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The Effect

By far the most popular topit! An Ammar version with a little Fabric Manipulation magic! Enhanced with a longer flap that is attached slightly higher in the back and a pocket on the end of the flap for inserting a card which adds stiffness and helps prevent the flap from shifting or coming un-tucked. These topits come with extra re-enforcements for added durability.

Cost

$85 from Fabric Manipulation –

https://www.fabricmanipulation.com/magictricks/index.html

Difficulty
(1=easy to do, 2=No sleights, but not so easy, 3=Some sleights used,
4=Advanced sleights used, 5=Suitable for experienced magicians only)

Sewing skills 3-4 (needs to be hand sewn rather than machine sewn)
Use 2-3

Review

I’ve bought from Fabric Manipulations before and have been impressed with the quality of the of workmanship that goes into all of their products and although you can buy a Topit pattern and make one up yourself, I thought that this process would be too time consuming as well as being hit and miss. Mrs dat also doesn’t have a sewing machine so buying a ready made topit seemed the best solution all round.

If you’re going to Vegas where Fabric Manipulation are based then you may want to take your own suit and have one installed using their custom install service but I’m not planning on visiting anytime soon.
The quality of the topit is just as expected and the instructions for install are pretty clear. You can install in two ways – the traditional way or cutting the jacket pocket into the topit and if you select the latter method then you get all of the bits to cover this installation too.

At a little over £40 plus another £10 for postage (VAT and post office handling added another £15) then this isn’t cheap at £65 but it’s a well put together item that I doubt anyone other than a professional seamstress could match.

Overall

You’re either going to use a topit or not so at this price you’re going to have to be pretty well decided. Apart from this, a topit potentially opens up a whole new world of magic with the ability to make almost any small item vanish at fairly close quarters.

If you get a decent reference source then the world could be your oyster.

Just finished installing it and it was much easier than anticipated.

It's just a matter of being carefull and taking your time. I followed the instructions to the letter and the first cuts into the jacket lining and the pocket were the worrying parts but after the first 10 minutes or so of stitching it started to come together and the worry went.

In all, it took about 4 hours of patience and care and it was worth the effort. Using a mobile phone I did a couple of very simple vanishes for Mrs dat and our daughter and they were totally perplexed.

Got my practice material sorted out for the next few weeks now

This sounds like the topit I'm looking for. I can make mant things but as you said, the amount of time it would take uaually makes the decission to buy one easy. I've been working on a coin routine that uses a flipper half dollar and a half dollar shell. Three cards are removed from different places of a deck of cards. They are placed on the table to form a triangle. I show three half dollar coins and vanish them one at a time over the three cards. After the last vanish, you turn over the three cards and reveal the three half dollar coins. This topit will be perfect for my last vaish. Thanks for the excellent review and web site.
Cheers
Al

Hi Al

If you wait a couple of days I've just got the Jay Scott Berry Topit set from Mike Danata which includes two topits, one for each side and a couple of sleeve pockets (don't think I'll bother with these) AND his topit DVD.

This has all worked out cheaper that the Fabric Manipulation one (if you're in the UK) and so far it looks just as good with some modifications on design that look rather interesting.

I'm looking to watch this ovr the coming weekend and will review.

I also bought the Bob Fitch topit workshop (3 DVD set) from Mike who was about a tenner cheaper than Alakazam with free postage.

The practice over the past couple of weeks has been a bit thin on the ground but it is still progressing and the topit is opening up a whole new avenue for me. When I have managed to practive I've been working on a pool ball vanish as part of a modified chop cup routine as well as a jumbo coin vanish.

It's a while since I've found something new that's interested me as much as the topit.

dat8962 wrote:Hi Al

If you wait a couple of days I've just got the Jay Scott Berry Topit set from Mike Danata which includes two topits, one for each side and a couple of sleeve pockets (don't think I'll bother with these) AND his topit DVD.
.

I got the full works from Jay Scott Berry when he was in the UK earlier in the year. I posted my suit jacket to him in Scotland and his wife installed it all and sent it back within a few days.

Workmanship was excellent but I have only actually used it for bottle productions (Michael Ammar style).

I don't know if I have the wrong sort of jacket but can't seem to get the space needed for vanishes (even by lifting my elbow as suggested by Pat Page)

I think that I know what you mean about getting the right space and this is one of the big things that I'm getting used to. I'm wondering if this is more to do with the cut of the jacket than the topit itself?

Oversized may improve matters but if you have something tailored then the space issue may be difficult to improve. I'm still playing so will let you know if I find anything that helps.

Hi dat8962
I'll check out Berrys and try to get them from him. Sounds like he might have quite a routine with that many topits. The routine I'm working on is I take three cards from different places in the deck and place them face down on the table. I then bring out three half dollar coins and vanish them one at a time. I use the topit for the last coin only and when the cards are turned over they reveal a half dollar coin under each one. I could vanish the last coin by another method but the topit makes the disappearence of the coin more incredible.
Thanks for the information on the topit and DVDs.
Cheers
Al

do they sell those sleeve pockets as a stand-alone? i think i saw them somewhere, i was quite interested in those...

i've not got his topit dvd, by cloutier's sleeving dvd is excellent...i've seen him work on another dvd using one and it's magnificent...

I'm not sure about the pockets being sold separately and it might be worth giving Mike Danata a call if you're interested in them.

abraxus wrote:do they sell those sleeve pockets as a stand-alone? I think I saw them somewhere, I was quite interested in those...

I think he does them on his website as a standalone, however they aren't actually very practical unless you want to do a stage routine or a 1-off close-up performance and use them for your first trick. You can only reset out of view of anyone and need to keep your hands low until you want to load into your hand

dat8962 wrote:I think that I know what you mean about getting the right space and this is one of the big things that I'm getting used to. I'm wondering if this is more to do with the cut of the jacket than the topit itself?

Oversized may improve matters but if you have something tailored then the space issue may be difficult to improve. I'm still playing so will let you know if I find anything that helps.

Good to know it's not just me that has a problem using a topit with a tailored suit. I should have saved my money and got a suit from M&S.
It's a good tip for anyone who, like me, works in a suit. A tailored, fitted jacket when done up will perfectly fit your waistline and come in at the waist. If you're intending to carry your entire repertoire around in your pockets for walkaround work the suit will be very tight.
You'll see most people who wear a suit with a topit in have about a 2inch gap at the front of the suit, whilst this suit will be oversize it will be perfect for topit work. A tailored suit will give you about a 6 to 8 inch gap when undone meaning the topit is further around the body and your hand will have to move further accross the body for tossing. You'll have less space to throw into and more chance of catching on material and dropping on the floor, especially with a loose deck. I'd imagine it must be like the problems that the more rotund amongst us must have with the topit (which Bob Fitch on his DVD alleges to have solved).
It's very frustrating as I was hoping to have a topit in my fitted as well as off the peg suit. I may try moving the topit further forward so it is closer to the edge to see if this helps resolve the problems. Anyone else come across this problem?
Another thing to take notice of is if you wear a waistcoat with the suit, which I do on occasion. A well fitted waistcoat should hang about an inch below the trouser line. This will of course create a problem for tucking in the topit flap as it will need to go below the waistcoat and up to get into the trousers. This will then either pull up the waistcoat and look quite noticable or pull out the flap giving you less space to throw into. One solution I have found is if you have a small watch pocket in the waistcoat the flap can go in there. Alternatively you could do as Michael Ammar does in his topit dvd and have no sartorial style what so ever (and be a far better magician for it).
Incidentally, I have the Jay Scott Berry topit which is beautifully made and a pleasure to work with.

I've also got the JSB and agree that it's a lovely topit. It's worth buying as part of his superset (two topits, two pockets and DVD).

Like most magical problems, we each seem to find a way of improving things through experimentation and practice.

I don;t think tha tanyone will ever fit a topit and find it perfect from the off It is well worth the effort that you put into it.