Hey folks,
One of the things that is really keeping me from keeping my memdeck in my head is that I already have several sets without it.

I want to work memdeck effects in, but short of bringing in a cooler... I don't have a solution.

So.. a few questions...
How many of you that routinely use memdecks, still go back to your non-memdeck stuff?
In other words...
Are most of you memdeck folks just memdeck folks?
I routinely do card to forhead/omni/paperclipped/spectator peaks/ACR/ etc...

Memdeck is a tool like anything else. Just because you get good at the pass doesn't mean you never use any other controls. I love all types of card magic - memorized and other. Some of the MD routines are amazing, but I still do more non-MD stuff than MD. You'll never see me dropping Ambitious, card under glass, etc.

Hi Scody,

I do memdeck, mon-memdecks, "self workers" and sleight heavy stuff as well as gaffs, in other words, what ever gets the job done.

I am curious as to why you would resist a cooler. Even in a strolling situation, you might want to keep an Aronson or Tamariz for that special table who asks you back. You might ALSO consider working with effects that use just part of a memdeck. Both Aronson and Tamariz have a TON of these.

But, working in a cooler is so easy as you know, but many magicians make too big a deal of it. Tommy Wonder's solution is SO elegant, but some have commented it is too obvious. Well ,it worked for that late Master, and it works for me at least. You read it and think NO WAY would THIS fly. Yet, it does. Also, check out Randy Tanner's Rubberband Deck Switch in Apocalypse. Another suggestion that flows BEAUTIFULLY because the specs handle the deck is Aronson's brilliant effect "Bait and Switch".

Ahimsa,
Vlad

Thanks so much guys...

I don't mind working in a cooler at all Vlad! I think I'm just wonder in general, how memdeck performers work, and both you and Cohiba answered perfectly, thanks :!

You need a list of tricks that are mem deck friendly.

Eddie Fechter's "That's It" can be easily done with a mem deck.
There are many others.

Keep a notebook of these MDF tricks and create a couple sets that work well.


And check out the work by Lennart Green. Especially vol.1. The guy's amazing.

Perform something with a normal deck, put it away, perform a coin routine, bring in the mem deck...and so on...

"Mem deck friendly" - I like how Frank phrased that.

I do a version of Triumph which retains the deck order. This helps cancel out the thought of a stacked deck once I move on to other stuff. It actually makes the mem deck stuff stronger, in my experience. Middle of the show I will do something that destroys half the stack, and then end with a mem deck killer that only requires half the stack. That's a rough outline of a routine that works for me.

In another routine I simply can't do what I want to do without a switch. It wasn't easy for me to build the switch into my routine, but it was worth it. In some cases I've found no other solution as practical or elegant, as Vlad stated.

I would have never mentioned Lennart Green, because I'm stingy. But since Frank was so generous I'll throw in another piece of gold: Eric Mead, Tangled Web.

Yes, Yes, Yes... Eric Mead and his excellent book Tangled Web. The gem in it, for memdeck workers is his routine where a spectator shuffles the stacked deck and Eric reconstitutes the stack right in front of the audience. No matter how convincing your false shuffles may be, the strongest thing is to let a spectator shuffle. If you use nothing else from Tangled Web, you will have gotten your money's worth. Read about it here:

http://loomismagic.com/item17623.htm

Dennis Loomis