got this for my son, cause he was always complaining his brothers are stealing his stuff lol. I mainly got it for him to put his important items for safe keeping but needed something small enough to be out of sight and out of mind from prying eyes. He puts his wallet, money, birth certificate, passport and such in there with room to spare. He will be off to college this fall and this was very much needed since he will be sharing a dorm room. So far so good, he hasnt complained anymore so needless to say it must be doing the job.

I needed a safe for my handgun. However: **I was NOT looking for theft protection, simply a safe to prevent child access to my weapon**

For this purpose, it has worked great. It convenient to access and has enough room for my handgun, extra magazine, and a box of ammo.

Only problems that I have experienced:

1) Occasionally the key-pad 'beep' feature reactivates randomly instead of remaining mute when keys are pressed. Not sure why it does this even with no loss of power. It has happened twice in 6-months. It just more annoying than anything.

2) Once or twice the battery has fallen off inside, dropping the battery. When this happens you can only open with the hard key. Would be bad in case of emergency. Last time it happened I put a piece of tape on top of the battery cover for extra security. All well since then.

Overall I am happy. Again, my main priority not being theft protection but child access restriction instead.

After researching several similar products, I think this is an excellent value. It's solidly built with heavy, welded steel. The door and lock all function smoothly. The things I especially like:
"¢ This model is upgraded so the paperclip attack won't work. The reset button has been moved. It's now recessed and is covered.
"¢ There is a button on front to turn the 'beep' on and off
"¢ All black finish "“ even the lock face. Yes, this is just a cosmetic preference
"¢ Black finish didn't flake or chip, even when I drilled additional holes for mounting
"¢ Very sturdy and solid "“ far heavier than most, 'keep curious kids away from a handgun' lock boxes
"¢ Although (probably) not recommended, I have this mounted vertically (bolt knob at the top) and it works just fine

The loss of a star is because my unit arrived with a loose spring inside the locking mechanism (probably came loose during shipping). Not a big deal for me; just removed the plastic cover on the inside of the door and figured out where the spring was supposed to go. But for someone else, that issue might have meant returning the unit. One reviewer noted the knob was difficult to turn. I wonder if the spring on that unit also came loose in shipping and has jammed up the mechanism?

The foam is in fact, "low density" as stated, and thin, so doesn't work for me and I just replaced it. Not a big deal. I also used different (standard) hardware for mounting since my safe just came with machine bolts.

Finally, in some views, Amazon shows this unit weighing 39 pounds. It's actually about 13 pounds.

Perfect for me. I got this in early 2013, and it has worked fine. I tried with a paperclip, and couldn't open, so I believe mine is one w/o the problem. Good! I've had no problems, though I might repl the batteries with new "good ones". I found a hidey-hole I'd like to mount it in, but it's a half inch too deep. Too bad. Another reviewer says to mount it upside down so the door flops down - you can get stuff out one handed and quicker. He also says to drill a couple more holes so you can mount to a stud - not a bad idea.

Amazon has a major error on their website for this safe. This Amazon product listing says PDS-1500 (which has a black keyboard) at the top, but shows a photo of the PDS-500 (silver keyboard). These reviews appear to be intermingled for BOTH safes since the item is listed as PDS-1500, but these linked reviews are listed for the PDS-500. They also incorrectly indicate that a "new model is available" and show that part number as PDS-500. PDS-1500 is actually the new safe.

The PDS-1500 (which I purchased at a sporting goods store since I was totally confused by Amazon's website) has multiple design improvements including a mute button on the keyboard, a cover for the programming code reset button so it can't be pressed with a rod via one of the mounting holes, and likely also corrects the problem with the back-up key lock being easily picked. I read the manuals for the PDS-500 and the the PDS-1500 and saw the difference in the two models, but had no idea which one Amazon would ship if I ordered it from them.

I've included photos of the exterior and interior of my PDS-1500 safe. Much different than the PDS-500. The external appearance is totally different and the internal PDS-500 red push button switch for reprogramming the safe has been replaced by a reset button UNDER THE SMALL BLACK COVER just to the left of the battery compartment.

The sporting goods store was selling off the silver keyboard versions of the next larger Stack-On safe (PS-514) at a heavily discounted price while the black keyboard version of the same safe was about $30 more. There appears to have been a major redesign for at least two of their safe models.

The safe I purchased, the actual PDS-1500, is excellent and very worthy of a five star rating. Not sure about the PDS-500.