I just bought this pair of unusual cuffs. They came from Italy and were said to be military cuffs from the 1940s. The design is somewhat unique. There is no ratchet action on the arms. The key engages a deadlock and must be used to both open and close the cuffs. Overall they are quite secure.

Does anyone know anything about these?

Joe

The use of a pin tumbler lock cylinder combined with the position of the keyway makes these very secure indeed.

Not to mention the deadlocking capability.

Still, I have to wonder, given the shape of the notches on the bow, just what would happen if the prisoner rapped the bows hard while wearing the cuffs.

I have a feeling it would damage the pawl enough to pull the cuffs open.

That said, nice find Joe.

Steve

The holes the bows pass through are so wide and not with tight tollerances that rapping the bottom of the bows and jamming the bows against the pawls may very likely bend the bows outwards enough to release the hold the pawls have on the bow notches.

Speaking from experience, this would be my first plan of attack if I were to be faced with escaping them.

This may very well be why these cuffs never saw wide production.

Steve Santini

Joe, I notice that the key is marked ASTRA.

Does that mean these may have been made in Spain?

Are there any markings on the cuffs?

There are no visible markings on the cuffs. I have no idea if the key is an original.

Joe

Looks like a scaled down Y1 blank, or Yale #9 keyway.

This keyway is popular on Italian padlocks.

Steve

It seems that someone in Italy accepted an offer to end his auction: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=140303364399

The handcuffs could have been made by ASTRA in Spain and maybe they even thought enough to

use an ASTRA marked key for them. It is unlikely to me that someone in Italy needing

a key blank would keep a supply made by ASTRA, probably made in Spain..

The key in the listing by Atame is marked RLM. Have not found any more info on this marking.

Ron

Hi,

congrats for great item. I have already noticed, that the auction ended very early... before itīs proper end.

Josef

These cuffs were offered to me directly by the dealer. They were paid for several days before the eBay auction action. After I paid for the cuffs he said he had a second pair. I assume that is the pair he was selling on eBay. In an email yesterday he said the second pair had been sold as well. I have no idea who bought them.

I have never asked a dealer to end an eBay auction early and I have no intention of ever doing so.

Joe

Hi,

I donīt have any problem with auction ended early... In fact each auction is a thing of tactics and money...

Josef

Hello Joe,

thank you for the enlightenment. In the past you always proofed that you are a fair competitor at eBay, who did not hesitate to enter a high sum - on not off eBay.

It is good that you explained what happened, because I am sure that almost every serious collector already aimed at this auction and so jumped to a conclusion that seemed to be obvious when putting two and two together .

Best regards,
Guenter

I agree with Guenter. For those of us that spend many hours looking at cuffs on ebay and following the bidding, it is unfair for the seller to remove it. IF you already bid on an item then the seller is violating his ebay contract. There are a few dealers that I won't bid on their items no matter what they have because they have pulled items before the auction was to end. In realty the seller is shooting himself in the foot because he seldom gets as much by selling off ebay as he would if he leaves the auction run to the end. It also tells me what kind of business person he is.
Stan

What's really bad is that the seller uses the pictures from the handcuff he sent to Joe for his early ended auction and not those of the second piece. It almost looks like as if he wants to frame Joe! Maybe he did not have a second piece and this whole auction was a fake. But what could be his motive?

Best regards,
Guenter

Hi,

Guenter is right, the pictures in the auction are for sure Joe's cuff. Also the key is the same, we just see the other side in the auction.

But I don't expect the seller did this to make us all go crazy at Joe. I could imagine two things: either he set up the auction because he was unsure if the deal with Joe will work and then didn't want to tell Joe that he put "his" pair up for auction and therefore told something about a second pair, OR he really had two similar pairs and didn't really care much which one he photographed and which one he sent to Joe. The pictures are really bad so he obviously has no idea that small details can make a big difference for some collectors. I mean, I have seen sellers unable to tell the difference between differnr GDR models...

Greetings,

Martin

Hello,

Many Forum participants have had dealings with the one and only Pino. For me, they were positive and pleasant. I can't imagine anyone being displeased by or disappointed with Pino. He can drive one to distraction, yet he scarcely has a monopoly there, and even then he is engaging.

Joe, if this is your first purchase from Pino, expect to be added to his Christmas e-mail greeting list. Right, Guenter?

The man is honest and good to his word. He will take back any item for any reason if a buyer is displeased with it. That stated -- and it is worth being stated -- Pino is not the person to whom I would entrust anything of, or even remotely approaching, a finely detailed, highly organised "mission critical" nature.

Cheers,

Jack
http://www.editing.org.uk/tanis/collectibles.htm