Justin, I hope you come back soon with some more interesting content. I hope the farm life hasn't taken you away from being an amazing content creator and engineer. Really want to see where you get to with the RV, or what your wife has designed that you have milled out of wood or steel. I'm sure there's a bunch of subscribers out there that miss your content.
Yea I just came to his page myself to make sure I haven't missed a video or that I was unsubscribed for some reason. that has happened to me in the past on another channel I enjoy.
Having both an engineering and security background some thoughts: - engineering is good, but you could have decoupled the metal on the outside from the inside. See how modern windows are made. So no thermal transfer occurs, or at least not so much. - maybe add some tabs or a way to secure the safe to the ground (if you don't weld it somewhere to the ground) Now to the main problem... - the main reason most of the cheap fireproof safes fail to do their job is not fire proofness - its water proofness. Normally the fire dept. arrives in under 30 minutes so a 60 minute fire proofness is more than enough. But the fire dept. uses mainly water to extinguish fire. Pouring it on for hours. So the documents and most valuables which don't like water are destroyed AFTER the fire by soaking for hours in water. Added later: At least we now could get Part II - making the fireproof safe waterproof ! :)
Agreed, Waterproof storage containers within any fire safe are a must. The overlap of waterproofing gasket materials and high temperature resistance is pretty small.
Being an engineer, do you have a solution for waterproofing? I’m guessing rubber seals would melt. Is there another product out there that could be used? Thanks
@@robertrusso877 melting is ok ;) it seals even better. There are many silicone gaskets which will be happy to meet the requirements even with the safe starting to glow red.
@@kschleic9053 in fact it is not so easy . If you read instructions on good fireproof safes (the ones for documet use aka paper) they specifically tell you not to put plastic sheets in them. The plastic melts before paper gets dark from temperature. Then the documents are also done..
Tip: put lipstick on the end of the locking pins to mark where to drill your holes. Great build any way you slice it. I would've drilled holes in the bottom so it can be bolted to the floor. They will often take the whole safe and leave.
Yep, definitely have to bolt a small safe to the floor. Anything under about 500 lbs, or so, two strong thieves can lever into the back of a truck and drive off. Cut it open later.
I saw a video about a gun safe recovered after a fire. What caused the $25,000.00 to fail was no the fact the safe kept the guns safe but the water used on the fire got inside the safe, ruining the guns. and valuables & documents. The fire did case some of the rounds to explode inside the safe. Possibly building your safe to be water resistant as well as fireproof is the way to go?
Having watched for years and knowing your abilities, skills, tools and ingenuity, I'm still amazed at how easy you made that look! Well done! Kudos to your photographer too!
I am a safe and vault technician. You did an outstanding job on building this safe. Everything you did was well thought out and works well, I am thoroughly impressed. You do have one fatal flaw....you didn't add any relocker device(s). If someone knocks the dial off and punches out the lock with a hammer and punch the lock will no longer prevent the bolt from staying locked. A relocker will fire a bolt blocking the boltwork from moving if the lock was attacked in this fashion.
Here's a thought prob a daft idea but what about installing a mesh that's highly thermal conductive so any high heat is absorbed into the mesh and Could theoretically be transferred via thermal conductive cables into a thermal heat sink maybe
Three things in order, just observations, not critique: 1. in a fire proof safe the core is decoupled from the outer skin, can't help that now tho. 2. the handle needs to either be a weak link itself (small pin and only a small portion of the shaft going out) or a weak link inside, otherwise it can be used against the mechanism 3. fireproof safes fail for the most unlikely reasons, which is when the fire department arrives, their concern is to stop the fire, not save your property (or better expressed, they're not specific about what's saved, they're specific about being safe whilst stopping the fire, saving lives being their biggest concern, theirs and that of the potential victims), so it needs to be water proofed, which means you need a gasket, which itself needs to be fire proof and water proof (yup, tall order). Source: i used to work with a safe company's engineer, learnt a few things from him.
Regarding point no. 3 - that's actually pretty easy. You can get RTV Silicone gaskets pretty cheaply now. But it would be extremely interesting to stress test this safe. I think it might hold surprisingly well.
1 This is not a problem for many valuables, but if a person is storing something that needs to be shielded further, a lock box inside the safe would provide an additional layer of heat protection, as well as providing the convenience of sorting the items inside the safe, if he required even more protection he could also line the inside with ceramic plates, so while conduction is a problem, this is a problem that can still be helped. 2. This is unnecessary for this kind of personal safe, there's little sense in him making a safe that he needs to destroy to recover the valuables inside. His goal seems primarily to protect the items inside from things like fire or being misplaced, he's not trying to prevent the cast of oceans 11 from stealing what's inside. 3. This also shouldn't be a problem for most valuables. Things which are at risk of water damage can be stored inside heat resistant waterproof containers (waterproof silicone containers, for example) The point is only that these are not insurmountable problems, and most of the issues, which granted are valid concerns, can be overcome fairly readily.
Really ambitious project man your a good fabricator......im a welder also and for finding your locking bolt holes locations I use this stuff called dykem high spot blue its a non drying blue die and works great for stuff like this machinists use it to find high spots between mating parts just smear it on.
Great Job! I do recommend to drill holes in the bottom so you can bolt it to the ground, one other suggestion it to put the door opening side in a corner so someone cant try to pry it open.
Glass, plexiglass or polycarbonate would be a good idea but after a certain extended period of time to extreme heat they would eventually break. Learned it from a few fire fighters.
@@jasonlazore497 I guess it depends on how long the safe would be subjected to the fire. Assuming they aren't too far out in the boonies, the fire department will have put out the fire before the internal temperature of the safe got too high. Glass would be the better choice, I would think, since breaking from the heat wouldn't necessarily damage anything else inside the safe. Plexi melting all over would be a mess and a half.
Next time to drill holes for your locking pins just put a thin little coat of pain on the end of the locking pins then close it like you did and just turn the lock one time till you feel it’s snug then open door up it should have you a little paint circle then draw the outline if that with a sharpie and wipe your paint off then cut on inside of line
Something about your videos makes me feel proud to be a country boy builder. Nothing better than getting inspiration from the way you think, build, and communicate over a Saturday morning coffee. Hope all is well out there my friend 🤠
the masking tape idea is great - use some lipstick on the pins = close the door and it will mark the tape. i have used this to mark drywall for outlet boxes -works great
Nice. But, if you build another one... If you design your door and jambs right, your hinge side pins do not need to move, they can be static. They will catch when your door closes. You can then use your door fulcrums to run top and bottom pins as well as your side pins. More insulation, more insulation, more insulation.
Here are a few simple and inexpensive adds ons for exponential strength and ROI: Internal clutch disk for the crank to prevent brute force attack. Right now the force transfers directly and you are vulnerable. I have bought them from safe manufacturers directly for cheap. No need to drill holes in square steel to accept locking bolts, just use a thick (1/4”+) flange and bolts lock behind it. Add a simple non-mechanical reverse flange, or even a few pins, on the door (hinge side) that automatically become a friction press fit when you close the door to thwart pry bar attacks on that side and allows you focus on top/bottom & door side locking bolts - 4 sided locking support. Finally try to double support the locking bolts on the door side, again an easy add on for for anti-pry. Add a simple Re-locker mechanism (again transfer the loads and isolate - glass, etc.). No Tupperware At All - it melts before 451F and destroys the paper! Use the thermal expansion seals everyone is talking about. Dehumidifier (and maintain it). LED lights. Hope this helps the next build and others! Rock on!
your know how and skills are quite remarkable, what a vast amount of knowledge do you have for all these projects , its really insane to find such a qualitative series on youtube! Very rare. Keep up the great work ! I love how the barn looks
That linkage came out excellent! Not to be critical, but you might want to consider adding two vertical pins top and bottom. The way the safe is designed right now makes it prone to entry using a vertical bar in a prying motion. The front door potentially has the ability to fold, even just enough to clear the pins. Having a central pin top and bottom prevents this. That said, I don't suspect you are trying to build a bank grade safe, just enjoying the ability to build what you need. I think it's great how you are willing to try out so many different disciplines
Very nicely done! Whenever you need to locate a hole for a slide bolt, strike plate or anything else where you can't get to it, use lipstick, it's dead-on.
Nice build, and I really like the door's linkage. Future Tip - when you have to locate pin locations like that, you can "soot" the ends of the pin with your torch, or a daub of your wife's lipstick, to make sure you have a clear, clean impression. If you use your wife's lipstick, make sure you don't tell her you borrowed it. Wives do not take kindly to such things. Also, the fire rating drops precipitously when you don't insulate the door or use a fire seal around the door. All that insulation on the body is for naught if you don't seal the door and insulate it every which way you can. Some 1/4" drywall/gypsum can be layered in there, making sure to get under the linkage mechanism, and some Kaowool blanket can fill the voids without worry about tangling around the mechanism. The door seals are available COTS, and help to seal things when the heat rises, but also give a more finished appearance. Without those two details, the same isn't resistant to heat/fire no matter how much insulation you put in the hollow core of the body.
Very nice! Although it appears that the locking mechanism is locked by the S&G lock bar. That’s fine normally but since your handle is fairly rigid it would likely be possible to force the mechanism open with a long bar. I believe most safes deal with this by having their handle be the weak link. If any attempts to force the handle open the handle just slips in the mechanism. I’m far for an expert but hopefully someone else here can add to this comment with a suggested fix. Maybe some kind of plastic joint that would slip. I enjoyed the video, keep up the great work!
Oh, that’s what I wondered too. I feared that you could put so much stress on the mechanism by turning the wheel by force that it breaks, but I would have never thought of using a bar to my advantage. I really need to step up my robbery skills.
I had the same thoughts. Often they have that mechanism setup with a ratio so 100lbs of force would only transfer 10lbs to the lock handle. I would recommend welding the bolt in the center of the handle so someone can’t just grab a socket and breaker bar and get in quickly. The rounded weld would keep a socket from grabbing
Yup, safe handles are either pinned with a weak nail (kinda like a shaft key) with a small diameter and a small soft metal nob sticking out, so you can't just put pliers on that should you remove the handle, or, as you said inside the safe door, there's a weak link. I saw a 1970's safe that was disabled because someone levered on the handle to get it unstuck, and the broken link was a piece of hammered copper (work hardened, which made it brittle), ingenious little thing.
Awesome point. Given the excellent system he as already designed that would maybe be a difficult adjustment. May I suggest an options that might work well with what has already been constructed? Maybe adjust it by using a brass rod for the main shaft attached to the wheel and attaching the main internal linkage via a shallow set screw into the brass rod so that it would strip where the set screw is attached and spin inside the linkage if significant force is applied. Although there are many designs of breakaways using weak pins specifically on the external wheel. Many would still leave a solid mental shaft that could be turned with a pipe wrench or such. Ideally you would like the failure to be internal to the mechanism.
That was some really cool metal work. It's not everyday I see someone build a safe, a fireproof safe as well, from scratch! Talk about practical and useful. It's kind of eery how easy you made the process look. But, I think the process is a physical representation of the designer's logic and rationale in approaching a solution to a particular problem or design goal. Your fabrication is simple, effective and minimalist. Waste not, want not. I see now why farmers need to be self-reliant to stay operational. Excellent presentation and project build!
Just came across your video while looking for a way to fire proof a safe I will be buying. All I can say is WOW. You knocked it out of the park! Great content that really is a tutorial on how to build a safe. Look forward to more projects you will be doing.
Great video, as always... I seen that you used tape to make the impressions for your pins. Another "tool" that is great for leaving impressions is lipstick. I learned it from an old carpenter about 35 years ago and still use it for projects today. Dark colors for wood work and florescent colors for metal work.
There are ceramic studs used to secure kiln insulation. Also: for the locking pins, if they have a flat taper on the side facing out, and a matching ‘D’ shape hole, they will push in when you tighten them. Good to press down on a gasket. The gasket is the same stuff used for oven doors.
One trick I learned from a carpenter installing door locks was to use lipstick on the deadbolt when trying to figure out where things align. It leaves a visible accurate mark. Great work by the way!
Some commercial safes use gypsum wall board as insulation. The water chemically bonded to the calcium sulfate absorbs a lot of energy during the heating process.
That safe is super easy to open. Just place a metal bar on the wheel and you'll have so much leverage that the pin on the combinator will fall apart. But, since it's in the shop maybe it's faster using the plasma cutter.
Incorrect! The set screw connecting the handle to the spindle will slip first. It's an intentional weak point acting as a clutch. Most safes are designed like that.
Hope you put some holes in the bottom for anchor bolts. Anchor it to concrete floor with at least 1/2” bolts in all 4 corners. Then hide your plasma cutter since thats the easiest way to get into it. Great build.
Love the ingenuity. For fireproofing, I would have gone with 3 sheets of 5/8" drywall and a fully isolated interior liner. You'll also want a heat resistant seal. Sheet could have been thicker for the outer shell, and you want barely anything retaining the bolt handle so as to not be forceable. Great exercise for v1.0
That was one amazing fab project.. your videos depresses me as much as they inspire.. I watch em, and its like "dang i should use my time more wisely"..
Absolutely stellar work! I loved that linkage, and really the entire project exudes a professional level of skill and expertise. I've been in the market for some sort of fireproof safe or lockbox, and thinking about where in the house would be the 'coldest' in a fire, to place it. Also gave some thought to a sort of fireproof closet to put the purchased box in, to increase its time and temp stats. One thing the professional boxes have (that I figure I'd have to duplicate in some fashion in my closet) is an 'intumescent' seal that swells with the heat, since a surprising amount of heat can make it through a metal-on-metal jamb in a house fire. Not sure how you could fabricate or source such a seal, but it might be a good idea to bring the doorjamb crack up closer to the heat resistance of the rest of this very well-built safe. But anyway, kudos! It's a great looking safe!
Very fun and practical build! Would love to see the fireproof-ness put to the test, perhaps build a big bonfire around it and see how quickly the temperature inside increases with a thermocouple.
loved the door locking linkage, but the door needs a heatproof seal.and heatproof material. the rest of the box needs more heatproof insulation. about 3 " more. the inside of this box will overheat very fast.
Wow. Some really precise work there, especially with the nested boxes, and the linkages for the locking mechanism. It even looks good. Great job! [now, going to scroll down, and see ALL of the suggestions that commenters have to improve on your already excellent work--I'm sure there will be dozens of comments about fireproofing, etc., etc.]
I haven't gotten to the end, but what we do in the field for metal to metal marking is just coat it in a bunch of Sharpie. Then make you metal to metal contact. We use this to ensure tight fitment in pipeline instrumentation.
Impressive fab skills. I didn’t see a breakaway on the handle shaft, or a relocker. Pipe wrench on the handle and it’s pushing the lock aside and it’s open.
That's a really good job! Two suggestions for you now since you already put so much effort into this thing. 1: drill a hole on the inner door skin for the change key hole; this way you can always change the combo without having to remove the inner skin every time. 2: design an external relocker. I'm not saying you need glass, but a spring fired pin into the bolt work would do the trick.
I made a similar type of safe, but ran into an issue. In testing I put a large lever arm on the wheel that you spin and was able to break the combination mechanism. However, you safe is orders and orders of magnitude better than mine. Great job!
To enhance the fire resistance line the void and door with drywall board or joint compound. This is a common practice used by safe mfg. Some of current safes I work on are using a concrete lining. Nice build.
I’m watching welding videos to learn and see how things are made. I am new to welding and want to build a cabinet smoker. So I searched for a gun safe video since I knew it may be similar. I even thought of studs to hold insulation, lol. This is the same idea I had double wall with insulation in between. Great video! ✌️😎
If you ever need to make a precise mark like when drilling those pins in the future, try putting a thick layer of paint on the pin and then extending it, it should leave the paint behind like a stamp would.
Anytime I need to market a spot for something that moves and need to be very precise. I will coat the end of the thing that will be "Hitting" the spot that needs a hole with a lip stick that is a color that will stand out against the work piece. In a pinch you can use grease in the same way, but it can be harder to see on the work piece and move a little bit.
To find your holes for the pins in the frame; Use masking tape like you did. Then put lipstick on the face of the pin. Close the door and engage the mechanism. Believe it or not it puts a nice circle on the masking tape right where the hole needs to be. Nice safe. Really enjoy your work.
You should build a smaller scale version with all the parts including the double-shell, air-gap, studs and framing then put it in a fire to see if it really is fireproof. My intuition tells me that the metal contact between the outer shell, the spacer and the inner shell will conduct all that heat just fine.
Remember to bolt that safe into a wall or down to the floor. Or if you're doing construction to cast inside concrete. Safes of this category can do well with this kind of construction . As someone else said, the urgent upgrade part to check is water proofness. Add some door gaskets and check your welds . Upper categories usually start featuring a front door that resist drilling attacks , and protect the opening and lock mechanism. Unfortunately, if this safe is for a workshop ... there are plenty of tools around to drill :P
Just checking in. Hope all is well. I have half my crop planted. We are super dry and need rain. I’m waiting to plant anything else until we get moisture. Hope the farm is doing well.
if memory serves me, my youtube experience began with your videos. the master of design and welding has 'wooed us' again. it's so humbling watching what you do. your expertise and simplicity is worthy of praise and admiration. how did you know how to construct the 'cam' mechanism so precisely? thanks for another fine instructive video. i hope you and the family are well despite covid. looking forward to the day when you announce that a 'baby farmer and/or little lad who will recite " I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree, And a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made; Nine bean-rows will I have there, a hive for the honey-bee, And live alone in the bee-loud glade," as lovely as his mother's voice. cheers
Wow! That's one of the most interesting videos I have seen on UA-cam. You definetely have got loads of knowledge about building stuff. I want to congratulate you for everything you do. Thank you for sharing with us all your experience. Kind regards.
Awesome safe, most have a hardened steel plate mounted between the lock body and the spindle somewhere to protect the lock, that would be a nice addition.
It’s a great day when when a rainfall project drops! Good video as usual and I love the safe. Only thing I would’ve done differently (if it were my project) is leave the old paint on the wheel. Loved the patina and character it had - otherwise great work as usual!
I'd consider using Intumescent Tape where the door meets the safe body. When subject to flame, the Intumescent Tape will intumesce (expand and char) blocking the passage of fire and smoke into the safe.
Justin, I hope you come back soon with some more interesting content. I hope the farm life hasn't taken you away from being an amazing content creator and engineer. Really want to see where you get to with the RV, or what your wife has designed that you have milled out of wood or steel. I'm sure there's a bunch of subscribers out there that miss your content.
Yes, I miss him too. Great content. Hope all is well.
Was thinking the same, but if you look at his videos, he does take extended breaks every now and then. Hope all is well!
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Yea I just came to his page myself to make sure I haven't missed a video or that I was unsubscribed for some reason. that has happened to me in the past on another channel I enjoy.
what happned to him? he is offline almost 6month and his insta links is dead.
Hope your videos come back soon, miss watching them I've watched all your videos more than once
Having both an engineering and security background some thoughts:
- engineering is good, but you could have decoupled the metal on the outside from the inside. See how modern windows are made. So no thermal transfer occurs, or at least not so much.
- maybe add some tabs or a way to secure the safe to the ground (if you don't weld it somewhere to the ground)
Now to the main problem...
- the main reason most of the cheap fireproof safes fail to do their job is not fire proofness - its water proofness. Normally the fire dept. arrives in under 30 minutes so a 60 minute fire proofness is more than enough. But the fire dept. uses mainly water to extinguish fire. Pouring it on for hours. So the documents and most valuables which don't like water are destroyed AFTER the fire by soaking for hours in water.
Added later:
At least we now could get
Part II - making the fireproof safe waterproof !
:)
Would a gasket solve this problem? Maybe packing a fiberglass rope soaked in high temp grease around the ingress points of the handle and lock?
Agreed, Waterproof storage containers within any fire safe are a must. The overlap of waterproofing gasket materials and high temperature resistance is pretty small.
Being an engineer, do you have a solution for waterproofing? I’m guessing rubber seals would melt. Is there another product out there that could be used? Thanks
@@robertrusso877 melting is ok ;) it seals even better. There are many silicone gaskets which will be happy to meet the requirements even with the safe starting to glow red.
@@kschleic9053 in fact it is not so easy . If you read instructions on good fireproof safes (the ones for documet use aka paper) they specifically tell you not to put plastic sheets in them. The plastic melts before paper gets dark from temperature. Then the documents are also done..
When the linkage came together, it was simply beautiful. Well done.
Indeed. That mechanical activation was really sweet.
Tip: put lipstick on the end of the locking pins to mark where to drill your holes. Great build any way you slice it. I would've drilled holes in the bottom so it can be bolted to the floor. They will often take the whole safe and leave.
Yep, definitely have to bolt a small safe to the floor. Anything under about 500 lbs, or so, two strong thieves can lever into the back of a truck and drive off. Cut it open later.
Grease works as well. Doubt he has lipstick in his shop.
It's always a good day when there's a new Rainfall Project. It's especially serendipitous today as it's raining and dreary here. Excellent work!
In Cape Town too! Perfect for stormy weather 👌
Guyz white material is ceramic blanket? What is it?
I saw a video about a gun safe recovered after a fire. What caused the $25,000.00 to fail was no the fact the safe kept the guns safe but the water used on the fire got inside the safe, ruining the guns. and valuables & documents. The fire did case some of the rounds to explode inside the safe. Possibly building your safe to be water resistant as well as fireproof is the way to go?
Having watched for years and knowing your abilities, skills, tools and ingenuity, I'm still amazed at how easy you made that look! Well done! Kudos to your photographer too!
A new Rainfall Projects video is a great way to start the day. Thanks.
I am a safe and vault technician. You did an outstanding job on building this safe. Everything you did was well thought out and works well, I am thoroughly impressed. You do have one fatal flaw....you didn't add any relocker device(s). If someone knocks the dial off and punches out the lock with a hammer and punch the lock will no longer prevent the bolt from staying locked. A relocker will fire a bolt blocking the boltwork from moving if the lock was attacked in this fashion.
Here's a thought prob a daft idea but what about installing a mesh that's highly thermal conductive so any high heat is absorbed into the mesh and Could theoretically be transferred via thermal conductive cables into a thermal heat sink maybe
Three things in order, just observations, not critique:
1. in a fire proof safe the core is decoupled from the outer skin, can't help that now tho.
2. the handle needs to either be a weak link itself (small pin and only a small portion of the shaft going out) or a weak link inside, otherwise it can be used against the mechanism
3. fireproof safes fail for the most unlikely reasons, which is when the fire department arrives, their concern is to stop the fire, not save your property (or better expressed, they're not specific about what's saved, they're specific about being safe whilst stopping the fire, saving lives being their biggest concern, theirs and that of the potential victims), so it needs to be water proofed, which means you need a gasket, which itself needs to be fire proof and water proof (yup, tall order).
Source: i used to work with a safe company's engineer, learnt a few things from him.
Regarding point no. 3 - that's actually pretty easy. You can get RTV Silicone gaskets pretty cheaply now.
But it would be extremely interesting to stress test this safe. I think it might hold surprisingly well.
1 This is not a problem for many valuables, but if a person is storing something that needs to be shielded further, a lock box inside the safe would provide an additional layer of heat protection, as well as providing the convenience of sorting the items inside the safe, if he required even more protection he could also line the inside with ceramic plates, so while conduction is a problem, this is a problem that can still be helped.
2. This is unnecessary for this kind of personal safe, there's little sense in him making a safe that he needs to destroy to recover the valuables inside. His goal seems primarily to protect the items inside from things like fire or being misplaced, he's not trying to prevent the cast of oceans 11 from stealing what's inside.
3. This also shouldn't be a problem for most valuables. Things which are at risk of water damage can be stored inside heat resistant waterproof containers (waterproof silicone containers, for example)
The point is only that these are not insurmountable problems, and most of the issues, which granted are valid concerns, can be overcome fairly readily.
Very impressive! The linkage mechanism that you came up with for the door bolts is a true work of art. My hat is off to you, sir!
now alls ya need is black and gold paint ... and it'll be Choochi👊🏻 well done
Really ambitious project man your a good fabricator......im a welder also and for finding your locking bolt holes locations I use this stuff called dykem high spot blue its a non drying blue die and works great for stuff like this machinists use it to find high spots between mating parts just smear it on.
Are you going to add fire rope or something as a fireproof gasket on the door?
Yeah. also to keep the smoke out. Even if you keep the fire out, all that smoke still usually ruins everything.
I was thinking you could use an oven door gasket from a large oven, or possibly buy the exact length you need from an appliance repair supplier.
I think there's a type of gasket made just for safes that expands with heat. Could be wrong but i remember someone telling me that.
Good point. Possibly the door gasket for fireplaces would be a good option as they are exposed to extreme heat or the gasket for a kiln would work.
Great Job! I do recommend to drill holes in the bottom so you can bolt it to the ground, one other suggestion it to put the door opening side in a corner so someone cant try to pry it open.
Would've been cool if you had made the backing plate with plexiglass so you could see the linkages. A+ project, all the same.
Perhaps some windows, but would have been difficult to add the shaft collar support on the backing plate if it were plexy.
@@ixamraxi That's a fair point.
Yes. That is the most beautiful part of the safe that has lots of linkage.
Glass, plexiglass or polycarbonate would be a good idea but after a certain extended period of time to extreme heat they would eventually break. Learned it from a few fire fighters.
@@jasonlazore497 I guess it depends on how long the safe would be subjected to the fire. Assuming they aren't too far out in the boonies, the fire department will have put out the fire before the internal temperature of the safe got too high. Glass would be the better choice, I would think, since breaking from the heat wouldn't necessarily damage anything else inside the safe. Plexi melting all over would be a mess and a half.
When you where drilling with the magnetic drill, made me think of those safecracker scenes in movies.
Next time to drill holes for your locking pins just put a thin little coat of pain on the end of the locking pins then close it like you did and just turn the lock one time till you feel it’s snug then open door up it should have you a little paint circle then draw the outline if that with a sharpie and wipe your paint off then cut on inside of line
Can you make more videos on safe locker like this one for home . Which can be install under ground .
Something about your videos makes me feel proud to be a country boy builder. Nothing better than getting inspiration from the way you think, build, and communicate over a Saturday morning coffee. Hope all is well out there my friend 🤠
the masking tape idea is great - use some lipstick on the pins = close the door and it will mark the tape. i have used this to mark drywall for outlet boxes -works great
I know a locksmith who uses this technique too.
Graphite will work too
So you carry a lipstick in your toolbox? They would laugh at the jobsite.
Just kidding, it's a great idea.
Nice.
But, if you build another one...
If you design your door and jambs right, your hinge side pins do not need to move, they can be static. They will catch when your door closes. You can then use your door fulcrums to run top and bottom pins as well as your side pins. More insulation, more insulation, more insulation.
Can’t wait for the next rainfall projects video! Definitely have gone back just to make sure I didn’t miss an upload
Here are a few simple and inexpensive adds ons for exponential strength and ROI: Internal clutch disk for the crank to prevent brute force attack. Right now the force transfers directly and you are vulnerable. I have bought them from safe manufacturers directly for cheap. No need to drill holes in square steel to accept locking bolts, just use a thick (1/4”+) flange and bolts lock behind it. Add a simple non-mechanical reverse flange, or even a few pins, on the door (hinge side) that automatically become a friction press fit when you close the door to thwart pry bar attacks on that side and allows you focus on top/bottom & door side locking bolts - 4 sided locking support. Finally try to double support the locking bolts on the door side, again an easy add on for for anti-pry. Add a simple Re-locker mechanism (again transfer the loads and isolate - glass, etc.). No Tupperware At All - it melts before 451F and destroys the paper! Use the thermal expansion seals everyone is talking about. Dehumidifier (and maintain it). LED lights. Hope this helps the next build and others! Rock on!
your know how and skills are quite remarkable, what a vast amount of knowledge do you have for all these projects , its really insane to find such a qualitative series on youtube! Very rare. Keep up the great work ! I love how the barn looks
That linkage came out excellent! Not to be critical, but you might want to consider adding two vertical pins top and bottom. The way the safe is designed right now makes it prone to entry using a vertical bar in a prying motion. The front door potentially has the ability to fold, even just enough to clear the pins. Having a central pin top and bottom prevents this. That said, I don't suspect you are trying to build a bank grade safe, just enjoying the ability to build what you need. I think it's great how you are willing to try out so many different disciplines
Very nicely done! Whenever you need to locate a hole for a slide bolt, strike plate or anything else where you can't get to it, use lipstick, it's dead-on.
Nice build, and I really like the door's linkage. Future Tip - when you have to locate pin locations like that, you can "soot" the ends of the pin with your torch, or a daub of your wife's lipstick, to make sure you have a clear, clean impression. If you use your wife's lipstick, make sure you don't tell her you borrowed it. Wives do not take kindly to such things.
Also, the fire rating drops precipitously when you don't insulate the door or use a fire seal around the door. All that insulation on the body is for naught if you don't seal the door and insulate it every which way you can. Some 1/4" drywall/gypsum can be layered in there, making sure to get under the linkage mechanism, and some Kaowool blanket can fill the voids without worry about tangling around the mechanism. The door seals are available COTS, and help to seal things when the heat rises, but also give a more finished appearance. Without those two details, the same isn't resistant to heat/fire no matter how much insulation you put in the hollow core of the body.
Hi Justin, i hope everthing is OK . We miss you and your beautifull work.
Very nice! Although it appears that the locking mechanism is locked by the S&G lock bar. That’s fine normally but since your handle is fairly rigid it would likely be possible to force the mechanism open with a long bar.
I believe most safes deal with this by having their handle be the weak link. If any attempts to force the handle open the handle just slips in the mechanism.
I’m far for an expert but hopefully someone else here can add to this comment with a suggested fix. Maybe some kind of plastic joint that would slip. I enjoyed the video, keep up the great work!
Oh, that’s what I wondered too. I feared that you could put so much stress on the mechanism by turning the wheel by force that it breaks, but I would have never thought of using a bar to my advantage. I really need to step up my robbery skills.
I had the same thoughts. Often they have that mechanism setup with a ratio so 100lbs of force would only transfer 10lbs to the lock handle. I would recommend welding the bolt in the center of the handle so someone can’t just grab a socket and breaker bar and get in quickly. The rounded weld would keep a socket from grabbing
Yup, safe handles are either pinned with a weak nail (kinda like a shaft key) with a small diameter and a small soft metal nob sticking out, so you can't just put pliers on that should you remove the handle, or, as you said inside the safe door, there's a weak link. I saw a 1970's safe that was disabled because someone levered on the handle to get it unstuck, and the broken link was a piece of hammered copper (work hardened, which made it brittle), ingenious little thing.
Awesome point. Given the excellent system he as already designed that would maybe be a difficult adjustment. May I suggest an options that might work well with what has already been constructed?
Maybe adjust it by using a brass rod for the main shaft attached to the wheel and attaching the main internal linkage via a shallow set screw into the brass rod so that it would strip where the set screw is attached and spin inside the linkage if significant force is applied. Although there are many designs of breakaways using weak pins specifically on the external wheel. Many would still leave a solid mental shaft that could be turned with a pipe wrench or such. Ideally you would like the failure to be internal to the mechanism.
Yep, his unlocking mechanism looks robust enough to smash the lock with ease, the lock needed to be mounted further away from the mechanism pivot.
That was some really cool metal work. It's not everyday I see someone build a safe, a fireproof safe as well, from scratch! Talk about practical and useful. It's kind of eery how easy you made the process look. But, I think the process is a physical representation of the designer's logic and rationale in approaching a solution to a particular problem or design goal. Your fabrication is simple, effective and minimalist. Waste not, want not. I see now why farmers need to be self-reliant to stay operational. Excellent presentation and project build!
Gotta come back and rewatch Pt 1 for the millionth time to make Pt 2 feel extra special.
Just came across your video while looking for a way to fire proof a safe I will be buying. All I can say is WOW. You knocked it out of the park! Great content that really is a tutorial on how to build a safe. Look forward to more projects you will be doing.
Best quote I saw on another channel "I love working with metal ... the glue dries so quickly"
Been a long time since the last video! hope all is good and looking forward to seeing what you're up to!
wont the studs for the insulation actlike a heatsink and suck in lots of outside heat?????
Great video, as always... I seen that you used tape to make the impressions for your pins. Another "tool" that is great for leaving impressions is lipstick. I learned it from an old carpenter about 35 years ago and still use it for projects today. Dark colors for wood work and florescent colors for metal work.
There are ceramic studs used to secure kiln insulation. Also: for the locking pins, if they have a flat taper on the side facing out, and a matching ‘D’ shape hole, they will push in when you tighten them. Good to press down on a gasket. The gasket is the same stuff used for oven doors.
One trick I learned from a carpenter installing door locks was to use lipstick on the deadbolt when trying to figure out where things align. It leaves a visible accurate mark. Great work by the way!
Some commercial safes use gypsum wall board as insulation. The water chemically bonded to the calcium sulfate absorbs a lot of energy during the heating process.
Absolutely Beautiful!
Very nicely built! But is it safe? Shall we say 2-3 minutes with an angle grinder to get it open?
That safe is super easy to open. Just place a metal bar on the wheel and you'll have so much leverage that the pin on the combinator will fall apart. But, since it's in the shop maybe it's faster using the plasma cutter.
Incorrect! The set screw connecting the handle to the spindle will slip first. It's an intentional weak point acting as a clutch. Most safes are designed like that.
I hate it when the music starts because it means it's nearly the end of the video... Best on the internet :)
Where you at man? I miss your content. Hope all is well.
Hope you put some holes in the bottom for anchor bolts. Anchor it to concrete floor with at least 1/2” bolts in all 4 corners. Then hide your plasma cutter since thats the easiest way to get into it. Great build.
Nice to see I’m not the only welder who uses stencils 12:23
16:35 I’d weld up those corners and make the gap tighter so you can’t easily get a pry bar in there.
I’m a blacksmith from uk 🇬🇧 And I know skill when I see it.
Great work 👍🏻
Love the ingenuity. For fireproofing, I would have gone with 3 sheets of 5/8" drywall and a fully isolated interior liner. You'll also want a heat resistant seal. Sheet could have been thicker for the outer shell, and you want barely anything retaining the bolt handle so as to not be forceable. Great exercise for v1.0
I love the folding up of the box. Very efficient technique
That was one amazing fab project.. your videos depresses me as much as they inspire..
I watch em, and its like "dang i should use my time more wisely"..
Can you post a material list for us all
The only thing I like about winter is that you have more time to make videos. Lol. Fantastic build.
Wow that's big and beefy. Very nice job. Keep up the great craftsmanship and hard work my friend. Keep making. God bless.
Grease on the ends of the bolts opened onto the jamb makes for an excellent mark
Absolutely stellar work! I loved that linkage, and really the entire project exudes a professional level of skill and expertise. I've been in the market for some sort of fireproof safe or lockbox, and thinking about where in the house would be the 'coldest' in a fire, to place it. Also gave some thought to a sort of fireproof closet to put the purchased box in, to increase its time and temp stats. One thing the professional boxes have (that I figure I'd have to duplicate in some fashion in my closet) is an 'intumescent' seal that swells with the heat, since a surprising amount of heat can make it through a metal-on-metal jamb in a house fire. Not sure how you could fabricate or source such a seal, but it might be a good idea to bring the doorjamb crack up closer to the heat resistance of the rest of this very well-built safe. But anyway, kudos! It's a great looking safe!
Very fun and practical build! Would love to see the fireproof-ness put to the test, perhaps build a big bonfire around it and see how quickly the temperature inside increases with a thermocouple.
loved the door locking linkage, but the door needs a heatproof seal.and heatproof material. the rest of the box needs more heatproof insulation. about 3 " more. the inside of this box will overheat very fast.
Wow. Some really precise work there, especially with the nested boxes, and the linkages for the locking mechanism. It even looks good. Great job! [now, going to scroll down, and see ALL of the suggestions that commenters have to improve on your already excellent work--I'm sure there will be dozens of comments about fireproofing, etc., etc.]
I haven't gotten to the end, but what we do in the field for metal to metal marking is just coat it in a bunch of Sharpie. Then make you metal to metal contact. We use this to ensure tight fitment in pipeline instrumentation.
Impressive fab skills.
I didn’t see a breakaway on the handle shaft, or a relocker.
Pipe wrench on the handle and it’s pushing the lock aside and it’s open.
That's a really good job! Two suggestions for you now since you already put so much effort into this thing. 1: drill a hole on the inner door skin for the change key hole; this way you can always change the combo without having to remove the inner skin every time. 2: design an external relocker. I'm not saying you need glass, but a spring fired pin into the bolt work would do the trick.
I made a similar type of safe, but ran into an issue. In testing I put a large lever arm on the wheel that you spin and was able to break the combination mechanism. However, you safe is orders and orders of magnitude better than mine. Great job!
It is fun to watch and see how you think something out and make it work. Thank you
Fabricate fit and weld for a living very nice work !
To enhance the fire resistance line the void and door with drywall board or joint compound. This is a common practice used by safe mfg. Some of current safes I work on are using a concrete lining. Nice build.
I’m watching welding videos to learn and see how things are made. I am new to welding and want to build a cabinet smoker. So I searched for a gun safe video since I knew it may be similar. I even thought of studs to hold insulation, lol. This is the same idea I had double wall with insulation in between. Great video! ✌️😎
If you ever need to make a precise mark like when drilling those pins in the future, try putting a thick layer of paint on the pin and then extending it, it should leave the paint behind like a stamp would.
There is a boat builder that uses lipstick for transferring marks, always makes me laugh seeing it in his toolbox
Anytime I need to market a spot for something that moves and need to be very precise. I will coat the end of the thing that will be "Hitting" the spot that needs a hole with a lip stick that is a color that will stand out against the work piece. In a pinch you can use grease in the same way, but it can be harder to see on the work piece and move a little bit.
Wow great work a plasma table must be a blessing
To find your holes for the pins in the frame; Use masking tape like you did. Then put lipstick on the face of the pin. Close the door and engage the mechanism. Believe it or not it puts a nice circle on the masking tape right where the hole needs to be. Nice safe. Really enjoy your work.
You should build a smaller scale version with all the parts including the double-shell, air-gap, studs and framing then put it in a fire to see if it really is fireproof. My intuition tells me that the metal contact between the outer shell, the spacer and the inner shell will conduct all that heat just fine.
This is nuts! Bravo to the over engineering. I work on safes for a living and love seeing an outsider's design realized.
Be sure to lubricate the door mechanism with ACME Safe Lube. No friction or squeaking.
In gunsmithing we use a product called inletting black to find where parts contacting, or in your case where the locks would need to be drilled.
Glad I stumbled onto this video I enjoyed watching this come together. You have an awesome shop as well.
Really fantastic project.
Always appreciate the workmanship.
Well done.
Remember to bolt that safe into a wall or down to the floor.
Or if you're doing construction to cast inside concrete.
Safes of this category can do well with this kind of construction .
As someone else said, the urgent upgrade part to check is water proofness. Add some door gaskets and check your welds .
Upper categories usually start featuring a front door that resist drilling attacks , and protect the opening and lock mechanism.
Unfortunately, if this safe is for a workshop ... there are plenty of tools around to drill :P
Excellent video, as usual! Whenever I want something cool, my first inclination isn't to build one, so I'm always impressed when you do.
really impressive going through the whole process
Just checking in. Hope all is well. I have half my crop planted. We are super dry and need rain. I’m waiting to plant anything else until we get moisture. Hope the farm is doing well.
Beautiful build and a pleasure to watch!
if memory serves me, my youtube experience began with your videos. the master of design and welding has 'wooed us' again. it's so humbling watching what you do. your expertise and simplicity is worthy of praise and admiration. how did you know how to construct the 'cam' mechanism so precisely?
thanks for another fine instructive video. i hope you and the family are well despite covid. looking forward to the day when you announce that a 'baby farmer and/or little lad who will recite " I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree, And a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made;
Nine bean-rows will I have there, a hive for the honey-bee, And live alone in the bee-loud glade," as lovely as his mother's voice. cheers
I really like your work !!! How much does such a safe cost in a completed state ?
Wow! That's one of the most interesting videos I have seen on UA-cam. You definetely have got loads of knowledge about building stuff. I want to congratulate you for everything you do. Thank you for sharing with us all your experience. Kind regards.
For location the holes, you can use grease on the pins and when you close them they will leave the marks. Anyways maybe a tip for the future projects.
Very impressive. I found this video as I want to make a lockbox... but your skill is out of this world. I think the project is a bit beyond me :)
Awesome safe, most have a hardened steel plate mounted between the lock body and the spindle somewhere to protect the lock, that would be a nice addition.
Nice! You can always use grease to locate your holes versus tape.
This was really cool. It would be neat to see an up close view of how the locking mechanism prevents the wheel from turning.
really miss this channel :(
Little bit of grease on the pin ends to mark for the holes works well too, great video as always
It’s a great day when when a rainfall project drops! Good video as usual and I love the safe. Only thing I would’ve done differently (if it were my project) is leave the old paint on the wheel. Loved the patina and character it had - otherwise great work as usual!
You could use fire bricks as heat thermal protection in floor walls ceiling back and in some areas in door
I wanted to see it painted. Great job!
Insulation good. What about electro magnetic effect of heat from fire. to protect memory stuff; sticks, disks, ?
I'd consider using Intumescent Tape where the door meets the safe body. When subject to flame, the Intumescent Tape will intumesce (expand and char) blocking the passage of fire and smoke into the safe.
That's a great idea.