Losing gear is part of the life cycle of a toolkit. A tool can easily find its way out of your hands in the hustle of production, but you should be spending money on new tools instead of replacement ones. If you have 10 minutes of time, you can save money and save your tools by using this easy tactic.

You should be able to do this for everything in your toolbag within 10 minutes. To start, all you need is your kit and a Sharpie.

The process is simple:

1. Pick a tool
2. Find an empty area on the tool
3. Write your initials there

Claiming ownership is an easy way to make sure that a lost tool is returned to you, especially when almost everyone on set has their own toolbag with similar gear.

If you want extra security, add a phone number or email address if there’s room. The easier you are to track down, the more likely you’ll get a tool back when it’s misplaced.

For gear that you don’t want to ruin, writing your name on tape and attaching it to the object achieves the same effect. For instance, my laptop has a piece of tape on its underside with my name and cell phone number on it.

Countless times I have accidentally forgotten a tool or lent it out to then have it returned when somebody matched my initials with my name.

You shouldn’t underestimate this simple tactic.

It’s a straightforward way to save a few bucks by not having to reorder the tools you may have left on set or that ended up in somebody else’s toolbag.

About the author:

About the author: Evan Luzi is the editor and founder of The Black and Blue as well as a freelance camera assistant.

You can learn more about him or follow him on Twitter and Google+.