Review: Spartacus Adjustable Broad Tip Clamps

I have quite a number of "beginner's" BDSM toys to review - a few days ago I reviewed a Wartenberg Wheel, and today I'm reviewing a pair of Spartacus Adjustable Broad Tip Clamps, also from Sextoy.com.

First, I guess a quick intro to nipple clamp types is in order: the three most common types I've seen so far are tweezer clamps, alligator clamps (and variations thereof), and clover clamps. These clamps are a type of alligator clamp. Tweezer and alligator clamps are more suitable for beginners, as adjustable versions are produced as well. Clover clamps are intense; they're heavier, are much more painful, and yanking on the connecting chain actually tightens them.

Tweezer clamps can be adjusted by sliding a metal piece up or down the tweezer part. I've never used tweezer clamps, but I expect them to be more difficult to adjust, because I imagine the metal piece might slide up or down if the clamps were jostled, or if you were slightly on the clumsy side. These broad tip clamps, as well as other alligator clamp models, are adjusted by a screw, which seems much easier to me, and once you adjust them, they stay in place.

Another difference is that tweezer clamps are narrower, thus don't clamp onto much flesh. I also own a pair of "eagle clamps" that are very similar to alligator clamps, except that the clamp area is pointed, not broad and flat. A narrower clamp means that the pressure is concentrated on a smaller area, so is probably slightly more intense. However, broader tips clamp onto more flesh, making them easier to use on tiny man-nipples. You can just pinch a big area of flesh - the aureole as well as the nipple - so it will stay on easier. One of the difficulties I had trying to use my eagle clamps on the Optimist was just getting them to stay on.

These clamps are also linked by a chain, which can be fun to yank on and lead your partner around with. Some clamps have vibrating bullets, or pretty colored beads, but I liked having the option to yank someone around by the nipples.

Basically, I picked these clamps as one of my first pairs because they seemed easier to use and more versatile than other types.

Pointed v.s. broad tips

So far, I've only used the clamps on myself. The "easy to use" part was only half true: the tips of the clamps are coated in black rubber, which probably prevents hard metal poking into your nipple. However, the coating coupled with the wideness of the clamps makes the clamps fall off easier when the chain is yanked, or if I have sweat on my skin. The adjustment screws were kind of long - a bit too long, actually, since you can't turn them all the way and open the clamps to that extent. The clamps just don't open that wide. The screws also aren't fixed in place, they have been slid through a hole in the clamp. I left these clamps loose (i.e. not in a storage baggie) in my toy drawer for a while, and one of the screws got detached and lost. Annoying. So now I store them in the plastic clamshell they came in.

Also, to adjust the clamps, you need to pinch the clamps open, and then turn the screw to the desired tension. If you don't hold the clamps open while adjusting them, the screw gets stuck. With my eagle clamps, I just have to turn the screw to adjust them. A moot point, perhaps, but I think it says something about Spartacus' design.

After being disappointed by the shoddy quality of one of their crops, I was suspicious of trying out another Spartacus product. But apparently, they make halfway decent clamps.

Specs:
- Type: Nipple clamp
- Clamp width: 0.4"
- Chain length: 12"
- Price @ sextoy.com: $11.70 

Further reading:
- Nipple Clamps 101
- How to Play with Nipple Clamps

Three out of five hearts.

sex toys | BDSM toys

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