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Duel was built by Tim Wisseman for Outlaw Effects who seem to have a rather spotty record (for example, see this thread of the cafe). Which is a shame because Tim’s work is perfect and this device is no different – works like a dream and looks so authentic.

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Talk about the Land of Missed Opportunities!  Total Serendipity is a really amazing, clean and beautiful switching device.  The feature effect it is shipped with could have been so much better if Magic Wagon had spent just a little more time with the props and routine, instead of stampeding to produce the most beautiful prop without spending an equal amount of time with the finished product 🙁

I reported when Magic Wagon created the Utopia Prediction  how they they have a great effect and method, but did not think it through and created a box that held only half the deck, when in fact if the device had held the whole deck it would have made so much more sense.  Well, I feel this effect is even more so – you have this neat looking box with close-up pad area and the place to hold two packets of cards – but the holes for the cards are so small the only way you can easily remove the cards is to place a rubber band around the packet and lift the packet via the band.  But this means you can’t use the device as a way to draw cards one by one, which if you did would allow you to streamline the routine AND provide a reason why you stored the cards in the base in the first place.  These changes to the props or the routine are not hard but they can often be the difference between a contrived routine and a killer one.

That being said, if you ignore the provided presentation you have the opportunity to create some amazing routines with things like: dice, billets, coins, bills, etc.  Although I don’t love the shipped routine I do think that this unit is so well made that it is worth it.  I hope to find time to create some cool ideas with small articles such as: dice, billets, coins, and bills.  In fact, I’ve just ordered a second one of these because I think it has so much potential.

Even though they miss an opportunity here, the device is so good I will not ding a point this time. But please Magic Wagon, spend a little more time on the routines before you go to production, because with a little bit of extra thought you could really blow them away!

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Finally, I have a set of Okito-Nielsen Chinese Sticks not just the Millward-Nielsen ones that were built by George Millward and decorated by Norm Nielsen that are featured here. From the outside it is difficult to tell them apart – the Okito-Nielsen ones are a little bit darker, have yellow not red tassels, are a little longer, and have Okito-Nielsen stamped on them, but at a glance they look basically the same. I’ve included a couple of photos of both sets so you can see them side to side. But the real difference is when you use them – then the difference is very clear. Norm’s are much smoother and quieter which is why his sticks are seen as one of the best Chinese Sticks available today – and rightly so, they look beautifully and operate incredibly smoothly.  You’d be hard pushed to find a better set of Chinese Sticks.

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The Aldini Bowl Production was created by Aldini (Alex Weiner) c. 1964 and was an approach to the Westgate Bowl of Water Production c. 1940 with the goal of removing the need for an assistant. Both of these effects are really stage effects.

The Chinese Lion Mystery was inspired by the Aldini version and scaled down to be more suitable for a formal close-up setting. You still cannot perform this right on top of the spectator but a large circular dining table should provide enough distance to perform it effectively. The method does not use any body or table loads and the mechanical method for this is very ingenious. With a little practice you’ll have the perfect dual production on your hands from what seems like an empty “table” and foulard. The set is quite stunningly decorated, very solidly built and works smoothly.

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Not only is this Mummy effect beautifully crafted by Buma, it really is very clever how it works.  Buma has closely thought out all the steps so it looks perfect.  If you watch Buma’s video performance closely it really is a fooler.  Not only is the aged mummy transformed into the beautiful Golden Mummy how the heck did it get into the sarcophagus that is in the middle of the floor under the Pyramid – if you watch the video really, really closely you still probably won’t see enough to show you how it actually works. 

When I was playing with this for the photos I could not believe how the switch (yes there is a switch 🙂 ) worked so smoothly and almost automatically – and every time the Golden mummy ended up  in the center of the floor in the tiny Sarcophagus.  That in itself is a clever feat for sure!  If you love clever close-up magic or Mummies and are prepared to read the instructions you’ll have a little miracle on your hands!  It is not difficult to do, but you’ll need to practice the timing to get it as smooth as Buma.  I urge you to watch Buma’s video a few times because he really does a great job, and I think this is more effective when you appreciate how clean everything looks.

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This is one of best and most popular inventions from the prolific American Magician and Inventor: Ed Massey c. 1954. This is the original version sold by Massey, but they were not built by Ed himself, instead he had them built to precise standards by Andrew E. Buchanan Jr., who also supplied the wonderful patter-story that perfectly takes you through the moves giving motivation for each phase and also covers the one move very nicely. This original version is much better than I was expecting because I’ve often heard poor things about Massey’s early works – but it maybe better because Ed didn’t actually build any of them as far as I can ascertain. This original version is clearly surpassed by one of Milson-Worth’s crown Jewels, but it still looks great and works very smoothly.

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I’m a big fan of Joe Mogar’s knives, but it’s hard not to fall in love with these beauties from Scotty York and Bill Wells.

These wonderful knives also come with a 34 page booklet detailing: The Scotty York’s Original Handling and Presentation of the Color Changing Pocket Knives including a special new handling utilizing the double edge knife case (case not included). And Fred Kaps’ Final Color Changing Knife Routine, a never before published routine from Scotty York’s private notebooks.

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This parlor and stage effect was invented by British magician James Orrin c. 1932.

This version was created by the reformed Petrie-Lewis c. 1985 when they were in Florida c. 1983-1990 (the original Petrie-Lewis were in business from 1917-1968 when they were sold to Abbott’s) and was heavily influenced by the Owen Magic Supreme version of this effect right down to the color scheme and layout of the Spider Web.  This comes with original instructions, hallmarked with the famous P&L logo and only a few of these were made. The spider is slightly larger and looks better than the Owen’s version.  This unit works perfectly and the effect looks amazing!

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This used to be my favorite paddle trick and close-up effect in my teenage years and early twenties.  It is a great routine, with good magic and lots of fun moments in the routine.  One of the things I particularly like about the routine is the spectator gets to hold the paddle a lot and which along with the routine takes heat off of the paddle and it seems even more magical.

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