Barry,

Those Costco deals are pretty good. The Winchester they offer is pretty decent for the money. They sometimes offer a Liberty safe that is probably a bit better. For the $600 price range they are all pretty close. I don't think they get really good until you go $1500 and up. The majority are made in China, probably in the same factory. I have a Mutual Safe Company safe that is rated for 1 hour at 1750 degrees. How accurate is that rating? Who knows? The ratings are all pretty much independent claims. I don't think there is any independent body that certifies the veracity of safe company claims.

Most of them are simply gypsum board lining the inside and a heat activated expanding seal around the door. Most seem to claim about 30 minutes of fire protection. My attitude is that something is better than nothing. I also have a smoke detector wired into my security system so that should ensure a faster fire department response. I am less worried about fire than I am about burglars so I consider the fire protection a bonus, an important bonus.

Check out Liberty and American Security safes. They make some nice ones and not too terribly expensive. I would avoid the Sentry safes. They are decent but do not provide as much security against attack. Liberty provides replacement safes if yours is ever damaged by fire or break-in.

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Thanks for the info......

This is some interesting info from UL
UL | Safe-Testing Program

Even more interesting is UL's testing procedures. Or at lest that what
this video claims to be. YouTube - Meilink TL30 Safe Burglary Test at UL

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