talkmagic.co.uk

kaala wrote:Does a perfectly flat deck even exist? Most of the bicycle decks are slightly bent and make the "click". Gets better after a warm-up, but nowhere near perfect. Makes some effects to perform rather difficult. Ive found other brand decks to be in better condition. I`m guessing this might has to do with the conditions they are held in, not sure. Does anyone know where to find near perfectly flat deck?

Check out the Joe Porper card clip.

I've also always been satisfied with Stud brand cards. Last longer than bikes and have a nice "soft" feel.

sleightlycrazy wrote:

kaala wrote:Does a perfectly flat deck even exist? Most of the bicycle decks are slightly bent and make the "click". Gets better after a warm-up, but nowhere near perfect. Makes some effects to perform rather difficult. Ive found other brand decks to be in better condition. I`m guessing this might has to do with the conditions they are held in, not sure. Does anyone know where to find near perfectly flat deck?

Check out the Joe Porper card clip.

I've also always been satisfied with Stud brand cards. Last longer than bikes and have a nice "soft" feel.

Card clip really makes a difference? I have put cards under pressure in between heavy books, but it doesn`t work.

Awesome! Saw James Brown use Studs, gotta try them out. Actually while learning some of his effects with my bikes i came to this problem. Thanks!

I have an old linen finish pack (with a really nice OW back) that has become very sticky. As I only need five cards I treated each of them, front and back, with a tiny dab of baby powder rubbed well in. They now slide as new.

Barry

I have to agree with some of the guys here. When they get crabby throw them away and get a new pack. Some would be thrilled to have a pack last week as some of the close-up workers when doing a show will get through several packs in an evening.

It all depends on the individual as it is the finger grease from the handling that interferes with the decks performance. Some have greasier hands than others.

Fanning powder will pep up pack when they loose their slide but it will never make them as good as new. Fanning powder will make the them fan nicely again but the characteristics of the deck will differ from when you first opened the pack.

I also knew one card worker who when practicing would deliberately get out a new pack for each day so that his sleights would be consistent. That is dedication for you.

Peter

On my recent visit to the UK I was horrified to see everyone using poker size bicycle decks like mere Americans. I consider this to be the end of civilisation as we know it. When I left the UK years ago everyone was using Bridge size Waddingtons cards which despite being made in Yorkshire were easily the best for card magic.

When I returned recently many people assured me that they had never heard of Waddingtons cards and some said they were no longer available. One person said they were available but not very good quality.

Finally some astute magician mentioned that they could be found in W. H. Smiths and possibly other places too. I purchased several decks to take back to Canada with me and found they were just as excellent quality as they always were.

Why in God's name have Waddingtons No 1 cards been abandoned by magicians? The only thing I don't like about them is the fact that they have four index corners so you can't do blank fans. But that is a minor inconvenience.

To prove how useless bicycle cards are in comparison Jerry Sadowitz approached me and said I had shown him the Notis Cascade in a magic shop about 30 years ago and it had bothered him ever since that he couldn't do it even after studying the Ganson description in Vernon's card book. Since that was precisely where I learned it I couldn't figure out what his problem was.

I therefore asked him to show me and he was doing everything correctly. Finger positions and everything. And yet he kept dropping the cards everywhere. Note that he was using a bicycle poker deck.

I in my great superiority showed him how to do it and because of the newness of the Waddingtons deck did drop a couple of cards. The decks have to be worked in for it to work properly. But by and large it worked pretty well.

I took Jerry's cards and tried it and lo and behold I got exactly the same results as Jerry. The cards went all over the bloody place. I tried it with the Waddingtons deck several times and it worked well. I tried it with Jerry's bicycle deck several times and they went all over the bloody place.

Methinks if Jerry doesn't want to be struggling with this for another thirty years he had better switch to Waddington's decks.

To see British magicians using American cards is an abomination of the first order. No wonder we lost the Empire.

I agree entirely, Mark. I use W H Smith's own brand cards. But I don't do card tricks.

Barry

I buy waddingtons when I can, but mine are worn out and not able to buy more any time soon...

Waddingtons #1's... Aaaah sweet memories. I cut my magical teeth on them.

Problem was, after a while Waddingtons started putting some kind of rough grid like texture on the cards. They lasted a lot longer (possibly because I stopped using them) but as a result of the added "depth" to the card DL's were out and the general feel of the cards for me wasn't right.
I'm no card snob, but as a lot of gaff decks I use come in Bike backs I moved over. I guess since then I've never realy shopped around.

[I have just dug out of my magic "junk trunk" a sealed deck of Waddingtons (pre "grid") - I'm open to offers ]

Mikey.666 wrote:p.s does anyone know any sites with card sleights on. i no the doble lift and pinky break, but i need to learn some new fake cuts and shuffles, as the ones i do are to obvious.
thanks.

Before learning new fake cuts and shuffles, learn to make the ones you are using now look good. I am willing to bet that the moves themselves are fine, it is the performance of them. However a good book on cuts and shuffles is Counts, Cuts and Moves. But I warn you, done poorly they are going to look pretty obvious as well.

Yes I heard that the quality of Waddingtons had gone down so I purchased a deck with great trepidation. I am delighted to inform the multitude that they are as good as they ever were. I think they have reinstated the quality or something.

I am really irritated they don't sell them over here. I brought a whole bunch back with me.

I do remember years and years ago International Magic had all sorts of fake cards that matched Waddingtons. Alas this is the case no more.

mark lewis wrote:Yes I heard that the quality of Waddingtons had gone down so I purchased a deck with great trepidation. I am delighted to inform the multitude that they are as good as they ever were. I think they have reinstated the quality or something.

I am really irritated they don't sell them over here. I brought a whole bunch back with me.

I do remember years and years ago International Magic had all sorts of fake cards that matched Waddingtons. Alas this is the case no more.

Hmmm I feel a campaign coming on?
Do we have an online source for Waddingtons?

Try www.cards4magic.co.uk they do both bridge and poker size Waddingtons No 1 cards.

I can also recommend Piatnik cards.

Barry

Not being a snob, I could care less if the cards I use are the same as those found all over America.

EDIT: 'Couldn't care less'*. Damn, I hate it when people do that too.

Illusionisten wrote:I have to agree with some of the guys here. When they get crabby throw them away and get a new pack. Some would be thrilled to have a pack last week as some of the close-up workers when doing a show will get through several packs in an evening.

It all depends on the individual as it is the finger grease from the handling that interferes with the decks performance. Some have greasier hands than others.

Fanning powder will pep up pack when they loose their slide but it will never make them as good as new. Fanning powder will make the them fan nicely again but the characteristics of the deck will differ from when you first opened the pack.

I also knew one card worker who when practicing would deliberately get out a new pack for each day so that his sleights would be consistent. That is dedication for you.

Peter

what i actually meant was the condition of a new deck. the cards are not perfectly flat and that makes some sleights harder to perform. when i put 2 cards face to face, there`s a big gap between. bicycle brand in my local magic shop are all like that