Review by Andy Martin for Solid Brass Metamorphosis Coin by Bob Solari Magic
5 out of 5
Bob Solari released a series of Classic Collectibles in the early 1990’s. All of the pieces were well made in Solid Brass, they looked great, were solidly made, and worked perfectly. The effects in the series included:
This release is one of my favorites from Bob’s series – it looks great, is is easy enough for someone with my limited skills to perform and is easy to follow too 🙂
Review by Andy Martin for Phoenix Dice by Merlins Magic, Mark Lee
5 out of 5
This basic effect and method was first invented by James Lucier as The Cockeyed Skeleton In The Closet and described in Genii October 1949. The effect was also released c. 1949 through Sedghill Industries as The Scrambled Skeleton with credit also going to James Lucier. There have been many versions of all shapes and sizes ever since and Eddy Taytelbaum’s is probably the best I have seen.
Mark Lee of Merlins Magic has created a fine version and this is part of Merlins growing Premier Range. The one change that Mark has made is that each Die is gimmicked, instead of the more usual two, which means you can do some interesting routine variations, including at the end vanishing the red die completely 🙂 In addition, the addition of the lid for the tube ensures that no prying eyes are looking when they shouldn’t be.
I think you will like playing with this item and it has the most potential for innovation of the current crop of Premier Range items.
Review by Andy Martin for Vanishing Ring (Blue) by Sans Minds
5 out of 5
This is my favorite device for vanishing a ring. It works perfectly and looks clean without any preparation or set-up. This is the one to use. I can’t understand why Sans Minds stop making this beauty 🙁
Review by Andy Martin for Jumbo Metamorphosis (Fluchtkiste) Deluxe by Vienna Magic, Wolfgang Grosskopf
5 out of 5
This is a wonderful mini illusion with Jumbo Cards first created by Wolfgang Grosskopf as Fluchtkiste.
This is the nicest set I have seen and comes with a packing case to store the props. The packing case is a little beaten up but does its jobs and keeps the props together and protected. It is easy to perform and I added an extra stand to make it easier to present. Hopefully my Speed Demo will effectively demonstrate that 🙂
Review by Andy Martin for The Great Leon Glass Penetration by Merv Taylor, The Great Leon
5 out of 5
This amazing penetration was invented by The Great Leon (Leon Levy, NY 1876-1951) and manufactured perfectly by Merv Taylor c. 1945.
It really is remarkable how effective this looks and how easy it is to perform. When this was first released in August 1945 it was advertised as The Great Leon’s Improved Glass Penetration, but the instructions were called “The Great Leon Glass Penetration.” The original version came with 6 spikes, ribbon and skewer. However, by 1955 a couple of further improvements were made and the instructions were now called “The Great Leon’s Improved Glass Penetration.” It was released with 11 spikes and an external release for the gimmick.
In the instructions they talk about threading the ribbon in and out of the holes in addition to the spikes. To be honest I had mixed success with this because it takes extra time to thread the ribbon and I don’t think it looks as good as the spikes. So I added another 6 spikes and use 12 spikes and don’t spend much time with the ribbon.
This version is the original version and I have replaced the original cheaper 6 spikes with 12 golden colored galvanized steel spikes which blend perfectly with the color of the box.
In 2017 Magic Wagon released their version of this effect called Penetration 360 and in true Magic Wagon parlance they say their version was inspired by Merv Taylor’s version. Magic Wagon did not make any significant changes to the method. They describe how their version allows 14 spikes to penetrate the box. It is true this is not possible in the Merv Taylor version but this is simply because in the Merv Taylor routine he focuses on the ribbon going to and fro in the last few holes rather than all the spikes to add some extra interest. If Merv had wanted to put all the spikes through it would have been easy to do by changing the location of the center holes of the top. The way Magic Wagon describe this “ingenious addition” makes you think they did something special, whereas in fact all they did was reduce the size of the box. Now Magic Wagon did create a wonderful version and I would not take away from that, but I do wish they would not take so much credit for the effects they recreate when what they frequently do is use the exact same method with improved materials or fabrication techniques and aesthetic changes to the design.
Review by Andy Martin for Cleveland Drawer Box (Original) by Martin Breese
5 out of 5
It wasn’t until Dave Powell released his beautiful Victorian Drawer Box that there was anything even close to the Cleveland Drawer Box commissioned by Martin Breese in the UK. This one is from the original run that Martin Breese had made c. 1984. The newer run from 2005 are actually quite a lot smaller so if you wanted the most useful Mini Drawer Box the original run is what you want. This bad boy will hold TWO full Poker sized decks in their cases 🙂
It is an exceptionally beautiful and well designed Drawer Box. The workmanship is absolutely flawless and from every angle there is nothing to see.
Andy’s performance of this most recent version really caught my attention and drew me to the trick. The colors really stand out to me as they would an audience. The simplicity or what seems like a simple trick as Andy performed it, was also an inspiration to me in wanting to purchase this trick.
I must say that I really think that it is an excellent piece of magic. Checks all the boxes. Simple to perform, beautiful colors combine to bring out this great piece recreated. Thank You Paul, Joe and as always Andy for your video and inspiration. Some great magic!
Review by Jon Wilson for Victorian Two Deck Card Switching Box by Dave Powell
5 out of 5
This little gem from Dave Powell can perform some serious magic. You can switch decks, you can perform revelations, you can also reveal hidden items. Is it worth the money, I would say yes. Dave is currently only making 12 of these and I would suggest if you want one, get it now at Powell magic.com I have 2 other switching devices in my collection, but, I cannot do an entire deck with the case of cards. Dave has solved this issue in my switching devices. If you can afford one, I would get is soon.
Another wonderfully crafted Vintage Abbott’s recreation from the talented Rocky Clements. This time Rocky has created one of my favorite effects: the Vampire Block. This looks and works almost identically to Abbott’s original version. I love the new color scheme and although I was in two minds about the heart shaped hole when I look at these photos it does look quite cute 🙂
One of the benefits of this new version is Rocky has made the gimmick out of the same material as the block itself to ensure even close-up everything looks correct.
Review by Andy Martin for The Heart Of Glass (1 of 30) by Viking Mfg., Punx
5 out of 5
The original idea for this effect was Herz aus Glas by Robert Farchmin in German c. 1938. The routine featured here was first published by Punx c. 1977 and this was translated into English by Bill Palmer c. 1987 with the release of Punx’s book Once Upon A Time.
In 1988 George Robinson Jr. of Haenchen and Co./ Viking Mfg. Co. was given manufacturing rights by Punx to produce this amazing and beautiful version. It is very solid and looks perfect. Whilst the mechanism is easy to operate, if you really want to do justice to it you’ll need to put on your acting cap. But if you do a good job there won’t be a dry eye in the house 🙂
Even if you don’t want to perform this it will still look beautiful in your collection which is often all that counts.
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