Barska is a full gun accessory related company selling optics, scopes, binoculars and safes. Their safes are built with thin steel, low quality locks and are backed by the industries worst warranty. I strongly recommend you stay far away from Barska and in these Barska Gun Safe Reviews, I’m going to explain exactly why.
Lock – Barska Gun Safe Reviews
First and always most important for any gun safe is the lock. This happens to be the weakest point of the Barska gun safes. The electronic locks and biometric scanners are some of the absolute cheapest in the industry which is necessary for the price point Barska is trying to hit. The lock sometimes works and sometimes doesn’t and when it comes to a gun safe, you need it to work every single time. The electronic solenoid locks they use can be bumped open just by banging the top of the safe and turning the handle. These locks are unrated, untested, unbranded and overall very poor quality. I always recommend purchasing a gun safe with a UL rated high security electronic or mechanical lock.
Another awful feature of the Barska Gun Safes 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 or use the 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 Gun Safes is most commonly 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. Some of their more expensive models upgrade to a double-bitted high security key which is adequate.
Security – Barska Gun Safe Reviews
The Barska Rifle Safes features either a two-way or 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″ on most models. 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 safes did pass the California DOJ testing standards for the Firearm Safety Device. All in all, this is not a difficult test to pass and is typically reserved for pistol safes.
Style and Function
The Barska Gun Safes are finished in a textured black powder coat finish with chrome or black keypad. This is the lowest quality paint in the industry and not built to last. Interiors are either all metal or carpeted with gun racks and shelving.
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. All in all, 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
Would I buy any of the Barska Gun Safes to store my firearms and valuables? No, I absolutely would not. These gun safes do not even come close to a quality gun safe made by Stealth, Hollon, Kodiak, Liberty or American Security. These gun safes have low quality locks, poor quality control and overall are not something I can recommend.
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.
