I personally have a few different safes but I’ve been wanting a little more inconspicuous. Something that can be put in plane sight that gives me quick access to its contents without screaming that it’s a safe or in a break-in situation to “steal me”. After some research, the Hornady RAPiD Gun Safe seems to be the best option for what I was looking for.
If you couldn’t tell, this thing looks like a retro digital clock. It looks like something that people wouldn’t necessarily want to steal if they were in a dash to get in and get out with the most valuable things possible and I think that’s the biggest appeal of the Hornady RAPiD Gun Safe. It’s unassuming to say the least. But don’t let appearances deceive you. Behind the boring facade are some pretty nice features.
Constructed from 14 gauge steel and weighing in at about 18 pounds, the RAPiD Gun Safe is no slouch when it comes to build. This safe is designed to be heavy-duty and tamper-proof. But to be realistic, with enough time and if someone really wants to get into something, they’re going to do it. Something like the RAPiD Gun Safe is more intended to be good enough for those dash and grabs. It’ll be able to slow the thief down and possibly make them lose interest.
At the front of the RAPiD Gun Safe is the discreet tempered glass front display panel which contains an RFID reader, clock display, access code keypad, and the backup battery panel. In talking about this panel, I should talk about how we would get access to the inside of the safe and there are three ways to do so. First, the safe comes with a set of tubular keys. These are used to open the safe from the back if you so choose and as a backup when it is not possible to use the other methods. The next way to open the safe is by using the access code keypad. This system allows for a 4-6 digit combination code to be set and used. Finally, we have the RFID reader that is hidden behind the clock display. This is used in conjunction with registered RFID tags to open this safe in the fastest way possible. Included with the RAPiD Gun Safe is one watchband tag, one key fob tag, and two stick-on decal tags. Hornady does offer various other RFID tag options at an additional cost but keep in mind that only 5 tags can be registered with this safe at a time.
Inside the safe, we get an interior dimension of 2.2"H x 9.2"W x 6.9"D. I do want to note that there is a rubber tray inside the drawer and I’m not sure if the listed interior dimension accounts for this as it does take up some space. The tray is removable but I wouldn’t necessarily recommend that because there is some visible wiring under it. There’s probably less chance of damage to the unit if the tray is used.
Now, this safe can of course be used for anything but as the name implies, it is intended to be a safe that gives users rapid access to their gun. For reference, here is a Glock 19 Gen 5 in the safe. As you can see, the 19 fits perfectly fine when the slide is pointing side to side. The 19 will not fit with slide pointing front to back. If you want to orientate a pistol pointing front to back, you’ll need something the size of a Glock 43X which is just a bit smaller than the exact width. Pistols smaller than the 43X will, of course, also fit. With the 43X, there’s a few millimeters of extra space on either end to get it in there comfortably. Left to right, there’s easily enough room for a Glock 17 or other similarly sized firearms. Now, I don’t have two Glock 19s to test but it doesn’t look like there’s enough space to fit two of those, at least comfortably. My Glock 43X and Glock 19 both fit in there but that does require some slower manipulation to not haphazardly bang them against each other. For my personal use, this is a one gun safe. The setup that I currently use it in isn’t the most ideal, but I think that if you have the nightstand stand space for this safe, it’ll be a great fast option for your home defense weapon if it were to be needed.
Moving to the back of the safe, we have two USB-A 2.0 outlets and a 12V power connector. In conjunction with 12V power, you can use 4 AA batteries to provide backup power in case there is a power outage.
Overall, I really like this safe but there are a few things that I want to bring up. First is the front access code keypad. Not that it doesn’t work, I just don’t like it that there are numbers visible. The numbers just throw things off when you look at the front panel and make the unit look less like a clock and more so like there’s possibly more to this device. The number pad makes the safe less inconspicuous. I would’ve much preferred the dot system that Hornady uses with the RAPiD Vehicle Safe. However, in a dash a grab, thieves may not have the time to be paying too much attention to make that distinction. But, that’s a gamble that I’d rather not have to take.
Another thing that can be changed is the drawer opening system. When the safe is unlocked, the drawer automatically comes out and this is because there is a spring at the back of the drawer. It is compressed when the drawer is closed so when it opens, the spring decompressed and pushes the drawer out. However, the drawer is only partially opened by itself. The user still has to fully pull the drawer out in order to access the firearm. In a situation where seconds matter, I would just like it more if the drawer were to completely open by itself and I can get whatever is in there right away.
My next issue is with the program button. This button sits at the back of the drawer and is used to program the RFID tags and touch code. The various instructions say to press and release this button to activate it but from my experience, the button doesn’t really respond to press and releases. Most of the time it doesn’t activate and to get it going, I have to press and hold. This can be problematic as there are other functions of the button that utilizes press and holds. So, using this button isn’t exactly intuitive. Maybe it’s just this particular unit that’s having issues, I don’t know. I just know that mine isn’t working as intended.
My last annoyance would be with the safe’s programming that deals with deleting previously registered RFID tags. The way that this safe is set up, you cannot delete just one registered RFID tag. They all get deleted at the same time. So if you have 5 tags registered and only want to delete one, you can’t do that. You’ll have to delete them all and re-register the tags you want to use again. It’s just a clumsy way to go at it but at least this is likely not something most users will have to deal with over and over again. It’s more so a set it and forget it approach and in that sense, this is more so an annoyance than a real issue.
Again, I like the RAPiD Gun Safe overall. It provides me with a low key way to store my firearms and if you’re looking for something similar, this safe is a definite recommend.
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