Concealment furniture

[hackmeister]

I'm considering purchasing some kind of weapon concealment furniture in order to facilitate quick access to a firearm in a home invasion/burglary scenario. The idea is to put it in the room where we tend to spend most of our awake time. I have a couple young kids so a locking mechanism would be a requirement.  Some of the items I'm considering:
http://njconceal.com/
http://tacticalwalls.com/product-category/shelves/

More than likely I'd like access to a semi-auto pistol or a tactical Remington 870.

[Prodigy]

Quick access and secure from young kids seems almost entirely mutually exclusive.  There is one solution I know of that can likely handle both, but I don't think the 2 you posted qualify.  I'd be very, very careful getting any of those options with kids in the house.  The magnetic lock is not secure at all - all it takes, really, is any powerful enough magnet to unlock.

The only solution I've seen so far that handles both quick and secure access is something like The Gun Box with an RF ring/wristband or biometric fingerprint reader.   thegunbox.com

Maybe there are other suggestions out there I haven't seen, though, so please post if so.

[outoforder2day]

The only way to do meet your criteria that I've been able to come up with is to conceal and carry on your person at all times, even when home and relaxing. Breaking into a home takes seconds. Fumbling for a key will get you killed in that scenario, and reaching one of the other pieces of concealment furniture will take equally as long if not longer. As for the safe from kids when you're not there, as previously noted, a maglock isn't really secure. A safe is.

[Carl]

A typical metal lock box that you un-lock when in the room,
EDUCATE THE KIDS, (even my dog knows to leave the gun alone)
MOVE to a better area?

[TexDaddy]

...MOVE to a better area?

Home invasions happen in the better areas.

My children were all taught about firearms at a very early age.

Strapped on is the only way I know to provide easy access and security.

[em ty]

NJconceal does offer an RFID lock option.  I agree about the magnetic locks with kids, though.

[11steve11]

hackmeister, I made my ours by starting with goodwill and yard sale purchases.  Most were around $10 and look like something that would be around a house with kids (nice but well used). In each case I made it really tough to get into when trying to keep it as a secure location but in an emergency, just shove your hand through it and bango.  I got the idea from a buddy of mine who dry walls, he keeps a loaded hand gun near the front and back doors between the studs in the wall; the area looks EXACTLY like the rest of the wall but is paper thin. So if he needed one in a hurry, there it is.  If he wanted to take it to the range without breaking the wall, he removes a remodel electrical switch box over it and reaches in and gets it (taking a about 2 minutes). 

[Bonnieblue2A]

Home invasions happen in the better areas.

My children were all taught about firearms at a very early age.

Strapped on is the only way I know to provide easy access and security.

+1

Just like a gun safe, concealment furniture is going to only keep the honest people out.   LE and criminals know they exist.  Kids may want to show off the secret hiding place to their friends.........

I can see some of the concealment furniture or in-wall mirror style safes working only if your children do not see you access it except in a real emergency and it has a real lock.

Only you know your children and their friends.  What ever your choice, it is one you will have to live with.

[hackmeister]

We live in a good area with relatively low crime. Like others have said home invasions can happen in good areas. The recent DC home invasion/murder occurred in a mansion a few blocks from the vice presidential residence in DC:
http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/22/us/washington-mansion-fire-slayings/

Most of the time I keep my backup M&P Bodyguard in my pocket. On the main floor I want quick access to something with a little more fire power.  I try to educate my kids as much as possible about gun safety and they know how to shoot the same 22lr Marlin I shot when I was 7. Eventually I want them to be part of our home defense plan. For now we will keep whatever option we go with a secret until we decide they're old enough.

The RFID or the combo button lock might be the quickest and most secure options.

Thank you everyone for your input.   

[Carl]

Why not make a house that is tougher to get into?

Commercial doors and glass,interior security bars ADD A SAFE ROOM etc.

[IronTeaCup]

I like the wall idea. Personally I feel like best is to have it on you. try to figure out the most comfy way to carry? The kids make it tough though. I am going to have the same issue soon. My first kid was born last month.

[r_w]

Lots of options, most are not secure.  Do you live somewhere that has a legal requirement for locking up guns (or cps takes your kids away) or is it just the practical issue of your kids and their friends?

Best combination I came up with is any concealment method that fits the room for an unloaded AK/AR, and then a biometric pistol case near my chair with a loaded pistol and the rifle mags. 

[trekker111]

In the end, because of all the Facebook posts and internet traffic about such furniture, there is not much benefit anymore.

All the ready made stuff has been so circulated that they are recognizable to many you would want to hide it from, and their existence is so common knowledge that even custom made items will likely be scrutinized. So what you are left with is slowing yourself down from accessing your weapon.

A holster on your hip will always be the best solution.

[ericksonrs]

I have four kids and all of them have been taught about firearm safety and know how to operate a firearm at some level.  However I will always keep guns behind a lock or on my person for some of the reasons already mentioned.  I don't want my 12 year old showing off to a friend...I also think of my soon to be teenagers and the emotional roller coaster they will be on.  I don't want at any time the option available to them to use a firearm without my supervision.  Think of the depression/anger issues everyone goes through during those times without fully developed cognitive functions.  I really like the idea of the RFID safes for the quickest access, but concealed carry is probably your best option.  I also second Carl's suggestion to harden the home. Non-lethal options can be hidden in such a way as Jack mentions on the show and kept out of the reach of kids.  If they do get into the bear spray at least they'll learn a lesson without injuring or killing their sibling or a friend.  My two cents.

[mountainmoma]

When you are in the house, have a spot above a door way for the shotgun, carry your hand gun and the rest in the gun safe.

When you go outside to the garden or chickens or what have you, the little kids either go with you or you put that shotgun in the gunsafe before you do so.

In my family, the 12 year olds and teens were quite old enough and trained enough to have something out they could access for self defense. Kids raised with this should know it is not a showing off thing to do. But, if you are not sure at that point, certainly put the shotgun in the gunsafe when you are at work or away for the evening.

[David in MN]

When I built the endtables for our family room I considered adding a hidden pistol. But you either have no lock, a difficult to reach keyed lock, or a goofy magnetic lock. So I timed myself and the winner was the fingerprint pistol box already in the closet.

All the magnetic locks failed when I tested them under stress simulated with a kettlebell workout. Losing fine motor movement made it hard to deploy. Same with hard to see keys. A latch that opens under pressure or a magnet that suspends the gun are faster but offer no security. In the end we stuck with the pistol boxes we have in closets on all floors.

To be fair, I have a fascination with Japanese puzzle boxes and I'm working on a "hidden pistol" design as a back burner project right now. My goal is a coarse motor multi step process that goes quickly but counterintuitively. Maybe a pipe dream.