# Power tool security



## chandler48 (Jun 5, 2017)

Your weakest link is the lock system on the garage. How did they gain access? There's not much you can do to keep people from attempting to steal your stuff. Nowadays security cameras are priced well and many work off bluetooth so you can see what is happening in real time. Loud alarms also help deter them as attention is brought to their shenanigans and everyone can see them.


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## wrangler (Oct 9, 2008)

I rely on Karma to keep my home and valuables safe. (Karma is my 140 pound Rottweiler). She has backup by a couple of other friends, Smith & Wesson. But seriously, I've always said that a person who steals another person's tools is not just taking 'stuff' but also stealing a man's means for making a living and hopefully will be smoking an extra turd in Purgatory for doing so. 
Most of my hand tools are in my work truck ( in fact, I and most other people would say I have far too many tools in there) but my larger ones are kept in my new shop. I don't have a security system other than standard locks/deadbolts but have considered installing one. 
Problem with thieves is that if they want something bad enough, there's not a lot you can do to stop them. I do have plenty of lighting around the shop and property and that's not a bad deterrent to any potential bad-doer.


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## Fix'n it (Mar 12, 2012)

......


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## quatsch (Feb 4, 2021)

Just don't set up a booby trap.

One guy who did that & crippled the thief had to pay the thief $30K. The neighbors put up the money.
The thief was smiling in the newspaper photo with this cane.


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## mark sr (Jun 13, 2017)

quatsch said:


> Just don't set up a booby trap.


Back in the 80s a man had a tv repair shop in south fla. He got tired of it constantly being broke into thru a transom window so he electrified it. The next thief got hung up and was electrocuted. The repairman was tried for murder. After a lengthy trial he was acquitted.


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## Fix'n it (Mar 12, 2012)

i would like to know what security was on what doors.


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## Domo (Nov 9, 2018)

Paint your tools the most obscene color combinations you can think of. Candy stripes, Pink dots, Rainbow. Then, on job sites and on CraigsList you can spot them very quickly - once spotted... let Karma sort them out (Good Dog, Good Doggie).

Talk to your insurance agent and see if you can get them listed separately with no deductible on your work/home policy...


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## Old Thomas (Nov 28, 2019)

My kids take my tools. I never see the tools again but at least I know who took them. Prevention-birth control.


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## MTN REMODEL LLC (Sep 11, 2010)

Old Thomas said:


> My kids take my tools. I never see the tools again but at least I know who took them.* Prevention-birth contro*l.


TOO LATE......   




Domo said:


> *Paint your tools the most obscene color combinations you can think of*. Candy stripes, Pink dots, Rainbow. Then, on job sites and on CraigsList you can spot them very quickly - once spotted... let Karma sort them out (Good Dog, Good Doggie).
> 
> Talk to your insurance agent and see if you can get them listed separately with no deductible on your work/home policy...


 DOMO^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^100% good idea IMO^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

I think most tools are stolen by theifs/druggies because they are so easily sold and converted to cash. Often sold thru online things like Craigslist or thru pawn shops.

DOMO's idea significantly discourages theft for that reason as the tools could so easily be identified....a theif would be discouraged to try and sell them...and go hit your neighbors garage.


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## MTN REMODEL LLC (Sep 11, 2010)

You might also get an etching cutter and blatenly inscribe your name and phone number.....yes, it could be grinded off, but most crooks don't go to that extent.


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## quatsch (Feb 4, 2021)

It used to be if you could delay a burglar one minute he'd go to the next house.
Not so for a shed full of tools.

There are different reasons for getting a silent alarm or a noisy one, IDK what they are currently.


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## Fix'n it (Mar 12, 2012)

i don't keep anything of real value, except to me, in my shed. i don't even have a lock on it. 
actually, if i had throw the stuff away and not build the shed, i would be money ahead. but it was a fun project and does add value to the property, and is useful.


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## wrangler (Oct 9, 2008)

Fix'n it said:


> i don't keep anything of real value, except to me, in my shed. i don't even have a lock on it.
> actually, if i had throw the stuff away and not build the shed, i would be money ahead. but it was a fun project and does add value to the property, and is useful.


Same goes for my '71 Opel GT. Leave it unlocked and windows down if I have it out on town. Nothing worth stealing inside and would hate to have to replace a broken window for it.


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## Domo (Nov 9, 2018)

wrangler said:


> Same goes for my '71 Opel GT. Leave it unlocked and windows down if I have it out on town. Nothing worth stealing inside and would hate to have to replace a broken window for it.
> View attachment 663713


OMG - my absolute favorite car - had one in the early to mid 70's. Loved the "frog" eyes. I really miss it.. ummm where do you live?


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## Fix'n it (Mar 12, 2012)

Domo said:


> . ummm where do you live?


. better lock that up, wrangler


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## quatsch (Feb 4, 2021)

xxxxxxx


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## gthomson (Nov 13, 2016)

The way the thieves got into the garage at my condo to steal stuff - it was a shared two car garage - converted from carports to enclose them, but still shared with another condo owner. So it was a two car size door. And wasn't a roll up door, and no garage door opener. So there was just a single padlock on one side. And enough gap on the sides, so the thief only had to push the door to the left a bit - enough to get the short lock mechanism out of the hole, and opened it was. At the time I thought having a padlock on both sides would help. But now that I think about it - no, it wouldn't have.
What might have helped would have been to put some shims in there so the door couldn't be moved sideways at all.

Current garage door is the more common now 'metal sectional use with an opener' type, so I put a screwdriver through the side rail to help. But I did see there are some auto door openers that also have a deadbolt on the side to do similar.

I also did find I have a 1/2" impact driver that I bought for a project that I really don't need. So I'll be leaving that out as a sacrificial one - if all they're looking for is a quick grab and go, they can have it.
So if they are in the garage, and want more than that, they're going to have to work for it.
And thieves, well, probably by definition they don't really like to work  That's why they became thieves to begin with.


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## Oso954 (Jun 23, 2012)

MTN REMODEL LLC said:


> You might also get an etching cutter and blatenly inscribe your name and phone number.


In Calif, many agencies recommend engraving your CDL# (calif drivers license number) on items of value. It doesn’t change if you move within the state. If the police find the stolen tool, it doesn’t take long to find you with the CDL#.

It is part of a National program called Operation Identification.


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## wrangler (Oct 9, 2008)

Domo said:


> OMG - my absolute favorite car - had one in the early to mid 70's. Loved the "frog" eyes. I really miss it.. ummm where do you live?


Currently, Mississippi. 



Fix'n it said:


> . better lock that up, wrangler


Naww. Just stuff. And GTs are meant to be enjoyed!


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## Fix'n it (Mar 12, 2012)

wrangler said:


> Naww. Just stuff. And GTs are meant to be enjoyed!


you didn't get my joke.

you = i don't lock my car.
Domo = my absolute favorite car ... ummm where do you live? 

get it now ?


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## wrangler (Oct 9, 2008)

Fix'n it said:


> you didn't get my joke.
> 
> you = i don't lock my car.
> Domo = my absolute favorite car ... ummm where do you live?
> ...


Oh, I got it. Take my car ... not too worried. I have others and it's insured. Take my tools is a different story


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## Domo (Nov 9, 2018)

wrangler said:


> Currently, Mississippi.
> 
> 
> Naww. Just stuff. And GTs are meant to be enjoyed!


I just got in my car to go get my (new to me) GT!


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## SW Dweller (Jan 6, 2021)

I rely on Rigid gang boxes and hardened locks and steel cables. Many companies make the boxes. They are not inexpensive, new. Try CL or other second hand sales area. The really expensive stuff I keep in a box with no wheels I keep the box full so it is heavy. Pain in the ass to move.
I also have a gun safe which is about 2000 pounds.

I use out of sight out of mind. I rarely take all of my tools out at the same time and never leave the tool box open or unlocked.

Most tool thieves should be keel hauled, slowly and are people who have seen what you do. 

I feel for you, I just lost 600 bucks worth of 20v Dewalt tools. My deductable is $1000.00


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## chandler48 (Jun 5, 2017)

I have a non wheeled Jobox on the back of my Ram flatbed tethered to the frame. Two American locks. It'd be difficult to defeat.


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## mark sr (Jun 13, 2017)

Years ago I was friends with an agricultural mechanic. He had trouble with his tools disappearing while in/under farm equipment. He was advised by an older ag mechanic to put a snake in his tool box. When he first pulled up he'd pull the snake out and walk around his truck and the equipment he was there to work on, then put the snake back in the hidden cage and go to work. Said he never lost a tool after that.


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## huesmann (Aug 18, 2011)

A real live snake?


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## mark sr (Jun 13, 2017)

Yes, the farm workers thought it was loose inside his tool box and he never lost a tool after that.


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## pumpkin11 (Oct 31, 2020)

i suppose security camera system would be best, but if your looking for a cheap option, you could put something like this inside......



https://www.amazon.ca/Strobe-Detector-Outdoor-Waterproof-Security/dp/B09BVYZ3GX/ref=sr_1_2_sspa?dchild=1&keywords=motion+detector+siren&qid=1630918236&sr=8-2-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEzTzFLNkk4Vk8xSkM4JmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwODc2NTkzTE9NOEY1SVZPN1I5JmVuY3J5cHRlZEFkSWQ9QTAyMDYxODkyTlpOUTE3R1BKNVRYJndpZGdldE5hbWU9c3BfYXRmJmFjdGlvbj1jbGlja1JlZGlyZWN0JmRvTm90TG9nQ2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==


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## SA Schneider (May 7, 2021)

gthomson said:


> Obviously don't share anything here that you think could compromise your security of property.
> 
> But I am curious to what extent people go to to try to keep their tools from being stolen.
> 
> ...


Look up Glitter Bomb / Mark Roper on You Tube

SA


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## cee3peeoh (Sep 12, 2017)

Domo said:


> Paint your tools the most obscene color combinations you can think of.


Yeah, orange and black Nobody steals Black and Decker tools.


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## Domo (Nov 9, 2018)

cee3peeoh said:


> Yeah, orange and black Nobody steals Black and Decker tools.


YOU WIN!

Hilarious!


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## de-nagorg (Feb 23, 2014)

Possibly get one of those discarded Shipping Containers, and place it in, or near the shared garage, and lock it up with a quality lock.

Add a sign saying that this container has a 24 hour security camera watching it.

Nobody will know if that is true or not, and most will not chance it.

ED

P S, I personally have a sign stating 

THIS TRUCK PROTECTED BY SMITH & WESSON.


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## Doboy (Dec 5, 2018)

'KIS'.
HF driveway alarm. $10
IR activated Spot Light. $20
Bushnell IR Game Came. $80
Sign in yard,,,,, 'Protected by S & W,,, Make my day!'

2 or 3 .410 3" SLUG GUNS,,, backed up with #4 shot. (just in case of break-in. ;>)

Can You Shoot a Thief? | Ohio - U.S. LawShield (uslawshield.com)


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