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Hi I'm not very well read bout stage magic. But I’m really looking forward to start learning it and buying some props. But I wanted to ask a few questions to guide me to get the best props possible with my money.

Red text = Solutions

1. Appearing Canes, Disappearing Cane, Color Change Cane:
• Metal or plastic which is better? Metal for appearing, Plastic Fantasio for vanish
• Which metal cane brands are good? Is uday any good? this is the only metal brand i can find on penguinmagic

2. Rose/Flower Manipluation (Routines, The roses used for rose manipulation):
• Standard manipulation roses. I've found Secret Garden. But i was hoping to see if there are other brands.
• Where can I buy the rose where the bud is removed and then back on the rose again?
• Are there vases for manipulation purposes? Or is it something I will have to come across myself?

3. Top Hat stand (Basically hat that sits on a cane? The hat is removable).
• Brand? Where can I get it? Cane to Table Cane to Table Website

4. Billiard ball manipulation:
• Fakini or Mirage Billiard Balls? Quick one is better quality and better handling? 2" or 1.75" Fakini Billiard Balls
• Teaching DVD's. Levent's, Jeff McBride's DVD
• DVD that covers the one hand, four ball production?

appearing canes et al - Fantasio

Stands are stupidly expensive - The Eureka table base is the nicest, you can put your own top on the stand. Truth is most are basically a drum stand with a flange that you get at a hardware store that screws into the top of the stand.

Mirage Billiard balls. Very well made, (they can glow in the dark) they are made of a silcone that is used in the medical field so they last. If they get dirty soap and water does the trick.

I am really not a fan of rose or flower magic, and are you looking for real flowers? Fake flowers? Do you want them to appear? float? Lots of options here.

thanks bmat for the reply. I'm not sure bout Fantasio canes but i have heard that their not that good? is that true?

Regarding the roses/flowers I'm after fake flowers, ones to use for manipulation like take off the flower head and appear again. Also just make whole rose disappear and appear, but making the whole rose disappear and appear is just sleights usually from wot I've seen (maybe there are some DVD's for this?). I was hoping magic supplies sell roses that are specific for manipulation uses.

Oh ye are their any vases specific for magic (rose) manipulation? Or is this something i would just need to come across myself and see if its good for manipulation?

I will look into buying the mirage billiard balls . Thanks alot.

Can't go wrong with Kevin James floating Rose.

I have a Fantasio Appearing Cane - its okay and not as potentially dangerous as some of the metal canes. But it did need the really naff looking white tips covered up with some black acrylic paint at one end and a small strip of gold wrapping paper at the other so that it matches my wooden cane. Its not exactly mindblowing magic though, its more of a flourish.

A top hat stand you can make yourself using a music stand with the square top removed and a same sized wooden disk screwed in its place. Music stands are very cheap in comparison.

@TDGinge: Thanks for the suggestion, but I'm after manipulation at the moment over this kind of effect.

@V.E. Day Thanks I'll be getting some Fantasio vanishing canes. I'll be careful with metal appearing canes. I'll have a look at the music stands too.

Fantasio canes and candles work great. You just have to be able to follow directions. If you go for a metal version then watch yourself as you can do quite a bit of damage to yourself.

Curious to know whats the best way to store vanish and appearing canes? Would you leave them in their closed state (small form) or in their open state (opened as a cane)?

Sorry that I'm not going to help but I want to know this as well. I know for sure that the vanishing item is best in it's 'vanished' state. But unsure of the appearing

Richard

Does anyone in the uk sell fakini billiard balls?

I could only find like 3/4 stores selling faikini balls. Hanklee, denny magic, stevensmagic, abbottmagic. So i don't really think so. But i think u would be able to find 2nd hand ones in uk. Isnt wordlmagicshop the biggest in uk? they didnt have it either, so not sure how ur luck would go with finding them

Might have to Import then I think. Not to worry

Regarding canes, metal for both is best. The plastic ones look like plastic and can 'wobble'. Metal ones are far sturdier and look better. The plastic ones need to be stored in their 'end state' to help maintain the memory of the polyester. It certainly helps to store the steel type like that too but you're less likely to have a problem if you don't. It's very easy to put a kink in the plastic ones that can be a nightmare to fix, you'll be hard pushed to do that to a steel one! Metal ones can be 'slicked up' with a small coat of car polish to make them faster. There are many horror stories about how dangerous the metal canes are (particularly vanishing) but the reality is rather different. Sure, you can hurt yourself if you're not careful, but that's true of any prop and you can just as easily get a paper cut from a fantasio!

So, metal all the way if you want the best (rather than plastic looking sticks!). Hope that helps.

Yano wrote:Curious to know whats the best way to store vanish and appearing canes? Would you leave them in their closed state (small form) or in their open state (opened as a cane)?

Fakini balls are excellent, they are hard to get and usually expensive. They are hard to get because of the demand and not many are made at a time.

Apearing canes/candles and the like are best stored open. Vanishing stuff best stored closed. Think of it this way, the plastic and the metal have a memory. If you are going to store metal appearing canes for any length of time in the closed state remember to open them and leave them open for as long as possible before using them. Remember to read the care and feeding of them, whatever you choose.

Thanks finally got my metal canes, yet to get a vanishing one though, still got my figers so just gonna practice heaps . I don't think fakini balls are expensive really, the quality is great and only cost me 88$ usd