Unknown twister / chaincuff

Hello all,

I bought this unknown twister / chaincuff for only $20
For some reason I think it might be French but I can't find
any information. It is made of chromed steel and has no markings
at all. Does someone recognize it?

Regards,

DutchConnection

Dear Dick,

See page http://vincula.de/4786.html from Michael Busch's site. It has this chain nipper on it, captioned "Dutch? chain twister - unknown manufacturer".



Cheers,

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

Hello all,

I bought this unknown twister / chaincuff for only $20
For some reason I think it might be French but I can't find
any information. It is made of chromed steel and has no markings
at all. Does someone recognize it?

Regards,

DutchConnection

Click to expand...

Nice job, Jack It is the same one!

I already found two different models,
with exactly the same grips as the one on the picture,
in the online collection of the Dutch Policemuseum;
one with a "CleJuSo" type chain,the other has some
kind of 'saw' chain - with nasty teeth. Although
they might have been in use with the Dutch police
I doubt they were Dutch made. Another fact is that
both of them do really look old, while mine (and
also Michael's) is looking brand new.



The problem with this website http://www.politiemuseum.nl
(search for knevelketting or handboeien ) is that they
do not know exactly what they have; the information on some
objects is poor and sometimes even wrong.
As far as I know the Dutch police did use chaincuffs
until 1980 (already using the Lips/Deutsche Polizei
handcuffs). The CleJuSo was the common model,sometimes
marked 'R.E.' (Rijkseigendom or State Property). Older models
have been made by Kaiser and possibly others. I own a very
old chaincuff that has a number (862) and also the marking 'Ned.
Wapenmagazijn Haarlem Haag" The same markings can be found
on vintage police swords and fire arms.
I will show a picture of it later.

Thanks so far

Regards,

DutchConnection

Hello all,

I bought this unknown twister / chaincuff for only $20
For some reason I think it might be French but I can't find
any information. It is made of chromed steel and has no markings
at all. Does someone recognize it?

Regards,

DutchConnection

Click to expand...

Dear Dick,

The police museum is not the only party with "poor and sometimes even wrong" information about chain nippers. Indeed, consistently accurate and comprehensive information would be quite more the exception than the rule. In the family of restraints, the chain nipper is the poor relation. Not much research has been done, and sources from which to gather much good information are few at best. Matt Forte probably has done the best job overall. This certainly is a challenging area.

Cheers,

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

Hello all,

I bought this unknown twister / chaincuff for only $20
For some reason I think it might be French but I can't find
any information. It is made of chromed steel and has no markings
at all. Does someone recognize it?

Regards,

DutchConnection

Click to expand...

Well, Jack, you got to start somewhere.

Chain nippers are nifty. A bit confusing, perhaps, but nifty.

Some time back, in the dinosaur days, I got a copy of a reprint of an old Sears, Roebuck & Co. catalogue. At the tail end of the firearm section there were selections of police equipment, things like billy clubs, blackjacks, brass knuckles and all sorts of other cool things, including handcuffs.

In the handcuff section, there was this one, strange creature that made no sense to me. This odd looking thing of two T-handles connected with a chain. For the life of me, I could not see how that thing could possibly be a handcuff.

I later learned otherwise.

While perhaps vicious by today's standards, they are very effective.

And I am very pleased to have some examples in my modest collection of restraints.

Franklin

Hello all,

I bought this unknown twister / chaincuff for only $20
For some reason I think it might be French but I can't find
any information. It is made of chromed steel and has no markings
at all. Does someone recognize it?

Regards,

DutchConnection

Click to expand...

Dear Franklin,

I agree with you. Indeed, nippers, and chain nippers in particular, are the core of my also modest collection. Like you, I am very pleased to have the ones I was fortunate enough to acquire.

The old catalogues are great. At this point, they also are a major source of information on nippers. As you know, only a very few chain nippers were patented, unlike handcuffs and, albeit it to a lesser degree, mechanical nippers.

My initial interest in them came from their resemblance to industrial jewellery. They are, no pun intended, captivating.

Cheers,

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