Hi everybody,
I was recently able to add this Plug 8 handcuff (right) to my collection, sadly it came without the plug. No markings. I realize there are more than a dozen of this kind out there, from Hiatt to Froggat, I'd like to ask your advice on identifying the maker. Notice the nozzle protruding from the bow. The key came with it.
The one on the left (rusty) I picked up some three years ago on a flea market in South Western Germany for 3 bucks. It was probably dug up. Not much left, but I did wonder how it got there. (The area was occupied by the French, not the British after WW2).
Have a good weekend!
Nils
Hi Nils,
Nice clean cuffs you have there.
I am not well versed enough to identify these for you but observed a couple of things.
I zoomed in on the end of the key and it appears to be solid. Most cuffs of this type had a pin down in the lock tube which required that the key be hollowed out to slip down over the pin. Although not as secure, I believe these cuffs might be a bit on the rare side because of this.
The British cuff experts will certainly know more about this than I.
As far as the small protrusion (that you call a "nozzle") I do not recall much discussion about this. I always believed this to be a safety feature in case one removed the hinge pin or cuts the cuff. This would prevent the cuff from being turned and unscrewed.
With the prisoners wrists in the cuffs, I don't see this happening in the first place.
This would be the equivalent of the ditched bows in the modern swing thru cuffs.
What ever the reason of the "nozzle" being there, it must have taken a little time and trouble to add this feature to the cuff. They almost always become invisible once the cuff is closed as the tolerances are amazingly precise.
I hope you figure out who made these nice cuffs.
mark
O--O
