National Airsoft Marking - (Debute idea from L.O.A.C.)

[MarksInnerDemon]

Well I was going to post this on the east coast.... I was gonna have a site in beta....Look I am overseas it isn't getting done at the moment but the basics are simple.

NAM for short is a serial number concept which will have a online database. Now this is going to seem long, and it is, but it is based off the military TCN concept of tracking items, and I want to make sure we have enough combinations to create a database. Might even add country codes in one day.

2 letters First, Intial and Last intial
6 numbers (Date of Birth)
2 letters, State of residence
3 letters for your team if no team a XXX (like a military TCN if all of that is filled up it would go to AXX on down the line)


For instance it would be MM011412SC762, or JK010193ALUDT John Kelly, 01/01/1993, Alabama, Underwater Demo Team (Read Without Remorse).

The objective is to have the database, mark your expensive things with the full number of at least a partial such as JK0114 on magazines and other easily dropped items. You can now search for these items, and click the email button allowing you to email that person and tell them you found a magazine.

Now if you go to a big game and you pick up a magazine you aren't trying to hunt down some random guy name SpecOpsNinja, Shadow, or Ghost. How many of you know a guy with one of those nicknames. Regardless I think this is a good idea but my internet savy is sub par. Anyone want to work this project up with me let me know. Frankly anyone with knowledge to make a website, I am thinking about sponsoring it out myself shouldn't cost to much.

[MarksInnerDemon]

By the way I added this because of the poor guy who got his stuff stolen out of his car.

[Ivan Daylovich™]

So instead of leet sniper I'm looking for drt1467436fuj. How is that better?

You could put your name and number on all your shit you're worried about. Seems more efficient to me.

[MarksInnerDemon]

Phone numbers do change and I agree a whole name would be easy, but I can't find you via one localized Database. So lets say I got to Lions Claw, and Mark McGrath the singer, and (gasp) myself go to the same game well you get the idea. With my deployments I have switched numbers 2 times in 3 years. Teens becoming adults moving out etc.

Also add to that anyone can find your stuff including strangers and look up on the DB and contact you. If you care about your magazines(say realsword midcaps or gas magazines) you can arange a return.

Coming from being in the militrary all our stuff had to be marked with the first Intial of our last name and the last four of our social. It was mostly unique, worked well, and kept loss down. M1234 and you could be m2345, very rarely do you see people with the same last intial and the same social, but to prevent social security number issues DOB is a bit safer.

[Ivan Daylovich™]

I've changed teams more than phone numbers. (5 teams 2 numbers) also for stolen items, a pawn shop isn't gonna know what to do with a serial number. A name and number is fairly straight forward.

Also the military has the organization to do this. Airsoft not so much.

[Jewish Ninja]

I just mark my mags with a neon green star of David, hasn't needed to write out a paragraph worth of stuff on my gear to make sure I get it back

[MarksInnerDemon]

I've changed teams more than phone numbers. (5 teams 2 numbers) also for stolen items, a pawn shop isn't gonna know what to do with a serial number. A name and number is fairly straight forward.

Also the military has the organization to do this. Airsoft not so much.

Yet again I am going to point out this isn't for the pawn shop this is for the field people such as finding your mag, if you feel that this isn't a good idea that is ok, and the team portion of the number is strictly to have enough digits that are unique.

Yes the number works as well, but for your switches the same thing can be said for phone numbers for some. I appreciate the feedback though.

Ninja - I have found many of these marked and colored magazines the unfortunate thing at big games is I don't know you and have seen many of those travel home with people who don't own them.

[Variable]

If you think it would fly, start it up.
Around here I haven't noticed a huge problem with lost gear at games, mostly it finds its way home if its worth anything.

As far as stolen gear goes, mark it but don't expect to get it back. The police have better things to do than track down theft.

[dos_Santos]

This would definitely be great at a national even where people from all over attend. Did an LC even in Cali this past fall and found someone's Thunder B core, and only some scrawling on it to ID who's it was. Found the guy later, but I could see serializing gear would be great. For local games, like AP, most people know each other any way. I would join up though since our team is starting to hit the national scene (LC Memorial Day weekend up next!), and I would hate to lose certain gear. No guarantees but offers a sliver of hope to recover it.

[TstclrCncr]

The serial isn't really needed at all. The problem has always been communication. Since there are so many different websites and forums that we, airsofters, attend information is fragmented. Having something to recognize is useful, but this is a later step. First all communities would have to come together under some form of information conglomerate.

If not everyone is part of it, it won't go anywhere. Marketing is what is needed first. Keep in mind this will only return lost gear. Stolen gear will not get returned willingly. Serials and names can be scraped off.

[MarksInnerDemon]

Honestly I was going to say anything up to so many letters/numbers but knowing people we would have 89 people with the name Tank, Shadow, Ghost, L33t...... Hence the serial. With that you could get your stuff back if there was a site to go to.

[DJ]

A huge % (90 +) of the recovered stolen stuff with serial numbers gets sold at public auction because no one bothers to record the numbers (retired cop). We recovered tons of stuff that we knew was stolen, but no one had bothered to record or report the stuff (bicycles were the worst) . An ODL engraved on the items sometimes worked. My biggest concern regarding serial #s on AS guns is the eventual attempts at registration etc, by gun haters. I truly do not think you want any more regulations imposed by the Guv. My inclination is to just let well enough alone.