This hasn't been edited much from when it was a for-sale page to the DIY page it's supposed to be now. Filling in the gaps:
A notions store will have the tweezers - they are bodkins, by Prym-Dritz. They are for threading drawstrings. Individually, they should be less than $2, and in a pack of 500 they may have been $.87 each, or possibly half that. I remember I found a wholesaler (on the net?) and ordered by phone. If I find the name, I'll let you know.
Ball-chain and connectors. Ball-chain is another thing you can get by the foot at a hardware store, or by the spool from a bead store for less or from a wholesaler for more less. #6 chain is about what the average keychain is made of. It will be hard to find the connectors locally. You can get them from Rings and Things.
I was never cool enough to do this: at least one ball-chain wholesaler sells lengths of ball-chain with connector-rings sticking off each end. Those connectors are waaay slicker than the ones you can put on yourself. They also had anodized aluminum ball-chain.
Split-rings. These are jewelry-quality mini-keychain rings, maybe 1/4" or 3/8" across. Available singly or maybe by the dozen from a bead store, or by the gross from a catalog like Rings and Things. Places like that also carry the "split-ring tool" for handling them. (It's a bit difficult to thread them without it. You could also use regular jump rings rings, which are a good deal easier to attach but also as much easier to tear off.)
Vinyl tips or Plasti-Dip. McMaster-Carr has the tips, in different lengths and, I think, widths, in 100-packs. Probably 1/8" by 1/2"-3/4" is good.
Your local hardware store probably has the tool-grip dip, at least in black. McMC has lots of colors including clear. About $10/pint. The dip is probably REALLY BAD FOR YOU. (I'm pretty sure I was smarter before I started working with this stuff under poor ventilation. Of course, that overlapped with the grad-school burnout era.)
For either kind of padding, I dremeled the pointy ends off the tweezers. Dunno how important that was.
Tweezery clamps! I was so happy when I found these clamps-- I hadn't seen these sold before, and I could tell they were just what I was after! --But of course they're just unpadded tweezer clamps. They're a pretty heavy-duty steel construction, chromey-plated, outstanding in the field as far as sheer punk rock points go, in that the tips are toothy -- you see all those little evil nasty big scary pointies. And they can see you. And they can see your friend there, too.
And the tips don't lie flat against each other: they're opposing. That makes them great for grabbing onto something you can really get a hold of... You can grab head-on with the teeth or (a little gentler, for sufficiently-large clampables) sideways.
They're not exactly sharp, though, not scratchy. And they'll stay open at whatever width you adjust them, which that can be up to a half-inch, almost. The sweetest bit is: even before you can really feel them, they're on tight enough to not fall off. That's a secret, though. They look mean. Oh, certainly they go awfully tight, too, if you like. You wanna be careful about yanking their chain...
Also, I should mention that these take two hands to put on. Because the adjustment ring is so non-slip while the clamps are, uh, deployed, you want to squeeze the jaws together yourself, slide the ring along, then let go and check where it's holding them -- lather rinse repeat -- then pry the jaws apart with your fingers enough to attach it, then release.
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Here are padded tweezer clamps. (Sheesh. The original coup was finding affordable unpadded tweezer clamps and finding pointy teeth inside. It seems like a shame to cover up some of their bark and bite.) A coat of rubber adds some friction (and makes them a little less chilly) which means that they'll still stay on even if adjusted a little looser. This isn't the best solution-- in particular, I'm not sure how durable it is-- so those are the same price as the bare ones, while supplies last. In fact, the black-tipped ones are sold out, but there are a few left in clear.
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Here are padded tweezer clamps. (Sheesh. The original coup was finding affordable unpadded tweezer clamps and finding pointy teeth inside. It seems like a shame to cover up some of their bark and bite.) A coat of rubber adds some friction (and makes them a little less chilly) which means that they'll still stay on even if adjusted a little looser. This isn't the best solution-- in particular, I'm not sure how durable it is-- so those are the same price as the bare ones, while supplies last. In fact, the black-tipped ones are sold out, but there are a few left in clear. |
Last but not least, I've finally found some vinyl tip end-caps for them (pics with products below). They're pretty tough, but to make absolutely sure the teeth don't bite through or anything, the tips are dipped in a blob of epoxy first. This is the last step in their evolution into a passing budget version of the usual tweezer clamps. YAAH! I RECAPITULATE PHYLOGENY AT YOU! (Tips with half-inch vinyl caps are sold out. Now available are 1" (shown below) and 1.5" caps-- longer, for less-chilly clamps.)
Plain, $15
Vinyl tips, $17
We've done these up with a foot of kink-proof #6 ball-chain. (I suppose that means you'll just have to try harder.) Let us know if there's some other length you'd prefer.
(out of stock, was $25)
And then there's these... Unsettling... Oh, and a little heavy.
One pair available, vinyl-tipped.
(one 1oz pulley out of stock)
one 2oz pulley available
Plain, $25
Vinyl tips, $27
Two clamps connected with ball-chain... but the chain goes through a pulley attached to another length of ball-chain that hangs south and has two more clamps. This is something like the three-way Y clamps that are mass-produced, but a little more interesting. First, there's two clamps hanging, which I think is a plus. Second, the wearer has an oddly different range of motion with these than with the static ones. (I think that's just fascinating.)
Mind, the pulley is a weighty thing, and-- awwww-- wants a little tension on the south chain to keep it from flipping over. The ball-chain connectors, though, are such that you can pop the chain out and hook it back in further along, shortening up on it. For that matter, you can cut the extra off to suit, if you like.
Item at left is shown with 2oz pulley. Right pic shows 1oz and 2oz pulleys.
These are a joy to my heart! The evil, scary-looking claw clamps are connected with some lovely friendly neohippie hemp macrame, with PEACE, LOVE, and HAPPINESS polymer-clay cane beads. They're such a mind-blowing combination. Also unsettling!
Black nylon cord plus bolo hardware. Why not raise a little hell and mix a little metaphor? Bondage-y rope tied in the typical flogger-finish turks-head knot. (For that matter, I've always wondered why spurs haven't caught on among punk/kink dressin'-up-folks.) The slider hardware is especially nice, spring-loaded and all that.
Black nylon cord with a lanyard-type diamond knot and two cat-o-nine-tails-type knots. Same idea. These go around the neck (or let the loop hang and use it for a leash). The size should be about right to get over most heads, but you could work the knot down if it's not for you. I'm out of this cord right now, but looking for more. (This was a real tight 1/8" cord, but all I see lately is floppier stuff.)
sold out ($25)
(Out of stock; must must must dig up a new micro-snap wholesaler!)
Three clamps on a mini dog-lead snap. Clip to weights, to cuffs, to a rubber band around the neck of a Hitachi..? (Tips padded on the house. Trust me. (Or not.))
