Possible Art of Escape Forum Topic

[lawdog]

Most LEO's around here carry Smith and Wesson or Peerless. I carry a set of hinged Peerless and chained Peerless on me. All training I have gone through, MP in the Marine Corps, and civilian training we are taught to cuff behind the back. Palms facing outward, thumbs away from body, keyhole up, double locked. Many times this is not possible for uncooporative subjects but that is how I like to cuff. I also usually used my hinged cuffs to restrict mobility.

I have had only one person escape who was a teenage girl with small wrists. As tight as I could get them she slipped them off twice. Zipp cuffs (Like zip ties only bigger) put an end to that.

If you are proficient at picking cuffs, i.e. pick the double lock then pick the release or shim them it would be hard with hinged ones. Chain I could see you would have enough slack to reach the keyhole. With hinged you would have to slip them around to the front of your body and use your mouth to pick them. I would be impressed to see that.

brett

[Chrispy]

Hinged cuffs also give better control over the offender. You can make them go up, down, left or right, all with a twist of your wrist.

[lawdog]

When I was younger, and skinner I used to be able to be cuffed behind the back and slip them around to the front. I was never very good at picking them unless they were a cheap set. Of course that was when I was running 3 miles a day and in shape.

For those with real handcuffs do you find it easier to shim them or pick them from the keyhole? ASP makes these new cuffs with keyholes on both sides. They may be easier to pick and a few of use are leary to use them. It was said at first they were easy to pick but they have supposedly redesigned them.

[capt.dunc]

pick.

since if they're double locked you'll be using a pick for undoing that first, to shim would be pointless and requires an additional tool. i wouldn't recomend picking for many escapology tricks anyway as it will require two tools instead of one, or none.

try finding a dropped pick in a dark box, with your hands behind your back. if you're depending on picks then i'd suggest spending a long time performing an escape which doesn't need them to work, but where they can be used. this means that you can practice the picking for escape but won't be buggered if something goes wrong. if over the course of a year you have two times where you forget, lose, break a pick or can't open the lock due to nerves or whatever, then give it up.

you can of course use picking in small displays to further your reputation/mystique.

[raimundo]

Two possibilities are a finger ring with a hinged fold out key tip no longer than is necessary for the lock, I have made these when I was making jewelry, more than 15 years ago. or a mini key only about 3/8ths of an inch long, with a little hole drilled on the handle end to fit a string through for a wrist string, both of these could be used in a way that makes dropping not so much of a problem, as the string would catch it.

[digital_blue]

I hate to spoil anyone's fun here, but I really can't stress enough that I think actual lockpicking in an escape act is a)unnecessary b) potential dangerous.

a) If you wanna escape from cuffs, use jump cuffs. They're reliable, and look the same as any other cuffs to a lay person. Remember that, like magic, the effect is far more important than the method. If I can show some cuffs, have them examined, actually put them on a spectator to prove their validity, and then use them in my performance, the audience is just as impressed as if they were normal cuffs... because they believe they are.
If it's a straight jacket escape, use a gimmicked jacket. Might as well. It's not like many people would know the difference. In fact, I'd say that almost nobody would know the difference. And it makes the escape quick and easy. The fighting and rolling around is purely for effect at that point, so you can put more into your performance. It doesn't matter what you want to escape from, go the easy route. ESPECIALLY if you will be performing some form of dangerous stunt!

b) I have performed enough magic to say with absolute certainty that no matter how practiced you are, stuff goes wrong. You have to assume it will. You always need an out. If you are relying on picking a lock in your act you HAVE to assume that the one time you really need it to work, it wont. It may be that you drop your pick. It may be that your lock mechanism fails. It may be that you find yourself in an awkward position because your foot slipped (as was mentioned before and is probably one of the worst and most likely things that could go wrong). Whatever it is, it's bound to happen at the worst moment. So why complicate matters by adding the need for technical skill when none is really necessary. I wanted to highlight that, because I'm all for developing technical skills in magic, but if there's an equally deceptive or amazing way of doing something without relying on your technical skill, it's probably worth looking at.

That's my rant for today. Thanks for listening.

db

[Chrispy]

Good rant db. I like the whole 'Why work if you don't have to?' theme.

[digital_blue]

Well, it's just a matter of good performing. 90% of all magic is in the performance. We all know that the "secret" is usually pretty simple. It's the performance that makes it all so special. The less stuff you have to think about during a performance, the more focus you can put toward actually performing. That's why with any effect requiring technical skills (advanced sleight of hand, etc) it is imperative that you practice it until you can do it in your sleep. This way, when you actually perform in front of a crowd, you will be able to focus on performance and not not "moves".

I'd say the same goes for escape. If there's an easier way that does not require as much work or thought, your performance will be better for it.

It's a new day, it's a new rant.

db

[chopitup]

I'm all for safety and performance, and if I were escaping for live performance value I probably would do that. But, there is a certain fun that comes from manipulating the real thing.

[digital_blue]

No doubt chop. I pick locks all the time just for fun. But if visibly picking a lock were going to be a part of my magic performance, you can bet your bottom dollar there'd be something funky about that lock.

db