Pistol Racks for Safe

[rugersol]

http://www.amazon.com/Storage-Solutions ... B0068NHG7S

that sorta thing'd work fer me! ... I think I'll pick up a new cedar 2x4 and a couple 1/4in and 3/8in dowels this weekend, and make somethin' like this ...



purdy simple! ... screw the 2x4 to the shelf from above (I've already added plywood shelves, to maximize my space utilization) ... drill holes fer the dowels ... glue the dowels in!

hmmm ... maybe I'll shop around ... see if I can buy some delrin dowels?!

[sawgrass]

Rugersol so are you saying that the guns would actually hang from the dowel?
I like the idea of the delrin/plastic dowels because they would be less likely to hold moisture.

I was also thinking yesterday that in the case that it's sitting on a shelf, the back piece of wood, aluminum or whatever could be slotted so that the dowel can slide up or down
to ensure that the butt is resting on the shelf. I haven't reached a comfort level in my head regarding 'barrel' storage that might affect rifling.

[plblark]

I keep reading the thread as Pistol Racks for Sale

I like Rugersol's idea , esp with the Delrin rod. I think I may do this on the top of my storage cabinet / safe instead of the cheesy shelf Stack-on puts in there.

[rugersol]

Rugersol so are you saying that the guns would actually hang from the dowel?

Ya! ... jest like them "hangers" from amazon.

I like the idea of the delrin/plastic dowels because they would be less likely to hold moisture.

I was also thinking yesterday that in the case that it's sitting on a shelf, the back piece of wood, aluminum or whatever could be slotted so that the dowel can slide up or down
to ensure that the butt is resting on the shelf. I haven't reached a comfort level in my head regarding 'barrel' storage that might affect rifling.

Frankly, I didn't like the idea of them wood racks ... in SASS, we use "gun carts" ... rifles 'n shotguns usually rest in 'em muzzle-up, against somethin' VERY similar ... over (not a lotta) time, it wears on the blueing ... IIRC, they call it "cart rash" ... very common fer SASS long guns! I'm sure it wouldn't be NEARLY the same issue, as they'd be settin' in a non-moving safe ... but still ... if ya'd seen the "cart rash" I'd seen, ya'd think twice!

With these, the ONLY contact with the gun, is in the bore ... which takes quite a beating, otherwise!

I'd say the bigger concern would be a scoped pistol ... where ya might need it to hang down lower!

I'm checkin' the shop now fer scraps ... but otherwise, I'm lookin' to order 5/16 ...

HOLD THE PHONE!!!!

Jest handled some 5/16 delrin ... at that dia., WAY TOO FLEXIBLE!!! ... first, ya'd DEFINITELY hafta drill into the 2x4 at an upward angle to keep the gun from sliding off ... next, if it gets too warm, it can flex even further! ... great material ... but definitely not gonna work, fer this! ... I wouldn't even bother with 3/8!

I'm switchin' to aluminum! ... won't hurt the bore ... and even then, ya could wrap it with electrical tape ... hockey tape ... whatever!

I'd prefer brass rod, but lookin' online, it's closer to $7/ft ... vs. $1/ft 'er less fer aluminum!

Wood's also an option ... I'd definitely be lookin' at oak, though! ... and I'd definitely keep it down to 3in 'er less, stickin' outta the 2x4!

Hmmm ... wood'd be easier to cut, too! ... I'll taker a closer look, this afternoon!

Purdy sure 5/16'll work fer most 9mm/.38 ... figure 3/8 fer .40+ ... maybe even 7/16 fer .45 (keep the "tilting" down)!

'Nother neat thing ... if ya need to change the dowel size ... 'er replace a broken one ... jest drill it out to 1/2in, and fill it in with a plug ... then re-drill fer the new dowel!

[rugersol]

Revision B: double 2x4 for less "tilting" from the shelf

... with the weight of 8 - 12+ pistols, all hanging off one side of the 2x4, I wasn't comfortable with only one row of screws from the shelf! ... this way, ya can screw the two 2x4's together (drilling for dowels either thru only one, or both ... but I don't think the latter's necessary) ... then screw the 2x4's to the shelf, from above ... with one row of screws into one 2x4, and another row of screws into the other ... basically, a poor man's 4x4!

At this point, if anything's gonna flex, I'd guess it'd be the shelf!

BONUS: at either end, drill for 1/2in dowels 5/8in apart (on center), in maybe a 2x2 pattern, fer hanging choke tubes!

DOUBLE BONUS: if ya can't otherwise space yer shelves closer to 9in apart, ya could basically make two of these, per shelf ... one hanging from above, the other resting on the shelf (picture it upside-down) ... and maybe with a couple 1/2in plywood triangles, on the ends as "angle braces" ... to keep the thing from floppin' down (keep the butts elevated)!

[rugersol]

DOUBLE BONUS: if ya can't otherwise space yer shelves closer to 9in apart, ya could basically make two of these, per shelf ... one hanging from above, the other resting on the shelf (picture it upside-down) ... and maybe with a couple 1/2in plywood triangles, on the ends as "angle braces" ... to keep the thing from floppin' down (keep the butts elevated)!

here's the "lower" ("resting" vs. "hanging") rack ... I expect this is somewhat similar to what Oldman was talkin' about?!



That's a 2x8 (7.5in high) ... with the dowel center about an inch low, that's 6.5in from the the bore to the butt of the pistol ... if ya got a pistol that's more than 6.5in, ya might wanna go to a 2x10!

I'd usually put the "brace" in front of the upright board ... but I drilled the holes first! ... either way ... screwed in at the top 'n bottom with decent 3in screws, it won't move!

I wouldn't use a much smaller "brace" ... at some point, the weight of the pistols will be past the "brace", and then it'll jest flop down! ... 7.5in (full-width 2x8) s/b ok ... otherwise, it don't need to be a perfect triangle ... jest take 12in length board, and cut an angle on one end ... 'er don't!

BTW, ya could drill yer choke tube hangers right into them "braces"!

I still prefer the "hanging" rack! ... it uses a narrower "header", so I can somewhat more easily have more than one row of pistols (deep), on a shelf! That said, I might jest make a "resting" rack fer the back row ... and "hanging" fer the front?! Also, a "resting" rack leaves a bit less space, side-to-side ... due to the "braces"! ... and the "hanging" rack leaves a bit less depth ... due to the double 2x4's (see rev. B)!

Maybe a full back row ... and two shorter front rows ... with a gap between 'em, and on the sides ... to reach the back row?! ... on the back row racks, I could angle the left 1/4 of the dowels to the left, and the right 1/4 of the dowels to the right ... and switch directions with the other two 1/4's ... middle two 1/4's would be angled towards the opening in the middle ... outside two 1/4's would be angled towards the two openings, on the sides!

At the very least, it'd be a real good idea to stagger the holes so a back row ain't directly in-line with a front row ... that way, worst case, ya could remove two front row pistols, and then ya could easily remove a back row pistol that's between 'em!

I'm gonna hafta give this some more thought!

[sawgrass]

There are good smart people on this here forum.
Thanks everyone. Maybe we can keep this going as good ideas come up.
Now, where is my tape measure?????