talkmagic.co.uk

The Effect

This standard piece of magicians kit has countless uses. It can be used for many different illusions, and is especially good for card magic


Cost
£1.99 from www.magictricks.co.uk



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)
N/A


Review
This deceptively small container of wax is a bargain for £1.99.
Although it looks smaller than it does in the picture, only a small amount is needed and it's very strong!
I experimented with some card effects from the section in Hugard's Encyclopedia of Card Tricks and tried the coin effect from Bobo that uses the wax and it was perfect for both.
The container is very handy and easy to flip open and access whilst in your pocket (in case of a magic emergency) and although it doesn't look much will last you a long time if used in the correct amounts.
Great value.



Overall
10/10

Here is a tip you might find useful.
I have a big tub of wax and always transfered a little into a small mustard jar to carry around with me, but I wanted some way of making it even easier to get at.

Then it hit me......

I got an old Chapstick (actually it's some other brand but they are all the same) and cleaned the last of the goo out of it. Then I turned the base untill the plastic piece that pushes the stick out was at the bottom again.
I then filled it with magicans wax. I had to soften the wax by putting it in a plastic bag and submerging it in hot water. once it was full and had cooled down I had my new weapon.
It works great, it's small and easy to get at and with a turn of the base it comes back to the top for perfect access.

Hope you find this useful.....

Beaye Malphas

that is a genius idea for on the move wax needs! Thanks for sharing

I'm sure someone will be along shortly to telly ou it's not original and someone else thought of it back in 1752, but cheers anyway.

Yes, it is a great idea. I have been carrying it around in the little box it comes in and putting a blob on my sleeve or somewhere acessible before perfoming, but this sounds like a good idea.

Be aware!!!

Melting wax down, esp. magician's type waxes can make it lose essential tackyness properties.

I've actually had this problem before when re-metling wax to put in different containers, resulting in an oily 'tacky' substance being left behind in the melting pot, and the wax hardening to an almost useless consistency.

Also, I have employed a local candlemakers to formulate me a UNIQUE magician's wax (look out for X-WAX at NothingUpMySleeve at the end of this week—available in SOFT and HARD—plug plug plug) and basically they've said the same... oils and stuff added to the original wax mix can be lost during re-heating... so be careful!

Aside from that, sounds like a grrreeat idea. If it works, then fab!

Unique? Sounds interesting...
How much will this be old chap?

I guess the ladies could use a lipstick tube instead of the Chapstick one?

Lord Freddie wrote:Unique? Sounds interesting...
How much will this be old chap?

X-Wax will be shaped in an 'X'—giving more corners, edges and nodes to it, making scraping bits off with your nails a breeze. It comes in a 1/2 Oz block, and will retail at £1 a block for hard, £1.25 for soft.

The wax is unique because the blend has been fine-tuned by yours truly after doing some design work for a local candlemakers. She's got her own workshops, and has rucks of different waxes and potions. I took some decent magician's waxes to her to see what she could come up with, and after a bit of too-ing and fro-ing, we've got something which I reckon is a pretty good deal—and a total bargain.

Actually, Monsieur Freddie, you had a freebie block in your parcel (which shipped yesterday, by the way)

The wax from MagicTricks.co.uk is pretty good stuff and I bought a couple of small plastic boxes of this stuff a couple of years ago and I've still not opened the second, otherwise I'd have some of the x-wax from NUMS.

When this lot runs out then I know where to go to get some more

Why thank you kind sir, very kind of you. I am looking forward to this.

Magician's Wax has so many uses and so few shops are stocking it these days. I even tried to buy some in Davenports and they were out of stock but offered me the fl**h col****d putty instead, which is hardly the same thing!

Just ploughing through my many old magic tomes, there is so much you can do with and I've thought of many uses myself whilst experimenting and browsing.

If any magicians on here haven't used or tried this, you are really missing out and the NUMS wax looks like a jolly good bargain.

Hi thr. friends
Wax waht a wonderfull idea and what a pellet can do...
Check out pls. In yr supermarkets. Cheese section some cheeses have a sort of a clear wax wrapping around them i think it's abt 3 ml thick or so.
Try it cost less and last 4 ever.

Lord Freddie is right about good magicians wax lasting a long time. I have a tin with enough wax to last a life tme and I bought it in 1975. A couple of things I use it for are torn and restored cigarette paper and a cigarette vanish. The wax I use has a clear look to it and is soft and tacky. I have a friend that had to wear braces on his teeth and the dentist gave him some very, very similar wax to rub on his braces. He gets it free from the dentist and it works fantastic for magic tricks.
Cheers
Al

You can't beat proper magician's wax. I use it for many things, the favourite is a simple effect where the specs picks a card, returns it to the deck and with a snap it becomes a marked card - the only blue back one in a red deck.
Easy to do and slays the layman.

I'm with you Lord Freddie. Slaying the laypeople is what its all about. Make them scream, jump and shout, "Holy S$#*!" Maybe just let them enjoy your brilliant performance and leave you a tenner.
Cheers
Al

It certainly is. I'm not in the game of just going out to impress other magicians. They don't pay you!