VS-52BL

It’s great for keeping your regularly accessed valuables safe from children, roommates, and the like.

I bought this because Viking is a fairly well known brand, and its flush design meant it could easily be hidden behind a wall decoration. Overall it functions well - it was easy to install and the fingerprint reader works fine. There are two main cons to this safe though. The first is that the capacity is a lot less than you might imagine. Of course you're going to lose some because it's recessed a little into the wall to allow it to be easily covered - that I get. However, you also have to consider the locking mechanism is contained inside a metal box on the inside of the door, and so you really only can use maybe half the depth of top half of the safe. It also really limits how you can place the shelves since the shelves cannot be placed behind the locking mechanism box. The other problem is if you leave the safe open for a few minutes, it starts beeping, and it's really really annoying. It's a sharp, loud beep every 5 seconds and is totally unnecessary. It's barely enough time for you to take something out and put it back in before it starts annoying you and reminding you it's open, and is totally unnecessary. Worse, it doesn't seem like you can disable it. Maybe if it only started after 10-20 minutes, or wasn't so loud I wouldn't mind, but for whatever reason Viking decided that it's unsafe to leave the safe open for more than a few minutes

My husband ordered this safe for me and when we installed it easily. However for some reason, the finger print scanner was not working. I contacted the company directly and they were WONDERFUL in responding! They sent a new safe and we have had no issues with it at all! Works like a charm and is highly recommended.

The fingerprint ID works great. However the locking mechanism is so large (deep) that the middle of the safe is unusable. It is not as wide as standard stud distance of 16 inches so additional wood supports were needed to install it. Although the fingerprint ID is way better than other safes I have seen, the lack of usable space and difficulty of installation (they provide no instructions) I can't recommend purchasing it. Manufacturer contacted me they offered me a free return. Great customer service! Chose to keep it.

Good, solid wall safe. When it arrived the keypad didn't work, but an email to their customer service group pointed me to a wiring harness that apparently worked its way loose from the circuit board, and fixing the problem was as simple as plugging the harness back onto the contact pins on the board. It has adjustable shelves inside which is pretty nice, and a set of LED lights at the top that provide a little illumination. The safe is deep enough to accommodate small valuables, jewelry, prescription drug bottles, and so forth. Construction seems pretty good overall, a few of the welds seemed a bit messy but, as you'll never see them once you finish mounting the safe, it doesn't really matter so much. My only real criticism is the lack of mounting instructions. While this won't be much of a problem for those of us who are relatively handy, I think the safe would greatly benefit from the inclusion of some installation instructions. Below are a few tips from my installation experience. As far as tools are concerned, plan on needing: a drill with a 1/2 inch drill bit (I found the 3/8 bit was just a hair too small to accept the stud anchors, and wasn't keen on hammering them in place), a socket wrench set that includes an extension rod (this is particularly important for those of us with big hands, two of the mounting bolts are a little tricky to get at with the door open), a drywall cutting knife, a pencil and a level to mark where you're going to cut your hole. You'll also need something sharp to punch through the fabric lining the inside of the safe so you can push the mounting bolts through. Cut a template of the safe out of the shipping box (once you know everything works properly), so you can play with where you want to locate the safe without needing to heft the safe itself around. The 1/2 inch drill bit will make a slightly larger hole than you need for the stud anchors, so have a couple toothpicks handy so you can wedge the toothpick between the anchor and the stud, which will tighten up the anchor in the hole and you don't have to worry about shoving the anchor through the stud when you begin to screw the bolts in. Once the anchor is good and tight, just cut the rest of the toothpick off so it's flush with the stud. And, naturally, make sure you check for electrical where you're going to mount the safe (don't forget to check the room next door too, if it's a shared wall). Cutting into a live electrical wire isn't much fun. :)

I purchased this safe six years ago and have had no problems. It was pretty straight forward with the installation. The fingerprint scanner has always worked without any issues. The only issue I would point out is the amount of storage space. I do not need a large amount of storage space so this safe works well for me. It can fit a handgun and I can say I have never had an issue with it falling out while opening the safe. Any item bigger than that would most likely not fit. If you are just storing some personal documents and small belongings this safe is perfect.

Love this safe, had it installed in my wall, big enough for important paper, if your looking for one to hold jewelry etc get a bigger one

My safe arrived warped. I laid it flat on the floor and it rocked from side to side. The warp affected the installation so that one corner sticks out about 1/4” farther than the others. The included hardware is useless for wooden stud installation. Had to get wood screws and use washers to secure it between studs. Had to remove door to drill pilot holes and install wood screws on hinge side. Reinstalling door is a huge pain and requires at least three hands. Very disappointed. This is the fourth Viking Wall safe I’ve installed and definitely the poorest quality. All others were pretty straightforward. If you have the space, go for the VS-52BLX. It has more room to work inside and more space to store your goodies.