Peace of mind is priceless. Owning firearms is not only a right and a joy but a great responsibility, bringing potential liability issues. A lot of capital can be tied up in a firearms collection, not to mention sentimental value.
All things considered, a great gun safe offers a great deal of peace of mind. Getting the best doesn't have to break the bank. One company out of North Carolina offers impeccably designed safes at a reasonable price.
Click Below to Fast Travel to Your Top Pick
- Steelwater 16 Gun Safes
- Steelwater 20 Gun Safes
- Steelwater 22 Gun Safes
- Steelwater 39 Gun Safes
- Steelwater 45 Gun Safes
- Steelwater Fire and Security Safes
Steelwater Gun Safes
Steelwater is owned and run by a law enforcement veteran. Concerned with common flaws in locks and safes, a couple of decades ago he became a master locksmith so that he could pursue solutions to these flaws. This makes for about a quarter-century of expertise in property security, burglary prevention, and safe design.
Steelwater company headquarters, design, and quality control are located in the heart of the USA. Production is located abroad to keep the product line very affordable. Every safe is tested twice, at the factory and at the company’s headquarters.
Steelwater backs up every safe with a limited lifetime warranty. This covers burglary and one hour of fire protection up to 1875°F. The warranty covers parts and labor for one year and all digital components for 90 days.
Why Choose Steelwater Gun Safes Over the Competition?
Steelwater Gun Safes are designed to prevent a skilled burglar from gaining access to your safe, even if he exerts great effort and uses specialized tools. Even if the hinges, lock, and handles are eventually shorn off, the burglar will be no closer to gaining access to the safe. Steelwater's five-inch-thick, prybar-proofed doors feature 1 1/2" thick locking bolts all the way around. Two relocking devices keep the safe secure when the lock has been tampered with.
Lock options for Steelwater Gun Safes include a combination lock, dial with key lock, or digital lock. Different models offer different lock options. All gun safe locks are made by LaGard, a Swiss company and a global top three leader in security solutions. All digital locks are electromagnetic pulse (EMP) protected.
Every Steelwater safe comes with a free Dry Pack silica gel rechargeable dehumidifier. This can be upgraded to an electric dehumidifier, which comes in two sizes. You can also choose whether you want it pre-installed or want to install it yourself. Each gun safe has a pre-drilled 1/2" hole in the back for the installation of the electric dehumidifier.
Shelving in most gun safes on the market is made of simple particleboard. Steelwater uses steel reinforced shelving for improved strength and longevity. All models are fully upholstered (in grey) to prevent knicking or scratching your guns.
Steelwater safes are reinforced where it counts. All safes on the market under about ten grand in price have a thick steel hard plate inside the door to protect the lock. Steelwater's hard plates are ten times larger than average. This protects all internal components such as the re-locking mechanism and gear drive system. The areas around the bolt attachments on the floor are also re-enforced so the bolt heads cannot be worked out by rocking the safe.
In some ways, safes are like cars. Car repair bills are much lower when a car brand's replacement parts remain standard across many years. The same is true with safes, but few manufacturers incorporate this design feature. Steelwater does. Sticking to a rock-solid, well-thought-out design allows for affordable maintenance and parts replacement down the line.
When the manufacturer of a product, like a safe, changes their product on a yearly basis, these changes are generally nothing but gimmicks. In fact, they can introduce unforeseen problems and even security issues into the overall design.
Each gun safe order includes free delivery. This can be either garage delivery or curbside. Garage delivery includes any covered location easily accessible by a pallet jack. Some restrictions apply.
Steelwater places emphasis on quality and timely customer service. Deliveries tend to arrive at your home about one week after placing your order. A full inventory of replacement parts is always in stock and ready for rapid delivery. Even if you have a problem that isn't covered by your warranty, Steelwater will almost always do everything they can to help solve it.
Steelwater offers a 5% discount for all active and retired military and law enforcement personnel. They come in their signature sleek, semi-gloss black with silver pinstriping.
Gun Safes by Steelwater
Steelwater gun safes come in five sizes, each with a choice of protection level ranging from standard, heavy duty, and extreme duty. These then come with different trim options depending on the model. You have choices of lock design, dehumidifier, and often, extra shelving or organizers.
Additionally, in this list, we present one of their models which is not designed to accommodate long guns. It is nevertheless ideal for handguns and other valuables, particularly when space is an issue. The long gun number in the model names below indicate a best case scenario. If many of your guns are scoped or have unconventional configurations, you may have a lower capacity.
Steelwater 16 Gun Safe
| PRODUCT | DETAILS | ||
|---|---|---|---|
 Our Top Pick | Standard |
| View Latest Price |
 | HeavyDuty |
| View Latest Price |
This safe is designed to hold 16 long guns plus handguns and other valuables. It comes in standard and heavy-duty versions. Both come equipped with a chrome digital keypad which comes with an emergency bypass key. Automatic internal LED lighting, a single layer of fireboard, and heat-activated door seals to keep out smoke and water are also included.
External dimensions are 59" high by 22" wide and 16" deep. The lock and handles extend an additional three inches. Internally, 16 long guns can be quite a squeeze, but there is a fair amount of shelving and pistol racking space. Extras of both are available and very affordable. Velcro door organizers for handguns and ammo are also available.
The main difference between the two versions is in steel gauge. The standard model uses 14-gauge versus 12-gauge in the heavy-duty. The heavy-duty model surpasses California Department of Justice regulatory standards.
Steelwater 20 Gun Safe
| PRODUCT | DETAILS | ||
|---|---|---|---|
 Our Top Pick | Standard |
| View Latest Price |
 | HeavyDuty |
| View Latest Price |
Like the 16 long gun model, the Steelwater 20 Gun Safe comes in a choice of standard or heavy-duty. They also come with a chrome keypad with a bypass key. Additional keys can be ordered with the heavy-duty model. External dimensions are 59" high, 28" wide, and 18" deep, with the lock and handle protruding another three inches.
Otherwise, the specifications are very similar to the 16 long gun model. Both include automatic internal LED lighting, a single layer of fireboard, a heat-activated door seal, one full-width shelf, and three half-width ones. Again, the main difference is in steel gauge used, with the heavy-duty model surpassing California state requirements.
Steelwater 22 Gun Safe
| PRODUCT | DETAILS | ||
|---|---|---|---|
 Our Top Pick | HeavyDuty |
| View Latest Price |
 | XtremeDuty |
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This is where Steelwater starts throwing in a touch of luxury into their product line. These models come in heavy-duty and Xtreme-duty, meaning that both are up to California state specs. They also come with three choices of locks, a chrome digital keypad with bypass key, combination lock, or key lock.
Besides the automatic LED lighting, heat activated seal, and shelving, these models include an adjustable organizer kit and a high-grade power supply with three AC outlets and two USB ports. External dimensions are 59" high, 30" wide, and 24" deep, with the lock and handle protruding an extra three inches.
The main difference between the heavy-duty and Xtreme-duty is 12-gauge steel versus 9-gauge, respectively. This leaves the heavy-duty weighing 555 lbs. and the Xtreme 772 lbs. The heavy-duty has two layers of fireboard while the Xtreme has four.
Steelwater 39 Gun Safe
| PRODUCT | DETAILS | ||
|---|---|---|---|
 Our Top Pick | HeavyDuty |
| View Latest Price |
 | XtremeDuty |
| View Latest Price |
These have all the features and options of the 22 gun safe, but with a greater capacity. The Steelwater 39 Gun Safes come in heavy-duty and Xtreme-duty, meaning that both are up to California state specs. Like the 22 models, they offer three choices of locks, a chrome digital keypad with bypass key, combination lock, or key lock.
They also include the automatic LED lighting, heat activated seal, shelving, ten-piece adjustable velcro organizer kit, and a high-grade power supply with three AC outlets and two USB ports. External dimensions are 59" high, 39" wide, and 24" deep, with the lock and handle protruding an extra three inches.
Again, the main difference between the heavy-duty and Xtreme-duty is the steel gauge, twelve-gauge versus nine-gauge. The heavy-duty weighs in at 687 lbs. With two layers of fireboard and the Xtreme hits 932 lbs with four layers of fireboard.
Steelwater 45 Gun Safe
| PRODUCT | DETAILS | ||
|---|---|---|---|
 Our Top Pick | HeavyDuty |
| View Latest Price |
 | XtremeDuty |
| View Latest Price |
This is the largest size available from Steelwater and a great choice for the true collector. It offers three rows of fifteen long guns each for a total of 45. Like the safes above, it comes in two California state reg-surpassing models, the heavy-duty and the Xtreme-duty.
These differ in the gauge of steel used, twelve versus nine-gauge, and therefore also differ in weight. The heavy-duty has two layers of fireboard while the Xtreme has four. They both offer the familiar choice of locks, the chrome digital keypad with bypass key, combination lock, or key lock.
They also come with automatic LED lighting, heat activated seal, ten-piece adjustable velcro organizer kit, and a high-grade power supply with three AC outlets and two USB ports. External dimensions are 72" high, 42" wide, and 27 5/8" deep. Shelving is ample, with one full-length shelf and six small ones each around a foot wide.
Steelwater Fire and Security Safe
| PRODUCT | DETAILS | ||
|---|---|---|---|
Our Top Pick | Steelwater Fire and Burglary Safe |
| View Latest Price |
At 33 1/4” high, 21" wide, and 22 3/4” deep, this is not a long gun safe. It is, however, great for handguns or securing other valuables, particularly in a relatively confined space. You have the choice of the Lagard digital combination lock or a combination dial.
The safe door features a total of five 1.25" chrome bolts distributed around three sides. There is a full-length interlocking channel on the hinge side. The safe comes with two adjustable shelves, a chrome-plated three spoke handle, and a pre-drilled 1/2" anchor hole.
The door swings out 180 degrees and a bolt detent holds the bolts in the open position until you're ready to close the safe. A glass relocker keeps the safe secure even if a burglar manages to remove the lock.
Conclusion
The features, options, and service offered by Steelwater cannot be matched at the same price point. The company offers a price-matching guarantee to emphasize this point. The delivery time, ease of maintenance, exceptional design, and build quality have won Steelwater many loyal customers. This is a company with a passion for security solutions and the expertise to go along with it.
Although the components are generally made in Asia, quality control is rigorously performed in the USA. This keeps costs at a very reasonable level. Keeping the parts standard year to year also keeps logistical expenses down and keeps replacement parts affordable.
Note that the stated safe capacity for long guns is a best-case scenario. If you only have unscoped hunting-style guns, sure, you can fit them in. If you many weapons in the scoped or tricked-out tactical department, don't be surprised if they don't all fit. Consider getting one size up if you're unsure whether your collection will fit.
Steelwater offers great value and excellently designed and built gun safes. You can use them for a lifetime with no regrets.
