Several months ago as I was checking out Instagram one night, I saw an ad for “Metal Art of Wisconsin” and their Freedom Cabinet Strong Box Vault. On the surface it looked pretty cool… a gun cabinet hidden in plain sight that looks like a piece of art on the wall. I went to their website (https://www.metalartofwisconsin.com) and realized that they are more than just a safe company, they are a custom Metal Art shop. Pictures of the art they have available look absolutely amazing. This is a family owned business with everything made in the USA.
A few days later, I decided to contact the company directly and requested a cabinet to test and evaluate since I hadn’t seen an independent review of one yet. I sent an email to Shane Henderson who is the President of the company, introduced myself and asked for the opportunity to review a Freedom Cabinet. Less than 2 minutes later, Shane responded to me personally and indicated that one of the cabinets would be sent to me. The fast personal attention was very impressive.
About a week later, I came home from work and there was a large box sitting on my front porch from Metal Art of Wisconsin. What Shane had sent me was the 4” Freedom Cabinet Strong Box Vault with all the options…. Bio-metric Lock, Gas Shocks, Included Foam and the Polished Steel American Flag.
My first impression of the Vault was WOW!! This was bigger, stronger and heavier than I ever thought it would be, it weighed in at about 40 pounds. The included instructions were very clear on how to program the bio-metric lock with up to 20 different fingerprints.
Hanging the cabinet on the wall proved to be more of challenge than I thought, only due to the size and weight. Measuring in at 41” X 24”, finding a wall in my living room that it would fit on was tough. Luckily for me, my wife is a saint and she allowed me to take down some old family picture frames (that she was tired of anyways) and display the cabinet prominently above the couch. The cabinet doesn’t come with any mounting hardware and very few directions on how to do it. I assume that is due to the liability of someone not hanging the cabinet correctly and causing damage and/or injury if it falls.
The actual act of mounting the cabinet to the wall didn’t take too long once everything was
measured out and the wall studs were located and marked. I used ¾” x 3” screws drilled through the back wall of the cabinet into the studs. End result, it looks great and isn’t going anywhere!
The depth of the cabinet is 3.5” which is plenty deep enough to mount firearms and almost any other accessories you can think of. In the advertising, there are bottles of alcohol in the vault, perfect if you have teenagers you need hide your liquor from.
I don’t have small kids anymore but I do have an 18 month old grandchild, so being able to have a readily accessible firearm while also maintaining safety at home is very important. My duty weapon gets locked in the safe after work while still being able to access my home weapons in the event of an emergency. With the wood and steel construction, it is very secure while locked yet opens with ease once the authorized.
Accessing the contents in the cabinet takes about 2 seconds for the scanner to read your fingerprint and unlock the mechanism so you can open the doors. The video of the RFID system on the website shows it to be about the same time frame for access.
I have the upmost confidence in the security that the Freedom Vault will provide my family! I would love to see some of the smaller sized cabinets with other locking and hinge options someday.
From the Metal Art of Wisconsin website:
The Strong Box Vault, Fully Enclosed Steel Strong Box
Freedom Cabinet with hand oiled and burned wood
US flag with inlaid steel
Locking options:
Keyed locks, Invisible RFID locking system, Biometric Fingerprint lock
2 Footers = 23 x 15.5 x 3.5
3 Footers = 34 x 22.5 x 3.5
4 Footers = 41 x 24 x 3.5
All Steel Frame that is available with high density foam that can be configured to store guns, booze or any of your dirty little secrets.
Flag is cut from 16 gauge, cold rolled, mild steel (very strong) ground and polished, then covered in 3 layers of glossy clear coat.
Flag is inlaid and flush with surface of wood for an amazing 3 dimensional look.
The retail cost of the cabinet as it was sent to me with all the options is $718.80. The basic 2 foot model with no additional options start at $309.95.
So far, I am 100% satisfied and impressed with this company. If you are looking for a hidden vault for your home or office, I highly recommend contacting Metal Art of Wisconsin and look at all their Freedom Cabinet options. I trust it with the safety for my family! Now I just need to decide what else I’m going to secure inside it! 🙂