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Posted: 2/12/2011 8:28:44 PM EDT
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okay, so I am getting ever closer to actually getting my gunsafe as I am a soon to be home owner. I have decided on a Liberty but just am not sure if I can afford the Presidential series I am wanting but I can afford the Lincoln series. Either way, my question remains. Which to get... the standard dial lock or the electronic lock?
The safe dealer I spoke with said that he has employees at his company that can beat the standard mechanical lock with little trouble, but that the e-lock is much more secure and cannot be beat. I know it is often discussed and it seems that a majority usually side with the standard mechanical dial lock but the potential benefits of the e-lock are pretty attractive. The d-drive electronic lock is made by the same people that make the dial lock on most safes... Anyone have any experience with this electronic lock? anyone have either kind of lock and wish you had got the other? if so can you please explain why? |
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well, I guess it is decided then. Aside from all of the information I have been reading pointing at the dial lock as the answer, now we have the guys that sell Liberty safes saying to get the dial. I will have to get the dial lock. Actually I am glad because it will save me a little bit of $$$.
Dont get a d-drive lock. Get just a dial. |
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meh I got a digital...can't really say I lean one way or the other in regards to dial vs digital. The battery has never died on me and the keypad hasn't given me a lick of trouble. Even if it does die or act up on me I have a key to get into the safe (verified it worked the day I got the safe and that's the only time I've used it). |
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I went with dial. The installer told me it was relatively easy to switch from dial to electronic and I'm pretty sure he said it was less than $200.
I like the dial I have (and I'm assuming most dials are like this too?) because if you're in and out of your safe a lot and don't want to spin the dial all the time, you can use a key to lock and unlock the dial. |
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That key feature should only be used when your at home around the safe. If anyone breaks in, they can get the safe open easily with minimal tools, or even a paer clip when it is locked down with the key.
I can open my dial lock on my safe between 9-10 seconds consistently by dialing the combo. |
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That key feature should only be used when your at home around the safe. If anyone breaks in, they can get the safe open easily with minimal tools, or even a paer clip when it is locked down with the key. I can open my dial lock on my safe between 9-10 seconds consistently by dialing the combo. That's true, if you leave your safe unattended for a while you should definitely spin the dial. You can also lock it with the key afterwards if you feel like it |
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Quoted: Usually if you have a backup key for the lock, that means it is prone to high failure rates. No UL listed Electronic locks or Dial locks come with a key backup for the lock unit. 6 years no issues so far, and it's out in an attached but unheated garage (just about the worst place it can be for a multitude of reasons). Can't really complain either if it craps out since I only paid about $200 for it brand new for a 36 gun fire & waterproof safe. It's far from the best, but it's a lot better than having them lying around. I've already outgrown that safe anyways, it's completely full. I've got all my "cheap" guns up in a 10 gun stack on cabinet or in the gun rack I made. |
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If you're not going to be getting in your safe but once a week, then the dial is ok. But if you're in and out of the safe a few times a day like me, the dial sucks!!!! The keypad is so much quicker.
My safe is a electric lock in addition to a key (need BOTH to open the safe.) There is a backup different key for the electric lock were to fail. |
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If you're not going to be getting in your safe but once a week, then the dial is ok. But if you're in and out of the safe a few times a day like me, the dial sucks!!!! The keypad is so much quicker.l. My dial lock takes me 8 seconds. My time is valuable but an extra 2 or 3 seconds ain't going to make a difference. |
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Dial locks fail too. They can be quite fragile. Two is one, one is none: http://i56.tinypic.com/3090u2t.jpg I dont agree about them being fragile, they tend to be stronger than electronic locks in every way. Dial locks do fail, but not nearly as much as electronic locks. |
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Dial. I live in a world where anything electronic breaks, no matter the quality or price. First post and all that. Go dial. ETA: my dial lock is almost 20 years old, and my safe has traveled across the country with me several times... still going strong. |
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6 yrs ago I was saving up my toy fund to buy a large safe in the then $2500 range.Since this took me about 6 months I had plenty of time to research and finally decided on a Sturdy Safe.When I placed my order with Terry/Sturdy Safe I asked about an electronic lock(a $200 upgrade at the time).He said I promise you the electronic will fail within 20 yrs but the dial will not.
1.Why would a business talk me out of a $200 upgrade unless they were truly telling the truth? 2.I'm an industrial A/C mechanic who routinely works on electronic components...circuit boards,relays,contactors etc...I promise you anything electronic will fail long before a mechanical lock that you are using maybe once a week. I got the mechanical lock. Snopczynski is a member here who is actually in the safe business,value his opinion. |
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My S&G is 25+ years old and still works fine, although the numbers have started to get a little blurred the last few years.
A friend at work had his E-lock broken off in a robbery attempt, he got lucky and the wiring was ripped off the lock, not the safe so he did eventually get back into it without drilling. I do think that I will buy an electronic lock eventually simply because I find them easier to get open in the dark or without my eyeglasses. A bit off topic but it would be nice to have a remote mount option for an electronic lock. |
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I went with dial. The installer told me it was relatively easy to switch from dial to electronic and I'm pretty sure he said it was less than $200. I like the dial I have (and I'm assuming most dials are like this too?) because if you're in and out of your safe a lot and don't want to spin the dial all the time, you can use a key to lock and unlock the dial. Any info on this? I have a digital, and I'd like to switch it to dial. I've replaced the 9V many times- once when I noticed it wanted it, and once a year every year since. Kind of like smoke alarm batteries. I just do it once a year to be safe. But I hate the beeping and I hate that you can take the mechanism off the safe and expose the wires. Its a Patriot P14 safe. Is this an option? |
| On all decent e-locks, the electronic guts of the lock are on the inside of the safe. There is no way to splice the wires and bypass the lock. Sure a thief can rip the lock/wires off, but they won't get in. You'll have to have a lock technician come replace the lock, but they'd have to do the same if someone beat on a dial lock as well. |
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I talked to the head salesman of the largest commercial safe company in Texas.
He said they sell most commercial safes with electronic locks and would you think they would do so if they were a poor design ? IMO mechanical is a better lock if you access your safe in a normal residential application. If you are in and out all day electronic is the way to go. Keyed is idiot and bullet proof as well. |
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I talked to the head salesman of the largest commercial safe company in Texas. He said they sell most commercial safes with electronic locks and would you think they would do so if they were a poor design ? IMO mechanical is a better lock if you access your safe in a normal residential application. If you are in and out all day electronic is the way to go. Keyed is idiot and bullet proof as well. Yes... There is a very specific reason most goods you buy these days are designed to wear out and require servicing every couple of years. If I sell you an excellent safe that I know the lock will fail withing 10 years that means I have sold you the safe + a fee for replacing the lock, a charge for my technicians time to open the safe for you, the possibility you will upgrade your safe due to dissatisfaction with that model failing. We then repeat this process in another 10 years. |
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I talked to the head salesman of the largest commercial safe company in Texas. He said they sell most commercial safes with electronic locks and would you think they would do so if they were a poor design ? IMO mechanical is a better lock if you access your safe in a normal residential application. If you are in and out all day electronic is the way to go. Keyed is idiot and bullet proof as well. Yes... There is a very specific reason most goods you buy these days are designed to wear out and require servicing every couple of years. If I sell you an excellent safe that I know the lock will fail withing 10 years that means I have sold you the safe + a fee for replacing the lock, a charge for my technicians time to open the safe for you, the possibility you will upgrade your safe due to dissatisfaction with that model failing. We then repeat this process in another 10 years. Each place we went to safe shopping had 2 different lock warranties. 2 years foe Elocks and lifetime for mechanical. Hmm. |
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I talked to the head salesman of the largest commercial safe company in Texas. He said they sell most commercial safes with electronic locks and would you think they would do so if they were a poor design ? IMO mechanical is a better lock if you access your safe in a normal residential application. If you are in and out all day electronic is the way to go. Keyed is idiot and bullet proof as well. Yes... There is a very specific reason most goods you buy these days are designed to wear out and require servicing every couple of years. If I sell you an excellent safe that I know the lock will fail withing 10 years that means I have sold you the safe + a fee for replacing the lock, a charge for my technicians time to open the safe for you, the possibility you will upgrade your safe due to dissatisfaction with that model failing. We then repeat this process in another 10 years. I sell safes and try to talk almost every customer into a dial lock. The only time you dont talk them into it is if they can barely see, cant keep a steady hand, or they just dont get how a dial lock opens. |
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