Your gear was stolen: the first 48 hours
A calm, ordered checklist for the hours after an instrument is stolen: reporting it, spreading the serial, watching the marketplaces, and giving yourself the best chance of getting it back.
First
Recovered instruments are almost always recovered fast, because a stolen guitar gets sold fast. The window that matters most is the first couple of days, before the instrument is listed, sold on, or driven to another city. So move quickly, but move in order rather than in a panic.
Write down the serial number, the exact model and finish, and every identifying mark you can remember right now, before the details blur. If you photographed the instrument properly when you got it, you already have this and can skip ahead.
Report it
File a police report the same day and get the crime reference number: insurers require it, and marketplaces will act faster on a listing you can tie to a real report. Give them the serial, the photos, and the estimated value. A serial number turns 'a stolen guitar' into 'this specific stolen guitar', which is the difference between a shrug and a recovery.
If it went missing at or after a gig, tell the venue and anyone who was loading out. Vans get emptied in minutes while everyone assumes someone else is watching the back door; the person who saw a stranger carrying your case is often still in the building.
Spread the serial
A stolen instrument is only worth stealing if it can be sold, and it can only be sold if buyers don't know it's hot. So make it known. Post the serial and photos in the places resellers and buyers actually look: local buy-and-sell groups, the relevant gear forums, and any stolen-gear register you can reach. The goal is that anyone who runs the serial before buying sees the flag.
On GearHub, reporting an item stolen flags its serial on the public register, so a second-hand buyer checking the number before they pay sees it immediately, and alerts nearby players and shops. A flagged serial is a poisoned asset: the faster and wider the flag spreads, the harder the instrument is to move, and the more likely a would-be buyer becomes your best lead.
Watch the listings
Set searches on the marketplaces for your model and check them daily. Look for a listing where the serial is hidden, the photos are vague or reused, the seller is oddly far from the model's usual market, or the price is suspiciously low. Save the listing, the seller details, and screenshots the moment you find something; do not tip the seller off by asking pointed questions.
If you find it, do not go and confront a stranger to get it back. Take everything to the police and let them handle the recovery: an instrument is replaceable and you are not. A saved listing tied to your crime reference number is exactly what they need to act.
After
Whatever the outcome, the thing that most changes it is preparation you did beforehand: serials recorded, photos taken, proof of ownership ready to hand to the police and the marketplace on day one. The owners who get gear back are almost always the ones who could describe it precisely and prove it was theirs within the hour.
If you get it back, update its record: the recovery is part of the instrument's story, and the next time it changes hands the full history goes with it. If you don't, at least the claim moves faster with everything already in one place.