Theft Prevention - ID Tagging

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Interested in thoughts of how everyone is doing identification tagging on equipment/trailers to help with theft prevention?  What works best?  I know if somebody wants it they are going to figure out how to get it, but trying to be as proactive as possible to keep the stuff my hard earned dollars bought..
Reply:A tradesman mate of mine had tools stolen occasionally from his truck and work sites. He got some flouro green spray paint and marked all his tools (power and hand) liberally with the green paint figuring thieves would be more inclined to steal less identifiable tools. He figured he was never going to sell the tools - just use them till they burnt out - so he didn't care what they looked like. An unexpected bonus was that the tools were easy to find on site - a cordless drill with a green handle tended to stick out. It was a cheap, low tech solution, but it worked for him.ScottYeah, I carry.House keys, wallet, some change, usually a newspaper, maybe a pen.
Reply:The usual basic precautions. List of items with serial numbers and accompanying photos. Tools marked with distinctive paint and more expensive tools marked with engraver in inconspicuous spots with distinctive marks. All this won't help KEEP your tools, but it does help recover them possibly and gives you the ammo to fight with the insurance company to get paid if they do walk.The basic precautions against theft, lock the boxes on the truck, and keep loose tools on site to a minimum. Tools marked with paint so that they are easily recognizable if someone borrows them. On some jobs in the city, I'll pay for the laborer to keep an eye on the truck. Mostly to keep damage on the truck to a minimum. Give them 3-5 minutes undisturbed and they can do a ton of big money damage trying to get in to the truck in some areas.As said if they want them, they'll get them. The idea is to limit the opportunities for smash and grabs or just picking up and walking off with the tools. All my extension cords are odd colored so as to make them easy to spot on large sites, they also are marked with my mane and phone number. I forget what company I got them thru years back, but they're top quality cords and I haven't lost one yet (though some have tried to"accidentally" borrow them)
Reply:The best solution is to lock them up and have good insurance.   Let's face it, once it's stolen, you're never going to see it again, so it doesn't matter what was marked on it.   Learn from that and find a better way to lock up the new one so the thief can't get it in the first place.Good insurance makes all the difference in the world.   If a machine is stolen and you can't afford to replace it and you don't have good insurance, you're stuck.   If you have good insurance, you go buy a new machine and forget about the old one.   It's gone, it's not comming back.   Look at it as a good reason to upgrade to the latest model.  Good insurance will pay you more for your old machine than you can sell it for used, and give you most of the money needed to replace it with a new one.   Everything that's ever been stolen from me, it doesn't (or wouldn't) matter what markings I put on any of it, cause I've never seen any of my stolen stuff again, with exception of some of my CD's that I found at a pawn shop, and even though they were marked with my initials, I still couldn't get them back.  Record all your equipment's serial numbers, take pictures, and when something is stolen, make a police report and report it to your insurance company.  The pictures of the equipment on  your property and the serial numbers are your proof that did in fact own it, even if you bought it used and have no reciept for it.  If you did buy new, keep the reciepts and owner's manuals in a safe place, not with the machine.On the advice of some of the guys here, after the wire feeder was stolen from the truck, I got the Inland Marine policy.  The policy covers all my tools and equipment, anywhere the theft occurs, with full replacement value and a $100 deductable.   Wish I would have had that BEFORE the theft occurred...MM350P/Python/Q300MM175/Q300DialarcHFHTP MIG200PowCon300SMHypertherm380ThermalArc185Purox oaF350CrewCab4x4LoadNGo utilitybedBobcat250XMT304/Optima/SpoolmaticSuitcase12RC/Q300Suitcase8RC/Q400Passport/Q300Smith op
Reply:DSW spoke specificaly about stuff disappearing at construction job sites.  In that case, marking your cords and tools is a good idea.   Sometimes stuff gets 'borrowed', or moved around, or 'lost'.   In that case, your markings can help you identify and recover the item.   If it was actually purposefully stolen, you're probly not going to see it anywhere cause the theif has already hidden it away and will leave with it soon and will not be bringing it back around, unless he's really really stupid.MM350P/Python/Q300MM175/Q300DialarcHFHTP MIG200PowCon300SMHypertherm380ThermalArc185Purox oaF350CrewCab4x4LoadNGo utilitybedBobcat250XMT304/Optima/SpoolmaticSuitcase12RC/Q300Suitcase8RC/Q400Passport/Q300Smith op
Reply:I agree with DesertRider33, when it's gone you most likely won't see it again. I have had a couple of items that were stolen recovered and returned from one theft, unfortunately much the worse for wear. The items with the serial numbers didn't catch the F'er's, but it did help add my case to the list of crimes they would get hit with. Not that they did any serious time for the thefts, or pay for the damage/loss.As said an inland marine is the way to go. My regular insurance will cover "personal" tools at home, but where does my hobby tools stop and "comercial " tools start. You can bet if the insurance company can clain the tools are "work" related and deny the claim, they will. My inland marine will cover any of my tools, up to the total, anywhere, home, truck or job site.
Reply:When my hand tools like a drill or saws all burn out I hold on to them. I leave them in the open in the truck and have some junk I leave out in my garage while I put the good stuff away. Hope is that the quick grab is what they want so I make it easy.  That being said, If I could nail a dead thief to my truck with a sign on him, I'm pretty sure that would work wonders, Just have to keep lobbyint the legisaltors to get that one through."Si Vis Pacem Para Bellum"Lincoln Idealarc 250 AC/DCMillermatic 251   Syncrowave 300   30A spoolgunLincoln MP210Hypertherm 45(2) LN 25(2) Lincoln Weldanpower 225 CV(4) SA200   1 short hood    SA250    SAM 400
Reply:man kolot hit it rite on i do the same and also keep the expensive stuff for urself and also etch ur name in hand tools even in my cheap lend out tools i etch my initials or i get stuff that is odd ball looking and that some one wont want to walk off wt like some of the ratchets are just some odd ball harbor frieght tool also those tools are the best for lending out also if u put them in a piece of junk toolbok people are more likely to pass it by cuz they are looking for what looks nice the best advice i ever got was from an exthief make sure ur locks are drill proof and make it as hard as possible for things to walk and also make sure ur insurance will cover just like wat desertrider and dsw said and it is also a good idea to make sure not to leave a key in easy place to find i can not tell you how many times i see some one just leave a set of keys just sitting out in the open especialy there extra keys to there boxes later agwelderold skool idealarc welderEsab multi tool Milwauake 7inch angle grinder the best of all tho the oxyacceteline set up
Reply:In my experience, heavy permanent and bold marking of tools and equipment pays big dividends. Not only does an honestly misplaced or lost tool quickly work its way home, but outright theft is greatly deterred.Most serious theft is planned or "cased" in advance, and everybody knows that simple possession of stolen property can carry as heavy a penalty as the theft itself. When a prospective thief reads a friendly warning engraved in tools, he can't help but think about an easier mark.When tools are heavily marked with the right wording, so that possession can't be easily explained away with simple BS such as "I didn't know" or "I bought it" or "I found it" the risks are too high for most thieves. For those still willing to try it, the tool's fence value is destroyed. If despite fair warning, a thief or fence takes his chances, the ID can quickly lead to trouble.  Although there's supposedly honor amongst thieves, one small word in the fine print seems to void all such contracts: "Reward"Good LuckLast edited by denrep; 06-17-2009 at 01:20 AM.
Reply:A guy I work with has got a product he sells on the side, it is a spray in an aerosol can that you spray on whatever and the dots of "paint" are actually an identification that can be read by the police, it is carried in a flourescent carrier and when the police scan it they realise it has been sprayed and look at the dots and that links to a database .On the more traditional bust a guy was busted in our town last week and he had over $50,000 worth of tools then the police discovered he was maintaining 3 premises around town so they raided one and found more but at news time hadn't located the last but were hoping a member of the public would come forward with info as to where it is. As this is a mining town there is a large percentage of tradesmen and they don't like people like that so iIguess it will be found soon.Hope he goes down for a good spell.Last edited by clive; 06-17-2009 at 07:53 AM.Reason: spelling
Reply:Originally Posted by clive...a guy was busted in our town last week and he had over $50,000 worth of tools...
Reply:Metal engraver, bright obnoxious paint, good secure locks, warning labels about the owner protecting his property with a .357 four nights a week - you guess which four .... Throw a damn rattlesnake in the trailer.  You think anyone with half a brain is going to try getting near it?  That's your "Arizona Guard Dog."**  On an amusing side-note, talking about security: The Tucson Gem And Mineral Show happens every year around the end of January, first week of February.  It's THE largest show in the world, and dealers come from all over the world for rough stock, findings, finished pieces, whatever.  One of the dealers I had been talking to during the show had a big display case set up with a lot of really nice jewelry - rings, necklaces, bracelets, some really nice (and expensive) stuff.  His security system?  He had about a dozen tarantulas crawling around inside the case, all over the displays!Last edited by SpyGuy; 06-18-2009 at 02:37 AM.