Pink anti-theft tools

[Pallet Fancier]

Years ago, "when I were a nipper", I knew an electrician who had pink tools. I'd never seen the like, so I asked. He had a mouthful of torch at the time, with a big gob of spit running down it (head torches must not have been a thing, yet), and muttered something about how ever since he'd got them, he'd never had any of his tools stolen while working on site.

I'm looking at tool bags just now, and have come across a few pink'uns. I'm going to be helping refit a boat and where it is, there are a few known tea leafs (and a few unknown ones), so wondered if a pink bag and/or pink tools would be less likely to walk.

While thinking about their attractiveness to thieves, I also recalled that prison governor in Texas who was famous for making the prisoners wear pink. Apparently, real men don't!

So, outside of the examples above which are mostly marketing gimmicks (as if most "ladies" give a damn what colour their hammer is), do pink tools get nicked less often?

 

[TRITON]

I wish the bar stewards who fitted my windows did this. Day after they'd left I discover one of my Stanley pozi 2 screwdrivers was missing, and its not turned up since

 

[robgul]

Not long ago Poundland had a range of pink tools - I have a pair of pliers and a couple of screwdrivers somewhere, not bad for the money.

 

[AJB Temple]

I buy tools for quality and long term resilience (by which I mean last a lifetime). Colour is not a factor. Anyone who pinches my tools can expect serious trouble. Used to be a property developer. People who stole from me found out quickly what serious trouble means. Thieves are usually stupid as well as greedy.

 

[Torx]

I’d get decent tools and paint them pink rather than buy the gimmick ones. Any large enough steel tools I own have my initials tig welded onto them.

 

[adidat]

Lot of my power tools that go on site have pink spray paint dots on them usually inbetween the battery and the tool so not seen unless you are looking. Then my hand tools have subtle marks and initials scraped on them.

Adidat

 

[TheUnicorn]

I wouldn't buy pink tools, for no other reason than the only ones I've ever seen are novelty / cheap tools .

If I were working alongside someone, sharing tools, any marking, especially bright and obvious would definately mean I am less likely to accidentally walk of with someone's tool.

If I were looking to steal tools, any significant markings would put me off, whatever the colouring.

I once painted all the my car tools (for roadside repair) bright orange which made it easier to collect everthing together in the dark, because sods law says you always break down when it is dark, cold and wet.

 

[Vann]

Painting your tools pink will probably stop most regular thieves. Instead they'll get stolen by gangs of women...

Cheers, Vann.

 

[Inspector]

Not Pink but I worked with a little Palestinian guy that would throw any new tool into the drawer of his toolbox, pull open a lower drawer, grab a spray bomb and spray paint it and all under it red. He and all of us knew any tools we found painted red were his. Most of them were Snap-on too.

Pete

 

[TheTiddles]

Years ago, "when I were a nipper", I knew an electrician who had pink tools. I'd never seen the like, so I asked. He had a mouthful of torch at the time, with a big gob of spit running down it (head torches must not have been a thing, yet), and muttered something about how ever since he'd got them, he'd never had any of his tools stolen while working on site.

I'm looking at tool bags just now, and have come across a few pink'uns. I'm going to be helping refit a boat and where it is, there are a few known tea leafs (and a few unknown ones), so wondered if a pink bag and/or pink tools would be less likely to walk.
View attachment 108855

While thinking about their attractiveness to thieves, I also recalled that prison governor in Texas who was famous for making the prisoners wear pink. Apparently, real men don't!

So, outside of the examples above which are mostly marketing gimmicks (as if most "ladies" give a damn what colour their hammer is), do pink tools get nicked less often?

That prison governor was convicted for contempt of court and oversaw what the US justice department regarded as the worst pattern of racial profiling in US history, and what a history of that they have... so maybe not the guy to take a lead from.

Some people who really can’t afford to leave their tools around paint them pink to make sure they take them with them

 

[Phil Russell]

My late father in-law worked for a major international company in the UK. He said that company policy was only to use 110v power tools across its sites. Previous to this decision the tools were 240v. This policy change apparently virtually stopped company tools going missing ........

Cheers, Phil

 

[Essex Barn Workshop]

Similarly my dad told a story about a guy in the 50s who bought a brand new bike for his commute to work, and the first day he hand painted it black so it looked unattractive to thieves. His theory was he was never going to sell it, so didn't care what it looked like.

 

[Keith 66]

Long ago while off work with a busted arm i had my toolbox lock cropped at work (boatyard) & most of my tools disapeared. Nobody had seen anything which was strange but odd tools turned up here & there. My workmates were a bit sheepish & hadnt seen anything which i found rather off.
Ten years later working at another yard the new yard owner who coincidentally had been my boss at the old place had left his tool cupboard open. Lo & behold there were all my missing tools, My initials still stamped in them.
So the last day on that job i took them back, with interest. Not a word was ever said!

 

[Pallet Fancier]

Long ago while off work with a busted arm i had my toolbox lock cropped at work (boatyard) & most of my tools disapeared. Nobody had seen anything which was strange but odd tools turned up here & there. My workmates were a bit sheepish & hadnt seen anything which i found rather off.
Ten years later working at another yard the new yard owner who coincidentally had been my boss at the old place had left his tool cupboard open. Lo & behold there were all my missing tools, My initials still stamped in them.
So the last day on that job i took them back, with interest. Not a word was ever said!

That's just mad. My initial thought was how the hell the boss expects to get away with that! And yet, of course, he did because he's the boss. Then it was why he felt the need to? Isn't there money in the budget for new tools? But then, some of the richest, seriously wealthy people I've ever met were some of the tightest swines you could imagine. You clearly don't get money by spending it on something you can just steal, instead!

Just, flabbered and gasted. I must have led a sheltered life!

 

[Vann]

This Wadkin PK is painted pink and to the best of my knowledge it's never been stolen.

Of course there's a slight chance that's because it weighs in at around 15cwt (~750kg) rather than the colour .

Cheers, Vann.

 

[Tugalis]

I used to work for a carpenter who sprayed all of his tools with neon pink paint. I laughed when I started with him but he never had a tool nicked on site or borrowed when we wasn't looking because everyone knew whose tools they were!

 

[gregmcateer]

We spray our tools, more for spotting them in heaps of other crud.
Not lost any yet

 

[Adam W.]

I employed a thatcher for a couple of months and we became "friends". I later found out why we were "friends" and that why I was his special "friend" too. The B@$tard had stolen all the best special tools I had collected over the years, stuff that you couldn't buy in the shops nowadays like my walnut whip oil can.

So I waited a couple of years until it cooled down and then had him thrown out of the Danish Thatchers Guild for it, as they hate thieves and rightly so.

Never got my tools back though and I hope he chops his thieving fingers off with them.

I hate thieves too.