My-steel is taking a break

curious

Laura
Of course they outsource or procure pre-produced parts.
Locks are standard products out of the catalogue of large lock making companies for example.
And metal cutting is of course outsourced to specialised businesses. A laser cutting device with sufficuent power and precision is likely to cost high 6 or even 7 figures. Nothing a cb maker could ever justify to own.

JamesG

curious It will probably remain a cottage industry because making a steel belt that doesn't bend or stretch needs an exacting, custom, handcrafted fit. As a result, big firms will stay away because of the inability to automate & scale up into mass production, production rates remain low because of a lack of capital, etc.

WriterAlexis

JamesG

What if we began mass producing the people to a specified standard instead? 🤔

youdontknowme

Reminds me of when the air force measured all their aviators to design a cockpit that was ergonomic for the average pilot. The resulting design turned out to be ergonomic for only a very small number of aviators, since hardly anyone is perfectly average in every dimension that matters.

As far as chastity belt makers and their tools are concerned, as far as I understand it most of them started (and many are still operating) as a side business for more general-purpose metalworkers. At least Latowski and Goethals are, to my knowledge.

Milord

youdontknowme

Also I think that the higher cost is justified by being more confortable for long term wearing
But h24 is considered a myth. Most people, even experienced ones, think that 24/7 wearing, even with breaks, is impossible for women, and possible only for men.
According to most people it’s just fantasy. So for most kink users (that probably make 99% of users) a cheap belt is as useful as a high end with a fraction of the cost, so pretty easy the market is very limited.

JamesG

youdontknowme And how do you produce, say, a car that comfortably fits most drivers? Certainly not by hand-crafting the whole vehicle to exacting measurements of each and every buyer! Can you imagine a world where cars have to be made artisanally like this? Rather, it’s far more sensible to mass produce everything, but then add adjustable cranks, slides and knobs to the human-facing parts—seats, rear view mirrors, steering wheel—so that the one design fits most humans.

There's no reason this can’t be done for chastity belts.

youdontknowme

JamesG That is not just what they do with cars, it is also what they did with planes once it became clear that the pool of applicants who can efficiently use a rigid design would be extremely limited.

And yes, you can see the same thing in the cheap belts from China. But when smooth surfaces are a factor in usability (like they are with many chastity belt designs, the thing is to conform to the body after all), you are quite limited in the types of adjustment mechanisms that can be incorporated, especially with a rigid steel contraption.

WriterAlexis

JamesG

That is kind of why the cable belts are popular. I've changed out my shields several times to see what works for me, and the cable lengths are adjustable as needed.

curious

JamesG
I disagree. With a car only a tiny part of the overal design actually changes based on the physical dimensions of the driver. So that approach makes sense in the automotive industry.
With a chastity belt it is pretty much everything apart from the lock that has to be scaled and locks are already procured as parts that are then only integrated.

JamesG

youdontknowme A chastity belt doesn’t have to be an all steel nor entirely rigid. For example, that Genderlock thing from the other discussion thread is a reasonable design compromise that uses mostly fabric and polycarbonate and can be mass-produced.

Milord

WriterAlexis
If I’m not rude, may I ask what you mean with “works for me”?

JamesG

WriterAlexis The cable belts are great. Are you wearing the Fancy Steel one full time now? How do you find it so far?

I think they’re a really welcome innovation in an industry that’s been otherwise slow-moving in terms of design. The adjustable cables make them comfier for more body shapes than a set of steel bands, and they’re far cheaper to make too.

Another potential improvement, I suppose, would to make swappable/changeable not only the shield, but also the metal frame that holds the shield against the crotch. That would be the one remaining rigid component that needs an exacting fit, so being able to swap in frames of different shapes and sizes would help hugely.

Mithras

JamesG Just made a visit to the genderlock-site. Seems it still is only a prototype and nowhere near production. A pity, because it looks promising.

youdontknowme

Milord Probably something along the lines of "comfortable to wear but secure enough to keep the keyholder happy".

But yeah, multi-material hybrid designs and cable belts are both excellent examples of how belts can be made adjustable, but many people find the rigid steel bands of the traditional chastity belt design inspiring because of the perceived escape resistance.

WriterAlexis

Milord

Is compatible with the anatomy of my hoo-ha.

Milord

WriterAlexis

I was not aware of this. Thanks for explaining

WriterAlexis

JamesG

I get out for hygiene, various extracurriculars, and special circumstances. Otherwise I am wearing.

How do you find it so far?

Fairly broad question. The word I will choose is "tolerable." I find the dome shields more comfortable than the flat shields, and the primary shield I am using is almost nonexistent. I prefer the belt around my hips far more than on my waist, but my sister is the opposite.

JamesG

curious Let’s say the solid waistband on a full steel belt is replaced with adjustable cable. Then there is no need to scale to precise waist measurements, no need to laser/waterjet-cut curving steel parts nor do any kind of tricky metal-bashing by hand: just source wire with a PVC jacket (possibly the kind that’s already mass-manufactured in huge quantities for bicycle locks). And that’s just the waistband…

JamesG

WriterAlexis Didn’t you say earlier that your sister gets overnight breaks? If you’re belted full time but she is not, that doesn’t sound very fair. What’s the reasoning behind that?

Sasha

WriterAlexis I recall you mentioning she doesn’t wear 24/7 like you do, and your parents are much more lax with her about it. Has this changed?

curious

JamesG
Cables are never as strong and secure as a solid band.
So it really depends on what level of security you want to have from a belt. Personally I would consider a belt with cables more a "keyholder will know it when you do what you are not supposed to do"-device and not one that is able to actually ensure nothing sexually is possible.
But that is for the individual wearer / keyholder to decide what is good enough for them.

Ines

JamesG

I have seen what a tight cable belt can do. I think it is not the best of ideas.

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