Shimming Hiatts handcuffs

[Josh66]

I can't get anything in there... I can pick them, but I have never been able to shim them open.

I have the Sparrows Ultra Decoder, which is about .007" thick, and even it won't fit. I made another shim out of some .005" stainless that I have that does fit, but you have to close the cuffs while pushing the shim in - more than you'd be able to if someone was wearing them, or if they were locked around something...



Triple pawl:


Damnit. I was messing around with them as I was typing this, so of course I just got them open without having to close it more than maybe 2 clicks. Anyway - the whole reason it was bugging me that I couldn't shim them is that because they are hinged, if they were locked around something with the keyways facing each other - that might be the only way to open them. Like this:





I haven't tried to pick them with them locked around something like that - I guess I better get that down soon, haha. It actually looks like it might be easier to pick them that way than it is to shim them. Even after doing it a few times, it's still damn near impossible to shim them when they're actually tightened down onto something.

I guess I'd say that they're pretty well made, lol. I can't really see anyone being able to pick them while wearing them with the keyways on the top. Hell, I can't even open it with a key with the keyway on top.

[Josh66]

Does this seem like a bad design to anyone else? I mean, it seems like they ought to have the keyways on opposite sides so that they could never be locked in an orientation that would prevent the key from being inserted...

I wonder how many people have accidentally cuffed themselves like that then had to cut them off. LOL!

Do cops actually pay attention to which side the keyway is on when they cuff someone, or do they just slap them on? I mean, if they always put the keyways on the top (to make picking harder), having one on the top and one on the bottom would negate that benefit. But on the other hand, I'm not sure that they would always have time to look at them before putting them on...

Also, hinged handcuffs are crazy uncomfortable, lol.

[oldbiscuit]

Come on Josh, Do you really think they make handcuffs to be comfortable??

[MBI]

Having both keyways on the same side is a security feature. Normally, you cuff someone with their hands behind the back, palms facing away from each other and the keyholes facing outward. Supposedly this makes it harder to get out of. You also shouldn't tighten the cuffs so they're snug, there should be a small amount of space between the wrist and the cuffs.

In reality though, you might be cuffing someone combative, in which case you get them cuffed any which way you can, palms facing in or out, keyways facing either way, just get the darn cuffs on them! Then once you have them restrained, and some backup on hand, you can put the suspect in a position which would make it hard for them to fight or flee, and you can get the cuffs on the right way before transporting them.

The cuffs are typically carried in the cuff case in a consistent way so that every time you grab them, they are in the same position relative to your hand so you can cuff by muscle memory without having to look for the keyhole. You also carry them in the case with the cuffs clicked the same number of clicks every time to put it in the best position for them to "snap" in place quickly and easily just about every time. You determine the number of clicks for proper carry with practice, it will just depend on your particular cuffs and how loose or tight they are. You also don't "swing" the cuffs against the wrist like you see in the movies, you can actually break one of their wrist bones doing that. You place it against their wrist and then press, which if you had it preset the right number of clicks closed, will give it exactly the right momentum to snap them closed just right. Sometimes it can look like cops are swinging the cuffs against the wrist, but usually it's just because they're used to doing it so many times that they get quick at it, so it can be hard to spot that they're first locating it in the right place, then pressing it in place.

Cheaper cuffs will often have the two halves of the cuffs be identical instead of mirror images of each other like on your Hiatt cuffs, which means if you cuff them the normal way then one keyhole will face out and one will face in. That's just done to save on production costs since you only need two different stamping templates for the outer pieces of steel instead of four. Cheaper cuffs are also frequently made of slightly thinner gauge of steel so sometimes the little "flag" on the tip of the key is a little smaller to fit in the narrower insides of the cuffs. Sometimes a standard cuff key won't work on cuffs like this because the end of the key is just a tiny bit wider than the key that came with the cheapie cuffs, even though the keys look almost identical.

With practice, it's possible to pick your way out of most standard cuffs, regardless of how you're cuffed, it's just that being cuffed in certain ways can make it a little more painful and time consuming. And yes, wearing hinged cuffs defnintely adds to the pain factor if you're trying to pick your way out of them.

[Josh66]

Yeah, the keyways being on both sides being a 'feature', I pretty much assumed - it just seems odd that on these hinged cuffs it would be possible to put them on one wrist and not be able to get them off with the key.

I can see it happening, lol. I've never done it though. A lot of people would probably resort to the hack saw at that point.


Also, sort of unrelated - but the pawls on these appear to be nickel plated copper. I don't really think that's a problem or anything, it just seems weird. Maybe the lighter material lets them spring into place faster... Less mass working against the springs. Or maybe it helps prevent a "bump attack", where inertia would let them slip. I don't know if they actually put this much thought into it - but making the pawls from a non-magnetic material may be another reason for copper...

[Josh66]

Come on Josh, Do you really think they make handcuffs to be comfortable??

Regular cuffs with a chain, I can tolerate. The hinge just adds another layer of immobility that makes me really uncomfortable - even on a psychological level.

[MBI]

If I'm not mistaken, you can't directly plate some metals with nickel or chrome. You have to first plate it with a layer of copper, which will then accept the nickel plating.

[Oldfast]

MBI, that's some interesting info. I have a couple of pairs. I keep meaning
to get familiar with em... but I just never seem to get around to it :/

Yeah, the keyways being on both sides being a 'feature', I pretty much assumed - it just seems odd that on these hinged cuffs it would be possible to put them on one wrist and not be able to get them off with the key.

I can see it happening, lol. I've never done it though. A lot of people would probably resort to the hack saw at that point.

lol... yeah, some of the strangest stories arise from hand cuffs... viewtopic.php?p=71684#p71684

[Josh66]

If I'm not mistaken, you can't directly plate some metals with nickel or chrome. You have to first plate it with a layer of copper, which will then accept the nickel plating.

Interesting - I hadn't considered that.

I'm not going to do any destructive testing to see if it's copper all the way through or just copper plating - it just seemed strange to me. You can clearly see the copper peeking through on my "triple pawl" picture - the other side (not pictured) shows more copper. (I only took the picture to show the pawls - that you could see copper I didn't notice till after the fact.)

For what it's worth, I find these easier to pick with a straight bobby pin (not bent like you see in all the tutorials you see online). A paper clip might even be more effective than a bobby pin, as it would fit the keyway better. Though it would be harder to press all three pawls with a paper clip...

[MrWizard]

If I'm not mistaken, you can't directly plate some metals with nickel or chrome. You have to first plate it with a layer of copper, which will then accept the nickel plating.

Interesting - I hadn't considered that.

I'm not going to do any destructive testing to see if it's copper all the way through or just copper plating - it just seemed strange to me. You can clearly see the copper peeking through on my "triple pawl" picture - the other side (not pictured) shows more copper. (I only took the picture to show the pawls - that you could see copper I didn't notice till after the fact.)

For what it's worth, I find these easier to pick with a straight bobby pin (not bent like you see in all the tutorials you see online). A paper clip might even be more effective than a bobby pin, as it would fit the keyway better. Though it would be harder to press all three pawls with a paper clip...

When I was 8 years old I did magic and would use a small safety pin to pick S&W cuffs didn't have to bend it at all, works in seconds even double locked. Try a safety pin see how you like that.

[rai]

Very good close up photos,
I only have some old cheap taiwan cuffs, nothing so high quality, but I see what you are dealing with, I also think I see a possible solution

1 the lock is in the space of two laminations of thick metal

2 the locking pawl is three laminations of thinner metal

3 you can't get a shim in between the rack and the pawl because of close tolerances

4 there appears to be some space alongside the pawl, a tolerance that keeps rust or other foriegn material from jamming that

5 if there is space alongside the rack, that allows a shim to enter the area of the lockup, perhaps a well designed shim could go in that way, and if possible then enter the area betweeen rack and pawl from the other end with a bent flag on the tip of the shim

press the cuffs a bit tighter to lift the pawl and open up the deeper spaces in the rack

6 OK thats getting a bit far fetched,
and if the cuffs have the double lock that is set by the press in pin on the edge of the cuff, then your doubly screwed and will have to make a wire that goes between the two cuffs and enters the keyway and presses back that double lock

7 yeah, forget shimming them and look for some really stiff wire you can shape to work through the keyway which is not totally inaccessable because the hinges between the two cuffs will allow that much room

8, yeah, Im putting my bet on a wire to reach in the keyway and move the pawl or two wires one for the pawl and another if you got it double locked,

[10ringo10]

I wonder if the james bond style cufflinks key for sale in the uklockpickers shop ...link above would work on these !