This beautiful and clever effect was invented by R.S. Glover and first released by National Magic Company c. 1940. The original version did not have the later improvement (c. 1947) where the backs of tubes open up too. This is a very good improvement because it really seals the deal that the correct color blocks went inside the desired tube.
Unfortunately, when this prop arrived although it was functional the paint job left quite a lot to be desired. Some of the issue was age and some of it was in fact the original paint job itself. It used a mottled finish which meant that the two tubes could quite easily be distinguished. But because I liked the effect so much I contacted Rick Heath, the “Magician with a Paintbrush“, for a full refurbishment. Rick’s beautiful work is not cheap, but you get what you pay for. Not only did Rick do a perfect job (without straying too far from the original design), and now it looks better than it did when it was new.
This is a really wonderful magical prop and you clearly show both blocks in the correct tubes all the way up until the end when the miraculous transformation takes place 🙂
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