Barska Quick and Easy Access Biometric Rifle Firearm and Long Gun Safe AX13378 Review

The title of the Barska Quick and Easy Access Biometric Rifle Firearm and Long Gun Safe AX13378 starts with quick and easy access but unfortunately that quick and easy access is just a little bit too quick and easy. This so called “gun safe” is certainly not a gun safe at all but a cheap gun cabinet with a poor quality lock. In this review of the Barska AX13378 biometric gun safe, I’m going to explain why this is a product you should definitely avoid.

Lock – Barska Quick and Easy Access Biometric Rifle Firearm and Long Gun Safe AX13378

First and always most important for any gun safe is the lock. This happens to be the weakest point of the Barska Quick and Easy Access Biometric Rifle Firearm and Long Gun Safe AX13378. The biometric scanner is one of the absolute cheapest in the industry which was necessary for the price point Barska was trying to hit. The lock sometimes works and sometimes doesn’t and when it comes to a biometric system, you need it to work every single time. With the advancement of biometric scanners by the likes of Apple, Google and even safe companies like Verifi, the technology exists but is more expensive. Barska opted to go with the cheapest option and the poor quality shows.

Another awful feature of the Barska Quick and Easy Access Biometric Rifle Firearm and Long Gun Safe AX13378 is that the batteries are located on the inside of the safe so if you do not replace it in time you will need to purchase an external battery pack or search for your tubular key override. Batteries should always be located on the outside of the safe in the keypad and this is the case for all UL rated type 1 high security electronic locks made by NL, Securam and S&G.

Key Override

Next, the back-up method on the Barska Quick and Easy Access Biometric Rifle Firearm and Long Gun Safe AX13378 is a tubular key override. This is the same tubular override key that Amazon Basics used on their low quality safes. There are tons of videos out on how to open these key locks with Bic Pens and lock picks. It takes a minimal amount of force to open these. In addition, the lock picks are easily found on Amazon for around $60. I strongly recommend you avoid anything with a tubular override key.

Security – Barska Quick and Easy Access Biometric Rifle Firearm and Long Gun Safe AX13378

The Barska Rifle Safe features a three point locking system consisting of top, side and bottom bolts. However, the width of these bolts is only 5/8″ and the length is only 3/4″. Considering the safe itself is only built with 14 gauge steel, it would take seconds to pop this open. This is not adequate security for what is advertised as a gun safe. The safe did pass the California DOJ testing standards for the Firearm Safety Device. This is not a difficult test to pass and is typically reserved for pistol safes.

Style and Function

The Barska Gun Safe is only 13″ Deep and that does not account for the depth of the door. Effectively you can’t fit anything in this cabinet except for a basic rifle from the 1800s. Finally, the interior features a carpeted mat bottom with a shelf and adjustable gun rack.

Warranty

Barska products come with a 1 year parts and labor warranty. To claim this warranty, you have to pay for shipping to the factory. Then you have to include a check to have them ship it back to you. The cost to ship a rifle safe like this would be around $150 each way. In addition, these products have an extremely high damage rate. This renders the warranty effectively useless. Every honorable safe company pays for a safe technician to come out to your home to fix the product. Barska is not an honorable company and I would not recommend you deal with this nightmare warranty. Always read the fine print

The Bottom Line

I can’t think of a more useless product than the Barska AX13378 Biometric Gun Safe. I understand some people can only afford a low cost gun safe, but in this situation, you would be better off with a trigger lock or simple cabinet. This cabinet won’t stop any thief, curious eyes or your kids, you won’t be able to fit any rifles in it and you’ll want to destroy it after it inevitably fails.

With all that said, there are some low cost gun safes I do recommend. While they are not as cheap as the Barska product, they do offer UL rated high security locks, fire ratings and thick steel construction. Take a look at my list of the Top 3 Best Gun Safes Under $1,200.