Project Information
Needed a way to a.) store firearms in a hidden place, b.) make it impossible for small children to get to the guns with a key, c.) make the storage box small enough to go under a bed and d.) make access to home defense quick and simple.
I used what I had - ash and quartersawn, spalted Sycamore. This lumber started off as trees on my own property that I cut down and took to a sawmill. Very challenging as this was done with air dried lumber vs. kiln dried. Who am I kidding… "very challenging"? I struggled significantly with lumber movement. However, I felt the beauty of the Sycamore was worth the aggravation. When quartersawn, it has a snake skin look and the spalted nature of the tree I used gives it even more character. All the mouldings on the outside were custom made the combination of ash and Sycamore. Top is a very rudimentary Sycamore inlay in the ash.
The box opens only via an electronic pin code lock on the side panel. The reason I did this is so that even if a small child found a key, they couldn't get into this box since there is no keyed lock. Reason #2 is so that if there is a home invasion, it makes getting to home defense much faster (no fumbling with a key, and no need to pull the box out from under the bed). You'll see 2 tip outs I made so that pulling a shotgun out of the side panel is made much easier. Once the side panel is opened, you can reach up inside and turn 2 wooden "locks" to allow the top to open up (you'll see a photo of this too). Again… the only way to open the box is if you know the PIN code.
Hope you enjoy - thanks for all the inspiration out there, everyone! Many of you make it look easy! Now then… what's next?
I used what I had - ash and quartersawn, spalted Sycamore. This lumber started off as trees on my own property that I cut down and took to a sawmill. Very challenging as this was done with air dried lumber vs. kiln dried. Who am I kidding… "very challenging"? I struggled significantly with lumber movement. However, I felt the beauty of the Sycamore was worth the aggravation. When quartersawn, it has a snake skin look and the spalted nature of the tree I used gives it even more character. All the mouldings on the outside were custom made the combination of ash and Sycamore. Top is a very rudimentary Sycamore inlay in the ash.
The box opens only via an electronic pin code lock on the side panel. The reason I did this is so that even if a small child found a key, they couldn't get into this box since there is no keyed lock. Reason #2 is so that if there is a home invasion, it makes getting to home defense much faster (no fumbling with a key, and no need to pull the box out from under the bed). You'll see 2 tip outs I made so that pulling a shotgun out of the side panel is made much easier. Once the side panel is opened, you can reach up inside and turn 2 wooden "locks" to allow the top to open up (you'll see a photo of this too). Again… the only way to open the box is if you know the PIN code.
Hope you enjoy - thanks for all the inspiration out there, everyone! Many of you make it look easy! Now then… what's next?