Review by Andy Martin for Mystery of Three Boxes by Michael Baker
5 out of 5
Another stunner from the talented craftsman Michael Baker. There are not many craftsmen left who make classic magic apparatus with this much color, consistency, attention to detail, and high quality. And to top it off all of Michael’s magic is quite affordable, particularly when you look at the amount of work involved to make each piece.
What I also like about Michael’s work is that he was a performer for 35 years so he has a vast knowledge of what works in the real world. When he switched gears to start building and selling props he took all of that knowledge and uses it when he creates items as though he building for himself.
There are some interesting subtitles with this set which to the untrained eye are not really noticeable until you point them out, and they all have the impact of selling the illusion. I won’t describe them here, but almost one page of the directions is dedicated to these key features making it all the more effective when performed.
Review by Andy Martin for Roydon's Double Box Prediction by Limited Edition Magic
5 out of 5
What a beauty this is – one of the best items released by the dynamic duo: Joe Long + Paul Lembo. I’ve already seen some of these go for more than the issue price and I’m sure they will become more sought after over the years. This is one of the most practical and surefire methods for the classic locked box prediction. It does not use any loaded keys, shooting papers, electronics or any tricky moving parts that could go wrong during the performance. A really clever design and routine make for one of the most impressive predictions.
Really excellent version of this ultra rare classic. Great job guys!
Review by Andy Martin for Deluxe Mini Cube-a-Libre (2018) #2 of 12 by Thomas Pohle
5 out of 5
When the amazing Thomas Pohle created his mini cube-a-libre in 2016 I didn’t think it was possible to create a better version. And yet Thomas has done just that with this stunning deluxe version.
Everything looks and feels better, and works smoother. There really is not a better version of this classic effect and there are only 12 of these in existence.
Highly Recommended for Collectors of Beautiful Magic Everywhere.
Review by Andy Martin for Penetration 360 by Magic Wagon
5 out of 5
What a beautiful and effective fooler this penetration effect from the amazing Magic Wagon is! I’m featuring a wonderful video by Simon Corneille because his presentation is the opposite from Magic Wagon’s, but it is the perfect way to perform this miracle!
Review by Andy Martin for Paper Thin Sawing by Collectors' Workshop
5 out of 5
So here is a beauty that is rarely seen by Nick and Rich from the early days of Collector’s Workshop at Misty Morn Farm.
It is the close-up version of sawing a woman in half: Paper Thin Sawing. Performer displays a small business card size portrait of a lady in a red dress. On the reverse side of the card is a woman in a yellow dress. (Call this the “Red-Yellow” card.) He places the card on a small “altar”, covering it with a brass lid. Then, the performer takes a single-edge razor and severs the card. Lifting the lid, the performer displays the two halves. In replacing them on the altar, he inadvertently reverses the halves so that the upper half of the woman’s dress is red and the lower half is yellow. Replacing the lid, the performer utters a magic incantation. Removing the lid, the card is seen to be restored, but in the “reversed” condition. (Call this the “Mixed” card.) The card is left with the spectator as a souvenir.
Comes with generous supply of both normal and mixed cards, instructions and in the original box.
Review by Andy Martin for Inlayed Die Box 3" by Mel Babcock
5 out of 5
Everyone knows Mel Babcock is the king of Die Boxes and this could be one of the finest ones I have seen from Mel. Made from American Black Walnut with inlayed Decor and featuring English Walnut top panels.
Highly Recommended for lovers of Die Boxes and beautiful magic!
Review by Andy Martin for Mechanical Block Off Cord by Resor
5 out of 5
Although I love the classic Block Cord effect there is no doubt that some magicians and collectors are just looking for the cool gimmicks. Well this bad boy delivers for sure! It looks like a basic 3″ cube with cord but does not require any moves or sleights to remove the cord. It just comes off precisely when you want it to. Although there is nothing added or taken away and the action is 100% automatic, I’m not quite sure what is going on inside the block – it is a bit like the parting of the Red Sea, one minute there is an opening the next there is not!
The spectator can look fairly closely at the block too and under normal inspection they’ll see nothing. However, if they try the effect themselves they too could inadvertently pull the cord through (although they’ed have to know which angle to pull from). I personally would only let them handle it briefly and would probably perform the penetration under a silk just to add to the mystery, but you certainly could do it out in the open if you desired.
Review by Joe Long for Micro Curious Cubes by Thomas Pohle
5 out of 5
I always thought Eric Lewis’ Curious Cubes, made popular by Milson Worth, was an overlooked fooler. When you consider that any face card can be named and the blocks inside the cabinet magically form that card. A few years ago I found a rare version which was sold in Germany and it was a great improvement over the original. The ingenious design allowed you to instantly repeat the effect with a different card. There was also briefly a small version made for closeup that is now extremely rare. The two I’ve had in the past have sold for $500+.
We based this new release on that rare piece of apparatus, but Thomas has improved the mechanics to make the working a breeze. The routine is a baffler. The beautiful little cabinet (about the size of a deck of cards!) is opened to display twelve small blocks which have images of pips or blank white sides. The blocks are dumped out and the cabinet is clearly empty. A deck of cards is displayed and shown to be completely mixed. It’s ribbon spread on the table and the first spectator is asked to simply touch any one which is removed from the spread and shown to them. That is card number one. The performer states that someone might think he manipulated the spectator into choosing that first card, so to make the process even more fair, a second spectator is told to simply name any face card. They do so and that is card number two.
The performer again displays the empty cabinet and the twelve small blocks which he claims have curious properties. The blocks are placed back into the cabinet in a random order—which is evident as they’re seen to be stacked inside with some pips sideways, upside down, etc. The back door of the cabinet is closed. The random stack of blocks is still visible as the front door is closed. Now–the performer tell the audience to witness the amazing properties of the curious cubes. When the door of the cabinet is reopened, the spectators will be amazed to see that the blocks inside have now magically re- assembled to display the value of a playing card. Spectator number one is asked to reveal their selection for the very first time. It matches the image on the blocks!
It’s a baffling revelation … but it gets even better. The cabinet is now turned around and the second door opened to reveal the other side of the blocks which are in a mixed up random order. The door is closed and immediately reopened and the blocks are seen to have once again rearranged magically to form the image of the second spectator’s freely named card!! The blocks are once again pushed from the cabinet which is shown freely. It’s an ingenious routine.
The craftsmanship on the little cabinet (which is only about 4″ x 3″ x 1″), blocks and fakes is perfect. Thomas has improved the mechanics to make operation very simple. It happens automatically. It’s a brilliant design. The look of the cabinet is absolutely stunning. The rich wine color laminate with black/gold trim has the four playing card suits “etched” in white into the front and back doors. It’s a beautiful piece of micro magic that you will perform and fool with. This will be a very limited release because of the precision work involved.
Review by Andy Martin for Light Heavy Performance Mat by Gimpy's Magic
5 out of 5
All modern versions of the light and heavy chest can be improved using Gimpy’s Wonderful Performance Mat – these work really well and not only makes any chest more reliable they also make it seem more impossible because the mat can be moved around even when the chest is “heavy”.
Even without the mat, the instructional video that Gimpy provides with this mat is excellent and filled with useful tips for getting the most out of your chest.
If you have any version of the Bill Tresslar style of chest it will work much better with one of Gimpy’s Performance Mats! Highly Recommended.
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