, but even still they both said it took them a long time, even with their full complement of tool boxes, which parking lot thieves won't have. So I'm comfortable with my choice. Nothing is 100% foolproof.

 

[GerardoNesmith]

it is looking to me the smart choice to go with the console vault to be safe in most of the scenarios once you are with the wish to get an secure storage to your firearms

 

[SmithKoWitz]

If I'm always leaving it at home, what is point of having it in the first place? just my thoughts.

I agree 100%. There are a lot of places may one may be asked to not carry, however they are not all violations of your right to carry and will not result in a loss of that right; unless you refuse to leave the premises if asked to do so. I am referring to businesses that post NO Gun signage. Based on many articles I've read, it is only a Trespassing Violation. However I will add, how did anyone know you were carrying anyway? If you are not overly dressed for the weather, exhibit no printing, you should in no way be bothered.

 

[hemix2]

Thanks for the replies. I agree that leaving it the truck is not ideal but when visiting certain locations that are off limits I need a place to store it safely. This thread has kinda been hijacked with opinions of not leaving it in the truck vs answering my question to a solution to this problem. Thank you to those you did respond with suggestions and brands to look at. I know nothing is perfect but something is better than nothing.

I like the console vault because of the "hidden" nature but I will look at some of these other ones too.

(FYI the console vault is bolted in the console)

 

[hemix2]

The main place is the college campus. I am in class for a few hours each day and that is against the rules per the state and college rules.

 

[FAS1]

Whatever you get be sure and bolt it in solid. The tethered safes are convenient, but provide very little security. More for just running into the Post Office for a few minutes. If you are leaving your gun for a few hours a day consider something that will at least deter a thief a little while. The one in the console might do that. You could also consider mounting one under or behind a seat (don't know the cab style of your truck) that would make it harder to access and pry on.

Link Removed