I am sorry for being a day late to the party, everyone. I was removing malware that I had acquired from my PC, when one of the pieces, decided to grab a boot file from my hard drive and take it as it left. I was unable to get into my computer until late last night. A very frustrating day, to say the least! But, im back up and running, now! Not bad for a guy who is not very tech savvy and has Youtube, on a separate device! LOL!
Romer is a name that has been on my radar, a lot, recently. It has taken a long time to land a set of handcuffs, which I did last year. It also held the title of most expensive piece that I have added to my collection through the years. It held that title...until I found the matching leg irons! Now, my leg irons are the most expensive piece that I have added. I bought them without a key and not even knowing for sure if they worked. I would have to source someone with a working key to send these to to have them try their key in to verify they were in good condition. I had contacted Mark Lyons, late at night, through Facebook messenger. My hours are kind of opposite of most people's. Im usually up all night, sleep a little bit in the morning and up all day again. That being said, i owe an apology to Mark. I am sorry for waking you at such an early hour on Facebook. That was not my intention. I was hoping to leave a message, that you would receive the next time you logged in. However, that wasnt the case. I had actually disturbed your slumber and didnt feel right about continuing to harass you any further. So, i abandoned that attempt. I am very sorry for the intrusion.
I had also contacted Ian about Romer keys. Ian had done his best to assist me in showing me how a key would likely have to be cut, to work for these irons and what key blanks I could modify to make a working key. Thank you for the advice, Ian. I contacted Glenn (i apologize but i have lost your last name in time, somewhere), to see if he had any key blanks for a Romer. He had a few, but i still didnt know what key cut it would take to open them. Glenn and I shared a couple of long, conversations on the phone, during this. You would have thought we were high school buddies from way back! LOL! I appreciate you taking the time to stop the world for a few hours and just chat about anything and everything! Thank you so much, Glenn!
I had remembered a pic that Fred Pittella had posted a while back showing 5 different cuts for Romer keys. So, I reached out to Fred. Fred was more than gracious and accepted the challenge of testing my cuffs and making a tracing of the working key, for me. As soon as I got the cuffs in hand, i checked them over for a few minutes, boxed them and shipped them to New York, that same day! Fred received the box in good shape and examined my cuffs. He tried all of his keys and did not find the working key until he was down to one last key. So, I was extremely lucky! Fred had let me know the good news and resent my package out to me. When I received the box, i immediately tore it open like a kid at Christmas! Inside , not only did i find my irons and the tracing of the working key, I also found 2 Romer blank keys that had been hand filed to fit the cuffs! I was floored! Fred had actually taken the time to make me a working key for the cuffs! Upon talking to him, he had relayed how one of the keys worked, but the other would need some more filing to complete the cuts. While he was working on filling them, his hands and wrists grew tired and were in pain. It seems that Carpel Tunnel was making an appearance that would end the attempt to finish the second key. I tried to offer him payment for his keys and his assistance and labor. Fred did not want any compensation for his efforts. I am very humbled to think that a fellow collector would be so kind as to give me these gifts and not ask for anything in return. That Fred would push himself, until he couldnt continue because of the pain, to make me a couple of keys. I know I said it a lot in emails, but I just want to thank Fred, one last time. Thank you very much, Fred! Your good deed will not go unnoticed. I promise to make good on the request for a drink, the next time we meet! Without you and your generosity, I would still be trying to source a key for these leg irons. I had several friends come together on this venture and I say thank you, to everyone, who hand a hand in making any of this possible! I am very grateful to all, for the outpouring of assistance! And I promise, Mark Lyons, that I will not send any more messages, at that early of an hour, in the day.
Finally...this is my modest Romer collection, so far. I have a small brass padlock that has no key to it, yet. I have looked for a key, every year in Indianapolis, and have come up short in my searches. But, I learned how to pick this lock open, so i still use it on a display leather belt, outfitted with Hiatt Darby handcuffs. I have one set of the Small Romer handcuffs that are complete with a key and are fully functional. Then, of course, my lasted acquisition, the large sized Romer Leg Irons! You can see the key that Fred had made for them, attached to the chain of the irons. The key works great! The springs on the irons are still in great shape and opens them with a "pop" and the irons
close with a crisp, "snap!" All in all, this small Romer collection is something I am very grateful for. I know how hard is is to find these. No matter the material value on these, my Romer Leg Irons will always hold the value of my friendships I have acquired through this board. They will hold a special place on my displays and in my heart.
-Richard Knip-
