I wanted to like these. I really, really did. They’re all leather -- no fur or fleece lining. I like this better for aesthetic reasons, and I’m sure that fleece gets hot. The insides are well-padded, the leather is good, the hardware shiny. Like all Aslan cuffs, they come with a locking-optional buckle, which I didn’t fully understand until I looked at it myself. Basically, the thing that slides through the hole in the strap is a small metal loop instead of a solid metal piece, so a lock can be attached there, trapping even crafty escape artists (and I’m dating one of those, so I think that will come in handy!). Of course, you have to use a small lock – think luggage-sized, but maybe sturdier.

Now for the problems. The design of the Master suspension cuffs|Master suspension cuffs is asymmetrical, in that the longer pieces attach to the open ends of the cuffs that get fastened together; so, when tightening them, they curve in at an angle rather than head-on, like normal wrist cuffs. Smart design, in the sense that it cradles the wrist and lower hand in an appropriate way when actually being used to hold someone up. However, the last two holes were almost impossible to utilize. The strap simply would not bend sideways enough to reach the buckle. Sadly, my partner’s tough hardcore sexy delicate wrists required the second-smallest hole, and I couldn’t even get the cuffs tightened down to that point. So, the perfect opportunity out at the dungeon to test these guys was lost. Later, I was finally able to tighten them to the needed hole (sans wrist) – I think they need some major breaking in before they’ll really shine.

However, why stop there? There are two other D rings around the wrist part of the cuff, not to mention the one intended to attach to suspension gear. After some squeezing, I did eventually get them on the wrists to the appropriate tightness level, and they made for some excellent handcuffs to attach him to the spreader bar with rope, as well as simply keep his hands trapped, pull a piece of rope through the top rings and drag him around some with. Given all the squirming and ducking that happens here sometimes, that was very handy, and he said his wrists were comfortable throughout.

Still, I’m of the opinion that if a certain size setting isn’t really usable on this kind of item, it shouldn’t be there (I have yet to be able to shove the bar into the smallest hole on the leather strap, though I’ve tried). I am left frustrated with the strapping mechanism, and would have expected more thought from Aslan.