1. It has come to the attention of forum staff that Dollshe Craft has ceased communications with dealers and customers, has failed to provide promised refunds for the excessive waits, and now has wait times surpassing 5 years in some cases. Forum staff are also concerned as there are claims being put forth that Dollshe plans to close down their doll making company. Due to the instability of the company, the lack of communication, the lack of promised refunds, and the wait times now surpassing 5 years, we strongly urge members to research the current state of this company very carefully and thoroughly before deciding to place an order. For more information please see the Dollshe waiting room. Do not assume this cannot happen to you or that your order will be different.
    Dismiss Notice
  2. Dollshe Craft and all dolls created by Dollshe, including any dolls created under his new or future companies, including Club Coco BJD are now banned from Den of Angels. Dollshe and the sculptor may not advertise his products on this forum. Sales may not be discussed, no news threads may be posted regarding new releases. This ban does not impact any dolls by Dollshe ordered by November 8, 2023. Any dolls ordered after November 8, 2023, regardless of the date the sculpt was released, are banned from this forum as are any dolls released under his new or future companies including but not limited to Club Coco BJD. This ban does not apply to other company dolls cast by Dollshe as part of a casting agreement between him and the actual sculpt or company and those dolls may still be discussed on the forum. Please come to Ask the Moderators if you have any questions.
    Dismiss Notice
Severe ongoing issues and concerns with Dollshe Dollshe Ban

Micro-dots? Anti-theft measures? Would you?

Sep 30, 2014

    1. I'm about to ship my first (only) doll's head internationally for face-up, and it's not that I don't trust the artist.. it's the mail.. things can go missing anywhere in between our homes. Just today the post delivered a large sized box to my apartment door, didn't take my signature, didn't even knock, just left it there silently. Anyone in my building could have taken it had I not had the luck to find it first! I live right near the main exit so people are passing by constantly and.. quick getaway opportunity! Very not cool!
      It has me thinking about measures that can be taken to mark my doll in case it is lost or stolen in transit.

      I don't plan to ever sell this doll, so I considered scratching my initials, very small, into the inner head. Buuut then again... nah..

      Next I recalled a product called CopDots which I've seen sold at Lowes in the USA (also apparently in Canada.)
      Similar products are available overseas (I like the overseas versions better, TBH. They're less visible!)
      CopDots is a product of numbered microdots suspended in strong adhesive which gets applied with a pen applicator. When dry, they appear as tiny sand-sized black flecks. Each fleck bears a PIN unique to your pen, which you register in an online database. It can be read under a microscope.
      International versions go on invisibly and are apparent only under UV light, but similarly bear microscopic coded dots & apply with permanent adhesive.

      The idea is that when one of your marked items is stolen, as long as it is registered in the online database, when you report it stolen there is a definite unique marking which ties back undeniably to you. It is even acceptable to present as evidence in court if the thief is caught (doesn't a mail-tampering case victory sound so juicy?) The dots can not be removed other than by abrasive methods, such as sanding or extensive scratching or rubbing, which would leave the item damaged and thus less valuable, not to mention bearing a suspicious field of damage where you claim there should have been dots. Lose/lose for the bandit in the end.
      My main hesitation is that I can't find a disclosure of the composition of the adhesive, only "water 30-60%, synthetic polymers 30-60% glycol ethers <10% other additive <10%" so don't know how it would do on resin. What if it's like superglue? Would that be potentially very bad to use a smear's worth on the inner surface of the doll's skull? :/
      And also the question of whether application of micro dots like this on the inside of doll parts would be considered damage in the secondhand market.

      I guess I'm hoping to know what other doll owners think of such ideas.
      Do you think that merely talking about it (making it known that such things exist and may be being used) reduce the anti-theft's effectiveness, such as by tipping off thieves what to look for (or on whose dolls,) or deter theft by making it seem less practical?

      Would a 'feature' such as this constitute damage to the doll, in your mind?
      Would it significantly reduce your interest in buying a doll secondhand, or possibly increase your sense of security to know it's there?
      What other anti-theft measures do you rely on with your valuable resin companions, if any?
       
      #1 Lokinta, Sep 30, 2014
    2. When it comes to buying a second-hand doll with this feature, that would honestly convince me 100% not to buy it. :sweat I wouldn't want to buy a product and then have the seller, who has my personal information including name and address, file a police report against me claiming I 'stole' their doll and have them be able to have proof in court that the doll was theirs because of the CopDots and the fact the seller still owned the pen. To me, it sounds like a good way to set myself up to get screwed and even just the possibility of that happening would convince me the purchase was not worth it and I would not buy such a doll. True, I would have the PayPal statement and everything to prove I bought it, but in a case like that I think it could go either way in court and I wouldn't want to have the possibility of that kind of drama.

      Also, if a doll did have CopDots or something similar on it, I would count that as a form of modification at the very least, damage at the very most. Some people probably don't want something done to a doll that would require them to damage the doll in order to remove it. I would consider that in line with having a stained faceup or something which would have to be sanded to be removed entirely. I think if a doll does have CopDots or a similar feature on it, the seller should disclose that fact when selling it. If they didn't, I would consider that to be pretty shady on their part, like omitting the fact there was modification or damage to the doll.

      As for what I do to ensure the safety of my resin valuables - I purchase collectors insurance for my doll collection. Many collection insurance companies actually have it written into their plans that you are protected against items that are in the mail, so long as you have a receipt from the purchase, if it is to go missing or be stolen in the mail. This is the company I have mine purchased from. As you can see from this link, for an extra fee they have a lot of nifty options that fit quite well for BJD collectors:

      http://www.americancollectors.com/Collectible/Policy-Features/55/

      The bits of that which are most important to me are bullet-pointed below:


      • Broad coverage includes damage caused by accidental breakage, fire, flood, theft, hurricane, earthquake, and more.
      • Collector's Choice - This extra coverage provides protection while items are being shipped, being stored outside of the residence, for special occasion usage, and more!
      • Automatic coverage for new additions to your collection up to $2,000; simply notify us of new purchases within 30 days.

      I like that this insurance company has coverage that can extend to dolls damaged or stolen at doll meets, conventions, or if they are to be stolen from my car. :) Such events are covered in the "special occasion usage" option if you pay extra for it and follow their special guidelines for it. Collecting dolls is surprisingly simple without a lot of headache with them. It's easy to add and remove dolls from your policy as you buy and sell them and they don't require a whole lot of paperwork to get each doll covered.

      In your personal case, I think an insurance policy might be your best bet. You mentioned being worried about packages being stolen off your front porch, and products like CopDots would not help in that case at all since you would not have had the chance to apply them to a new doll arrival. But, if you had the proper insurance policy the doll would already be covered before it has even been shipped! Of course there are hundreds of other good collection insurance companies with similar policies, so I think it is certainly worth looking into if you are worried about theft of your dolls.
       
      #2 Rikka_Mika, Sep 30, 2014
    3. Well, if I planned to sell the doll someday or if there was even a slight possibility that I would sell the doll, I wouldn't use the dots. However, I think it might be a good idea if you ship your dolls off a lot or go to a lot of conventions and never intend to sell them.
       
      #3 Mitsuko_Elric, Sep 30, 2014
    4. I have carved a specific mark inside hidden areas of my absolute favorite dolls, that never shows unless you're looking for it, and doesn't affect the doll otherwise. But I ONLY do it to the faves, because I do buy and sell and trade so much. however, I don't think I could ever say I'll "NEVER" sell a doll ever. I said that when I started the hobby, and ended up grading my first two, and sold a couple I thought were near favorites.
       
      #4 CloakedSchemer, Sep 30, 2014
    5. Rikka_Mika, thanks for the straightforward feedback. You do make a very good point. I personally am not the kind of person to take anyone to court stupidly or start drama like that (I believe there is a catch in the system to protect people who have acquired the items rightfully!) and I'd 100% disclose that if I were selling an item with it.. but from what I've seen in the dolly communities since getting started, yeah, it seems like that kind of person could definitely be out there. :(

      The insurance does seem like a better option in some cases, although at this point, it'd cost about 20% of the value of my doll per year which seems steep.. at least to this first-time insurance shopper. *_* I'm not attending meets or taking the doll out much - nor planning to, other than this one trip for faceup. It will definitely be the option I'll consider if my collection grows beyond a single tiny doll though. Then the investment would feel more rational, since I ran a quote for a way higher valued collection ($1,000 all the way up to $5,000) and the rate didn't increase a penny over a quote for $300.
      Thank you for the good tip! :thumbup

      Mitsuko_Elric & CloakedSchemer, you're both right about keeping the "never say never" mentality.. even though right now I can't imagine selling off my dear doll, who knows, some day it may be necessary.

      Sometimes when trying to live by "better be safe than sorry" it can be hard to tell what the safe option is, versus what I'd be sorry about in the end ^^;
      Much appreciative of the feedback.
       
      #5 Lokinta, Oct 2, 2014
    6. Wow, the microdots sound intriguing! I had no idea there was such a thing. One of the problems I see is that if you DID microdot your doll in a hidden spot and it got stolen, how would the dot ever see the light of day again for someone to verify the doll is yours? Pretty much the only way would be if the thief was openly confronted when they had the doll out in public. Of course, this is the case no matter what kind of item was microdotted, not just dolls.

      But as you mentioned, it could be a deterrent at least, if someone was traveling with dolls to a convention. Wouldn't be great if the microdots were transparent? Then the thief couldn't tell if it was microdotted or not, and wouldn't be able to find it as easily!

      Linda S.
      galatia9
       
      #6 galatia9, Oct 2, 2014