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im looking to buy a set of cups and balls for around £25 but im stuck between a brass version or a copper which also has a chop cup. can someone help me deside. (note: i need them to be quite strong)

i would choose a not shiny one or USE matching color balls... what i found that with the shiney cups sometimes u see a red luminance on the inside of the cupp... kinda ruins the illusion!

i would advice wood!:P or better yet get the mug chop cup!: and mathcing cups

Can you get a copper combo set for £25 ?

Do you have a specific routine in mind ? It really depends what you want to do with them.

jim

Miniolo wrote:i would choose a not shiny one or USE matching color balls... what i found that with the shiney cups sometimes u see a red luminance on the inside of the cupp... kinda ruins the illusion!

I see where youre coming from here but dont understand the context. I presume youre talking about a chop cup routine ? In most routines the cup is mouth down most of the time. The only time its usually mouth up is when the ball(s) are dropped in before turning the cup over - in which case a slight reflection wouldnt matter.

Unless you have a 'mouth up' routine ala John Bannons Cups and Fuzzballs ?

jim

what joe is saying is he can get a normal set or a set that includes a chop cup.
either set is worth a go but with the chop cup set you can do single cup routines without needing to palm a ball or if yopu intend to use coins with your cups.
any set will do plastic, wood or metal its personal choice same for a chopped version, check utube for vids on cups and balls and see what grips your imagination then go from there, micheal ammars videos on cups and balls are the defacto standard but there are plenty of modern dvds from the likes of gazzo and such which are equaly of value.

magicdiscoman wrote:what joe is saying is he can get a normal set or a set that includes a chop cup.
either set is worth a go but with the chop cup set you can do single cup routines without needing to palm a ball or if yopu intend to use coins with your cups.
any set will do plastic, wood or metal its personal choice same for a chopped version, check utube for vids on cups and balls and see what grips your imagination then go from there, micheal ammars videos on cups and balls are the defacto standard but there are plenty of modern dvds from the likes of gazzo and such which are equaly of value.

Yes I know what he's meaning it was Miniolos post i was unsure about. Before he decides which set to purchase he will have to have a think about what he wants from them. If he has some ideas in mind for the combo set then these will be the best option. As you mentioned, this set will also give him the props for a standard chop routine aswell, which adds to the value of the set.
However if he is planning on an ungimmicked routine the standard set would would be fine. While he could use a chopped set for a standard routine, it may mean purchasing another set of balls aswell - as the special ball could get in the way.

Another important thing to consider before purchasing is the final loads. Plastic or light cups wont be much use if your final loads are going to be heavy fruit - if the fruit moves or rolls when the cup is loaded the cup will slide about the table. Also the size of the mouth of the cup will determine the maximum size of the final load you can use.

jim

Miniolo wrote:i would choose a not shiny one or USE matching color balls... what i found that with the shiney cups sometimes u see a red luminance on the inside of the cupp... kinda ruins the illusion!

i would advice wood!:P or better yet get the mug chop cup!: and mathcing cups

I totally agree with this. I have a copper set and whilst you can get away with the chop cup routine with the full cups and balls, in a close up situation, the red ball does reflect visibly on the side of the cup. You will get away with this most of the time but one day some smart eyed kid will spot it and blow the trick.

However, copper does discolour. Let this happen and don't be tempted to clean the cups and you will be less likely to be caught.

A word of caution about plastic cups. The first ones I bought were admiteddly chesp. But the yellow cup was slightly translucent again giving the game away.

Johnny Wizz wrote:I totally agree with this. I have a copper set and whilst you can get away with the chop cup routine with the full cups and balls, in a close up situation, the red ball does reflect visibly on the side of the cup. You will get away with this most of the time but one day some smart eyed kid will spot it and blow the trick.

I know what you mean here, but Miniolo said the inside of the cup, which is why i was confused as to what he meant.

Good point about copper patinising. Ive never polished mine as I prefer the old patinised look. Apart from asthetics I like them to be dark because it puts more focus on the balls which stand out more.

jim

You can always use a chop cup like a regular cup, but you cannot use a regular cup like a chop cup. Just saying.

I had a set of plastic cups that were sprayed silver on the outside and were black on the inside which was a good compromise one of which I chopped myself later on chopping each cup as required externaly

I also used to use paper tissues for the balls and chopped as needed using the balls suplied as final loads.
over the years I've played with a few sets some with ingeniose (sp) chopping ideas now settled with a magus capsual as iit fits my stile better than a single cup.

my advice is of the choises get the chopped version and go from there.

Have a look around and find a design that you like, the look doesn't really make all that much difference. I personally like a nice, shiney cup becuase I think they catch the audience's eye better but that's just me. I know some people have problems with metal cups talking when you load them but with practice and careful handling I don't thing it's really a problem.

The size of the cup could affect the final load so it's worth getting slightly larger ones.

Nice advice Lady.

What you buy will depend on your budget and also your level of competance. Don't spend a wedge of cash and find that cups and balls are not for you.

On the other hand, if you find that you love performing with the cups then like some, you'll have a dozen or so different sets in no time at all.