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Story by Mark, photos by JG-Leathers
12 Apr, 2005
Due to the very small number of bondage equipment manufacturers around the world, if one of these people is visiting in your area you should invite them to do a presentation. That's exactly what the Society of Janus did when Martin of cuff24.com came to visit San Francisco. The Society of Janus is a non-profit BDSM organization, and Martin is the infamous and self-proclaimed "Bondage Engineer" from Germany. He was visiting San Francisco and attending the 2005 Fetish Ball, so it was easy for the Society of Janus to organize this special presentation.
Nearly 40 people attended Martin's program, and I think everyone had a good time. The first part of the evening featured various live demonstrations of Martin's gear, and the second half was set aside to allow everyone to try on the gear themselves. What an opportunity!
As the photos indicate, Martin brought a large selection of gear with him from Germany, and I'm still trying to figure out how he got it through airport security. Martin is a simple traveler - arriving with three heavy suitcases of metal restraints and a toothbrush.
During Martin's presentation various people volunteered to model his gear, and I was given permission to use their photos in this article.  However, due to confidentiality reasons, none of the people who attended the program are shown. Additionally, for your reference, Martin is the tall guy with dark hair. I'm the shorter guy with the white hair and blue jeans.
The first piece of gear was of Martin's famous "Stradivarius" fiddle. His bondage fiddles are manufactured in a number of different styles including two types of locking mechanisms.  The "Stradivarius" fiddle features a completely built-in lock, as opposed to using a standard padlock (shown further down this page).
Notice the clean and beautiful metalwork of this Stradivarius Fiddle. The internal lock uses a large handcuff key similar to the kind used with the popular Clejuso heavy-weight handcuffs.  When the Fiddle is closed it makes a very distinct "click", and anyone who's being locked in the Fiddle will surely get goose bumps when they hear this.
Next was the E-Collar. This heavy and intimidating item contains a remotely-controlled shocking device - the same electronics of a remote shocking dog training collar are built into this device.
The E-Collar also has a built-in lock, and obviously, do to the size of the collar, if you loose the keys you are in BIG TROUBLE. The inside of the collar has two electrical contacts mounted 180 degrees apart, and there's no doubt that when the remote button is depressed there WILL be a result from the person bound within.
The E-Collar is controlled by a wireless, hand-held remote with a range of up to 600 feet . Martin has affectionately named this remote a "Mood Controller". The Mood Controller has a variable power setting which can be adjusted between 0 - 100, but "40" was as much as our model could stand.
You can imagine the feeling of power that the person who's holding the remote has, and at the same time the feeling of helplessness that the person in the collar experiences. Martin has discussed building a new collar which is controlled by an electronic perimeter sensor.  Yikes! If you don't mind, I'll stick with old-fashioned (non-electrofied) steel collars, padlocks and chains!
CAUTIONARY NOTE: Any electrical stimulation toy can be a hazard to the health of the person who's subjected to it. Martin's E Collar is an extremely serious bondage and discipline device, and if purchased, should be used with great care and AT YOUR
OWN RISK. Seriousbondage.com does not encourage play with electro-stimulation or related devices such as this collar.  Should you decide to play or experiment with e-stim (electrical stimulation), make sure that all the people involved FULLY understand the risks. Electrical stimulation is especially dangerous when used above the waist. Get educated before you play. Seriousbondage.com does not accept any liability or responsibility for the use of this E-Collar. Pay attention, play responsibly, and play at your own risk.
Martin's Rigid Stock is probably  the most artistic pieces of bondage gear ever made. It's a true work of metallic art, featuring the graceful "french curves" used in the sewing world. The engineering marvel of this device is in the wrists - removable circular rotating inserts that allow the subject's wrists to twist and turn at will, while still remaining firmly locked inside the stock.  This piece of gear, like most of Martin's gear, can be custom-made to individual neck and wrist sizes.
Three ordinary padlocks are used to secure the stock, each passing through a round pin which is inserted through the stock assembly to hold it closed. During the demonstration we inserted two of the pins upside down, so the padlock would be positioned on top of the stock and allow us to attach chains which were then connected overhead. The chains supported the stock, preventing it from resting on the shoulders of the volunteer. Naturally, it also was effective in keeping him in one place.
CAUTIONARY NOTE: Extreme care must be taken when suspending any bondage gear from overhead - unexpected fainting is common when the bound person is standing with their knees ‘locked’. Always use panic snaps to enable quick release of a
chain or chains under the full weight load of a person’s limp body in an emergency, and never leave someone bound alone. In the above scenario, the bound person might break their neck if they fainted because their entire body weight would be supported by their neck and wrists. Any position involving the risk of supporting a persons weight from his/her neck is potentially fatal, dangerous and unsafe. Pay attention, play responsibly, use panic snaps, and play at your own risk. Seriousbondage.com does not accept any liability or responsibility for the use of this product.
As you can see below, these ankle shackles and wrist cuffs are decidedly a dose of overkill. Martin is a man after my own heart - following the theory that more bondage is better. Both of these restraints incorporate a unique pin-tumbler barrel lock.
If you look closely at the left photo above (the ankle shackles with the connecting chain), you will see that one of the key shafts is covered by a brass cylinder, this being the lock barrel. Once the cuff is closed around the subject's ankle, the key with it's brass barrel inserted into a hole in the cuff, then the key is rotated and extracted, leaving the brass barrel inside of the cuff which prevents it from opening. In the same photo you can see the tip of the brass lock barrel in the right ankle shackle which is closed and locked.
The Z-Cuffs, which are used around the wrists, are even more serious and unforgiving than the ankle cuffs. As you can see, Martin has welded two individual cuffs together at 90 degrees, which hold the subject's wrists in an X cross. With the cuffs applied so that the keyholes are facing away from the prisoner's hands, there is no way the subject can escape even if they possess the key. This is 'serious bondage' at it's finest!
Martin's Spreader Bar is also a very beautiful piece of equipment, which should no doubt be displayed in New York's famous Metropolitan Museum of Art. This device has four openings, used for simultaneously restraining both the ankles and wrists.
Demonstrating this piece of gear should have been pretty straight forward, but Martin's evil mind had other goals. He'd brought two spreader bars, and before we knew it we were witnessing a "69" bondage position.  Our two lovely volunteers had graciously accepted this challenge and within moments they were laughing and giggling while he fastened them in.  Meanwhile, the audience was full of wide eyes and open mouths as we watched two grown women on the floor squirming and laughing hysterically.
The "69" bondage position was a hit, and from this demonstration we concluded that it's best if the two subjects are of similar height.  As can be seen in photos below, our subjects had to adjust their positions for their ankles and wrists to line up comfortably.
Before this demonstration was finished, we witnessed another eye-popping event. Our two subjects were able to swap positions by turning over! I still don't understand how they did it, but it only took them a few seconds which was quite impressive indeed.
The only thing we didn't try was connecting chains between the spreader bars and the walls, so that our subjects were forced to stay in one location on the floor. We will do this next time.
This Fiddle basically identical to the Stradivarius Fiddle shown above, only a standard padlock is used to secure the Fiddle instead of an internal locking mechanism. Also, as I have mentioned, if the locking pin and padlock are inserted upside down (with the padlock on the top of the Fiddle) you can secure a chain from overhead to keep the submissive standing in one position on the floor. Conversely, and equally as interesting, with the pin and padlock pointing down a chain can connect the Fiddle to the floor.
Martin demonstrated the effectiveness of the overhead connected chain. However, to raise the visual excitement I pulled a black spandex hood over our subject's head before we locked her into the Fiddle. As you can see, there's nothing better than a helpless female in a hood, bondage gear and black leather boots!
CAUTIONARY NOTE: Extreme care must be taken when suspending any bondage gear from overhead - unexpected fainting is common when the bound person is standing with their knees ‘locked’. Always use panic snaps to enable quick release of a
chain or chains under the full weight load of a person’s limp body in an emergency, and never leave someone bound alone. In the scenario above, the bound person might break their neck if they fainted because their entire body weight would be supported by their neck and wrists. Any position involving the risk of supporting a persons weight from his/her neck is potentially fatal, dangerous and unsafe. Pay attention, play responsibly, use panic snaps, and play at your own risk. Seriousbondage.com does not accept any liability or responsibility for the use of this product or similar bondage scenarios.

Everyone who attended Martin's presentation had a good time. Martin demonstrated other pieces of bondage gear during the evening, but some volunteers didn't care to have their photo taken, which is quite understandable. A warm thank you to everyone for making Martin's program a success. I hope we can do it again next year.

Lastly, I have collected photos of every piece of gear which Martin has made, which can be seen by clicking HERE. Keep up the good work Martin!
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