Okay, so do you bring your own, or wait for officer O'Riley to loan you his?



What I mean is, even if the pair you bring with you is genuine, does your audience believe they are? If the audience doesn't, you might as well use a gimmicked pair, right?

Hi, Steve,

I just want to share an experience I had in a restaurant with friends and a police officer standing nearby our table.

After a show I went to the restaurant with friends and everybody was excited about the performance I gave that night. A nearby police officer listening to our conversation on magical effects asked if there was any escape feats on the show, and a friend of mine said "yes".

After being introduced to the officer, he asked me if I could escape from his brand new model of high-tech handcuffs. Without thinking further, I said "yes". But the real answer should have been "no".

So with the handcuffs on I went to the private bathroom of the restaurant to escape from these handcuffs with absolutely no preparation of any kind. In a flash I remembered that in my early magical career I use to do an act including a vest turning feat. That’s what I have done that night a vest turning.

My friends never noticed my inverted T-shirt, but I silently whispered to the officer that my T-shirt was inverted and I have told him keep the secret because the people around should be convinced that his handcuffs are really full proof...BlaBlaBla.

That's it, a vest turning! Easy when you know how to do it.

Andre Le Magicien

P.S. excuse my french!
:rotf:

Very clever, Andre! I will have to remember that one.



TC

Hi Steve,



Regarding handcuffs, it is difficult to find someone who has a pair with them. So I provide my own cuffs, the same brand and model the local police use. I explain that they are in fact regulation police handcuffs and not only have someone examine them, but I lock them on someone. They see that they don't just pull open and are indeed real.



Full examination is necessary in order to gain their trust. I haven't had anyone accuse me of using fake cuffs (which I don't use anyway).



Joe

You the man!

I just have a cheap pair (not the ones with the die cast key) that I won on eBay. They’re real, they can be examined and I can pick them. Works for me.

_________________

Thanx,

Ichazod



All the worlds a stage,

And the men & women merely players;

They have their exits

and their entrances,

And one man in his time

plays many parts.

Ichazod, try other pairs of cuffs.

Pearless and Smith & Wesson are common brands here in Southern California. When you can pick more than one brand and model of cuff, you will feel a great sense of accomplishment.

Keep it up! You may get bit by the escape bug!

Joe Marotta

I am not Houdini. I bring My OWN...I can pick them. Just my own personal Opinion. You also might get a stooge in the Audience to offer you YOUR cuffs.
Most magically yours,
WR

I use gaffed cuffs in conjunction w/another escape.

If I am just escaping from the cuffs, either way borrowed or I bring my own.

As for picking the cuffs, I am of the school that believes if you are going to have to conceal the pick you might as well have the proper key for the cuffs and conceal them instead.

Tony

I agree with Tony to the extent that if you are performing an escape hidden from view, using a key is probably the best way. Why mess around with a pick or shim when you are completely out of sight?!

The picking I do is a full view demonstration for my audience only. I want them to believe that I can pick my way out of any situation, so when I'm concealed from view later on, I want them to believe I'm still attempting to pick the locks and cuffs open.

It's the same idea as a card man using an un-gimmicked deck for a few opening tricks, then switching to a gimmicked or stacked deck later on for other effects without the audience noticing.

Just my opinion though.

Joe Marotta

I've escaped from an officer's cuffs on several occasions. A key in a tip works for me.

You could always borrow cuffs from the weird goth/ grunger @ the back of the crowd... just a thought, but such people do carry/wear them.
Jester_Juggler

Recently I bought a pair of real handcuffs to see if I was able to open them without using any type of keys and without pick the lock (in fact I sealed the keyhole with a tape). I found two methods to open handcuffs. But I think that if I use the double lock (the pin on the side of handcuffs) it’s impossible to open them without keys. I think that nobody can open handcuffs double locked with the keyhole sealed. Without the double lock it is possible to open the handcuffs. What do you think about this?

The lay person generally does not know about double locking. So having the the cuffs double locked is unlikely to impress your audience very much. It is only recently police have been trained to use the double lock - before then many were ignornant of what the little peg on the end of the key was for.

Sealing the lock is much more likely to impress, in that case, its probably better not to double lock. It depends if you seal the cuffs is a way that you can unseal and reseal them again.

I would recommend that you do not use borrowed locks/cuff unless you are

a) very skilled with locks

b) Have an opportunity to switch

c) Can make use of equivoque

Any EA that accepts a challenge escape nearly always gets the chance to examine the equipment some time prior to the escape - especially so with big publicity stunts.

The problem with accepting equipment and actually using it is that escapologists can and DO get caught out by people deliberately bringing duff or damaged locks, special one way locks, etc, etc.

If you are confident enough to use equipment bought in, at the very least make sure

a) They have brought the key
b) That the item does actually unlock (check a couple of times!)

Regards,

Kris Sheglova

I find I have to bring my own, I'm not performing to a police academy movie.

I bring my own ungimmicked cuffs and I have them thoroughly examined. The only exception is if I'm doing my underwater handcuff/chain escape, then I use your basic everyday pull-open jump cuffs. I do have them examined in a controlled way.

I'll rest them in their hand for a second and say, "As you can see these are not the light cuffs but police-regulation handcuffs." I'll then hold the cuffs all around for them to see while asking, "Do you see any switches or secret levers that can make them unlock?" They say no because there aren't any. I then (myself) act as if I'm trying to pull them open to show they are really locked.

This whole sequence only takes like 30 seconds and they seem to be impressed that they are real. Then in my bag I have a set of legitimate cuffs, if people really want to examine them further after I do the escape. I agree. I always use a spare key myself. Only once did I use a pick. I've never really thought about picking the lock in front of my audience Joe because I want the audience to have no idea at all how I get out. I want them to believe I can "melt through them," figuratively speaking of course.

When just doing my regular handcuff act, I always strip down to my breifs because, like Houdini made known, the less clothing you have the less likely are there hiding places. I also refuse to escape unless I am thoroughly frisked because I hate it when people say, "Well you have an extra key or pick" or some such thing.

Just like my magic I want my escapes to border on the supernatural—although I don't make any claims of having supernatural powers—but I really want to give them a truly paranormal experience, like when I perform my mentalism even though they are a little different.

Ed, (Eddini)

It's unfortunate I don't do escapes as I can skillfully pick Smith & Wesson. With hands cuffed behind my back, I proceed to drop arms to the floor and bring hands forward after going under my feet.

I say learn to handle the real thing while always carrying your own. Either way you are prepared.

It is possible to open certain makes and models of cuffs without a key after they have been double locked, and with the keyholes sealed, using various techniques. While I will not detail methods here, cuffs vulnerable to such manipulation include:

Certain cheap Peerless/S&W copies with edge-plunger double locks;
Certain face-slot double lock cuffs, such as the S&W 100, S&W 104 and similar.

I'm sure there are others as well.

Steve
:handcuffs:

The "Chief-of-Police" was one such cheap Peerless copy and is easily opened when double-locked and the keyhole sealed. I agree: unless you're performing for cops, the double-lock is a wasted gag.

By the by: mentioning keys and picks in these threads smacks of revealing secrets.

Maybe we should either be more careful, or start an escape thread in the Banquet Rooms.

Steve