You seem to have missed the point that there is sentimental value here. IE, it's not that it's a super duper rifle, it's the fact that it was the OP's dad's when his dad was a kid.
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My youth was similar. You could buy rifles at the hardware store. My Winchester model 94 came from K-Mart. I'd come home from school and grab a gun, a vest, and a dog and go hunting the treelines for rabbits. I suspect that if a teenager with a long gun was seen in the same locale today someone would call the cops. Hayfields have turned into "country estates".
I have a picture of my sister and I boarding a Greyhound buss to go to Grandmas. I am carrying my shotgun in its Winchester cardboard box. I am sure I had shells too. I think I was 11 or 12.
I recently took to measures to secure all of the guns.
Correct all my handguns are locked in a safe place, long guns with trigger locks. Always treat all guns as loaded and never point a firearm at something you do not want to shoot. Learned proper gun handling at an early age. There may be a time when you wish you had one.
Amazon search trigger lock. They are $12 it goes through the trigger guard making it impossible to fire. Cheaper than any safe.
Roger
It does not appear, from a simple google search, that the safe storage law has passed. It also appears that it is targeted at residences with minors, and or adults with known mental issue. You would have to ask that question to your local PD, and they may not even have the answer.
Don't let the term " Gun Safe" cause anxiety.A safe is a safe, and it can be used to store more things than guns. If the rifle breaks down as small as you're implying, it would be very inexpensive To buy a small 3 or 5 gun safe to secure it, and maybe put other things in there as well. It would cost more for a gunsmith to render it inoperable than a small safe.
I wouldn't be too concerned about its age.
Ditto what Mike just said, the only requirement is storage so a Minor can not access the firearm, no requirement for gun safe or other means. A gun lock is needed if you have children in the home and that is common sense. My guess he has got a old Stevens single shot lever 22 like my dad had, by the time I was able to use it was pretty well worn out!!