Handcuff prices over the last 10-20 years

Dear fellow collectors,
I like to go through recent auctions from many years ago. What strikes me is that prices for rare cuffs (Palmers, Romer and the like) were about twice as high in the early 2010s as they are now. Some cuffs routinely sold for $3000-5000, which seems impossible in today's market. I wonder why that is. 
The price for fairly common cuffs (Tower, Beans, HRs) has thus increased from typically $100-150 to often over $200, which would appear normal with inflation over 10 years.
That said, online auctions years back featured a lot more interesting and rare cuffs than today. Maybe that's just my impression, but I'm guessing high end cuffs are probably traded or sold among high-end collectors outside auction platforms with their 10-15% fees and problems shipping internationally. It has almost become impossible to get cuffs from the US to Europe nowadays, so I'm glad with what I have. Used to be really easy, shipping just for $15. 
Nils

Nils

One factor is that there are not many new young collectors entering the field coupled with the fact that many old established collectors have already acquired many of the rare pieces they’ve been seeking.

Just my opinion on this.

Spencer

I agree with Spencer on this. The young folks in today's world do not care about history or the older things that we are interested in. If there is no market for what we collect, our collections diminish in value as the years go by. It is sad to watch happen. But, i look at it this way. I did not get into collecting as an investment. My collection probably will not be broken up and sold until i am not on this world any longer. Im not concerned with the prices the cuffs bring after im deceased. I had my enjoyment with the pieces while I was here. I was able to explore them and learn what made each pair click. I got my satisfaction from each purchase I made. Looking at the prices cuffs were getting 10-20 years ago, i probably wouldnt have been a serious collector. I cant throw down 2K-5K on a set of cuffs, on a regular basis. To me, the thrill is in the hunt! When you stumble across a cuff at a garage sale or at an estate sale for a couple of hundred dollars, that you know the cuff is worth upwards of 1K to 2K. Knowing that you picked up a prime piece and that you got it on the cheap! Thats what gets me excited!

Sadly, as the serious collectors age and pass away, as the serious collections are broke up and sold off, the hobby (obsession) of cuff collection will likely fade away. Who knows, maybe after im gone, one or two of my pieces that I saved and preserved will find their way into a museum somewhere? To be put on display to relay the message they bring from the pages of history. Its a nice thought, any way.
-Richard Knip-

There are so many reasons that people collect restraints. I got into it because I collect Australian convict era (1788-1868) items of all descriptions. These items of 'cultural interest' are increasing in value even if they are made in England not Australia. Others collect American Civil War era items of all kinds, Houdini / escapology items, police, jail etc. These niche areas will always have followers. Then there are collectors of the rare cuffs, ER, Gitteau, etc, etc. Museums and institutions should be chasing these if they can justify the cost. Even cuffs of which many thousands or even hundreds of thousands were made, sell on ebay every day. Collect the cheap stuff because you like to collect them, collect the rare stuff because you like the rarity, but don't expect to make any money. He who dies with the most cuffs wins! Good luck.

Thank you for your contributions. I'd think the borderline legal restrictions (export restrictions, licenses) and bans e.g. in Australia also do their part to make handcuff collecting less interesting. Some people aren't even sure if it's "legal" to collect handcuffs.
Some investment people advise against bidding in auctions, because if you win, you'll never be able to sell again for that price. But as a serious collector, there are just some offers you can't refuse. 

If you look at auction prices for rare pieces of art (Van Goghs etc.), their price doubles at auctions every 20-30 years. Maybe it's just the economy, .... ,

I think the ebay auction system has contributed a lot to this surge in prices in recent years, i also see this for much more modern handcuffs ......and this has no justification (or even rarity) so many handcuffs of each model are manufactured industrially every year!
Fortunately we still have sales or exchanges between passionate collectors, who, for their part, escape this price inflation... and concerning modern handcuffs, the contacts who can also provide us with certain models.
I totally agree with you, for my part nothing planned for any investment for the future, only the pleasure of collecting and learning every day!
Best regards,
Nicolas.