Tools stolen - Just feel like a rant!

[The_Stig]

That's a good idea because otherwise it'll appear contaminated.

On Wednesday I wrote an e-mail to the Highway Agency, the county council and our local MP about the condition of our road and the fact that we'd like some grit bins on the hills. In addition, if you've got a Tom-Tom it will bring you down here as a short cut which it is until you get stuck!! During Thursday morning the local MP's office e-mailed me back saying that he was out for the day on business but would read my e-mail on return but in the meantime they would contact my local counciler about the issue. On Friday the Highway Agency replied saying that my road wasn't their responsibility however as I was reading the e-mail the council rolled up with a transit van and a guy with a shovel and proceeded to grit the entire road by hand!! I think this is the first time ever in the history of our great land that the council has not only come out to do some work but actually done so in a timely manner... if it was the guy who'd suppose to have brought the gritter we don't know but last year the gritter got stuck and we had to help shovel grit on the road before he could proceed, lol. Having said that they did only grit once during winter but that's the fun of living out in the sticks. Since everything seemed to be getting better I called the council and they informed me that they were going to come out and conduct a survey next week on the best location of the grit bins... result!!

 

[The_Stig]

I still have my good tools at home.

I agree with you on this and in some instances I'm the same but unfortunately having been brought up around the building trade I've come to realise that as the expression goes, "you only get what you pay for" there are somethings that I would skimp on but other things like planes and chisels they don't seem to hold a good edge if their made from cheaper steel but I understand what you mean. If my 'best' tools were kept locked up safe and sound then its not such a big loss if you lose a £2 Spear and Jackson chisel especially since the first time the thief uses it he's going to injury himself more than the timber, lol.

 

[davin]

You have my sympathy,

Reminds me of the time my van was broken into in Brighton (the one night I was too tired to drag all my tools indoors),
The tools taken were pretty similar to yours (though some had belonged to my grandfather).
So my tools taken and the back doors broken.
Made me feel so much better when at the Police station I was jokingly told to forget about it and go and look in "cash converters", well thanks Sussex Police, hope I can help you sometime.

Lets hope father Christmas is coming your way in a few weeks.

 

[Shane]

Sorry to hear about your misfortune, I hope the guilty party gets scabs on his mangina and it falls off.

How about knocking up some sort of lockable box out of ply and fix it down in the back of the car?

 

[big soft moose]

Rotten buggers, what have you lost?

Yeh...what do you need for your course?

Jim

yep I'm sure a lot of us have spare odds and sods kicking about (not all robbed out of abandoned motors ) - i'm sure that 'tween us we can rekit you

off the top of my head i can do you a set of chisels of, erm, "dubious" provenance - I think they are blue handled stanleys but they arent branded so may be not - I won't take money for them but if you want them drop me a pm with your address.

 

[The_Stig]

I've been working on a birch ply tool box that's got lockable sides, if I'd decided not to go college due to the show it wouldn't have happened because it'd have all been behind the electric gates and the electric logs of the workshop... life's full of if's...

 

[The_Stig]

why not stick a list up and i'm sure that 'tween us we can rekit you.

I posted a list somewhere on the 2nd page of the thread

 

[big soft moose]

why not stick a list up and i'm sure that 'tween us we can rekit you.

I posted a list somewhere on the 2nd page of the thread

yeah sorry - didnt read the second page - doh

 

[The_Stig]

yeah sorry - didnt read the second page - doh

It's cool, lol.

 

[Lons]

That's a sod of a thing to happen and unfortunately the police know full well they won't catch the b******* or recover the stolen items hence the reluctance to attend (and log the crime for statistics?).

I'd take photos of the box before handing it in and personally, I would ask for a police complaints form and lodge an official report which they have to follow up.

Unacceptable that these crimes are dismissed as "trivial" when they certainly are serious to you.

Hope the t**** burn in hell :x

cheers

Bob

 

[The_Stig]

That's a good idea, I'll photograph it in the morning and I will lodge a formal complaint because it makes me wonder if they'd ever come out to a burglary at home if heaven forbid it should happen. I think it was pretty clear that they were only logging it for statistics and it's disappointing to say the least.

 

[big soft moose]

While I sympathise with you , and certainly it sounds like their attitude and "customer service" skills could be better , from a police point of view what can they do ?

they clearly arent going to catch the little scrote unless he gets caught in possesion of your tools while in commision of another crime (and he may be stupid enough to keep the chisels etc to use as burgular tools) so what would they acheive by rolling to a car break in where the perpetrator has already left the scene and no one is in any danger ?

Likewise with finger prints etc - they are at best of dubious worth because not every little scrote has his prints in the system, and printtrak is heavily overloaded at the best of times, so it isnt really reasonable to expect that the police will do a scenes of crime work up on a relatively minor crime (also how can you be sure that the print on the case is the perp, and not yours, your dads, a mechanic who serviced the car, the bloke who sold you the case etc - the police arent going to track down and print all those people for elimination purposes in a crime like this)

and yes I realise that it isnt minor to you, but compared with ****, murder, robbery, assault, and various other crimes that then police deal with daily it is relatively small beer

Personally unless the police were actually rude/offensiive/racist etc I dont agree about making a complaint because all that will acheive is to waste even more police time on needless paperwork and thus leave even less time to deal with other crimes

 

[Dodge]

OK guys - I have started the ball rolling here - Just ordered Jamie a set of Bevel Edge Chisels for him from Axminster - We all need a little help from time to time to get over knocks like this!

Come on whos next to knock something off that list for him!

Rog

 

[Gary]

I would ask for a police complaints form and lodge an official report which they have to follow up.

What do you suggest the basis of his complaint is?

Leicestershire Police complied with force policy?

It's not really going to get him anything more than a local resolution. aka You complained, we ain't gonna do anything about it, case closed, end of.

I'd be surprised if any forces attend theft from motor vehicle.

 

[Gary]

OK guys - I have started the ball rolling here - Just ordered Jamie a set of Bevel Edge Chisels for him from Axminster - We all need a little help from time to time to get over knocks like this!

Come on whos next to knock something off that list for him!

Rog

I'd already offered him a set, so I'll make them avaliable to someone else in need.

 

[big soft moose]

OK guys - I have started the ball rolling here - Just ordered Jamie a set of Bevel Edge Chisels for him from Axminster - We all need a little help from time to time to get over knocks like this!

Come on whos next to knock something off that list for him!

Rog

you're a very generous man rog - I dont have the money to buy stuff for him, but I have a record block plane he can have

 

[Aled Dafis]

Bas~~~ds!!!

I'll have a good look around tomorrow, I can definately let you have a 4" engineers square, probably a 6", and maybe even a smoothing or jack plane.

Cheers

Aled

 

[The_Stig]

As I said to Gary, "I honestly can't believ Roger ordered a new set from Axminister, I just sent him a message as I'm speechless. I can't believe how people have rallied round when it just started as a rant. I guess it pays testiment to the kind of people that reside here."

I've managed to get a 16oz hammer as a friend had two in the garage.

 

[The_Stig]

I have a record block plane he can have.

That would be good if you have naturally if you want anything for it then please feel free to PM me.

Jamie

 

[OPJ]

Very sorry to hear this, Jamie, so soon after you had 'returned' to this forum and woodworking. It's outrageous what some people will do... :x

On a positive note though, at least you haven't lost any expensive power tools or anything that couldn't easily be replaced. Not sure if there's anything I can spare at the minute but, I will have a look for you (temperature is just below bearable in the workshop, at the moment! :wink.

Hope that the rest of your Christmas is better and in to the New Year as well.