Safe storage is something I don´t hear being discussed enough. Regardless what the laws are in any jurisdiction, if you own a firearm, you are as responsible for it when in storage as you are when it´s in use. If an unauthorized user gains control of one of your firearms and somebody is hurt or it´s used in a crime - that is on your shoulders. Again, regardless of what the laws are, it´s your fault. Period.
Full disclosure…in the past, I have not always stored every firearm under lock and key. But over the years, I have heard of so many tragic and preventable accidents, it has gotten to be a hot button subject for me. With small children around the house, it is a critically important subject. In years past, I did not have that motivation, so it was less of a priority. The heart of the subject however, is the need for safe storage, in opposition with the need for quick access to a firearm for self-defense. Any of the incidents I have studied where a firearm is used to for self-defense, the encounter unfolds rapidly, at a place and time of the criminal’s choosing. You will not be expecting it, or have the luxury of going to the garage or basement to access your gun safe, nevermind taking your time to load a gun. If you are not of the mind you will ever need a gun for self-defense, that´s fine. Buy a safe or sturdy cabinet and lock them up. No further thought needed. However, if you wish to be prepared, then it takes a bit more thought. A long time ago, I simply put a shotgun under the mattress, or kept a pistol in my sock drawer. These days that won´t suffice, both for legal reasons and also the fear of a child or burglar getting ahold of it. I can´t tell you what to do but I can say what I do, and my logic. Several years ago, I went to a wall mounted “lock box” that holds a pump shotgun by the action, made by Mossberg. They are very inexpensive. I thought this a good solution at the time as the gun was bolted to the wall in a locked room. Honestly, it was not a great setup, but we do have to work within the constraints of our homes and businesses. Advantages of this were: the gun was secure, visibly safe (action open), and more compact than having a safe in that location. I know it’s common to have a gun with a trigger lock, say, under the bed, and although this may make the gun safe, it can still walk away very quickly. The disadvantages were that the gun was visible (you could throw a coat or something over it), but mainly it was slow to get ready. For me (in my jurisdiction), I would have to unlock the gun with a key and then load 8 rounds in order to have the gun ready. Might not sound like a lot, but the first problem was where to hide the key so that it would deny access to the gun but be in an accessible place. And also, where do I hide the ammo? Can´t put it with the key. And then, what if that gets moved? It was just too many variables. I guess what I should have mentioned first is location. Once you figure out where you want to have a gun stored that can be made ready quickly, then having to go into stashing keys and ammo is just too much. You run out of dependable places that won’t get disturbed by small hands or by somebody doing laundry or getting to a breaker box. Doesn’t matter where you choose to place it - in a closet, your bedroom, storeroom etc. What is rarely mentioned is we all have busy lives, and by definition, once something is stored, it´s not on your radar very much. For me, it needs to be safe and secure, quick to access and out of sight. By safe, I mean only I can access it. By secure, I mean it can´t be moved and is bolted down. Quick to access means a minimum of steps have to be completed until the firearm is ready for use. By out of sight, I mean the gun is not visible to the average person, like say a plumber or carpet cleaner. For me, having a full size safe in a bedroom for a rifle or shotgun just does not work. A pistol happens to make more sense, as it is easier to accomplish the three requirements I have in a smaller space, and at a more reasonable cost. I recently purchased a biometric pistol safe, that I hope will accomplish all these things. Cost on Amazon was $138 bucks delivered, so I figured why not? I like the idea of it opening on a fingerprint as it gets rid of the key issue. In my jurisdiction, you cannot store a loaded gun, but you can have loaded magazines next to the gun. Stupid, but that is the law. It can be easily bolted to the wall or even cabled to a lag bolt in a wall stud. I do have some concerns with the biometric or fingerprint access, just the reliability and also battery life. The worst situation would be to need to rapidly access a gun and not have the safe open. Of course, you have a back-up key but what are the chances of finding that in a hurry. It comes down to the odds of using keys or relying on a battery. For me, I am more likely to lose the keys than have a battery failure. Also I can mitigate the risk by checking the safe monthly or replacing the batteries every six months. Nowadays, we rely on everything electronic so it´s a debate for years gone by anyways. Another factor rarely discussed in firearms storage is that if you have a gun you use regularly, it might be a bad choice for a defensive gun you store at home or in your business. The risk is of course, if you are like me, the guns you shoot might wait several days (or weeks!) to get cleaned, and again if you need it and it´s somewhere else, then it´s of little use. What if you do dry fire practice, or maybe you prep your guns to go to the range the night before for a match. I don´t like all those complications. They create uncertainty. Bottom line is making sure they are secured from unauthorized users. I don´t agree with the laws but I also feel some people are too lax in this department. What works for me may not work for you, but I don´t think anybody wants to live with either a criminal or child getting access to a firearm. Thanks, Matador.
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AuthorLocated in Western Canada, Matador Arms provides new and exciting products to the North American firearms community. Archives
November 2016
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