Tag: CB6K

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CB-6000 review (finally)

The other day while looking at Tumblr I noticed something strange. I found myself on someone’s Tumblr that was all men locked in chastity devices which are not normally the kinds of Tumblrs I hang out on or follow because I think most male chastity porn is kind of boring. I’ll post the occasional picture of a guy in a device (not counting my own, of course), but they’re remarkably repetitious (counting my own) and the kinds with captions rarely do anything for me.

So anyway, I will occasionally look at these “show me your locked cock” Tumblrs to see what people are wearing. It’s how I find out about new devices. What I noticed the other day was along with a bunch of metal that looked like cheap Chinese shit you get off Amazon and the occasional Mature Metal or Steelworxx device were a lot of Holy Trainers (v2). Like, at least half were Trainers. I’d guess half as many of those were CB-6000s. This was surprising because my CB-6000 tips and tricks page is still, all these years after I wrote it, the number one page on the site after the homepage. I have no idea why this is because the top search terms WordPress says people are using to find the site now rarely include the CB-6000. So I don’t really know how these people are finding the page, but a lot of them are. Every single day. My review of the Holy Trainer v2 is usually half or two-thirds as popular in any given month.

This bums me out because I’ve assumed these numbers more or less indicate how popular the two devices are and I think the Holy Trainer is far superior to the aging design of the CB-6000. But then I see this Tumblr and all the guys in Trainers and that makes me wonder. What’s going on?

I decided to crowdsource a possible answer. I asked Twitter “If you were recommending a first male chastity device, which would it be?” The poll is still open at the time I’m writing this so it can still change, but as of right now, 99 people have responded and, lo and behold, the Holy Trainer holds a clear lead. Nearly half (48%) say it’s the device they’d recommend to a newbie while the CB-6000 comes in second at just over a third (34%) saying it’s their choice. The Bird Locked comes in a distant third (as it should — not a fan of silicone chastity devices).

The Holy Trainer is, in my opinion, the correct choice. And yes, we’ve been over this before, but that was a few years ago. And it occurs to me I never actually reviewed the CB-6000 because I wasn’t doing that kind of thing when I wore it. So, I shall consider this its review.

  • The CB-6000 is overly complicated. It has spacers to allow a flexible distance between the tube and the ring and it has multiple ring sizes. That ends up being a dizzying number of size combinations that I used to think was a strength but now think is just too much. It makes people think fitting a device to a penis is tricky when it’s really not that much.
  • It has a hard-edged A-ring. Trust me, that’s miserable. Not the good kind of discomfort. And for the life of me, I can’t imagine why it’s still like this. The device has been on the market for something close to ten years and it’s never been replaced with a rounded A-ring like the CB-3000 had. It’s never been redesigned to a more ergonomic shape like literally every other plastic device on the planet. It’s still perfectly round and sharp and causing many men all kinds of awful pain that simply isn’t necessary.
  • It has obnoxious side vents. One might assume they’re for hygiene’s sake, but they’re totally unnecessary and lead to flesh bulging through during erections which in turn leads to soreness and even broken skin. A lot of guys epoxy them over.
  • It’s the only device I’ve worn that led to the development of edema. That’s the accumulation of fluid under the skin and it’s benign if caught and allowed to dissipate, but it’s uncomfortable. I believe this is caused by the fact that the tube is narrow along the shaft but far more open near the head leading to constriction, even when flaccid.
  • The tube is made up of two halves joined together. In the early years, they split more often than seemed acceptable. Their design makes that a possibility even now and, from what I’ve been told, there is no pain like the pain of penis skin being trapped and pinched down the entire length of one’s member as an erection goes away.
  • It still uses a padlock. They bounce around and take up room in your pants. They corrode. They can have sharp edges that poke.
  • Lastly, and I acknowledge this is subjective, the CB-6000 is simply ugly. It looks like a medical device your grandpa has to wear, not a sex toy. The “fashion” variants (gold, wood grain, camo, etc.) are like when Cadillac made the Cimarron. It was flashy and had lots of Caddy badges, but underneath it was still a Chevy Cavalier.

The Holy Trainer isn’t perfect, but it has none of those issues. It’s A-ring is so much more comfortable and it has never led to edema on me. It doesn’t have vents along the tube (the holes it does have are in the penis head area and don’t lead to the same issues). The tube is solid and made of a more forgiving, comfortable plastic. It’s also far more attractive (basic black is my preferred color). And it’s dead simple. Three parts, including the lock (which is integrated and won’t corrode or stop working).

The biggest improvement I think could be made to the Trainer would be an option of buying it with all three ring sizes. Ring size is the most important element in male chastity and is the difference between a device a guy can keep on for days or weeks at a time and one that can’t stay on overnight. It’s too bad they don’t have a bundled option for newbies to be able to try the different sizes.

There were serval comments to my tweet about “cheap knockoffs” available on Amazon for both the CB-6000 and Holy Trainer. Insert here my standard warning about saving a few bucks while at the same time endangering your one and only penis. Personally, I’d pay the extra $10-50 bucks and get the original, but I’m also the guy who buys genuine Apple Watch bands over their $9 Amazon counterparts.

I think the CB-6000 is a hugely important device for male chastity advocates and enthusiasts. It was the first really popular mass-produced device and undoubtedly led to many men and women (millions?) giving the concept of chastity a try. You know, like Belle and I. But times have moved on. There has been innovation in the space and the CB-6000 has not kept up. It’s a relic from another era.

If you’re thinking of buying a CB-6000, spend your money on the Holy Trainer instead.

 

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Lipstick, meet pig

Big news today! No, not the Supreme Court argument over marriage equity. No, not the Baltimore riots. NO, not the tragedy in Tibet.

THERE’S GOING TO BE A GOLD CB-6000!

Dateline: Las Vegas.

Male chastity device manufacturer CB-X Male Chastity is putting the finishing touches on its new luxury chastity device, the CB-6000 Gold.

Man, gold is the new black, isn’t it? What can’t you get in gold these days? Apparently, they’re taking preorders to see how many of these shiny, shiny things to make. It doesn’t appear to be on their site as of this writing, but maybe soon.

This is where I kinda lost it, though…

The CB-6000 Gold combines the trending color combination of gold and black, reflecting CB-X’s philosophy as a luxury brand.

Luxury brand? OK, look. I get that the CB-X line is, apparently, the most popular male chastity device line on the planet. But it’s not fucking luxurious unless lots of fiddly plastic bits and ripped up scrotum skin count as the lifestyle of the rich and famous. The CB-6000 is a painful, uncomfortable dinosaur and CB-X badly needs to come out with a product that reflects improvements in male chastity design (such as ergonomic A-rings, simpler locking mechanisms, no-seam tubes, and the radical innovation of rounded surfaces). What’s their answer to the Holy Trainer? Shiny paint. Please.

They’ve milked (see what I did there) just about every ounce of value out of the CB-6000. Time to move on. I’m sure they’ll sell a million of the damned things (probably literally), but in my opinion, painting the CB-6000 up in gold is like putting lipstick on a pig. It makes the pig look marginally better, but it’s still a pig. Oink, oink.

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Holy Trainer v2 inbound

So since Andy’s review of the Holy Trainer 2 I mentioned the other day, the device has been on my mind. There were some loose ends from my original Holy Trainer review and I’ve always wanted to address them. Not only the new design, but the “biosourced resin” material and, specifically, the clear version which seems to get more reports of cracking and failure than the opaque models. Then, Belle and I scheduled a trip to NYC for next month in which I requested she keep me in the Trainer. So it was on my mind even more.

So, yes, I ordered the v2 Trainer this morning. The final straw was noticing that when one Google’s “Holy Trainer” my review is the first site listed that isn’t one of the holytrainer.com pages. It’s the same if you Google “Holy Trainer 2.” If you ask Google for “Holy Trainer review” or “Holy Trainer 2 review,” I get top billing. Well, friends, that was it. I couldn’t stand the thought that people might be coming here looking for a review of the HT v2 and finding a review of the old model. Also, since the clear resin might be a fatal flaw, I felt compelled to pick it up.

I started ordering from the HT site but thought $20 for shipping was excessive and checked out Kept for Her. The device is available there and ships via Priority Mail for $8. Total damage was $178 which was about five bucks cheaper than going direct (and, I expect, will result in faster deliver since KFH is domestic and HT is in Europe).

Back when I found out the HT v2 existed, I asked the manufacturer if they’d supply a review unit. They declined, as I recall, saying they had already sent out all the review units they were going to give away (since it’s highly doubtful they want any of them back). So here I am several months later shelling out my own allowance, but at least that means you know I have no skin in the game. No conflict of interest. In fact, if it breaks, I’ll be pissed. Also, dear reader, know that I bought the clear one especially for you. I prefer the look of the black device and so does Belle, as a general rule.

My plan will be to ask Belle if I can wear the device for at least a month. I want to evaluate how the changes in the design impact its performance and I want to give the clear resin a real test. I’ll likely post a new review based on a few days of wear but will be adding to it over time with notes on durability. KFH sent a shipment notification less than two hours after I ordered which says two things. One, I hope to be able it get it on soon. Two, KFH is on their game.

So, stay tuned.

Finally, I figured out my Google rankings might help determine which of the two best-known plastic chastity devices is the better seller if, as I do, you assume Google searches are an indicator of purchase intent. My CB-6000 tips and tricks page is also the top link if you Google for a CB6K review, so comparing the two pages’ traffic should be interesting directional information.

For the year so far, the Holy Trainer review averages 2,178 views a month. It’s usually in the top five pages every day. The CB-6000 review page gets  5,042 and is usually number two or three on the days I don’t post a new entry. Traffic for both is pretty flat and has shown little increase or decrease, on average, over the year. So, one might assume the CB6K remains the clear winner in the plastic cock lock wars. Pity, really, since I think the HT is a better device all the way around.

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The sporting life

Venerable chastity blogger Tom (I bet he just loves being called “venerable”) expounded on something the other day I’ve been meaning to get back to for a little while: Chastity and exercise.

His opening bit about looking for the perfect device that allows for movement and comfort yet is inescapable and undetectable and light and cheap and perfectly hygienic and sexy and not actually carved from a block of solid unobtanium was pretty funny to me because it is how a lot of guys are, especially when they start out, and not entirely unlike how I was at one time. While new devices are still intriguing to me, I’ve got enough time under my belt (ahem) to know the Goldilocks device just isn’t out there. But I digress…and we’re only on the second paragraph.

Tom’s post (and apparently this one) was about how one exercises and stays active from the point of view of a person invested in “the chastity lifestyle.” His ultimate advice is fairly simple:

After a dozen or more years of reading chastity oriented groups, it occurred to me that I don’t remember anyone saying something like “It’s not a life-support system, it’s only a sex toy. Just take the damn thing off for an hour, why don’t you?”

Tom is an eminently reasonable fellow. Very Spock, in a way. I find his point of view to often be practical and not especially emotional. That’s not a bad thing. Not at all. But it’s a difference between he and I. I’m more…I don’t know. I don’t want to say emotional, though I am that. I’m more sentimental. I’m more idealistic, perhaps. And I think enforced chastity is emotional more than it’s practical.

In any event, I recall back to when I started doing the regular gym thing. Got a trainer and everything. I can’t recall at the moment which device I was in at that time (probably the Steelheart), but I do recall suggesting to Belle I might need to have an easily accessible key in order to take the device off while working out. She wouldn’t have any of that. I had to see my trainer (actually, trainers since I was handed off to one of three people including a 6’5″ West African and a tight lesbian kick-boxer) locked up. I don’t know if it was that she didn’t trust me to have access to the penis or if she just didn’t want to break the dynamic. Maybe both.

At the time, I was terrified. Gyms are pretty masculine places and I’ve never been good in especially masculine situations. Now she was telling me I was going to need to go into that wearing flimsy gym clothes and an odd, hard bulge in my crotch. The solution to this predicament was two-fold. One, I bought some compression shorts. Second, I chilled the fuck out.

In actual fact, I have found no physical reason to be out of a steel device (even with part of it shoved up inside me) while working out at the gym. I’ve done just about every kind of weight-related excercise possible now and there are only a few times it’s even marginally an issue. Tom mentions deadlifts and that’s one example, but I’ve never feared for my safety. All that happens is sometimes the bar will catch on the device rather than sliding smoothly over it like it would with a natural penis. The other time it comes into play is when I’m doing any exercise involving laying on my stomach (like supermans — especially interesting in the Looker 02).

There’s really only two reasons to be unlocked when in the gym and, IMO, they’re both mental. One is you just can’t bear the idea of someone seeing your state and knowing you’re locked up. So much is written about stealth in chastity. It’s one of main things guys want to know about when discussing a new device. How well can it be hidden? Is it visible through jeans? On the one hand, I get that. I do. But on the other, I’m really far removed from caring anymore if some random person sees something out of place between my legs.

Case in point. My current trainer (the only of the original three I liked) has had a neophyte trainer shadowing him for a few weeks. She just sits off to the side while he works with his clients. The first time she was present when I was working out also happened to be when the only clean gym shorts I had available was a light gray pair that is the worst at hiding any kind of protrusion or steel, even in compression shorts. At some point, he had me doing a decline sit-up. With my legs hooked over the end of a declined bench, my shirt pulls up a bit, the shorts lay flat, and whatever’s between my legs becomes its most visible.

C’est la fuckin’ vie.

What are these people going to think? I can tell you, “chastity device” is not even on their list. Most muggles have never even heard of the things. And for those who have? Who can put two and two together? I don’t care. I’m not ashamed. On the contrary. Probably what someone uninitiated with chastity devices (and the hidden kink all around them in general) would think is that I had a really big cock (which is what the Steelheart looks exactly like under clothes). Most men would welcome that, I think.

The second mental reason not to wear it would be the issue of forcibly involving others into your sex life. You could argue (as I have with myself) that any time the device is visible I am risking exposing something about myself to others without their consent that they probably don’t want to know. My rationalization is that I can’t always hide the device, most people will have no idea what it is even if they see it, and I do nothing to be excessively exhibitionist about my sexual proclivities (this blog notwithstanding). There’s a fine line between being cognizant of the rights of others not to be involved in one’s sex play and shaming oneself into non-existence. I’m comfortable with my choices. This is, of course, something that everyone needs to figure out for themselves.

This is getting longer than I thought it would be…

So, to recap, IMO, no reason not to be locked up in a gym. Note I don’t have to change at my gym or shower there. If I did, that would change things for me and require more creative thinking (like, I would do those things elsewhere).

The other physical activity I’ve started doing quite a lot of lately is running. Three to five miles at a time three to four times a week (51 miles in the last month, according to Strava). Almost all the time, I’m wearing either the Steelheart or the Looker 02. In the Steelheart, there is slight yet totally audible clank with every stride. The PA fixing inside the device has some play in it and it along with my PA ring will strike the inside of the tube. There’s no pain or discomfort associated with this. I have no idea if anyone I run by even registers the sound (most runners don’t clank) or, if they do, what they make of it. See above for my position on that.

The Looker 02 can be an issue when running in that the bulb end of the urethral insert can cause irritation in the first day or so of wearing it after having not worn it for a long time. This irritation lasts about 24 hours then is gone. Lately, I’ve worn the looker for weeks at a time and run a lot and don’t feel a thing. I don’t even lubricate the L02 before running. I will when I think about it with the Steelheart, but the sweat usually creates enough lubrication to keep me chafe-free. I’ve never run with a plastic device on. I can’t imagine doing it with the CB6K.

Tom also mentioned biking. Hard to disagree with him there. Biking in a device can be miserable. I don’t like doing it and it’s one of the reasons I prefer running (just one, though — it’s not like I run just because I’m almost always locked up). Interestingly, the one device that’s not as bad on a bike (over the CB6K and Steelheart) is the Looker 02. But yeah, if you’re going to be a serious biker, you’re going to need to take off your device.

The same goes for lots of other sports. Team sports or contact sports. Sports that require cups. Hard to be able to do those in chastity. Dangerous, even. Imagine playing rugby or American football with a steel ring locked around your balls. Good god.

The biggest point of differentiation between Tom’s logical and sensible POV and mine (which, I guess by comparison, is…illogical and insensible?) is summed up his calling the chastity device “only a sex toy.” Of course, it is a sex toy. But the “only” part doesn’t really do it justice. It’s a sex toy that represents something larger. It represents a level of commitment equal to, say, a collar in any other D/s dynamic. While it’s hard to wear a collar in public, it’s relatively easy to wear a chastity device. I think the drive to find the perfect device that can be worn in all situations and at all times stems from those who, like me, see it both as a physical restraint ensuring her control and as a symbolic expression of how significant and profound the changes wrought by denial and chastity can be on a relationship.

Of course, that may not be how you practice chastity. It may not be that big a deal to you or your keyholder. As Tom said,

To be fair, I also see guys on chastity groups try to convince some newb why he could — or even should — wear his device 24/7; often going pretty far in their attempts to overrule objections or concerns. … Such responses probably induce a mindset in new guys which makes them think that 24/7 is the only acceptable way. I mean, why bother if you’re not going to do it the “right” way?

There isn’t a “right way.” The right way is the way that works for you and your partner. I’m not saying if you want to wear a chastity device that you must wear it while at the gym or running or you’re just a pretender. I am saying you can wear it at those times if you’re willing to accept a little discomfort once in a while and/or modify your routine enough to allow it. It’s entirely possible. And if you feel the need to do so, I understand perfectly where you’re coming from. 

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Turning more tricks

A little over a month ago I told you how Google had changed their algorithm such that my CB-6000 tips and tricks page, which had been growing in popularity, had suddenly plummeted down their rank and taken traffic to the page with it. Recently, I’ve noticed it start to claw its way back up to the point where it’s currently the fifth thing listed by Google when people search for variations of “CB-6000.” I don’t know if that’s due to a change in how their ranking works or a natural result of people clicking to it more often and Google naturally promoting it. In any event, it’s back to being the number one page on the site (after the homepage) and is steadily marching back up to its previous levels of interaction.

Screenshot 2013-12-11 13.53.35

If you’re like me, you find this kind of thing interesting. If you’re not, move along!

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The best male chastity device (Or, the post in which I use more than 1,300 words to answer a relatively simple question)

NOTE: This post has been revised and extended. Read it here.

Reader Doc has asked:

It has been decided — no, not by me — that I’m to start wearing a ‘device’. Though you’ve reviewed, compared, and described many, many devices over the time I’ve been following your blog, I would like your evaluation of which is (a) the best, and (b) what is the second best of all available. I know this would be subjective, but I’d rather not ‘reinvent the wheel’. (Oh, it has been agreed that I’m to start after the holidays — on January 1st, 2014.) I suspect others may find your “final” recommendation(s) useful, too… Thanks!

Hmm. I feel not unlike the Sorting Hat…

First things first. I assume you’re cool with being locked up and the “it has been decided, no not by me” thing was just a bit of hotness tossed in to torture the poor unlocked guys who read my blog. If so, well played. If not, are you sure you want to try this? If you don’t and are doing it for your keyholder, any device you get will likely end up living in a drawer far more than your pants.

With that out of the way, allow me to prevaricate a little more.

I like to say the best device is the one between your ears. In that, and touching on my first question to you, if you don’t want to submit to the device in the first place, then you’ll end up wanting to cheat and slip out of it or whatever. Of course, some folks go about this denial thing without devices and that’s fine if it’s what floats their boat, but even those of us with hardware need to have the proper mindset. I’m currently in the Looker 02 and have been for something like going on three weeks. I can pull out of it any time I want because it’s insignificantly more secure than the Jail Bird or the CB6K or any other stock trapped-ball chastity device.

But I don’t pull out. Ever.

I’ve already bought on to the deal with Belle. She decides when I’m locked up and when I’m not and I abide by her wishes on the matter. There are lots of times I wish the device was off me so I could have access to the penis, but I’m well past the point where I’d cheat to get around it because I want far more for her to care that I’m locked up. If I want her to care, I have to care.

So anyway, then there’s the issue of defining what “best” means. There are arguments to be made that cost, comfort, security, hygiene, and stealth are all important factors when considering “best.” Also, keep in mind I’ve only worn seven(!) different devices (CB-6000, silver CB-6000, CB-5000, Birdlocked Neo, Steelworxx Steelheart [two different devices], Steelworxx Looker 02, and the Mature Metal Jail Bird [two different devices]). The only way to know what the best one is is to know how important each of those attributes is to you.

Here’s my take on them (with the silicone device essentially ignored because it sucked so much and the CB-5000 ignored because it’s an odd bird).

COST: We’re fortunate enough that cost is not the driving factor in any decision Belle makes with regard to buying a device. We’re not so fortunate that we don’t have to stop and consider the very high cost of something like a Steelwerks device, but even that is, eventually, something that we could afford if she wanted it. I was just in a conversation with some folks on Twitter about buying knock-off CB6Ks the other day. Doing so saves you some money (sometimes, a lot), but, as I eventually said, you only have the one penis. Why risk it for a few bucks? If you can’t afford a real CB6K, wait until you can. We call that “saving.” But I digress.

Steelworxx versus Mature Metal are about a wash, cost-wise. There’s a perception that MM is cheaper and I’m sure in some cases they can be, but once you start adding on options, they both get to the several hundred dollars pretty quickly (Pro Tip: The prices shown on the Steelworxx site include VAT which those outside Europe do not pay. Create an account with your shipping address and watch those prices magically fall.)

The plastic/silicone devices are far cheaper than the metal. Also, metal devices are all custom so you need to be sure of your measurements if you don’t want to deal with costly and time consuming do-overs.

COMFORT: Complicated. Except for the silicone devices, comfort is all about fit. The Looker 02 and Jail Bird I wear have A-rings 2mm bigger than the Steelheart. The Steelheart wakes me up and is, occasionally, uncomfortable. Like, it can hurt. The other two are cake. I sleep through the night. No issues. That’s 2 lously little millimeters.

You could use something like Mature Metals sizing rings or do what I did and pick up stainless rings from the hardware store, but I’ve found that measuring like that is an imperfect science (Belle’s first Steelheart was way too big, both in the A-ring and tube length). For those who have not yet played with enforced chastity, my recommendation is to start with the CB-6000. It’s inexpensive (relatively) and allows lots of fit combinations to help you figure out the best sizing for you.

That said, I don’t think the CB6K is the most comfortable device. The A-ring in particular has nasty corners that dig too much during erections. Right now, the most comfortable device I wear is the Looker 02 (even with the urethral insert). The Jail Bird is a close second and would be just as good as the L02 if not for its open design at the end of the cage. The Steelheart, with a well fitted A-ring, would also rank pretty high.

SECURITY: The only really secure device (as defined as one you cannot get out of) is one that incorporates some type of piercing. Short of that, you want a device that feels secure. That’s, again, about fit. You want it to feel snug but not tight. Something that seems like a second skin until an erection comes along. The first Steelheart hung too low and was too heavy to feel like I couldn’t slip out at a moment’s notice without the PA fixing in place.

So, the best device in this department is the one that’s attached through your dick. I only wear one like that.

HYGIENE: The most hygienic device I currently wear (defined as the one that stays the cleanest after a day of normal urinating, etc.) is probably the Jail Bird. The Steelheart will always trap a small amount of urine even after the most thorough attempt to get it all out. Some guys seem really creeped out by that (it’s no big deal as long as you rinse it out at night). The Looker 02 has a tendency to retain urine in the urethral insert and therefore leaks after you’ve peed. The CB6K is about as good or bad as the Steelheart, but, since it’s plastic and not metal, it’s a bit harder to make thoroughly clean.

In any event, if the idea of dealing with lingering urine squicks you out, the JB is the way to go. Next best is the Steelheart, then the CB6K, then the Looker 02.

STEALTH: Stealth is defined by two metrics. Visibility and sound (as measured when wearing sweats or pajama pants, etc.). The Jail Bird with the security screw option is totally silent. The Looker 02 is nearly so. The Steelheart with the PA fixing and PA ring in place occasionally makes some noise, but not much. The CB-6000 was actually the noisiest due to the lock banging against the tube when I walked around. With regard to visibility, the CB6K (non-S version) was the most noticeable of all I’ve worn by far. The others are much less so (with the Looker 02 being the least visible), but of course, they’re all custom so YMMV.

SO…which is the best?

It’s a bit of a Sophie’s choice. They’re all good for different reasons. I guess, right now, if I could only wear one, I’d lean very slightly towards the Looker 02. Its tendency to trap urine in the tube is annoying but not a big deal for me. It’s super comfy and pretty fucking hot. However, if you’re new to a device, I still recommend the CB-6000 (probably the S version depending on your flaccid size). It’s a relatively inexpensive way to dabble and will help with figuring out sizing if you ever decide to go with steel.

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What the Google givith, the Google also taketh away

Recent invasion of Frenchman notwithstanding, I’ve noticed a definite and consistent drop in the amount of traffic this site’s been getting on an average day. I thought, OK, maybe the world has finally gotten tired of me. Bound to happen. I can take it…*sniff*

But no. It’s not you. It’s not even me. It’s Google.

I mentioned last year that my CB-6000 Tips and Tricks page had been slowly but steadily attracting more traffic to the site. I surmised that this might be due to an increase in general interest on the subject of chastity. Well, the party’s over. Well, maybe not over, but it’s not as much of a party as it once was. Well, maybe “party” is the wrong metaphor to use in any case. Well, why don’t I just show you the stuff?

Here’s an updated version of the number of views the CB6K page has received since it was published back in 2009:

Screen Shot 2013-10-31 at 3.14.29 PMNot very hard to see where the drop-off happened. However, that doesn’t look like a natural decrease. Something, I thought, must have changed suddenly and drastically. It was the Google. Last year, I was the third result listed organically when searching for “cb6000.” Today, I’m not even on the first page.

the googleA link to the tips and tricks aren’t found until the second page. So, for all you nascent interactive marketers out there, the difference between being on Google’s first page of results versus the second is…pretty big! It cut 75% of the traffic that page was getting.

On the one hand, you know, whatever. No skin of my nose. On the other hand, it’s somewhat concerning to see real content (inasmuch as I can refer to my site as “real content”) being replaced with a bunch of redundant shopping links and videos.

This is all the apparent result of Google’s new “Hummingbird” search algorithm which they put into service sometime in September. I won’t pretend to know all that that entails, but the results are pretty clear. The kind of content bloggers produce (at least when it comes to locking up penises in clear plastic) is not as valuable, Google surmises, as shopping links and videos.

And no, it’s no better over on Bing. In fact, it’s a little worse. Still on the second page, just a little lower down. Not that anybody uses Bing, of course…

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Canary in the chastity mine

A few of you might be interested to know the details of the orgasm Belle was going to make me have this morning. Yes, I did have it. But it’s kinda like a Fight Club thing. We all know the first rule of Fight Club. The first rule of this blog is there’s nothing that makes me want to talk about my sex life less than coming. So, yeah, I’ll get there. Just not today.

What I will talk about today is the relative popularity of male chastity as measured through the internet-using public’s interest in my CB-6000 Tips and Tricks page. I published this nearly four years ago now and, as you can see from the chart below of that page’s daily views, it’s never been more popular.

CB6K T&T Traffic

Over the years, it’s been linked to by a number of sites, but most of its traffic is through search engines (and almost all of that is Google). It’s become almost always the second-most visited page on my site (after the homepage) on any given day. The only pages that get close to beating it on a day-to-day basis are the HNThumper posts which require jump links to protect the vaguely SFW status of this site.

Anyway, the first little spike you see there from October 2009 was due to a link to the page from a UK BDSM forum topic on chastity. It was just blips like that, though, until July of 201o when Sarah Jameson had a link to this blog on every page of her site. That drove traffic in general up, but to that page specifically. I don’t know why traffic drops off in April of 2011. It could be because Sarah eventually removed the link to this site from hers or it could have been because I took the link out of this site’s main navigation. In any event, it spiked again in October 2011 when the Locked Men website added the page to their Link menu. After that…I don’t know for sure.

This could just be the power of the Google algorithm (trusted sites on certain topics linking to others) finally kicking in or, more interestingly, it could be a higher general interest in the practice of enforced male chastity. Personally, I think that’s the cause. There are a crap-ton of people doing Google searches on the CB-6000. One sure way of knowing would be to graph the sales of A.L. Enterprises (the maker of the CB-6000) against the page’s traffic, but since they’re a private company, we’re unlikely to know anything about that.

At the end of the day, if the still-growing popularity of the Tips and Tricks page is due to an increase in general usage of male chastity devices (and since nearly everyone seems to start with the CB6K nowadays), I would count that as a Good Thing. I’ll be curious to know if anyone else with similar types of content (like Aarkey’s FAQ, or Tom’s site) are seeing the same thing.

Edited to add this screen shot from Google. Don’t know why I didn’t bother to look at this before, but the Tips & Tricks page is in the fortunate third “organic” position (as opposed to paid) behind the CB-6000 website and Amazon. So, that explains a lot.

The Google