Counter Custody & Escaping Illegal Restraints - Part 3

By Gavin C - Urban Ready Contributor



There are two basic methods in counter custody for escaping from any illegal restraint, one or both of these will be an option to you for any of the restraints listed above, or a dirty mix of the two.

These methods consist of:


A: Brute Force or Physical Methods – These are methods which revolve solely around using your body to break out of the restraint or manoeuvre yourself free. These require practice to learn, but are in general relatively easy once you have the technique down.


B: Tools or Mechanical Methods – These are methods which rely on small, concealable tools to help you get out of the restraint. These can often require a lot of forethought and planning, as well as practiced skill to perfect.


You should aim to be proficient at both, as much as possible. We will be looking at both of these methods and explaining as much as possible in depth to help you achieve these techniques.


Brute Force/Physical Methods of Escape:


The Brute Force and Physical methods are used primarily on bindings like duct tape and cable ties, while bindings like rope and wire can also be freed using a physical method its not a “brute force” style method. While, technically speaking, you can also escape from Cuffs using a physical method, it would require breaking or removing your thumbs, which is not advisable.

So, these methods remain largely outside of the realm of proper handcuffs.


1: Increase the Diameter


The first method for any binding, whether its duct tape, rope or a single cable tie over both wrists, is to make the area of the restraint bigger than it needs to be. This might sound a bit weird or hard to comprehend, but this method basically relies on you being 100% compliant with your captor and them being a little bit stupid. If you get it right though, you’ll slip out of the restraint fairly easily, so it’s worth a try. Using this method, you may also be lucky in that your captor binds your hands at your front, which will make things a million times easier, regardless of which method you use.


Basically, what you need to do here is offer no resistance and offer up your wrists for binding. By appeasing the captor, they A: Might not bind you that tightly, especially if you’re female, B: won’t reposition your hands how they want.


By making fists and putting your hands side by side, thumb to thumb, the distance between your wrists is at its maximum. If you are bound this way, it’s a mere matter of rotating your hands so that your thumbs face upwards, and suddenly that distance decreases and the binding loosens. This is especially useful to remember with rope and wire bindings.


If the captor insists on binding your hands behind your back, break out your acting skills and limit your shoulder mobility, act injured, whatever it takes, to try increase the distance between your wrists. This will help a lot when you need to get free.
Don’t force the issue however. Don’t risk getting hurt over it. There are other ways out too…


2: Wriggle It


When it comes to Rope and Cable restraints, wriggling is going to help. Nylon braided ropes and plastic coated copper cables are the easiest to release with the wriggling technique, while steel wire and natural rope tends to bind into itself more.


That being said, you aren’t aiming to wriggle till the bindings just fall off. You’re looking to make small openings to exploit. It may take a long time, but you will find a way loose eventually. Stay focussed and determined.


You can also employ a semi-mechanical solution, if your environment allows it. Sharp edges and corners can help you wear through a binding. The sharp metal frame of a window, the edge of a counter top or table. Anything that can hook into a knot to help loosen it. Look around you, there is bound to be something that can help wear through your binding.


This is also why you should always attempt the First method above, even if you only manage to increase the diameter slightly, that little bit can make this method work a whole lot easier.


In many cases this can take a long time, maybe even a few hours of persistence. Don’t give up.


3: Wedge Technique


This method is a quick way to get out of cable ties and duct tape. There is no difference in the technique for either of these restraints, it works exactly the same. However, with cable ties there are a couple of details which will make it easier.


The technique is basically about turning your body into a wedge, which combined with force, will break the restraints clean off. This technique works for both front binding and behind the back binding, however – let it be known that doing it with your hands behind your back is tenfold more difficult. It’s not impossible, but it’s much, much more difficult! Let’s start with the front.



  1. Start by getting yourself into a correct, solid stance. Feet shoulder width apart, knees slightly bent.
  2. Raise your bound hands up over your head, reaching as far back as you can. You want to generate as much momentum as you can.
  3. Using your shoulder muscles, generate as much downward force as you can, pulling your hands down in an arc towards your hip area.
  4. Your elbows should glide past your hips, effectively creating a wedge with your body.
  5. At this moment, thrust forward with your hips as hard as you can.
  6. Create tension with your rear shoulder muscles, driving as much force towards your wrists, and the restraints, as you can.
  7. Your restraints should break under the shearing force of this movement.


The key to getting this technique right, is understanding that you are driving your hips forward, while pulling your arms back. Try to activate as much of your back and shoulder muscles when doing this.

Please visit the article on our website here to see video of this technique!


There are a couple of tips which will help with cable ties in specific.



  1. Some people say the tighter the cable ties are, the better. This is a matter of opinion, but try both loose and tight and see which one you prefer. If, when it comes to doing it for real they are loose, you can always tighten them by pulling on them with your teeth.
  2. Position the buckle of the cable as close to the centre-line of your body as you can. This centreline is where the breaking force will be at its strongest, and the buckle is the weakest part of the cable tie. Remember, the only part of a cable tie that’s locking anything is a couple mm of plastic.


It’s worth noting that this technique will also work with Flexi-Cuffs. It is a lot more difficult and you are likely to get abrasions and cuts on your wrists, but the technique is the same. We have tested this with both cheap and expensive flexi-cuff brands, and it is possible to break them. Just remember though, that they are designed not to break, so it is much more difficult than cable ties.

When it comes to Duct Tape, the shearing force should tear the tape quite easily. Ironically, it seems more difficult with poor quality tape. High quality duct tape is designed to tear easily in a straight line for ease of use, and this is effectively the force we are applying to it with this technique. Applying this technique to a binding of 5 layers of duct tape is roughly equal to doing it on a heavy-duty cable tie.


Using this method with your hands behind your back is much more tricky and relies upon you having pretty decent mobility in your shoulders. The principal remains the same, you are going to wedge your hips between your arms, pulling forward this time. This means you need to lift your arms as high as you can backwards to generate the momentum. In most people this is not going to be very much momentum at all, which is why its so much more difficult. Here is a video demonstrating the technique.


For most people, this is incredibly difficult and you may have to find more mechanical means of escape. But it is worth trying, because ultimately its good to know what your capabilities are, and knowing if you can or cannot use the brute force method will tell you what contingencies you need to have in place.


Electrical Tape and Packaging Tape might break, depending on the brand, however generally speaking they don’t shear like Duct Tape. There are a couple of specific techniques which work better with Electrical Tape or Packing Tape.


4: Biting/Piercing


If your hands are bound in front of you, don’t be scared of biting your way out of the restraints. Once duct tape starts to tear, it will tear through very easily. Get it going with a bite.


Just a word of caution when doing this, especially with packaging tape. If you are not careful and end up compressing the binding into itself it will form a thicker, almost rope-like strand. This will be very difficult to tear or shear, and you will have to cut it to get free.


Electrical tapes tend to be very flexible and stretch quite easily, using a little bit of strength and work, you can quite easily loosen them and wriggle free.


This about covers the basics of Brute Force Physical Methods.


In the next part, we will discuss the use of tools and mechanical methods, as well as the types of tools you can use for escaping illegal restraints.