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The safe you buy should come equipped with heavy duty linkage that is capable of withstanding tremendous amounts of torque through the handle without damaging the lock system or shear pins.
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Don't be impressed with multiple locking pins. The heart of the locking system and how it is protected is much more important.
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The safe you buy should have hard plate protecting the combination box. It should also have a hard plate protecting the independent re-lock, or the entire locking area.
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Make sure the hard plate is not directly welded to the door. It is very important that your raised mounting plate be made in a fashion where it is welded firmly to the door and the hard plate slips in between the mounting plate and the surface of the door. The combination box is then bolted to the mounting plate. Welds to the mild steel are many times stronger than are welds to hard plate.
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To help avoid moisture problems, your safe should be made in a fashion that will allow weather stripping around the door. Fire safes should come equipped with a fire gasket.
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When buying a FIRE RESISTANT gun safe, be certain that the fire insulation used is of a very high quality, such as ceramic. Avoid safes with dead air spaces. Safes using ceramic blanket or bulk ceramic pressed right up against the wall of the safe is a far better method of insulating.
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Safes with fully recessed doors give better protection against pry bars and porta-powers.
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Be sure your safe has heavy exterior wall that is at least 1/8" thick for burglary protection.
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The fire liner should be U.L. listed ceramic fiber insulation material, not sheet rock or fire board.
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It has to have at least a two inch thick fire liner encased in a second layer of steel inside the safe.
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The door must have a clamping action while the gun safe's dead bolts are being engaged.
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You should be able to put a tremendous amount of pressure on the handle shaft itself without twisting or snapping anything on the inside of the door.
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The safe bodies should have a one piece wrap around with no vertical seams including the door seat.
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Your combination box mounting surface should be welded to the door first, then the hard plate should be able to slip in between.
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Your independent re-lock should be protected behind the hard plate.
