Repairing a Gun Safe - You guys are smart or I wouldn't ask!

I have a big old (1934) fire safe for paper records. I opened the back panel of the door and found it to have big loose chunks of what is probably asbestos containing cement. Since there is a lot of brain power on this group I thought i would ask for advice. I am NOT going to tear it out and put in new cement. I want to stabilize this these chunks with some epoxy or silica cement or some other product. I want to lay the door down and drizzle it into the cracks and have the blocks cement themselves together and be done! (PLEASE don't get into asbestos hazzards and how bad it is, - I know all that!) I just want some product advice on just might work the best for what I am trying to do,

- product names and where I might get them if possible. I was thinking of some epoxy which might rebond the chunks to the back of the door and to themselves, or some concrete driveway crack repair product?? Thanks in advance for your help.

Reply to
Bob
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Waterglass should work for this application.

Reply to
Ken Davey

Get some plaster of paris--dry---mix as thick as will penetrate the cracks& pour it in--Plaster has been used for years to "fireproof" safes--It has a large amount of "water of hydration" which has to be driven off with a lot of heat--but the temp doesn't rise much while this is going on--the safe just sits there and "steams" until all the lime / gypsum is dehydrated..Jerry

Reply to
jerry wass

On 7 Dec 2006 04:37:27 -0800, with neither quill nor qualm, "Bob" quickly quoth:

It's no hazard unless some gov't official gets wind of its location. Then you're in a expensive world of shit.

Remodelers of historic homes have a liquid epoxy which is good for hardening soft wood. It would probably work perfectly for your use. They're called wood consolidants.

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A cheaper and possibly as effective solution would be some of the low- or non-expanding foam in a can.

- Press HERE to arm. (Release to detonate.) -----------

Reply to
Larry Jaques

Mix up some Plaster and pour it in. Just be sure to block it from any areas it could cause problems. That would be the lock mechanism and if it has fail safes those will need to be protected as well. Most of the epoxy type products would not be a good choice if you wanted the safe to stay fire resistant since most of them will smolder and give off toxic gas or ignite.

Reply to
Steve W.

Plaster of Paris to "glue" the loose chunks together. Don't worry about the fact that it has asbestos in it. This is only a problem when people have worked with asbestos for many years as a living. The government boondoggle of eliminating asbestos is mostly hype, and very profitable for lawyers, asbestos mitigation companies, and unions with people doing the work. All of these are great sources of votes and money for politicians.

Reply to
Mike Swift

I have what might be a good solution, it is a fireproof foam intended to fireproof electrical penetrations. Except it is so old it doesn't foam, it just makes a dense rubbery product.

Reply to
Nick Hull

Some thoughts. As a locksmith I was trained that old fire safes lose their ability to insulate as they age as the moisture level drops over time. With that said, while your antique is probably not up to a modern safe specifications, it is probably good enough.

Asbestos? Don't breath the dust. Mist with a little water. To stick the chunks back, use drywall mud.

Reply to
Roger Shoaf

Mist is ok - USE hairspray. It won't rust, it sticks and seals it down so there flaky surface won't dust out. Lacquer spray is ok - paint store or ladies section :-)

I vote visiting the ladies section - better sights ! :-)

Martin Martin H. Eastburn @ home at Lions' Lair with our computer lionslair at consolidated dot net TSRA, Life; NRA LOH & Endowment Member, Golden Eagle, Patriot"s Medal. NRA Second Amendment Task Force Charter Founder IHMSA and NRA Metallic Silhouette maker & member.

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Roger Shoaf wrote:

Reply to
Martin H. Eastburn

Suppose I wanted to weld a bracket to a safe. What welding rod would give a bead that is hardest to cut?

Reply to
Dev Null

Stainless ??

Reply to
Shawn

First of all, is the *bracket* hard to cut? Makes no difference if the weld can't be cut if the bracket *can* be.... If the bracket is hard, I think I would put a couple of holes in the bracket, then weld inside the holes to the side of the safe - that way, the weldment is "shielded" by the hard bracket. Can't be cut if you can't get to it. HTH Ken.

Reply to
Ken Sterling

Perhaps you ought to reconsider your bolt down options. you might be better off not welding a bracket, but drilling holes from the inside out.

This way to attack the bolts they have to open the safe.

Reply to
Roger Shoaf

"Roger Shoaf" wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@news01.syix.com:

All good ideas. But I'd still like to know what kind of rod will give a bead that is difficut to cut.

I'm thinking of one of the hardfacing rods? Probable whichever gives the highest Rockwell hardness.

Reply to
Dev Null

I would like to thank everybody who contributed suggestions to increase me knowledge base. I think that I will try thin plaster of paris run into the cracks rather than the epoxies I had been thinking about.

I knew it was worth asking!

Thanks again, Bob Durango

Reply to
Bob

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