Locked for Life
Cost: £29.99
Effect: (Example presentation) The magician asks a married couple to remove their wedding rings and clip them on to a padlock - he then asks them to turn the number wheels, locking the rings firmly in place. He hands them a pad and paper and asks them to write down the code... "no, the code before you locked them on..."
Uh-oh! The magician asks the couple to try lucky numbers, phone numbers etc. but nothing works - he then asks them to try the date on which they got married, and bingo - the lock is opened.
Difficulty:
1 - very easy to do.
Review: I'll try to keep this brief because my reviews are usually the coma-inducing side of thorough!
This is a plug-and-play trick. It feels a little pricey, but you really do get a prop that I expect will last you for life. No secret buttons or gaffs - the padlock, unlock others on the market, is
almost 100% examinable... infact, it is "examinable", just not "testable", ie. you cannot leave it with the spectator after the effect to try many other different combinations. But I really love it, because much as I do love receiving a new trick, whacking in the DVD etc. and practicing to perfection, sometimes you just want something which is powerful straight out of the packet, and this lives up to that very well.
You get - the very well made padlock and the secret. That's it. No magnets, no "holding it at an angle" - the secret is simple and beautifully idiot proof. The trick plays out well because it uses several different hooks - the random prediction, the emotions associated with marriage (or the ring used if you present it in a different way) and the amusing bit of anxiety in the spectator as they are thinking "I really hope he knows what he's doing..."
One important fact: the website states
"The number doesn't have to be a year of birth, it could be the first four digits of a phone number, an important year to a spectator (more personal!)...anything you want!" This is not strictly true, or at least, could be misleading. When you receive the prop you will immediately realise what could work and what wouldn't, and how you could build many different presentations around it, but the fact remains you cannot have the lock open at simply any combination they think of at your will - other, more expensive and more gimmick-laden and non-examinable locks on the market do this, but in my opinion this is easily versatile enough.
Overall: I will be putting this straight in my close-up jacket pocket, safe in the knowledge that if ever I'm feeling off form - or my fingers are freezing cold...! - I have a fantastic self working effect that needs only your presentation to power it. Again, £30 feels a lot of money but you could dream up a hundred variations of how to perform this (perhaps locking two specs together by the belt loops...?!) without worrying about angles or moves to pull off, and again, I'm convinced this effect will last a long, long time. Recommended.
8.5/10
[Breakdown - powerful and very easy to do trick, but effectively it is just the one trick with possible different presentations, and £30 feels a lot to splash out on one prop - but you get your money's worth!)