How to build a gun room

Building gun room and gun walls has become very popular in America. There are may reasons to consider a gun room. If you have a large collection, safes and cabinets may not work well for you. Security can be easier with a properly constructed gun room with vault door. Rifle displays look great in ultimate man cave

The purpose of this article is to give you an solid understanding of the gun storage system and how to best optimize space in your room

Goto article on SewcureIt site: How to build a gun room

Initial Planning

What is the purpose of the room or wall? There are unlimited possibilities with the Craddlegrid system: High-density mass gun storage? Show and display? Storage and gun maintenance? Reloading? Most likely your project will be a combination of some or all of these.

Gun room sample images

Daniel Defense Armory – High-density vertical rifle storage

Gun room display wall using horizontal mounts

Reloading / smithing bench – Craddlegrid provides lots of storage and display options

Gun Room / Gun Wall Considerations:

Space:

For estimating space requirements the general rule of thumb is 12 vertical rifles per row every 36″ of linear wall space. For horizontal displays, estimate 4 rifles for every square yard. When storing rifles vertically the length of the rifles will determine the vertical space required. We will go into more detail below.

Vertical storage – How to store a second row.

When storing rifles vertical, there are 2 ways to hold a second row: using our 6 rifle stock shelf or using individual rifle shelves.

Rifles on 6 capacity rifle shelves   VS   rifles on single stock shelves

6 capacity rifle shelves

Single stock shelves

Most rooms are built with six capacity shelves. These are more economical and are also used for storing gear, books and other items. The single stock shelves work well when you have a wider variety of rifle lengths and you need maximum vertical efficiency.

Construction:

Are you using existing walls or are you building new?

Existing walls – Normal walls (studs and drywall) should be covered with 1/2″ or 3/4″ plywood.

If building a new - you can substitute plywood for drywall. – depending on the wall layout and other items (doors, windows, electrical) it may be beneficial to build the wall with drywall then cover the area for the gun wall with plywood.

Planning and layout for a gun wall

How many grid panels will fit?

To determine the maximum number of panels that will fit use the formula: wall length in inches divided by 17.25 (the width of one panel)

Our room dimensions:

Above is a drawing of the room we will turn into an armory. The right side of the room is open. We will build a wall with a secure double door system.

This is the room with the gun storage system, work bench, wall built and double doors drawn in.

Let’s look at each wall:

Here we have a small drawing with the walls labeled and the back wall “A”, this has grid panels and our work bench. To calculate to number of panels:  wall is 9′ = 108″ each grid panel is 17.25″ wide so 108 divided by 17.25 = 6.26 we can fit 6 panels on the wall. these are centered and our work bench sits in front.

Wall “B” we use the same process here: wall – 18′ 6″ = 222″ — 222 / 17.25 = 12.86  so we use 12 panels.

Wall “C” On this wall we are using hardwood between the panels. This gives the system a softer and warmer look. We installed the plywood, then used 1×4 hardwood to create the framework, then the panels were attached in the center sections.

Normally we would do all walls the same, however we wanted to use this room a a show piece for different styles and looks.

System Height

Determine what height is right for your wall. There are two lengths of panels, 16″ high and 36″. Two rows of the large panels fit most applications. This yields 6′ of vertical grid wall. In our room we start the bottom panels 14″ off the floor. The bottom row of rifles sit on the Stock bases on the floor. 14: off puts to top of the system at 86″ in a standard room with 8′ ceiling the results look good and work well. You can also start panels at the floor, use Two 36’s and one 16″ panel this will give you a total height of 88″. With this option you will have the ability to use bins, shelves and other accessories for the floor up.

In the image above we show a 72″ high system 14″ off floor. There are 24 rifles stored vertically and 3 horizontal. The rifle barrels at the top can be taller then the system. Next we show floor to ceiling using 3 panels.

Option:  

use 2 x 12 lumber or build a wood base on the floor for stock bases . This gets the rifles off the floor. Painting the wood Black or an accent color will give you a nice finished look.

Plywood

Plywood is placed over the drywall and painted (we recommend dark grey or black) so you can attach the panels. We use 1″ drywall screws to secure the panels to the plywood. The screws will go through the plywood and into the drywall. If you want to option to remove or move the gun storage system with minimal impact on the wall. Install the plywood with furring strips to give you enough space for the screw. This is also the method for installing a gun storage system into block or concrete walls.

Mounting the panels.

In a 2 panel high system we start with the top panels. measure the height where you want the bottom. Snap a line where the botton will be, make sure it is level. We normally will screw a temporary ledger board onto the plywood at the line so to support the panel during install. When installing screws into panels, make sure to center the screws in the holes. If a screw is off center it can push the panel off line as it is tightened. – quick fix: if a screw is off a bit, leave it loose until the other screws are seated then tighten this will keep the panels straight.

We install screws every 3 -4 louvers and every 2-3 rows. adding a few screws to the panel joints will keep things straight and clean.

 When the panels are installed you can start adding components and firearms. There are unlimited options as far as how you store things!

Gun Room Reloading bench

Reloading dies stored in gun. room

Gun Smith bench in gun room

SecureIt offer a selection of pre-configured gun wall or gun room kits. see: Gun wall Kits