Modern use

Today, chastity belts are sometimes used in BDSM play and in consensual relationships. They are a means for the wearer to surrender control over their sexual behavior either for sexual play, or as a long-term method of preventing infidelity or masturbation. They range from simple leather or plastic toys commonly sold by adult stores to expensive high-security stainless steel devices made by a handful of specialist firms.

Most modern chastity belt designs are descended from Hal Higginbottom's designs from 1956. Sometimes modern Florentine-style belts are described as "Tollyboy-style" or "Tollyboy-type" belts as references to his company's original design.

Human anatomy varies very widely from person to person and steel belts intended for long-term use are bespoke items. The manufacture of such belts is necessarily a cottage industry. Many firms have come and gone over the years. Notable amongst those who have stopped manufacturing chastity belts since the 1980s are:

• Access Denied (Paul Tooker of New York; closed after his death)
• Herbert Rossmann (Austria)
• In Discretione Fortitudo (Nifrik Scylla of the Netherlands)
• Kastley (Germany) (reseller; original manufacturer unknown)
• Pourquoi Pas (Germany)
• Atelier Mode (Cologne, Germany)

Although no reliable statistics are available on the use of chastity belts, anecdotal reports from manufacturers suggest that most belts sold in Europe and the US are for men, and that of the female belts ordered, relatively few are used as rape prevention devices.

Belt types

(click to enlarge picture)

A modern female William Jones belt

with an atypical integrated radial lock.

Modern chastity belt designs generally follow the basic "Florentine" pattern (named after the Bellifortis reference), with a band around the waist or hips and a "shield" running between the legs to cover the genitals.

On belts intended for long-term wear, this shield must accommodate the wearer's hygienic needs:

• For females, the shield is commonly a flat band with a slot through which the labia can protrude and through which urine can pass. Some manufacturers fit a perforated cover (sometimes called the "secondary shield") over this slot to prevent the wearer from being pinched when sitting. The cover may also prevent direct masturbation by blocking the labia from touch.
• For males, the shield usually covers a tube in which the penis is held facing downward, with perforations at the bottom of the shield to allow urine to escape. The testicles are usually left exposed on both sides of the tube, although some designs have an additional cup that prevents easy access to the entire genital area.
• Belts with a "thong" arrangement have a single strap running up between the buttocks to the waistband. On some, this is a plastic-coated cable or a thin, curved metal rod. This strap may or may not be loose enough to pull aside, depending on whether the fit of the belt is to protect against anal penetration. On other designs, the rear strap is solid with an aperture over the anus to allow passage of feces.
• Belts with a "V"-arrangement have a pair of chains attached together at the bottom of the shield and apart towards the back of waistband in a "V" to leave the rear open.
• On both male and female belts, the shield can be designed to work with genital piercings for greater security.

Most modern belts fasten with padlocks. Some high-security designs nest the lock within a shroud to make it more difficult to attack with bolt cutters. A handful of manufacturers, however, do offer higher-priced models with integral locks for a sleeker profile.

 Chastity tubes and cages

Chastity tubes or chastity cages are similar devices designed for males for use without a supporting belt, although such devices are nevertheless frequently described as "chastity belts".

Most chastity tubes have two parts: a ring seated around the base of the penis behind the scrotum and a capped tube, into which the flaccid penis is inserted. The tube is perforated to allow fluids to drain easily. Some designs have a curved or angled tube to make erections uncomfortable. The two parts mate together on hinges or pins and are held fast with a padlock, holding the testicles in a gap close enough to prevent the penis from being pulled out.

A popular example was the CB-2000, introduced in 1999 by A. L. Enterprises, which was an attempt to make a secure and affordable device which could be mass produced.

Recent developments

In April, 2002, the Uwe Koetter Jewellers company of Cape Town, South Africa completed and delivered a spectacular diamond and pearl-encrusted chastity belt made of gold to a British customer. The belt reportedly cost R160,000 and was a wedding gift from a husband-to-be for his bride to wear at their wedding.

On February 6, 2004, USA Today reported that at Athens airport in Greece, a woman's steel chastity belt had triggered a security alarm at the metal detector. The woman explained that her husband had forced her to wear the device to prevent an extramarital affair while she was on vacation in Greece. She was allowed to continue her flight to London on the pilot's authority. The incident was said to have happened just before Christmas in 2003. The incident was also reported by Weekly World News.

In November 2006, photographs of Lucio Gubbio's hand-wrought iron chastity belts were published in newspapers including the Seoul Times, and CRI Online. Although Gubbio's company, MedioEvo, claims that their chastity belts' designs are from the Middle Ages on their website, a company spokesperson acknowledged that there is no proof that devices such as these were actually used.