Hidden safes are nothing new, but quick access hidden storage compartments for guns have really started to become popular over the past few years. Book shelves that pop open and mirrors and paintings that slide to reveal a home defense weapon are being produced by numerous manufacturers. I had the chance to review a Concealment Mirror from the folks over at Timber Vaults.
The mirror I received was their small sized mirror in an espresso finish, it retails for $299 over at timbervaults.com as well as on Amazon with free shipping. It was packed very well, the box I received from FedEx was beat up (no surprise there) but the mirror came in perfect condition. Along with the mirror where all the screws needed for the installation, two RFID cards, one programming card and two magnets.
The total depth of the mirror is about 4 inches.
The concealment compartment has a depth of 2.75 inches.
The parts kit with the mirror included two strong magnets that you attach behind the mirror via double sided tape. You can place them wherever you want depending on how you want to configure the layout inside. The included doubled sided tape wasn’t very strong, one of the magnets kept falling off. It wasn’t a big issue however, I just slapped on a layer of tape over the magnet.
The actual mirror itself is pretty good looking and of decent quality. It’s Made in China, and it looks pretty much like a mirror you’d buy at your local furniture store.
The instructions that came with the kit weren’t that great. Installing the mirror isn’t difficult, but some better thought out instructions would definitely help. Fortunately there’s a better set of instructions right on Timber Vault’s website.
It’s designed to fit in between two wall studs, which are usually 16 inches apart. Use a stud finder to verify before doing any cutting. I used a stud finder that detected electrical wiring but it didn’t reveal this cable tv wire behind the drywall. It wasn’t a big deal however, before I really started cutting into the wall I cut a smaller hole to look around inside the wall. I was able to spot the cable and move it to the side before I went to work with my reciprocating saw.
The hole isn’t pretty, but it’s going to be covered up by the mirror soon. Because these mirrors are made out of wood and have no water protection or insulation, it’s recommended that you install them on interior walls.
A view of the hinge system, nothing fancy but it works. After you slide the mirror into the hole in your wall, there’s six pre-dilled holes that you can use with the screws provided in the parts kit.
The mirror comes with two RFID cards and a programming card. The locking mechanism seemed to come already programmed however.
The mirror comes with two shelves already installed. You can rearrange them to different heights. In the pre-made configuration you can easily store multiple pistols, extra ammo and magazines.
The included magnets are strong enough to hold up my Glock 17 with a bunch of accessories on it no problem.
If you want to change up the shelf configuration you’ll have to remove four screws per shelf. Kind of annoying but not a big deal.
The shelves have a lip on them so you can rest your pistol on it without it slipping off.
If you remove the shelves there’s room for an M92 AK pistol or an 10.5 inch AR pistol. So even though it’s the small size concealment mirror there’s still plenty of space inside.
Using the RFID lock is pretty simple, slide the card along the edge of the mirror above the locking mechanism and it pops open. Close the mirror and slide it again to lock. It’s a pretty quick process. I did find one downside however, if you use one card to unlock or lock the mirror, you can’t use the other card to unlock or lock it. I recommend labeling the cards so you know which one you used.
One complaint about these types of concealment devices that use RFID is what happens if the batteries run out? The lock uses four AAA batteries, but once they get to 50% consumption the lock will start beeping to warn you. The batteries should last around one to two years according to Timber Vaults.
Another downside is how thick the mirror is, it’s not very flush with the wall. It’s a full two inches thick. While it’s not super noticeable at a quick glance, if you really look at the mirror you might suspect it’s hiding something. There’s not much that can be done about it because the mirror uses standard type hinges. If someone did suspect something they’d really have to try to get the mirror open. Remember, this isn’t a safe so I wouldn’t expect the same type of security out of it.
Conclusion
Timber Vaults is one of many producers of concealed compartments for firearms. The mirror and concealment hardware are pretty good quality and it was pretty easy to install. While their Concealment Mirror isn’t perfect, it’s a solid product that provides quick access via an easy to use lock. It retails for $299 over at TimberVaults.com and on Amazon.com.
