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For the past six months, I have been performing card tricks, mainly, with a few coin, rope etc. I was thinking, why not try out a gimmick? I am looking for the gimmick that I will get the most use out of. The ones I have heard of are:

Raven
M5
Tarantula
Gecko
Electric touch

Can you suggest what your favourite gimmick is, and why it is?

Cheers, Jamie

Thats an easy one

Ive said this before but i'll say it again . The tt and the exp**ded sh**l are, in my opinion, two of the greatest gimmicks ever invented for close-up magic. The amount of things you can do with these is literally only limited by your imagination.


jim

Well said sir! The sh**l is essential for close-up.

I agree with Jim, you can't go wrong with a tt also a topit is a good gimmick to have.

Most of the gimmicks you listed will probably end up in the back of a drawer. If your after branching out from cards TT are a good option or else buy books. Mark Wilsons or Bobo or good options for learning further sleights.

If you've got the patience (and some people don't) IT or loops can have a lot of uses and not just levitations. It's worth buying loops (or make your own) for the Haunted Deck alone; it always gets a good reaction for me, especially if the deck is borrowed.

I've also got a lot of mileage out of my Coin Unique and Cesaral Melting Point gimmick, it isn't just a one trick pony.

loops is good,,
sh@ll is invaluable
gecko is a piece of @~+@
taratula,, good if you are seriously going to use it.
tt definate
electric touch ,, jury is out
intercessor ''' oh yes please milady"
jol wallet why not

Seriously, I would stay away from the items on your list. Don't get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with them. I love the Tarantula. But I'm one of the only people I know that have it and use it. I know many people who have it and it ends up in the drawer because frankly, it is a pain in the *rse.

Sounds like you are wanting a good utility device. If so I also recommend a TT.

I've not actually got one yet (roll on pay day!) but all I've been hearing about is the 'Any card to any spectators wallet', it's new so I guess it's yet to be proven but maybe it's something to look into

Whilst I absolutely LOVE my M5, there is so much versatility with a TT which one shouldn't ignore.

My favorite is a H*pping H*lves set, in half crowns and pennies. The set is on with a few dealers at the moment. It includes a half-crown unexp sh*ll, a half-crown/penny sun and moon coin, and (seperately) a victorian penny and victorian penny exp sh*ll. Old pennies are a great size coin to work with and these coins have a bit of history to them. Plus, you can't spend them, which is handy if you've ever spent a co*n un*que. This gets you HH, which is a great effect on its own, a penny and sh*ll (if you buy three more pennies you'll have the standard sh*ll set). With that set you can do a three-coin production and vanish, coins across / through table / through silk, and some very visual vanishes and penetrations. You can even use the half-crown sh*ll/sun and moon for a three-coin production and vanish. It's worth picking up a normal half crown, too. There are lots of good copper/silver things you can do - Greg Wilson's 'questionable trick' is one that happens in the audience's hands and is ungimmicked.

My second favorite is a whole category of "impossible location" items. The Lippencott box from Viking is great; the Strong Box from Joe Porper is an 'upgraded' version, but I quite like the plain old nest of coin boxes (again, the Viking one is good). These things always have a strong impact and you can use them as a finale for coins, rings and cards. The nest of coin boxes is great because although there's (kind of) a gimmick involved, the boxes themselves are completely clean once they're handed to the audience. But the impact of pulling their ring/coin/card out of a padlocked box is hard to beat.

All exceptionally versatile and great for impromptu.

magicbyfish wrote:loops is good,,
sh@ll is invaluable
gecko is a piece of @~+@
taratula,, good if you are seriously going to use it.
tt definate
electric touch ,, jury is out
intercessor ''' oh yes please milady"
jol wallet why not

Why do you consider the Gecko to be a piece of @^+&??

Pepsi Twist wrote:I've not actually got one yet (roll on pay day!) but all I've been hearing about is the 'Any card to any spectators wallet', it's new so I guess it's yet to be proven but maybe it's something to look into

I bought the Any card to any spectators wallet, and while people rave about it, from watching the dvd I think the reveal looks a little obvious. I've not yet used it in real life though.

My absolute favourite gimmick at the moment is the Mene Tekel deck. Get this deck, for about £5, learn to palm and with minimal misdirection you've got an awesome card to pocket/box/pint trick. It doesn't even have to be a good palm.

the 'any card to spec wallet' is more than just the one routine though - it can be used to clean up and simplify a large number of card effects. I currently use it to tidy up my colour changing deck routine.