hanging a gun on the wall

You don't think a 4 year-old, especially a boy, can get to a shotgun hung on the wall??

When I was 4, I figure I would have gotten it down, off the CEILING!

I realize these comments are not helping any. So, IMO, if the shotgun is loaded, and a boy is present, anything can happen. If the boy is only present occasionally, make the gun unusable or hidden with no chance of discovery, only when you expect him to be present.

 

I got several old guns on the wall for displays above doorways, nothing more then a big nail for the barrel and one thru the trigger guard behind the trigger, mine are unloaded tho

 

I have my pump shotgun hanging on the back of the door to my gun/computer room. It is hung from a plastic hook that hangs on the top on the door panel. My wife and I don't kids yet so I leave a few shells in the mag tube, just in case of emergencies. I also have a wooden gun rack that is screwed to one wall that holds three more of my guns, it's high enough that the guns are out of reach of a child but well within reach for an adult.

 

With my kids, education was the key. I was fortunate to live in the country and have a range on the property. I got them their own set of hearing protectors when they were about 2 years old. No one was allowed to use their head sets w/out their permission (give them some pride of ownership). I took them out and let them watch when I shot. Gave them the opportunity to shoot when ever they wanted to (they rarely wanted to). I let them "pull" the string on the skeet thrower and watch the competition between me and my best friend (daddy never missed, Uncle Joe can't shoot). If they wanted to shoot, I would drop what I was doing and take them out shooting. The mystery of the "forbidden gun" was taken away. It was old hat to them. They would not touch a gun w/o me being there, ever. They knew all they had to do was ask and I would make time for them.

I let them participate in the reloading of ammo. Pushing the powder drop on the Dillon while sitting in my lap. Watching while I cast bullets. Learning to wash hands thoroughly after handling anything that could be contaminated with lead.

I remember the story of a local Officer whose wife would not let him shoot with the kids. The duty gun had to be hidden out of sight. Their 16 year old son found his .357 revolver in the top of the closet. Accidentally shot him self. Not suicide, non contact wound, muzzle about 18" away when gun fired. I firmly blame the wife for this tragedy. Kids (even teenagers) will seek out that which is "forbidden" be it the gun in the closet, the car keys on the dresser or the liquor in the cabinet (now a days the porn on the internet).

 

Well put robocop. My kids were taught the same way except that we didn't have a back yard shooting range. I made sure they had the place and time for shooting. The only other thing that I could tell shnorse is that with the laws the way they are now I would lock the gun while the kid is in the house.

 

A cousin once had the same problem. He solved it neatly with common plastic coated screw hooks from Lowe's and a length of bungee cord to secure the old shotgun vertical, muzzle down, on the inside of a bedroom closet door.

He started with three heavy duty lag-screw type screw hooks, about 5/16" as I recall, and about the same size bungee cord, maybe 18" of it.

He marked where he wanted the muzzle to be, as high as he could get it while leaving maybe 3" of butt stock clearance below the top of the door. He straighted out one hook to make it into an "L"and screwed it in place to secure the muzzle. Then he marked two upper points, one on each side of the pistol grip, and screwed the hooks there, points facing away. He then made a loop of the bungee, installed the gun and secured it snuggly around the grip with a couple or three of turns of the elastic cord.

The location of the upper hooks prevented the gun from being loosened by pushing it up, the cord prevented it from being pulled straight out without unwrapping it first. That was too hard and the bungee too high for a small kid to accomplish.

It wasn't hard for him or his wife to remove, quickly, but impossible for the little kids to do so!

 

Hanging an unsecured firearm on the wall is irresponsible. Any curious 4 year old should have no trouble getting his or her hands on it.

Please consider the damage that your $50.00 shotgun could do in the hands of a career criminal. Theft of firearms isn't just about you losing your gun.

Check out the following web pages for a locking gun rack for your home.

$49.00. http://gunracks.tylerrose.com/

$11.33. Not as good, but will keep a 4 year old out. 06420 VERTICAL LOCKING GUN RACK http://www.g-lox.com/huntingproducts.html

There's probably more. Google it. ​

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Bad idea! And, then, there's always the problem of coming home to face your own gun!

 

Exactly. Better to lock your stuff up good and tight and carry!!

 

Good point about kids getting to guns but we don't have kids in our house. It's just me and my 22-year old wife, who has been taught how to use all the firearms in the house safely. In the event that we decide to have kids, the guns will be looked up in a gunsafe so they don't get to them. I put my shotgun on the door because I'm hopefully leaving for basic training in Oct. and I want my wife to be able to defend herself should anyone try anything while I'm gone.

 

Mostly all good points when dealing with YOUR kids. What about others who are visiting? I teach Concealed Carry for both NC and UT. During the class we discuss securing firearms away from unauthorized users, particularly children. I tell my story: My kids have been raised around guns and taught the proper and safe handling of any and all they encounter. At the time, my son was 22 and my daughter was 27 with no kids. My daughter moved home during her divorce. Again, no kids. Well, I had guns scattered around the house. Of course they were loaded, an unloaded gun is a club. I had no reason to worry as they knew what they were doing and would not bother the guns anyway. Well, I came home from work one day and there was an 8 year old and 10 year old boy running around the house. My heart sank as to the potential posibilities here. These two boys belonged to a friend of my daughter who was visiting. I had to re-think how I had my guns located in my home. The point here is that just because you and your family are safe around firearms, that does not mean that everyone who enters the home will have the same mindset, training, or experience. Now my guns are in the safe. That is the ones I'm not carrying. I have a lockbox for that on the nightstand when carry is not possible.

 

Gun Hanging

I sure hate for my first post to be a nudge like this, but..

Several comments here made reference to "Unloaded Guns". My children have always been around these tools, and the very first thing they were taught is that "There Is No Such Thing As An Unloaded Weapon".

I fully agree that education is the key to safety. Assuming that children can't find hidden firearms is naive at best. 2 year olds can find cookie jars. Train the children early and make sure they look at guns as tools instead of toys.

I am currently manufacturing hooks to hang my M-1 over my mantle. I am experimenting with several ideas and will let you know how it works out.

 

I have a rack in my office with two shotguns and my two lever rifles on it. Also a pistol that sits on top my computer tower just under my keyboard. Kids are not a factor in here and there is only one way in unless you have some digging equipment(Underground basement type thing). The rest are locked up. Education is the key as well as home security issues so you wont have to face your own weapon. I guess it's a plus living in a small town. Everyone knows each other and most all of us are armed. Makes for polite neighbors

 

if i was to do this (kid in house,w/unlocked loaded shotty)...i would install lock on door that the loaded shotgun hangs on.(keep locked at all times or untill child sleeps or not home)..just screw me a 2 1/2 or 3inch screw into my door,and throw a strap of some kind on my shotty and let it hang from it...easy enough

 

Kids & Guns

I raised 2 kids, boy and girl in a house full of guns. I am going to sound like a monster, BUT, my kids would rather fight a gator than chance putting finger prints on my guns. I have friends and relatives that disassemble guns and hide ammo, "FOR HOME PROTECTION"! I'm sure a burgler would be kind enough to wait until you reassemble your gun, find the ammo and load your gun before he kicks down the door. Bottom line, threaten to eat your kids if they touch your guns. AND, YES, there is no way to keep kids from playing with guns if they want to.

 

I don't have kids. My first shot from an actual gun (as opposed to a BB gun, no offense) was to kill a squirrel. I think my Dad had me take that shot, on Christmas morning, to impress upon me that even that lil .22 rifle would kill its target. I don't recall ever "playing" with guns as a child after that shot, though i know we played with cap guns & bb guns before then. I hate to think what trouble i could've gotten in had my father not properly instructed & impressed me regarding the lethality of firearms. After having to finish off a different squirrel with a brick, i learned to make that first shot be the only one needed.