Hi guys just trying to find out some back ground or history of this ball and chain, I can say by studying it closely that it weighs 25 kg (55 lbs) it is a lead ball covered in an outer brass casing the chain is a close link inter woven type so it is hard to get anything between the links to twist them off the cuff has a large bolt through the hinge and is welded heavily on both ends, also where the lock goes it is also heavily welded to make it harder to cut into. The cuff has an old felt lining which would have been added on at a later date but is still very old and worn. This was definatly heavily used you can see the wear marks of where it would have been pucked up and put down thousdands of times, the paint was orange at one stage and this has worn down as well. I am guessing that it was used in a prison at a later stage and painted orange and had a felt cuff added for humanitarian reasons. This looks very real to me and does not look like a fake, if it is a fake they went to alot of trouble to make it a usable ball and chain. Regards Jim.
Well, many of us on this forum have well over 20 years experience in collecting. We communicate and research all types of restraints. Some of our members are very good at metallurgy and some can tell what years a certain kind of electric weld occurred.
Learning what I can from my own reading and from what others have shared, ball and chains were made by a few manufactures and are listed in their catalogs. They offered balls in 15, 20, 25 pound options and may even offer other weights on custom orders. Normally, they come with 6 foot chains and have a swivel in the middle somewhere. Longer or shorter chains could be custom ordered as well. The leg iron at the end is their usual hardware and no felt lining was provided. There were others made elsewhere that did not have built in locks. They were secured by padlocks or rivets.
Your item possesses characteristics that simply fall far from mainstream manufacturing. That large bolt being used as a hinge pin also screams of garage manufacturing.
As I understand it, these items were used from around the turn of the century up until the late 30's.
Perhaps one of the welding experts can elaborate here, but I believe electric welding was a benefit of technology perfected during WWll. I do know that the type of modern welding as we know it became available in the late 50's. Your restraint indicates that it was made after the late 1950's when ball and chains were pretty much outlawed.
Ball and chains are mostly associated with this country. Is it possible that yours is from Russia, or South America? It is possible. I have never heard of these countries using such devices and I can't explain the wear and tear your item displays, but from a value point of view, unless some other information comes to light, yours was a garage made item and must be valued as such.
These things show up on eBay quite regularly and their seller often tells tales of being found in a barn on a plantation, or someone's uncle was the sheriff of TumbleWeed Junction.
No, nobody here will laugh at you. I laugh at the sellers above as they try to reel one in with their stupid stories with the intent to rip someone off.
You asked a legitimate questions and you deserve a legitimate answer. I hope others will input their opinions in this matter as well.
Mark
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