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While I don't own that many guns, I do own more than I have storage space for. The new Steelhead Outdoors Undercover 48E safe, now located at an undisclosed location in my home, helps contain the overflow. It’s a versatile under-bed safe designed for any type of gun owner, whether you want to keep an AR or shotgun close at hand as a home-defense weapon or you are a hunter (like me) who owns a few extra guns and wants to store them out of the way.
In the world of secure gun storage, there are metal cabinets, which are light, lockable, and good enough for keeping guns away from kids and for keeping honest people honest. Then there are gun safes. Made from heavy steel and equipped with locks designed to resist attacks with burglar’s tools, safes represent a much higher level of security for your guns. The Steelhead Outdoors Undercover 48E is a safe—and it's a quality one. You can tell when you try to lift it, and when you pay for it. At $1,300, it costs quite a bit more than under-the-bed storage cabinets. But it's worth it, in my opinion. I got a chance to test out the latest safe, and it didn't disappoint.
Quick Overview
Specs
Dimensions: 48”x6”x16”
Weight: 110 lbs
Capacity: 2 long guns under 48” or 2 shorter long guns and 2 handguns
Price: $1,300
Pros
Heavy-duty 12-gauge American steel body
Biometric and keypad safe lock
Manageable to set up for one person
Cons
Doesn't hold guns longer than an O/U with 28” barrel
Low for its class, but still too tall to fit under some beds
Testing Results and Analysis
Size and Weight
This Steelhead safe ships in two cartons. The body weighs 70 pounds, and the drawer is a bit over 30 pounds. I was able to haul the pieces to where I wanted them without too much trouble, although the body is awkward and there’s not much for one person hang onto. Two people, with one at each end, would be able to carry it with ease. Once it’s together, it’s actually easier to move, because you can lock it, then carry it or slide it by the lock handle.
At 6 inches high, the Undercover safe fits under my bed, but if you have a lower bed frame or one with lower supports, you may need to snag some bed risers (luckily, you can find them for cheap). Even if it doesn't slide under your bed, this unit could easily fit in a closet, an RV, or any number of places really.
Second—and perhaps more of a concern—is that the internal space is a bit limited. The drawer is only 48 inches on the outside, making the interior just 46 inches wide. This is largely to accommodate maximum UPS shipping dimensions, so it helps keep the cost down. (In fact, shipping to the lower 48 states is free.) An over-under shotgun with a 28-inch barrel measures just under 46 inches, and a pump or semi-auto with a 23- or 24-inch barrel is about the same length. Those will fit. But anything longer, and you’ll have to take the gun down to get it into the drawer, limiting the safe’s utility.
Fortunately, if you want to use this safe for storing home-defense guns under your bed, it's perfect. The safe is more than wide enough to hold an AR or a shotgun with an 18- to 20-inch barrel—or both. It should work well for most hunting rifles, too, save any with very long barrels and suppressors.
Setup
Setting the safe up was very easy. The drawer has to go into the body evenly, but that wasn't difficult, and mine went together with no problem. The lock mechanism slides onto two screws and is designed to be easily removable for changing the 9-volt battery. Removing the lock, to be clear, does not compromise the safe. There is no easy way in, even with the lock removed. Setting the keypad code to a 6-digit combination of your choice is a simple task, as is adding your fingerprint to the biometric scanner. The scanner can remember up to five fingerprints. I set it for both my right and left index fingers in case I need to get into the case in a hurry.
Security
With a body made of 12-gauge steel, this is not an easy safe to cut into. The drawer is recessed into the body to make it more difficult to pry open. The safe has both holes drilled into it so you can bolt it to the floor, and cutouts for accessory cable locks if you’d rather lock it to something heavy.
As I mentioned, it also has a safe-quality, Underwriter’s Laboratory-listed lock with a 6-digit combination. If high school math isn’t letting me down here, that makes about a million potential combinations. Owners who want to use this safe to hold home-defense guns should set up the biometric lock. I can get into my safe with the touch of a finger. You’ll see a ring glow green, then hear the bolt open. Then you have five seconds to open it or it locks again. Bonus: There will be a totally mechanical version available soon for those who don’t trust electronic locks. Personally, I would not worry about it. Biometric safes have been around for a long time and the bugs are well-worked out.
Verdict
The Steelhead Outdoors 48E has a lot going for it. For one thing, it is made in the USA in Minnesota, and it's crafted from American-made steel. While it's not fire-proof, it provides gun-safe levels of theft protection in a compact package that one person can easily move and assemble. Setting the combinations and biometric codes is a breeze, too, and the locks are intuitive to operate.
My only problem with the safe, as an owner of primarily long guns, is that I have to take most of my guns down before storing them. However, there is an upside: I am able to fit a 10/22 rifle, a break-action .410 single-shot, and two pistols in my Steelhead Undercover safe, thereby freeing up space in my larger safes for other guns. That makes it a great addition to my home gun storage program. For the owner that wants the security of a gun very safely locked away but still easily accessible in an emergency, this should be a very appealing safe.
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