Winchester Deputy Gun Safe Review

This model has been discontinued in 2012

The gun safe is the entry level model for Winchester Safe. The Deputy was introduced in 2011. At first, I couldn’t understand why Winchester Safe would make this model. Quite frankly, I didn’t see any key features that were worth the money.

However, I changed my mind. Not because this is a great safe, but because it fits within a low cost market niche. Within this small niche, it appears to be a pretty decent value.

I will get to the specifics below, but the comparison I will make throughout this review is to gun safe offerings from the big behemoths like Sentry and Stack-On. These companies dominate the low cost volume gun safe market. You can’t walk into a big box retailer and not see these safes.

When stacked up against these competitors, it becomes clear where the Winchester Deputy fits in.

The long gun capacity on this safe is approximately 14 guns and retails for approximately $700-$800.

Key Advantages:

1. UL RSC Rated: Almost no low end gun safe like this bothers to get UL rated. The Deputy did and it passed!
2. UL Rated Lock: Again, try finding this caliber of a lock on a Stack-On or Sentry. The manufacturer of the lock
   may vary, but at least you get a decent lock.
3. Fire Rating: This model has a 20 minute fire rating. Again, not great, but not awful compared with this class of
   gun safes. It also has a Palusol door seal to keep out the heat and smoke.
4. Locking Bolts: The Deputy has 8 locking bolts (4 on two sides). For lower end mass retail models, this is very good.
5. Weight: The safe weighs 420 pounds. This is light, but most mass retail safes are much less than this.

Key Disadvantages:

1. Steel Thickness: The Winchester deputy only has 14 gauge steel. If someone ever tells you this is a good steel thickness, run away.
   But remember, we are talking mass market low end competition here. This gauge steel is the more common you will see, if the
   manufacturer even tells you willingly, which most don’t.
2. Locking Bolt Sides: This has locking bolts on two sides. Not good, but very standard for this caliber of storage.

Fit and Finish:

The Deputy comes in glossy grey. The interior is what it is.

Bottom Line

Look, if you want a Mercedes, you won’t be happy with a Kia. But if you are shopping for a Kia, then you can also look at Hyundai’s, Suzuki’s etc. Within the lower mass retail niche, the Winchester Deputy is actually not a bad buy. It typically will cost about a $100 more, but I would take it over some of the other options out there.

Winchester Deputy – By the Numbers