Expert: James - 2/7/2009

Question
I have a pair of Tower (Single lock) handcuffs from the late 1860's.  I also have the key.  Here's my problem...The inside of the locks are so rusted that the key will not unlock the mechanisms. I sprayed WD40 and PB Blaster in the keyhole to loosen the mechanism up, but to no avail.  Do you know of any other method of removing the compounded rust to restore them to working order?

Answer
Hello Michal,

If WD-40 didn't work the only option, and to keep them as well, would be to disassemble them which may not be possible depending on how they were manufactured, then clean them.

I've not dealt with handcuffs before but WD-40 is about the only thing I know of that will remove rust.

You can try soaking them in a small bucket of WD-40 for 24 hours to see if that helps.

James
www.jmlock.com