Interesting Ball and "Chain"

I just received what was sold as a ball and chain.  The ball is 20 pounds and yes the "chain" is a set of rare Maltby, Mattatuck Leg Irons.  The irons are rusted so the locking mechanisms do not work. 
 
The cuff attached to ball has a short bow which was probably broken at some period and then used as a lock.  The end of its bow has been tapered on all four sides to make it a clean break.  I have not been 
able to open this side so far.  The full cuff I have managed to open but again the lock is frozen in the open position and the bow was able to be pulled out.  It is slightly bent.  The ball is different with no markings.

So, I'm trying to decide to soak them in WD40 rust remover which attacks the only the rust or just leave them alone.  I would to get them restored but hate shipping them with the ball attached.  

Ron

That's definitely unique

I like the idea of rust remover - would electrolysis work better for these?

Ron

Do solely to the rarity of those Mattatuck leg irons it just might be worth it to have them professionally worked on and restored.

Spencer

I was bidding on that set as well. I looked them over very well, before throwing my final bid. I noticed the broken swing arm and decided not to bid. My feeling is that this set up wasnt meant to be a ball and chain. Ive seen similar balls in the past sold as counter weights. The seller of this item is not a trust worthy Ebay seller. He often sells "bogus" items and makes up stories to go with them. His bidding base is crazy though and often shell out a lot of money to buy his wares! He once sold a set of Taiwan thumbcuffs as having been used during the Civil War. It sold for $200!

As far as rust removal and restoration. By all means, go for it. With the broken and non working, you have nothing to lose at this point. A couple of days soak in Either WD-40 Rust Remover or in a product called Evapo-Rust will clean them down to a bare metal finish. Then try putting some PB blasting in the locks to soak for a while to loosen up the internals and possibly get the lock to function again. As long as the springs arent roached, I think you would stand a good chance of getting them working again.
-Richard Knip-

Congratulations on winning them on eBay. I put in a bid but with them being broken as Richard stated and also not having a key i didn’t bid very high. Beside that in my opinion the seller general lee can’t be trusted. Either way that set is a rare one so again congratulations on them. Ron J

My 2¢. 
Cut that "thing" off the LI. Get the locks freed up and repair the bow.
But if you leave as is, that is its history "speaking". 
Win/Win either way.
Nice!