These are the ASP model 200 hinged handcuffs. They are from their original line of handcuffs which had extremely strong "ordnance grade" polymer over-molded onto a steel skeleton. This reduced the weight while adding the required strength. These are NIJ rated.
The down sides of this design involve the flexibility of the body. They can withstand escape attempts, but they can get bent. The bow can get mis-aligned and scoot past the normal channel it has to travel and be on the outside of the handcuff, meaning officers think they might have secured the handcuff because it feels like it is snug around their wrists, while one of them may not have engaged and could be pulled open.
Also, during a scuffle, an officer could fall over onto their handcuffs and the double strand could pinch together, meaning the bow cannot move freely and cause problems when trying to handcuff someone. When this happens ASP recommends having a second pair of handcuffs on hand so you can use the solid bow of one to prise apart the double strand of the damaged handcuff. Not the best situation....
After these bendy problems, they came out with the newer Ultra cuffs, made with, as they state, forged aluminum. (Aluminium!) This means the structure is much more sturdy, as well as remaining light and strong. It takes MUCH more force to mis-align the bow and there's no way the double strand can pinch together (I think) on their newer designs.
I won these on eBay. The yellow polymer was a bit dirty, the hinge links were seized up, the key was rusted and there were rust spots on the bow. I spend probably half an hour with them in the kitchen, washing them in warm water, scrubbing with "The Pink Stuff" to clean them up, then using WD40 to remove the water, using PMA brake cleaner to remove the WD40, lubricating everything to allow free movement and I had to prise apart the double strand since the bows would not flow nicely and freely through the rotation. After I was done, they were a bit brighter colour and are all smooth in operation.They have since been polished with Peek metal polish and waxed with Renaissance wax.
Enjoy!
#handcuffs
