Stolen Festool Directory

[Matthew Schenker]

I like the idea of putting some kind of "identifier" (a number or unique combination of letters and numbers) on the Systainer, in an inconspicuous spot.  There may be other possibilities here as well.

Here are a few possible ideas I want to toss out on this subject...
The forum could have a place where members enter their tools' serial numbers.
The forum could have a place to store your identifiers (along with the serial numbers).
We could also store a quick photo of your identifier, for those who wish to do that.
I could create a folder in the Gallery where the identifiers are stored; they could be referenced in case of theft.
When a Festool item appears on eBay, any one of us could ask to see a photo of it or ask about the serial number.

I think a lot of this has to do with deterrence.  If word gets out that Festool has a system like this, the tools may have a special kind of "hands off" image regarding theft!

Matthew

 

[mastercabman]

matthew  anything that you do to try to recover stollen tools, i am all for it.again it's a long shot but you never know.    p.s. how about putting a micro chip inside the tool.  like they do with dogs!!!!     maybe in the futur festool power tools will come with lo-jack recovery!

 

[Matthew Schenker]

mastercabman,
Believe it or not, I actually thought about the microchip idea!  I don't think it would be difficult to embed a microchip, but the problem would be in identifying it.  You need a scanner to get the identifying information from the microchip.  You also need a database to store the IDs.  But, if we were to make this happen somehow, it would be absolutely foolproof, as the information that comes up would positively name the rightfrul owner.

On the other hand, if we were to employ a unique visual marker, we could simply post that to the forum.  With a photo of the marker, we would have pretty solid evidence of a stolen tool.

Still looking for feedback on this.

Matthew

 

[Kealevans]

Hi all,

Is there anyway to link a stolen drill and Bluetooth battery that you’ve bought to the festool work app that you haven’t registered ? I didn’t realise you could connect a battery to the app and see the location until after it was stolen. I’m fairly sure it was stolen by a neighbour a few doors down when my works van was left open outside their house. It’s a Bluetooth battery and I’ve linked the other one that was bought with it to the app by following the instructions. I’m wondering is there anyway to link the the stolen one using the barcode or by any other means...perhaps if they turn the drill on whist I’m using the app??

 

[Bob D.]

I think one of the other manufacturers, either DeWalt or Milwaukee, has something similar. You can set it so if the battery goes out of range of your phone it will not function.

Just looked, it was DeWalt. Here is a snip from their BT battery page.

Use the Tool Connect® free mobile app to remotely monitor the state of charge, enable or disable battery packs, and use the LEND feature to control how long the pack can be used by someone else.

LAST SEEN feature will find and locate your battery down to the street address that it was last within range of a Tool Connect™ enabled device

LEND feature will disable the battery after a predetermined time



Is it possible to do any of that with Festool batteries?

 

[sancho57]

Make sure you have/make a inventory of your tools with name, S/N and MFG date. Photos are a plus

 

[mino]

Does not Festool allow to check if tool is not already registered?

I would presume a registered tool would not be transferred to new "buyer" without an approval from previous owner and police would be contacted if the tool was marked as "stolen" in the Festool database and showed up for service/registration at some point.

I do not see a reason for this not to be a standard web service on Festool site where one can put a serial and check if is not reported as stolen. The data should already be in the system for tools /reported as/ stolen to Festool.

Can someone from Festool chip in on this ?

 

[semenza]

  [member=71429]DerickC[/member] 

      Any thoughts or input on this?

Thanks,

        Seth

 

[DerickC]

Transferring warranty for a registered product is not automatic and requires proof of sale/transfer between the parties. If someone has a registered tool stolen, the tool cannot be immediately re-registered to someone new.

 

[semenza]

Thanks,

Can you add any info about ^  Kealevans  ^ post on possibly tracking the tool through the battery ?

Seth

 

[six-point socket II]

Personally I think it would be a good start if we had a thread, where people could enter S/Ns of stolen tools including product# and name of tool. A lot of forums about valuable collectibles offer such threads. It would not have to be limited to Festool.

That would be a start.

Speaking of the app, it will only catch the BT battery when it's in pairing mode. No other way to connect to/ pair with the battery.

Kind regards,
Oliver

 

[Mario Turcot]

If you are going to mark your tools, use your initials + BOD. Never ever use your SIN, this is the most sensitive private information.

 

[Crazyraceguy]

Transferring warranty for a registered product is not automatic and requires proof of sale/transfer between the parties. If someone has a registered tool stolen, the tool cannot be immediately re-registered to someone new.

But why would someone register used tool?
It gets your warranty extended and gives you the theft insurance, but those only apply to new purchases. There is no reason to do it at that point.

 

[mino]

But why would someone register used tool?
It gets your warranty extended and gives you the theft insurance, but those only apply to new purchases. There is no reason to do it at that point.

Because of convenience. For ordering servicing etc.

All that assumed the portal works well..
/It did for me ... after they manually fixed the registration mess./