Cuff of the Day for April 13. Made in Japan

This is the Cuff of the Day stream. Today's theme is "Made in Japan".   There are lots of Japanese cuffs both new and old.
Let us see some of them.  What interesting Japanese cuffs do you have in your collection?

I bought this one a while back on eBay.   I don't know much about it other than it is very neat.
I assume that it was made in the late 19th or early 20th century.
Joe

You could have started at the other end of the scale before posting this cuff. Nice !

Japanes cuffs of April 13

I only have four sets of Japanes cuffs in the collection.

The first is a "Luna". They were given the name by former fellow collector Ray McKee due to the shape of a half moon.
Manufacturer and time is unknown to me.

The second set is an unmarked Yamaguchi .

The last two are plated brass cuffs. One is unmarked and the other is marked "Chief of Police" and Monte Carlo".

Lars

Here are some of the Japanese cuffs that I have found over the years.
The manufacturers were very prolific in each style of cuffs that they made.

I estimate that there are about a dozen variations of the top cuff.  Some have more curves or is more ornate.

The middle cuff has at least a couple dozen variations of this and they often feature all kinds of Rising Suns, animals, and other markings.
Some use the conventional ratchet bow and many use a star wheel that spins in the lock housing and the spokes lock into the holes in the bow.
The star wheel concept is almost entirely unique to Japanese cuffs.

The bottom one seems to be the rarest style.  I only know of 2 others and none are the same.
One would think that this uses the star wheel design to lock the cuffs but this is not how this pair works.
The key raises a pin and upon removal, the pin seats into one of the bow holes.
One can not apply the cuffs to the prisoner without a key.
This cuff could never be used in the field to detain a subject but it would make a good restraint in a prison or court room setting.

It took a bit of looking around

A couple more.

Fred, again we have the same cuffs of the uncommon kind.
The bottom cuff in my photo seems to be the same as your top cuff.

I like your Takeda style leg iron.
I knew of them but one never made it my way.

Joe, I have one of these Wisner looking cuffs as you know.  There is another a few miles from you too.
Mine came from a seller in France and always thought that these were French as they are very much different than most of the other cuffs from Japan.
When yours showed up on eBay, I realized that they were indeed Japanese as evidenced by the writing on the sides of your pair.
I believe Lars sent me this pic of another couple in a Japanese museum.
I now call these the "Japanese Wisners"

These photos come my way by a good friend and collector George Goebel who was a performing escapes in Japen in the 50's and who has a great collection of cuffs frome Japan

A copy of a Darley style of cuff is the TWC cuff, from Japan.
-Richard Knip-

Also from Japan. A brass lever lock handcuff.
-RK-

These Japanese cuffs are from the Edo period.  What makes them special is that they are in the original box.  The script is very old and over the years I have not found anyone who could translate the script.  

Ron

Another Japanese handcuff.  Note the tapered bow.  This has a regular locking mechanism unlike the one Mark posted.
Ron

I wish that I had some Luna cuffs, but these Maruisi will have to do. They are both marked with the chrysanthemum, but my favorite one also has a mounted Samurai warrior and a dog that looks like a German Shepherd.

01


02

                                                                                                  LUNA  COMBINATION

 A Japanese Luna handcuff with a combination lock makes this one of the most interesting handcuffs ever. A combination dial must be set to a
 certain number first before the cuff can be opened with a key. If the dial is set correctly the key with the bit will unlock the cuff. To set the
 combination so that the cuff will or will not open with the key, the round key it inserted into the round hole on the front of the cuff and turned.
 This causes the door to spring open exposing the dial. The round key is then inserted in the round hole on the back of the cuff. Turning the key
  turns the dial. Only one position of the dial will allow the cuff to open. It must line up  with the little dimple The characters on the dial are
Japanese characters for 1 to 10. The cuff is adjustable to 3 locking positions. There are no manufacturer markings.                                                       

Gordon
I have always thought your combination Luna was the coolest cuff ever.
What a intricate beauty!
Joe

That really is an amazing cuff.  Unapparelled really.

I certainly agree, the coolest cuff ever made! High security in the most odd way.

I guess the best thing about the pandemic is that the first time in the history of the forum are people going out of their way to show others what they have had hidden for years.  Great to see some of the best there is.

Beautiful cuff, Gordon! It gets my vote for coolest cuff...EVER MADE! I concur with Ian's comment. Seeing some life being brought back to the boards is awesome to see! Im hoping this will spark more discussions and questions to be brought to the boards. Breathe some life back into these pages!
-Richard Knip-