Watch safe

[midwesterner]

Hello friends,
I stayed in a hotel recently and put my watch in a safe while sleeping and going for a run. The idea got me thinking why not have a small watch safe in my home for those occasions where I am on vacation. I don’t have any interest in a safe deposit box as I switch watches all the time.

Thoughts?

[JC316]

I recommend a decent sized safe for other valuables and not only your watches. Size, design, and tech are going to play a huge factor in cost. When I was shopping for a safe, I searched for one that had a reasonable tolerance for heat/fire. Something to consider. Don't get one too small! You don't want someone to run off with it! Good luck!

[Cavester]

Hide it rather than put it in a small safe. A soap box under the sink, no one looks there :)

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[Sprezzatura!,]

I always think a good hiding place, or places, would be better than a safe.

In most instances, the safe can be found, and then it indicates there is something worth stealing in there.

Insurers will request a safe when there is a certain value to your collection, it whilst they don’t, I would simply hide them.

[OrangeSport]

We use a couple of safes for various bits n bobs, including watches

[Timetracker]

Originally Posted by Cavester

Hide it rather than put it in a small safe. A soap box under the sink, no one looks there :)

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They do now😊

[midwesterner]

Good points. Maybe hiding the watches is a better idea, especially given that I have a relatively small collection, but it is growing 👹

[Cavester]

Originally Posted by Timetracker

They do now

Haha. Just amazes me how many people buy a safe then stick it under the stairs, where you would expect a safe to be.

A pantry is another good place. Unless the burglars get hungry lol

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[dukie748]

My safe is 400lbs+, burglary and fire rated, bolted to the floor, and has a camera pointed directly at it - insurer insisted upon it.

Don't buy a cheap Sentry or similar, pointless.

[MDSWATCH]

I’ve got a safe, but when I go on holiday, I plan to hide the watches and the watch boxes.

For me the safe is ideal for storing the watches and for stopping anyone curious tampering with them. I.e. my kids friends or any other visitor who knows I have nice watches.

[marselluswallace]

Originally Posted by dukie748

My safe is 400lbs+, burglary and fire rated, bolted to the floor, and has a camera pointed directly at it - insurer insisted upon it.

Don't buy a cheap Sentry or similar, pointless.

Same here.

Short of a stick of dynamite or an hours work with a Stihl saw its not going anywhere or getting opened.

Anything less is a waste of time and a clever hiding place a better idea IMO

[Harry-57]

Something heavy which is bolted to a wall and floor is my recommendation. Not something that can be lifted easily by one or two people once they have chiselled it out. (Incendential bit - this is why I went for Swiss KubuK Masterbox winders. Compact and will run on batteries for a couple of years so can be put in a safe without running wires in). I've also got a Wolf prominently on display with my cheapest watch in it. Hope I never find out how effective my model is.

I've left the most important bit until last for emphasis. Insurance.

[Jocke]

Originally Posted by Cavester

Hide it rather than put it in a small safe. A soap box under the sink, no one looks there :)

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So you will smell really nice if you have 50 watches.

[Jocke]

Originally Posted by Harry-57

Something heavy which is bolted to a wall and floor is my recommendation. Not something that can be lifted easily by one or two people once they have chiselled it out. This is why I went for Swiss KubuK Masterbox winders. Compact and will run on batteries for a couple of years. I've also got a Wold prominently on display with my cheapest watch in it. Hope I never find out how effective my model is.

I've left the most important bit until last for emphasis. Insurance.

What he said.

You do not stop thieves, but what you can do is make it take longer for them. With a little luck, maybe they go to the next house or some neighbor notices them before they are finished.

[seosub]

Originally Posted by Cavester

Hide it rather than put it in a small safe. A soap box under the sink, no one looks there :)

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You've now ruined it for everyone

[thegrizz]

600lb fire rated safe, bolted to the floor with a false door. If you have X invested in watches and other goods, what’s 3k on a safe?

Next house will have a room with block walls, fire rated and a bank vault door.

[Master_Grogu]

Depends. Unless you want to invest in a real good safe it’s just a bad idea. There are some best practices about this.

Personally I vastly favor security through obscurity. For exemple to access some rooms or cabinets (which are concealed), you need to know where to apply a RFID card. The RFID reader is hidden and impossible to find visually.

This is a superior option that I use, against having a small safe that you would be able to just carry away or break into.

Safe-wise, I’m happy to leave it in the bank.

[Cavester]

Originally Posted by Master_Grogu

Depends. Unless you want to invest in a real good safe it’s just a bad idea. There are some best practices about this.

Personally I vastly favor security through obscurity. For exemple to access some rooms or cabinets (which are concealed), you need to know where to apply a RFID card. The RFID reader is hidden and impossible to find visually.

This is a superior option that I use, against having a small safe that you would be able to just carry away or break into.

Safe-wise, I’m happy to leave it in the bank.

Precisely. I've never understood why these cash trucks drive about with "WE CARRY LARGE AMOUNTS OF MONEY IN THE BACK" advertisements slapped on the side lol

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[Laszlo]

Thieves are in and out really fast here in SF. Alarms and security cameras only slow them down a little bit. Small homes and lots of neighbors. Another great hiding spot is inside a pot tucked away in the kitchen. I have also wrapped them in a sock and leave them in plain sight… if done correctly they just look like dirty sock someone left behind. All sorts of clever and creative things you can do. The most important though is getting them insured. That truly helps with peace of mind. Uninsured valuables and that worry feeling will follow you around otherwise.

[Gab27]

I am a safe enthusiast.


IMHO, if you are going to get a safe, I highly recommend investing in a real safe. Unfortunately, the vast majority of safes that are marketed to consumers and sold in stores are really locking boxes that look like safes.

One major consideration is whether you want burglary protection, fire protection, or both. This is a critical determination and has cost and weight implications.

After making that determination, the question then becomes to what extent do you want the said types of protection? There are safes that a fire axe can break into in a minute or two (which constitute many of the products marketed to consumers) and there are safes that can withstand an attack with a thermal lance. In most cases, something in between those two extremes is optimal relative to the contents being protected and the protection desired.

For burglary protection, I would argue that the place to start is a B-rate safe, which is generally referring to 1/2 inch of plate steel on the door and 1/4 inch of plate steel on the body. A good B-rate safe is going to provide excellent protection against an attack with large hand tools. However, it will provide only very limited protection against a powered tool attack. For one or two watches, it is probably a good place to be. (If you are putting a lot of watches in it or are putting other things in it of high value, a higher level of protection, such as a safe with a TL-15 rating, would likely be more appropriate.) (Do note that B-rate just refers to a loose construction specification, whereas safes with TL/TRTL/TXTL ratings are ones that must meet a minimum construction specification and survive attack tests conducted by the UL.)

If you do not care about fire and just want something small for watches that covers burglary, B-rate cash safes are a great choice. These are smaller and simple steel plate safes with a very specific purpose. Place it in a spot that isn't easy to find and then bolt it down. You can get these for $50-$1,000 and numerous brands make them (Gardall, Hollon, FireKing, AmSec, etc). This is an example of one of these products:
https://www.safeandvaultstore.com/pr...ey-chest-b1515

If you do want fire protection and this is really important to you, then I recommend looking for a safe that carries UL certification (the most common of which is the Class 350, which is tested to protect paper documents). UL ratings are the golden standard of ratings and most safes carrying these ratings will use a composite fill construction, which is arguably superior to other fireproofing methods. Many safes marketed to consumers that offer fire protection either do not have any rating or carry the rating of a party other than the UL, and often that rating uses a lower test temp and different methodology than the UL.




There are other factors to consider as well. You absolutely want an alarm to go with it, so there can be a police response before the safe is defeated, especially if you are away on vacation.

I like to talk safes so I could go on but I will stop. I hope this helps!

[RolexSimon]

Battery-operated watch winders in the safe work really well.

[Gab27]

Originally Posted by RolexSimon

Battery-operated watch winders in the safe work really well.

IMHO, the ones that use non-lithium batteries are strongly preferable over those that do for use in a fire safe.

[HHIslander]

Originally Posted by Gab27

I am a safe enthusiast.


IMHO, if you are going to get a safe, I highly recommend investing in a real safe. Unfortunately, the vast majority of safes that are marketed to consumers and sold in stores are really locking boxes that look like safes.

One major consideration is whether you want burglary protection, fire protection, or both. This is a critical determination and has cost and weight implications.

After making that determination, the question then becomes to what extent do you want the said types of protection? There are safes that a fire axe can break into in a minute or two (which constitute many of the products marketed to consumers) and there are safes that can withstand an attack with a thermal lance. In most cases, something in between those two extremes is optimal relative to the contents being protected and the protection desired.

For burglary protection, I would argue that the place to start is a B-rate safe, which is generally referring to 1/2 inch of plate steel on the door and 1/4 inch of plate steel on the body. A good B-rate safe is going to provide excellent protection against an attack with large hand tools. However, it will provide only very limited protection against a powered tool attack. For one or two watches, it is probably a good place to be. (If you are putting a lot of watches in it or are putting other things in it of high value, a higher level of protection, such as a safe with a TL-15 rating, would likely be more appropriate.) (Do note that B-rate just refers to a loose construction specification, whereas safes with TL/TRTL/TXTL ratings are ones that must meet a minimum construction specification and survive attack tests conducted by the UL.)

If you do not care about fire and just want something small for watches that covers burglary, B-rate cash safes are a great choice. These are smaller and simple steel plate safes with a very specific purpose. Place it in a spot that isn't easy to find and then bolt it down. You can get these for $50-$1,000 and numerous brands make them (Gardall, Hollon, FireKing, AmSec, etc). This is an example of one of these products:
https://www.safeandvaultstore.com/pr...ey-chest-b1515

If you do want fire protection and this is really important to you, then I recommend looking for a safe that carries UL certification (the most common of which is the Class 350, which is tested to protect paper documents). UL ratings are the golden standard of ratings and most safes carrying these ratings will use a composite fill construction, which is arguably superior to other fireproofing methods. Many safes marketed to consumers that offer fire protection either do not have any rating or carry the rating of a party other than the UL, and often that rating uses a lower test temp and different methodology than the UL.




There are other factors to consider as well. You absolutely want an alarm to go with it, so there can be a police response before the safe is defeated, especially if you are away on vacation.

I like to talk safes so I could go on but I will stop. I hope this helps!

The TRF safe expert has spoken. Nicely done Gab27, as usual.

[Becweb]

Right on the money. Also protect other valuables / documents / property deeds etc

Originally Posted by Gab27

I am a safe enthusiast.


IMHO, if you are going to get a safe, I highly recommend investing in a real safe. Unfortunately, the vast majority of safes that are marketed to consumers and sold in stores are really locking boxes that look like safes.

One major consideration is whether you want burglary protection, fire protection, or both. This is a critical determination and has cost and weight implications.

After making that determination, the question then becomes to what extent do you want the said types of protection? There are safes that a fire axe can break into in a minute or two (which constitute many of the products marketed to consumers) and there are safes that can withstand an attack with a thermal lance. In most cases, something in between those two extremes is optimal relative to the contents being protected and the protection desired.

For burglary protection, I would argue that the place to start is a B-rate safe, which is generally referring to 1/2 inch of plate steel on the door and 1/4 inch of plate steel on the body. A good B-rate safe is going to provide excellent protection against an attack with large hand tools. However, it will provide only very limited protection against a powered tool attack. For one or two watches, it is probably a good place to be. (If you are putting a lot of watches in it or are putting other things in it of high value, a higher level of protection, such as a safe with a TL-15 rating, would likely be more appropriate.) (Do note that B-rate just refers to a loose construction specification, whereas safes with TL/TRTL/TXTL ratings are ones that must meet a minimum construction specification and survive attack tests conducted by the UL.)

If you do not care about fire and just want something small for watches that covers burglary, B-rate cash safes are a great choice. These are smaller and simple steel plate safes with a very specific purpose. Place it in a spot that isn't easy to find and then bolt it down. You can get these for $50-$1,000 and numerous brands make them (Gardall, Hollon, FireKing, AmSec, etc). This is an example of one of these products:
https://www.safeandvaultstore.com/pr...ey-chest-b1515

If you do want fire protection and this is really important to you, then I recommend looking for a safe that carries UL certification (the most common of which is the Class 350, which is tested to protect paper documents). UL ratings are the golden standard of ratings and most safes carrying these ratings will use a composite fill construction, which is arguably superior to other fireproofing methods. Many safes marketed to consumers that offer fire protection either do not have any rating or carry the rating of a party other than the UL, and often that rating uses a lower test temp and different methodology than the UL.




There are other factors to consider as well. You absolutely want an alarm to go with it, so there can be a police response before the safe is defeated, especially if you are away on vacation.

I like to talk safes so I could go on but I will stop. I hope this helps!

[Gab27]

Originally Posted by HHIslander

The TRF safe expert has spoken. Nicely done Gab27, as usual.

Thanks Henry! I am definitely very enthusiastic when it comes to safes!

Originally Posted by Becweb

Right on the money. Also protect other valuables / documents / property deeds etc

Thanks! I agree 100%--you can do so much with a safe and they can protect everything from other valuables to critical documents to crypto wallets to family heirlooms that, if lost in a fire, could not be replaced.

[nocaps]

Originally Posted by Gab27

I am a safe enthusiast.


IMHO, if you are going to get a safe, I highly recommend investing in a real safe. Unfortunately, the vast majority of safes that are marketed to consumers and sold in stores are really locking boxes that look like safes.

One major consideration is whether you want burglary protection, fire protection, or both. This is a critical determination and has cost and weight implications.

After making that determination, the question then becomes to what extent do you want the said types of protection? There are safes that a fire axe can break into in a minute or two (which constitute many of the products marketed to consumers) and there are safes that can withstand an attack with a thermal lance. In most cases, something in between those two extremes is optimal relative to the contents being protected and the protection desired.

For burglary protection, I would argue that the place to start is a B-rate safe, which is generally referring to 1/2 inch of plate steel on the door and 1/4 inch of plate steel on the body. A good B-rate safe is going to provide excellent protection against an attack with large hand tools. However, it will provide only very limited protection against a powered tool attack. For one or two watches, it is probably a good place to be. (If you are putting a lot of watches in it or are putting other things in it of high value, a higher level of protection, such as a safe with a TL-15 rating, would likely be more appropriate.) (Do note that B-rate just refers to a loose construction specification, whereas safes with TL/TRTL/TXTL ratings are ones that must meet a minimum construction specification and survive attack tests conducted by the UL.)

If you do not care about fire and just want something small for watches that covers burglary, B-rate cash safes are a great choice. These are smaller and simple steel plate safes with a very specific purpose. Place it in a spot that isn't easy to find and then bolt it down. You can get these for $50-$1,000 and numerous brands make them (Gardall, Hollon, FireKing, AmSec, etc). This is an example of one of these products:
https://www.safeandvaultstore.com/pr...ey-chest-b1515

If you do want fire protection and this is really important to you, then I recommend looking for a safe that carries UL certification (the most common of which is the Class 350, which is tested to protect paper documents). UL ratings are the golden standard of ratings and most safes carrying these ratings will use a composite fill construction, which is arguably superior to other fireproofing methods. Many safes marketed to consumers that offer fire protection either do not have any rating or carry the rating of a party other than the UL, and often that rating uses a lower test temp and different methodology than the UL.




There are other factors to consider as well. You absolutely want an alarm to go with it, so there can be a police response before the safe is defeated, especially if you are away on vacation.

I like to talk safes so I could go on but I will stop. I hope this helps!

thanks for the great info. when i was shopping for jewelry insurance, one particular company insisted that i purchase a TL-30 safe, which is rated to resist power tool penetration for 30 minutes. if you have a central alarm system, a
TL-15 safe should suffice unless you're in a remote area.

[bob sims]

Get a safe, dump like 50 pounds of worthless world coins which you can get cheaply from EBAY in the safe, and hide the watch in something clever but NOT in bedroom!

[RollieNZ]

The problem with hiding your watch/es is that you have to remember where you hid them! Misplaced one of mine for a while.

[BillA]

Best home safe = Insurance. Simple.

[Tim Plains]

Originally Posted by Cavester

Hide it rather than put it in a small safe. A soap box under the sink, no one looks there :)

My house was robbed in 2015, and yes, they looked there. Everything from my kitchen cupboards was on the floor excluding plates and glasses.

I don't own a handgun but have a smaller gun safe on my closet shelf. It was no match for their pry bar.