Andy Martin

Always an Incredible Delight!

Wow! Whenever you are feeling blue, just order a work of art from Mel Babcock and you will be happy again! This Small Rainbow Die box is a rare treat for sure! So often we buy a trick and we immediately look for the next one. With Mel’s work you always want to linger.

This version of his Rainbow Die Box carries all of the traits of its larger brother, just smaller. You can read my review here.

I can’t express how wonderful I felt as I opened my package today!

A wonderful, wonderful piece of craftsmanship.

Highly recommended!

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Mel’s Finest Hour?

Mel Babcock has got to be one of the finest wood guys in the business today. Everything I have of his is just beautiful! This set of five nest of boxes is no exception. A wonderfully, simple but effective method so you can concentrate all your efforts on the presentation. This version includes a fairly recent improvement so that you can give the fourth box to the spectator so that he opens it and removes and opens the final fifth box, without you touching it once.

The boxes are made of select exotic woods: Padauk with Sycamore inlay, Cherry with Wenge inlay, Chechen with Sycamore inlay, Teak with Wenge inlay, and Cocobolo with Wenge inlay.

They are breathtaking to behold and probably the finest looking nest of boxes you will be able to find.

Highly Recommended for box lovers everywhere!

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Beautiful Box with Amazing Electronics!

Wow this is a very impressive box and the electronics are even better! There have been other effects like this from big names like Germany’s Z. T. Haug and the electronics master himself Anverdi, but none of them were this sophisticated.

The basic effect is you hand the box to a spectator and while your back is turned or you are out of the room they turn each dial to any number. Then they close the box and lock it. You then return and show the box from all sides – clearly there is no way to get in, but with an instant you can secretly obtain a direct L.E.D. readout of the numbers. And once you have divulged the values everything is left clean.

What is particularly impressive about this box is that there is a two step process required for the activation of the L.E.D. which makes it all but impossible to discover the secret by mistake or even by trying to find it. When I received it I was 100% unable to figure it out without help. What is also neat about the box is that nothing is added or taken away to achieve the revelation so it is always ready to go. Finally, the numbers themselves are very clear and can be seen with ease in a moment.

When you open these types of effects up the electronics are often pretty shoddy. But not so with this item – they are very high quality and look like they were done by a professional.

This is a great effect!

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Another Beautiful Mini Marvel!

This item is another incredible mini magic illusion that will appeal to all Magic Wagon fans and all of those still sitting on the fence too. I have owned Cube-A-Libre in a number of versions (two of which don’t appear on my site) and the best one I had was one that I purchased from Ron MacMillan thirty years ago. Even that one I found to be a bit too much to work with because of the six blocks. I much prefer four blocks which is one of the reasons I like this little unit from Magic Wagon so much. You can get about the same amazement factor with less work or risk of exposure!

This mini version works flawlessly and it is very easy to do all the standard moves. There are no levers to press and due to the small size a very deft touch is all that is needed to work the apparatus.

The Magic Wagon continue to go from strength to strength, and it is still not too late to start collecting their beautiful magic!

Highly Recommended for lovers of Beautiful Mini Magic everywhere!

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This is one of those items I remember seeing often in Magic Info (the Ron MacMillan publication) and so when I saw it come up on ebay recently I snapped it up.

In effect you show Ali Baba and his vases and place Ali on the spindle of the stand. The audience select a color and Ali ends up pointing to that color. This can be repeated and in the end Ali ends up pointing to the only vase with a load (money, silks, candy, etc). There are 4 pages of ideas that come with this and it can be used with cards or billets instead of vases and it really is quite an extensive utility item. Within reason whatever will fit on the stand can be used instead of the jars. There is also interesting patter to go along with the Jars theme.

It works every time and there is nothing added or take away. A very nice find from long ago!

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One day I’ll just have Wolf’s Magic Left!

So as my collection grows and shrinks and grows again over the years, the one thing that is crystal clear to me is the amount of Chance Wolf items that stay in my collection. It is very easy to imagine performing a whole show with just Wolf’s Magic items. They are unique, beautiful, 100% reliable and entertaining too!

Wacky Wakoon is right up there near the top of his line. I have performed a variant of the Warren Hamilton’s Jo-Anne Card Duck for 30+ years to great success, but think it is time to introduce my "fans" to the Wesley the Wacky Wakoon!

When Chance sits down to figure out all the moves and actions you know you’ll get something that works first time every time. Wesley is no different.

When these come back in stock, do yourself a favor and buy one!

Highly Required for all Serious Entertainers and Animal Lovers everywhere!

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Can I take some credit for this quality?

This new piece from Howie at the Trickery built by his secret craftsman, Paul Lembo, is by far the best piece of quality I have seen from the Trickery since their master craftsman Jerry left the fold. Everything about it has been improved. The finish, the brass fittings, the smoothness of the mechanism.

I can’t help but think that my comments on the last piece from Paul helped? Maybe I’m crazy, but it sure seems that the difference between the two pieces addresses all the areas I was concerned with.

The only issue I have with this piece is price. At $295 I think is overpriced for what it is. It is just a Silk Cabi Box in the end. No innovations, and there have been a slew of them before this. That is really my only issue with it, otherwise it is almost perfect. Take a look at Mel Babcock’s beautiful magic, it is better quality and you get a lot more for your money. There is certainly a market for items of this quality, but I believe you have to look very carefully at the pricing of these items. Mel Babcock, Alan Warner, Chance Wolf, and the new guy in France Francois Danis have it right, and I’m afraid that the Trickery is going the right way with quality, but the wrong way on price.

I would have given this 5 stars for the quality but I knocked one off for the price. Maybe with a little bit of public pressure I can influence the price as I have influenced the quality?

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A Contender for The Mystery Box Crown

So I’ve always been a fan of the Kennedy Mystery Box – over the years I’ve owned nearly all the variations including three exotic wood versions. So when this item came along from those great guys over at Magic Wagon I was keen to see it.

Firstly, it is made in their usual high gloss style and looks amazing. The gimmick is totally different from the Mystery Box and indeed anything else of this genre that I have seen.

The big benefit to this item over the Kennedy Box is that it can be shown empty when you first put it down on the table. The downside is that the box cannot be examined as closely. It does come with a duplicate box to switch out if required – although I don’t think it is necessary. The move that you make is different to the move that is needed with the Kennedy box and it is personal preference which is easier.

The instructions also detail a fabulous Coin thru Box routine that is easy and very convincing. The unit is certainly more versatile than the Mystery Box, is priced very well, and looks amazing. This is certainly another winner from Magic Wagon!

Highly Recommended!

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Beautiful and Clever without Electronics!

I really love this new item from those great guys over at the Magic Wagon. It is a simple concept but works very effectively without any electronics, rolling balls, or similar subterfuges. You place the elegant chip holder on the table and have 4 spectators each choose a chip and place it in their pocket with your back turned.

When you turn around you name precisely who has each chip and then hand the box for minute examination. Everything is clean.

I really like this principle and it is a clean, small unit that is quick to reset and makes is very practical to use.

Highly Recommended!

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Another Amazing Beauty!

When Howie at The Trickery teams up with the Magic Wagon, what you get is amazing, beautiful, and unique magic. The Atomic Ball has always been one of my favorites and now we have the truly Definitive version.

This is just breathtaking to behold and a truly amazing effect. You show the box and remove the two dice and rings and the single "atomic" ball. The box is clearly and openly empty. Now you close the box and place the ball between the dice stacked inside the rings. With a simple incantation the ball melts away from the dice. You cleanly and openly lift up the rings and the dice – the ball has really gone, and your hands are clearly empty without any moves. Everything is just natural.

Now for the final kicker you open up the box, and there right where it should be is the Atomic ball back in its slot.

A truly elegant and amazing effect!

Highly Recommend!

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