Brian L. Kennedy
32 Cal.
Posts: 5
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Greetings,
I am looking to buy a gun cabinet, probably in oak and am looking to spend between $300 to $500 on it. When I say that I do not mean a gun safe, I mean a cabinet with glass door to display my rifles. Does anyone have any recommendations for places to get this? I have looked around on the internet and see different vendors but I always worry about the quality and would prefer to buy from somebody who came recommended.
Thanks much,
Brian
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roboskittle
32 Cal.
Posts: 21
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In response to Brian L. Kennedy
Here where Im at I can usually find a handful in the paper and on craigslist used for around 50-400 dollars. The higher priced ones have locking ammo drawers and can house 12 or more rifles. Check your local classifieds you might be suprised by what you find.
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paulvallandigham
Cannon
Posts: 14897
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In response to Brian L. Kennedy
Keep an eye on estate sales. These things are always being sold off, it seems like around here. If you let the auction companies know what you are looking for, they will notify you of an upcoming sale so you can take a look. You don't have to buy, unless its for YOUR price.
Also, check with the local cabinet making shops. Times are tough for everyone, and you may be able to get one made for you a lot cheaper these days than even a year ago. At least you can learn what the going price is on that kind of furniture, and compare it to the prices you see on the net.
When I was a kid, I helped my father build a gun rack and lock box for the ammo for 4 guns. It would be totally inadequate for my needs today, but I learned one way to build a secure ammo box.
If I were having a display case made, I would have Lexane install instead of glass. Its far more difficult to break, and that would give better security for the guns.
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Poor Private
50 Cal.
Posts: 1478
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In response to paulvallandigham
Don't forget to check the local antique, or second hand shops.
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Mule Brain
70 Cal.
Posts: 4244
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In response to Brian L. Kennedy
I know the cabinets you speak of. I thought about the same thing, but soon realized that they really wouldn't be displayed. You really can see the stocks, locks, barrels really well.
I have seen those cabinets on Craigs list and ebay
I had to do something, because my gun safe was full! So I put this together.
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 horner75
50 Cal.
Posts: 1189
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In response to Brian L. Kennedy
In a perfect world glass gun cabinets are neat, but bad for security reasons. House break-in burgulars love them!...... 
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crockett
58 Cal.
Posts: 2065
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In response to Brian L. Kennedy
One guy I used to deal with was a custom furniture/cabinet maker and he was always telling me he could build a custom item for not much more than what a lot of store bought items cost. Since a long rifle is pretty long- and probably ought to be kept horizontal- I would consider talking to some custom cabinet makers- maybe the price wouldn't be that bad. If you have a limited number of guns you could have drawers on the lower part of the cabinet. You might ask to set it up with glass panes that can be removed and replaced with pop in wood panels if you decide the glass isn't what you want.
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ohio ramrod
54 Cal.
Posts: 1810
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In response to Brian L. Kennedy
What is your location? I build custom built furniture and would be interested in giving you an estimate if you are more specific. But shipping could be a problem due to cost.On a major piece of furniture shipping can excede cost.
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Otter
40 Cal.
Posts: 492
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In response to horner75
In a perfect world glass gun cabinets are neat, but bad for security reasons. House break-in burgulars love them!......
My first thought, too, but as Mule Brain said, my gunsafe is getting crowded. Except for a select few, my MLs are stored in the corners of my "man-cave". The safe is used to store CF and RF handguns and longguns. My reasoning for this is that most of the idjits that would break in and steal visually available guns (at least around here) wouldn't know what caliber factory ammo would make the MLs go boom. They could get factory ammo for the CF and RF guns and do a whole lot more damage at the local 7-11 or in a drive-by. Maybe my logic is twisted, but I would feel real bad if I found out one of my stolen CFs had been used to shoot someone . . . YMMV
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smokin .50
62 Cal.
Posts: 2998
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In response to Otter
In a perfect world glass gun cabinets are neat, but bad for security reasons. House break-in burgulars love them!......
My first thought, too, but as Mule Brain said, my gunsafe is getting crowded. Except for a select few, my MLs are stored in the corners of my "man-cave". The safe is used to store CF and RF handguns and longguns. My reasoning for this is that most of the idjits that would break in and steal visually available guns (at least around here) wouldn't know what caliber factory ammo would make the MLs go boom. They could get factory ammo for the CF and RF guns and do a whole lot more damage at the local 7-11 or in a drive-by. Maybe my logic is twisted, but I would feel real bad if I found out one of my stolen CFs had been used to shoot someone . . . YMMV
I'm with you  . All they steal in a ML is a club to beat someone with. In some states they aren't even considered firearms, so from a legal standpoint, you're not required to lock them up. That's why we can still see wall-hangers on display. Or pretty glass cabinets. The cops are really concerned about small concealable CF hand guns though.
I'd love to put my black powder guns in a glass display, but the boss says no. You know the Jeff Foxworthy saying, "If Momma ain't Happy, NOBODY'S Happy!"....well that's the case here. It's a compromise, as I get to do what I want with them (shoot them every chance I get)! 
Dave
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MSW
54 Cal.
Posts: 1607
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In response to Brian L. Kennedy
i like putting them on the wall (not that they're wall hangers, i just think that they look better that way).
as regards burglars/homeinvaders and other bad guys- i doubt that i'd even be afforded the opportunity to worry about what to do with the body... the dog would get 'em first
hey, burglars, that part about the dog is total BS... my unlocked house is chock full of neat stuff and there's a pawn shop (open 24/7 for your convenience) and it's just down the street. i live at 230 Main Street, Brattleboro, Vt, by the way. 
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Coot
50 Cal.
Posts: 1391
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In response to MSW
i like putting them on the wall (not that they're wall hangers, i just think that they look better that way).
as regards burglars/homeinvaders and other bad guys- i doubt that i'd even be afforded the opportunity to worry about what to do with the body... the dog would get 'em first
hey, burglars, that part about the dog is total BS... my unlocked house is chock full of neat stuff and there's a pawn shop (open 24/7 for your convenience) and it's just down the street. i live at 230 Main Street, Brattleboro, Vt, by the way.
You live at the Village Pizza Shop??? 
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bn12gg
40 Cal.
Posts: 161
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In response to horner75
Horner- I couldn't agree more with the security issue. I paid a friend who is a skilled wood worker to build a firearms cabinet out of Amish white oak. The plans I obtained off the web had a glass front. For security reasons we went with solid white oak doors up front rather than the glass. Also, the back piece is solid white oak
rather than the cheap plywood/oak you see on the commerically made cabinets. You really can't stop a thief, but you can slow them down so maybe they
move on to something else. My .02 David
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paulvallandigham
Cannon
Posts: 14897
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In response to bn12gg
Outside alarms, and flashing lights that annoy your neighbors are the best deterrent, but they won't stop determined burglars.
Luckily, we have very few " Professional" burglars, compared to what you see in the movies, and on TV. 99% of burglars are smash and grab variety criminals. Most residential burglaries- over 90%- are committed by kids- teenagers and young adults-- who live within a block of the victim. Using motion detectors on outdoor lighting will deter most of these wannabe thieves. Making sure you home looks occupied ( by leaving on some lights, the TV, a radio, a light in the bathroom with the door closed, and the exhaust fan on{ it explains why you didn't respond to their knock at your door, or the doorbell}, etc.) will stop burglars who even make it past the outdoor lights and invade your home. They don't want to be caught, nor seen. And they don't want to be shot.
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bn12gg
40 Cal.
Posts: 161
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In response to paulvallandigham
Paul- I grew up in Ohio visiting my cousins farms as well as my uncle in the mountains of PA-- in both locals some of the finest firearms I've seen were displayed proudly thru glass cases. In many of our worlds today these types of displays are just an advertisement to the neighbors kids (as you point out) as well as to those we hire to assist with various household maintenance and improvement tasks. Just who is scoping out my firearms for a possible attack troubles me. I have always lived in a suburb where, I guess, the overt display of firearms no matter how nice to me -- is just unnecessary and might lead to a huge problem.
Just a thought- Not using glass leads me to get my toys out on a more regular basis to love them up-- oil, admire, adjust, etc. In other words, solid wood doors leads ME not some crook to the
toys. .02 David
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ohio ramrod
54 Cal.
Posts: 1810
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In response to MSW
This reminds me of the burglar who entered a dark house and heard a voice saying Jesus is watching you and a growl.He turned on his fash light and saw a bright colored parot. He said I suppose your name is Jesus? The perot replied: "My name is Satan". The burglar asked :" What kind of person would name a bright colored bird Satan ?"The bird replied: " The same kind of person that would name a Black rotwiler Jesus!"
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poordevil
45 Cal.
Posts: 723
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In response to horner75
Could not a cable, like a bike lock, be run through the triggers and around the back of the case? Then the cabinet would have to go with the guns!!
P
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paulvallandigham
Cannon
Posts: 14897
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In response to poordevil
Better to use the cable, and run it through eye bolts screwed into the wallstuds. AND, bolt the case to both the floor and walls. A wooden case can be broken into fast with one of these new, battery powered saws. If the cable only runs around the wood case, the case can be cut through with a jig saw. The purpose of all security measures is to cost the burglar time on location, to the point he doesn't want to risk staying there long enough to find and remove the truly valuable items in the home.
Years ago, we had a case where the burglars burned down the houses if they could not break into the safes, or vaults, or locked cases within. If they could not get the goodies, the owners were going to be deprived of their benefit, too. Now, we have sprinkler systems to protect homes from fires when no one is present, so this kind of wanton destruction is seen less often.
Oh, those two men were caught, tried, convicted and given substantially longer prison sentences than if they had been just convicted of burglary. The Judge sent a message out to other burglars, and we have not seen another such burglary/arson case since.
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bn12gg
40 Cal.
Posts: 161
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In response to paulvallandigham
Hi-tech saws etc.-- in other words a SMART crook gets into the house-- I'm screwed and lose.
Typical crook is stupid. The kids in the neighborhood can't get to the guns--too many locks. Also, we are talking about many hundreds of pounds of solid white oak; the guns are the light interior. Minimum four guys plus going out the front door is going to not look good to my
neighbors. While I considered screwing the cabinet to the floor or wall, friends shook their heads - no it's not going anywhere.
I'm more concerned about the oak case burning to the ground with the house. I guess a safe wouldn't
burn down with the house. Who knows.
David
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paulvallandigham
Cannon
Posts: 14897
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In response to bn12gg
Security for any structure is always done in layers, if its done right.
Motion detector lights will keep the wannabe's away from your home windows and doors, so they won't know who is home, or how to get in. PASS.
Interior lights on timers, TV and Radio, lights left on in bathrooms with exhaust fan left on all are Layers of indicators telling outsiders someone is inside the premises. PASS.
Firearms, Alarms- Inside and out-- are designed to scare the bejesus out of intruders, and to protect the occupants lives as a final Lethal Force Option. That means motion detectors inside the home, alarms on cabinets, safes, drawers, etc. Layers of defenses so that if some of the layers are found and defeated, they run into the next layer which catches them. Flashing lights, like strobe lights for cameras, are good because the first thought the intruder will have is that his picture is being taken. Putting cameras inside the house, and to cover entrances is a fine security set-up particularly if an alarm company service is hired to monitor those cameras when you are gone.
We had a gun rack built one time with a vertical dowel rod- or at least it looked like a 1/2" diameter dowel rod, set though the top of the rack, and down through the bottom, where is was padlocked inside the locked ammo box. The innocents and pathetically weak looking dowel was actually a wooden cover to a hardened steel rod inside it, that would foil most any attempt to cut it, to get to the guns on the rack. I still like that idea on open cases, and racks.
99% of homes will be safe from burglars simply by attending to outside lighting. Another .9" will be safe if inside/outside alarms are installed, camera are in place, and timers are used to make the home looked occupied. Inside camera, and LOUD alarms inside and out with flashing lights, will have the bad guys running for the hills empty handed if valuable are being kept under lock and key, with appropriate alarms installed.
In the six years I worked for the Public Defender's office, and in all the 37 years I have practiced law, we have had ONE Armed Robbery committed in the County by an organized gang of jewelry store bandits. They were caught 60 miles away at a motel in Bloomington, Illinois after pulling a robbery there. Of the people involved, ONLY the oldest, an ex-con with a substantial criminal history( ie. Rap Sheet), knew anything about precious gems, or how to convert jewelry into cash. The young guys he hired to actually do the robberies were simply too lazy( His assessment) to learn his " trade". He told my wife, another lawyer, that his was a dying trade, because all the young guys wanted to shoot up places, smash and grab. They simply would not use their brains to learn about precious gems, so that the fences did not rip them off on the stones.
We have had bank robbers come through the county, and rob banks, here, only to find out that they have been pulling bank robberies in other states. But, we have had a high success rate in solving those cases, either with arrests at the scene, or by locating evidence that lead to the identification and conviction of the suspects, after they were caught elsewhere. There is Nothing about the Bank Robbers we have seen here that is anything you don't see watching the cops and robbers TV shows. Most are very unsophisticated- getting very little money for the amount of time they face when convicted in Federal Court.
Edited by paulvallandigham on 11-24-09 11:48 PM. Reason for edit: No reason given.
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Richard Eames
45 Cal.
Posts: 969
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In response to Brian L. Kennedy
I remember a guy in high school built a gun cabinet that I really liked.
The center of the cabinet was similiar to a "Lazy Susan", it rotated around in a circle. To put a gun in or take one out, the center was rotated around so the wanted gun was in the front of the case. Sure reduced the nicks and scratches from moving guns in and out.
You might check with the local high school wood shop teacher to what local talent is available.
RDE
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bn12gg
40 Cal.
Posts: 161
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In response to paulvallandigham
Paul- Thanks for the insight and detail. I really like the idea of an alarm on a cabinet. "Layers"- it would need to be turned off prior to a key level. Then, multiple keys.
In my case, I'm going to look into an alarm.
David
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