The need to protect our valuables has increased over the years as our valuables, gold for example, have also gone up in value. Add in the current financial and political climate, and it is no wonder that the safe sales have dramatically increased. For an ever increasing number of people living in modular homes and owning and living in recreational vehicles, Stealth Safe provides an alternative to the traditional in-home safe.
Modular home and recreational vehicle lifestyles have certain limitations. This includes a limited amount of space and weight bearing floors, both of which are really not compatible with traditional above ground and in ground safes.
Stealth Safe Company manufactures In The Floor Safes specifically designed for installation in recreational vehicles, modular homes or stick construction homes with wood sub-floors such as in the second floor of a home or a raised foundation. A metal lip and a flange mechanism secures the safe into the floor. A removable metal cover provides a flat surface covering the locking lid.
The Stealth In The Floor Safe bodies are manufactured of 12 gauge steel. The steel body is electro-statically powder coated to provide rust protection. The removable lid is manufactured of 3/16” thick steel plate. The safes are equipped with a unique tubular lock locking.
Metal flanges (wings) attached to the body of the safes and bend up to secure the safe within the opening. The metal flanges are manufactured of flexible galvanized metal. A bolt mechanism on opposing sides of the safe extends the flanges, entrapping the floor between the metal lip and the flanges. The bolt mechanism is within the body of the safe. The lock must be unlocked and the lid removed in order to gain access to the bolt mechanisms.
A metal cover is placed over the lid of the installed safe. This cover provides a flat surface that can be hidden by a carpet, throw rug or piece of furniture.
There are two sizes of Stealth Safes: the Q 200K safe and the Q 350K safe.
Dimensions of the Q 200K safe are:
Outside: 8.75" L x 8.75" W x 8" D
Inside: 8" x 8.5" x 5.5"
Door Opening Clearance: 7" x 7.5"
Cubic inches: 374
Weight: 22 lbs.
Dimensions of the Q 350K safe are:
Outside: 9.75" L x 12.75" W x 10" D
Inside: 9" x 12.5" x 8"
Door Opening Clearance: 8" x 11.5"
Cubic inches: 900
Weight: 28 lbs.
Installation
To install these safes, use the outside length and width dimensions for the cut-out template. Either safe can be installed into homes that have been built with 16-inch on-center spaced floor joists. Never saw through a joist in order to install a floor-mounted safe. Note: Check local building codes before installing a floor-mounted safe.
Once the opening has been cut, lower the safe in place. Make sure the galvanized plates of the flanges are positioned perpendicular to the joists. To secure the safe in the opening, a flange can be extended out from the safe body on two sides. Use a 5/8” socket to tighten the bolts extending the flanges, which prevent the safe from being lifted out. Once the flanges have been extended, install the two wood screws into the metal lip to further secure the safe.
To prevent easy duplication of the tubular lock key, the Q 200K and the Q 350K safes are equipped with a tubular lock whose plug does not have a slot necessary to accommodate a standard tubular key. By not having an internal tab, the keys that come with the safes cannot be duplicated using standard tubular key duplicating machines. The only way to make an operating key is to decode the operating key and originate a new key. For this article, we used an HPC Tubular Key & Pick Decoder, part number TKPD-1.
The Stealth Safe tubular key does have the standard 45 degree angle distance between cuts and the tab locator position. In addition, the depths of cut are standard, and they appear to be the same as those used by Chicago Ace tubular locks. The depths of cut are:
1- .015” 2- .031” 3- .046”
4- .062” 5- .077” 6- .093” 7- .109”
The drop is .0155”
Q 200K and the Q350K safes are equipped with a seven tumbler 5/8” tubular cam style lock designed for tubular key blanks having a .312” inner diameter. However, the lock is unique, having no notch in the plug. The inner tab that most tubular lock keys have will not fit onto the plug.
For this article I originated a key by decoding the depths of cut. Unlike a cylindrical lock key, you need to remember the direction the operating key was decoded and to cut the new key in the same direction. I like to decode a tubular key by looking into the barrel, starting at the tab and decoding clockwise.
I decoded a key having the depths of cut 6622626. Once the new key was originated, I used a high speed grinder to grind away the inside tab. The key cannot operate the lock until the inside tab has been removed. Important: Do not remove the tab until the key has been cut, as the inside tab is used to locate the key when originating or duplicating using a standard key machine.
The tubular lock operates a heavy duty, straight cam that is approximately two inches long. Unfortunately, the tail shaft of the original equipment tubular lock is smaller than the tail shaft of most tubular cam locks sold in North America.
For more information, contact Stealth Safe Company, 12990 Branford Avenue, Unit A, Arleta, CA 91331. Telephone: 800-248-7233. Fax: 800-892-6275. Web Site: http://www.stealthsafeco.com.
