Pennsylvania Firearm Owners Association
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  1. #1
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    Default DIY Gun Safe Door Storage for Handguns and More




    I wanted to make use of the small amount of unused space on the door of a Stack 0n 14-gun locking gun cabinet, so I started Googling.

    I found an inexpensive, hanging, pocket organizer, but it wasn't designed for handgun storage. I then located Acorn "stick-on" holsters that were also affordable, but I would need a way to attach them, as this isn't a carpet-lined safe.
    As I continued my search, I ran across the "Rack Em" system consisting of wire, modular "racks". The base of the system gets mounted to the door and individual handgun holders may be added as needed. Well, that would be ideal for a large safe, but not for what I have - they are also somewhat pricey.

    It DID give me an idea though. If I could mount some sort of "something" to the door, I could get the Acorn holsters and add a Velcro "loop" around the attachment point to hang the holsters from the door. The gears were now turning...

    A few days later I was in a local pharmacy (starts with a "W") and noticed wire "locker shelves" in the clearance section. Hmmmm... "Those may just work!"
    I bought three at $1.50 ea. Even if it didn't work, I would only be out a few dollars.

    This is what I bought (in black)



    As it turns out, after removing the legs, and playing around with positioning, they are a near perfect fit!
    There is a reinforcing "bar" that runs up the inside of the door and the wire "square" both nests into the lip along the outer edge of the door and rests "on" the reinforcing bar.
    I considered cutting a few pieces of the grid to make it fit perfectly, but decided that it fit well enough "as is", and may even be able to use some of the overlapping sections to my advantage by using them as mounting points. (which I didn't even need to do in the end)

    My plan was to still buy the Acorn "Velcro holsters" and make loops to attach to the framework, but then it hit me - "I have a bunch of nylon IWB holsters that may work on this!" As luck would have it, the metal belt clip fit PERFECTLY between the wire grids and when clipped on, held the holster firmly in place! Woo-hoo!

    Now to get these things mounted.

    The top edge of the door already had one hole near the hinge side which I figured I could use to run a zip tie through to attach the grid along the top. I would drill another on the other side and more as needed along the side. I planned on drilling and running screws through "tabs" on the wire frame and into the reinforcing bar, but after the difficulty drilling through the door for the top hole, I scrapped that idea in favor of using zip ties to attach everything.

    In the end, I only had to drill two holes - one on the top edge of the door lip and one on the lip lower down along the hinge side. Three zip ties (two on top and one on the side) secured the first of three wire grids.
    The next grid was placed below the first and zip ties were used to hold them together. By carefully choosing the points at which I zipped them together, I was able to make a secure connection that does not allow side-to-side shifting, and only needed two zip ties.
    The third, "bottom" grid was then attached to the one above in the same manner for a total of three grids.

    I was pleased to find that everything was being held securely the way it was - no need to add screws. The fact that there are no points of attachment along the length on the right side had concerned me initially, as I thought it may allow the whole "system" to flop around, but it barely moves. If anything, I may add a piece of tape on the bottom corner.

    Ultimately, I now have storage for five handguns with the ability to add 2-3 more, and/or other accessories as desired, all for just under $25.00.

    This may not be ideal for everyone, but it worked quite well in this case, and may just give someone an idea to create their own.
    I called to check my ZIP CODE!....DY-NO-MITE!!!

  2. #2
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    Default Re: DIY Gun Safe Door Storage for Handguns and More

    Sorry for such crappy photos. The lighting was horrible.



    Checked fit. Decided which way I wanted to mount them and started by zip tying through the one existing hole in door lip...





    Pulled away to show the area behid it. The "reinforcing bar" I spoke of can be seen on the right, near the "locking bar"...





    Side mounting hole drilled. Note how grid is tucked behind the door lip on this side. That helps hold it all in place.





    Zip tie...





    To show all the zip tie attachment points before trimming the ties...





    All done.
    This other hole (closest) proved to be a challenge, as the zip tie couldn't go "straight down" along the lip like it does on the other side. This causeed a problem initially, in that the zip tie was keeping the door from closing.
    I repositioned it and it solved the problem. These are the tricky parts when it comes to DIY. The work is the easy part, but figuring it out in advance takes a little bit of thought.

    I called to check my ZIP CODE!....DY-NO-MITE!!!

  3. #3
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    Default Re: DIY Gun Safe Door Storage for Handguns and More

    That's awesome. I may have to do that to my cabinet this weekend.

    Where did you get the holsters at and what did they cost you?

  4. #4
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    Default Re: DIY Gun Safe Door Storage for Handguns and More

    Quote Originally Posted by SigSauer226 View Post
    That's awesome. I may have to do that to my cabinet this weekend.

    Where did you get the holsters at and what did they cost you?
    Gunmate brand Inside the Waistband holsters. The clip is reversible for either side.

    They run from $6-12 depending on where you look.
    I found the lower priced ones, but they were either not in stick, or shipping was prohibitive.
    The two I bought were from Amazon (around $10 ea) and qualified for the free shipping with purchase $25 or more. I just found another cheap item that put me over $25 to get the free shipping.

    I used that brand because I already had a few and knew for a fact that the clips fit. I may have been able to get Uncle Mikes locally, but that would have meant going and getting one just to see if the clip would work. (theirs are plastic)

    As you can see, the leather holster I had laying around worked too. So long as the belt clip will fit through the wire "squares", any holster should work.

    I had a tab open that showed a good size chart for the Gunmate holsters, but closed it and can't find it now.

    Here are a few that I have, along with some guns known to fit:

    Size 00 (model 21300) Up to 2 1/4" barrel Small Auto - Kel-Tec P32

    Size 06 (model ?) Med Frame Auto - Colt Pony

    Size 10 (model ?) Lg Frame Compact Auto - Glock G19

    Size 12 (model 21312) 4-5" barrel Lf Frame Auto - 1911



    The locker shelves vary in shape by manufacturer, so that is a factor.
    Saw some at Wmart too, but they may not have worked as well from the looks of the "tabs' and such on them.
    These worked well - some parts of them actually help keep the grid away from the door allowing the holster clips some clearance.
    I called to check my ZIP CODE!....DY-NO-MITE!!!

  5. #5
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    Default Re: DIY Gun Safe Door Storage for Handguns and More

    Very nice. I did something similiar with my stack on cabinet. I used peg board for the handguns and built some shelving (which I'm not happy with so it needs redone) to seperate mags and ammo.

  6. #6
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    Default Re: DIY Gun Safe Door Storage for Handguns and More

    I have that exact same cabinet! I may be doing this as well. Great job and thanks for posting.

    GB
    Certified Glock Armorer

  7. #7
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    Default Re: DIY Gun Safe Door Storage for Handguns and More

    All of my rifles eat up this space as they are always loaded. All those standard capacity mags nearly bump the door.

    Cool idea though! I wanted to do something like that. Maybe I can still put a couple up that way.

  8. #8
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    Default Re: DIY Gun Safe Door Storage for Handguns and More

    Quote Originally Posted by GreenBlood10 View Post
    I have that exact same cabinet! I may be doing this as well. Great job and thanks for posting.

    GB
    I started looking to see if anyone has the locker shelves at a reasonable price. (like I said, I got them at 75% off - $1.50 ea)
    They show on Best Buy's site of all places for $6.99 which seems to be about MSRP.
    They are a "Board Dudes/Locker Dudes" product. See here.

    The legs just pop off. The wire is coated too, so nothing will get scratched if it makes contact.

    Also worth noting, the grid is just the right size in width, and does not interfere with the main locking bar!



    The only real "issue" I had was that one zip tie on top being in the way of the door closing at first and I found the steel a bit tough to drill through, but a quality bit may have helped.

    If you have any other questions, just ask!


    Quote Originally Posted by 4tun8 View Post
    Very nice. I did something similiar with my stack on cabinet. I used peg board for the handguns and built some shelving (which I'm not happy with so it needs redone) to seperate mags and ammo.
    Thanks!

    Quote Originally Posted by Asmodeus6 View Post
    All of my rifles eat up this space as they are always loaded. All those standard capacity mags nearly bump the door.

    Cool idea though! I wanted to do something like that. Maybe I can still put a couple up that way.
    You should have room near the top at a minimum, but i hear you on the loaded rifle/mag thing.
    Maybe a magnetic mount of some sort would suffice?
    Like the ones sold for holding tools if you can find one strong enough. (unless it's going on a carpeted safe, of course)
    I called to check my ZIP CODE!....DY-NO-MITE!!!

  9. #9
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    Default Re: DIY Gun Safe Door Storage for Handguns and More

    Another thing I did in this gun cabinet was add a "shelf" on the bottom to raise up the rifles off the floor. Two reasons for this - extra storage on the bottom and because none of the stand offs worked with "short" rifles like AKs - they were positioned too high to be of any use.

    I was about to build a "stand" when my wife asked "Did you ever throw out that old TV stand?"
    AWESOME! I still had it - I never throw anything away. LOL!

    It fit PERFECTLY! It's about 2" narrower than the cabinet and the depth leaves about 4" in the front which allows one tall rifle to sit on the floor sideways on each side if needed!
    I drove a screw into the bottom to keep it from rotating and added a thin piece of "carpet" (like speaker box cover material) so the rifles don't slide on it.

    I called to check my ZIP CODE!....DY-NO-MITE!!!

  10. #10
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    Default Re: DIY Gun Safe Door Storage for Handguns and More

    I have that exact cabinet. Thanks for the suggestions!
    I'm faster than Doc Holliday (with Novocaine of course)

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