Steelwater 16 Gun Safe SWSD16GUN-EMP Review

Steelwater is an unknown brand in the safe industry. You won’t find them in traditional gun safe stores. There is no dealer section on their website whatsoever and they only sell direct… big red flag! They import all of their safes from China and only slap their Steelwater logo on it. They use low quality solenoid electronic locks, key overrides and only provide you with the illusion of security. Overall, these Steelwater Gun Safes are not the best quality and there are far better options for a better price. In this Steelwater 16 Gun Safe SWSD16Gun-EMP review, I will explain the truth about this illusion of security.

Lock – Steelwater 16 Gun Safe SWSD16Gun-EMP

First and always most important for any gun safe is the lock used. In an attempt to cut cost and have the absolute lowest prices possible, Steelwater opted to use a low quality Solenoid electronic lock. Undoubtedly, these locks are unbranded, un-rated and prone to failure. They include a key override for when the lock inevitably fails. While some models do include a hard plate or re-locker, it is useless when you include a key override.

Steelwater is more interested in providing the illusion of security than actual security. It’s a big reason why none of the real safe dealers carry any of their safes. My favorite feature of this gun safe is that they advertise this lock as EMP proof. However, the only reason they can claim that is because it has a key override… what a joke.

Security – Steelwater 16 Gun Safe SWSD16Gun-EMP

Steelwater has not tested this gun safe for California DOJ firearm safety device approval nor does it exceed the gun safe qualifications.

As a safe company, Steelwater should know that without CA DOJ approval at a minimum, it is illegal to sell this gun safe in California. The safe would very likely pass the firearm safety device test but they did not take the time to send it in for approval. Its built with 14 gauge steel construction in the door and body, ten 1.5″ steel locking bolts covering all four sides, hard plate protecting the lock and internal re-locker.

Key Override

There are two additional things I would like to note. First, this gun safe is imported from China. They notate their steel thickness in millimeters. I am positive this gun safe is not 14 gauge but actually 1.5 millimeter in thickness which is close but falsely advertised. Second, having all these bolts, a hard plate and re-locker is absolutely useless with the key override. These overrides are easy to pick and i find it very curious that Steelwater never actually shows any pictures of the inside of the door. Like I said already, they provide you with the illusion of security, not actual security.

Fire Rating – Steelwater 16 Gun Safe SWSD16GUN-EMP

Next, the Steelwater 16 Gun Safe SWSD16GUN-EMP has a 1 hour fire rating at 1875 degrees. This is significantly higher than their closest competitors who test their safes at 1200 and 1400 degrees. Now, the giant caveat to this, is that once again, Steelwater did not use a certified testing agency such as ETL or UL to verify their fire rating claims. We simply have to trust that the factory actually tested and that it actually passed. There is no verifiable evidence, pictures, videos, absolutely nothing and this would definitely cause me to look for a certified fire rated gun safe if that was my intended purpose for the product.

Next, they claim to have a heat activated expandable door seal to keep out smoke and water. They say this seal expands up to 8 times its thickness in the event of a fire. Now as a safe expert with over 30 years of experience, every seal I’ve ever known only expands up to 7 times its size during a fire. Now this may seem trivial, but I hope you are starting to see that Steelwater exaggerates or blatantly makes false claims to make you feel like you are getting better fire and burglary protection than real safes that actually go through certified testing and approvals.

Style and Function

The Steelwater 16 Gun Safe SWSD16GUN-EMP uses the standard textured black paint common for imported gun safes. Hardware includes a chrome 5-spoke handle and keypad. The interior is standard carpeting with a split gun rack, side shelves and a top shelf. Finally, this model has a door panel organizer and an LED light kit.

The Bottom Line

Would I buy the Steelwater 16 Gun Safe SWSD16GUN-EMP for my firearms and valuables? No, not a chance. With the low quality electronic solenoid lock, key override and litany of false or exaggerated claims, this is definitely not a company I can trust. Presently, they have been around for over a decade. Yet still are not carried in any traditional gun safe stores… huge red flag.

A gun safe that is in the exact same price range and are significantly better would be the Stealth UL14 Gun Safe. The reason I like this safe so much better is that it has a UL rated high security electronic lock, UL RSC burglary rating, tested 1 hour fire rating and is sold by a reliable company with a lifetime warranty.

Don’t fall for the illusion of security, buy a real safe from a trusted and reliable company.

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