Gun Cabinets Ranking Factors: Security, Reliability, Storage Capacity, Price
Overview
With more and more gun guys realizing that most Gun Safes are total bullshit and just provide the illusion of security, gun cabinets are becoming ever more popular. They offer the same limited protection of a Gun Safe minus the fire protection but actually offer better protection against moisture and humidity. Gypsum fireboard in gun safes create the perfect environment for mold, mildew and corrosion of your firearms making gun cabinets a much better choice for someone looking to just store guns. Read below for my Top 3 Gun Cabinets picks.
#1 Best Gun Cabinet – Stack-On GCB-8RTA
Review
Made in USA with a 3 point locking system that you assemble yourself makes this the kick ass gun cabinet on the interweb. Stack-On’s bread and butter for the last two decades has been their cabinet business. They make most of the units in the USA at their Illinois factory and the quality shows. As expected, it’s extremely thin steel that comes in a convenient shipping box and protective plastic that is 100% recyclable (Go Environment!). But for its purpose, it works great! Since you assemble the product yourself, you can easily take it upstairs or in traditionally inconvenient spaces.
While most gun cabinets use a cam lock that only has one security point, Stack-On invented a three point system that provides additional protection at the top and bottom of the cabinet. Granted, I can still get in this cabinet in under 3 minutes with a screwdriver and a hammer, if you are only looking for cheap and simple protection from kids, this is a great option. Since it uses a key lock, it really doesn’t get any more reliable than that. Stick the key in, turn it and you are in. Just don’t be an idiot and lose the keys.
The 8RTA has exactly an 8 gun capacity, go fuckin figure, right? However I would be totally amazed if you can actually get 8 guns in there, realistically you are looking at around 4-6 real guns. I have seen an awesome hack where customers have purchased a Secure-It tactical conversion kit and bolted it to the back of their cabinet providing straight line access. You can check out the kit here: SecureIt Tactical Gun Safe Kit
Where this cabinet really kicks ass is the price, it’s just unfucken beatable. It’s by far the cheapest price I have ever seen for a real cabinet on the internet (check price here. A quick word of caution, Amazon literally ships this in it’s original packaging and considering the size, it easily gets damaged. I know some other sellers like Dean Safe place this item in an additional box with extra packaging to protect it from shipping damage. I bought mine from them on Amazon.com and while it cost a little bit more, I actually got it in one piece without damage, so it was worth it for me.
#2 Best Gun Cabinet – Barska AX11652
Review
I’ve never been a huge fan of Barska considering their absolute shit customer service, but when your options for gun cabinets are limited, one must choose from what’s available. Barska claims their AX11652 is a rifle safe, but damn is it far from it. It’s legitimately a cabinet and they should really change their wording purely for liability purposes. What I like about this cabinet is it’s California DOJ approved as a firearm safety device with its 3 point locking bolt system. It uses Barska’s traditional biometric lock and after you scan your fingerprint, the lock releases and you can turn the chrome handle to retract the bolts.
When it comes to reliability, I love the Barska Locks. I’ve been testing the compact biometric safe for over 4 years now and it has reliably opened for me every single time without having to change the batteries once. You read that right, I haven’t changed the batteries in 4 years and it has a motorized locking system…. Unbelievable. I’m not a fan of the reliability of the biometric systems but this one has been working for me.
This particular model does not have a high storage capacity in that it states it can only store 4 guns and realistically maybe 2 if you include scopes or any accessories on your firearms. Barska does offer two larger models that states they can store 12 and 16 guns. You can find both of those options here:
Barska Extra Large Biometric Safe
This product also has a killer price point with free shipping. It’s a lot of product for such a low price and considering it has a biometric scanner on it, making it truly a great value in this category.
#3 Best Gun Cabinet – Stack-On TC-16-GB-K-DS
Review
Different from the GCB-8RTA, this Stack-On gun cabinet comes with the exterior put together already and there is some slight installation required by the purchaser with the gun rack and configuration of your cabinet. This cabinet uses the exact same 3-point locking system as the put together cabinet and the door is essentially the exact same. Don’t be fooled by the awesome looking door, it provides zero additional security but just makes the cabinet soooooo tacticool.
Again, considering it has a key lock it doesn’t get any more reliable than that. You literally can’t fuck it up unless you use the wrong key or lose the keys.
What makes this cabinet so cool is its interior. It uses the same 3 slot concept as most full size gun safes where you can store up to 14 long gun standard rifles on both sides, 2 tactical rifles with accessories in the middle and you can convert one of the gun racks to shelving or both for paperwork, ammo or other smaller items. By converting to shelving you lose gun capacity but it’s flexible so you can make it the way you want.
This is the best storage capacity, low cost cabinet already put together that money can buy. When you need simple protection with a decent capacity, the Stack-On TC-16-GB-K-DS is a great option.
Comparison Chart
| Security | Reliability | Storage Capacity | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stack-On GCB-8RTA | #2 | #1 | #2 | #1 |
| Barska AX11652 | #1 | #3 | #3 | #2 |
| Stack-On TC-16-GB-K-DS | #2 | #1 | #1 | #3 |