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nattefrost Special user 703 Posts |
I have ordered this classic deck from reputible dealers and it seems (without giving away the method) that the gimmicked part looks too obvious if handled by the spectator. I have contacted the dealer (and I have done this with numerous dealers) and they were nice enough to send me another deck----but the same result. It's funny because besides performing magic on a "light" level, collecting magic is a major hobby of mine. So I have tons of Svengali decks OTHER than Bicycle brands and some of them pass the test pretty well but I have been looking for a quality deck in Bicycle for some time now. I have even considered making up the deck myself. Where can I get a solid Svengali Deck that looks convincing? Thank you for any kind of info that you can give.
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jimhlou Inner circle 3698 Posts |
Jimmy, this seems to be more and more of a problem these days. This is a drastic difference in the quality of cuts on different decks of cards. I recently bought a stripped deck that was cut so bad I couldn't use it. Just a glance at the back of one of the cards divulged the secret. In addition, the US Playing Card Company recently began cutting their cards (normal decks)by some different method, because the decks don't have the feel that they used to. Maybe it's me, but I don't think so - they definitely have a different feel.
You can buy a card trimmer and make your own decks, the only drawback is that a decent one will set you back about 5 grand. You can buy a lot of cards for 5 thousand dollars!! Jim |
nattefrost Special user 703 Posts |
Jim, I think I'll hold off on the $5000 card trimmer. I recently got Luke Jeremy's "Seeing with the Fingertips" dvd and deck and even though it uses the Svengali Deck for a pretty cool and different type of method I can still see it. I have been using this deck for a long time and sometimes I would think to myself...."maybe it's just me" because I see the gimmick on a regular basis but then again it's really obvious that something is different so it's not just me.
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Cyberqat Inner circle You can tell I work on the net from my 2209 Posts |
It is always darkest just before you are eaten by a grue.
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othelo68 Regular user North dakota 174 Posts |
Simple solution would be to not let the spectators handle the deck. Just me thinking out loud. I did buy the oz perlman dvd with free deck and it looks ok to me and the few times I've shown it to people I've never had anyone say " hey this deck seems fishy" that could be a solution. or there is always the $5,000 card trimmer. 5 g's buys a lot of other nice things as well though.
it would be kinda funny to play poker with a Svengali on accident wouldn't it. oh my every one got three of a kind with the same card! how serendipitous! |
Brad Burt Inner circle 2675 Posts |
If you really want to make your own? A good quality small paper cutter works great. I use masking tape in 5 or 6 layers on the cutting board to form a 'jig' that stops the card where I want to cut. Cut. You can adjust this to as thin a cut as you wish! Been doing it for over 30 years without a problem.
Once the 26 cards are cut (buy forcing decks to get the duplicate cards) I then put them all together and using an Emory board I soften and round out the edges of the cuts. Essentially you get an almost perfect Svengali Deck in look, etc. Best,
Brad Burt
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taller8 Inner circle Olympia, Washington 1087 Posts |
Martini makes great Svengali decks. He rounds the corners on the short card.
http://www.martinismagic.com/Products.html |
s3rg3 New user Belgium 72 Posts |
Does he ship to Europe ?
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Bob1Dog Inner circle Wife: It's me or this houseful of 1159 Posts |
This was a great question! I've never trusted any of the Svengali decks I have bought because invariably they don't work 100% of the time and I don't like those percentages. Gonna get the Sven Red myself! thanks!
What if the Hokey Pokey really IS what it's all about?
My neighbor rang my doorbell at 2:30 a.m. this morning, can you believe that, 2:30 a.m.!? Lucky for him I was still up playing my drums. |
ZackCal New user 2 Posts |
I take cards to my local "old style" printing shop (not one of the modern franchise stores) one with a real press and professional guillotine. This is the kind of printer that uses large formats of paper and cuts down to size. They can chop a millimeter very cleanly off selected cards in seconds - all at the same time, so it is really accurate.
Zackary Callez - Travelling Magician
Currently performing and teaching magic in Asia http://magic-secrets-revealed.com |
ryan8406 New user Elkton, Maryland 88 Posts |
Order from Martini. You will be satisfied with the product.
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nattefrost Special user 703 Posts |
I should have mantioned this sooner but it just slipped my mind, but it's even a bigger issue with my STRIPPER decks. Just like the Svengali, I bought one, sent it back. Got a new one, and it was just as bad. I was then told, "Sorry, we get all of our Stripper Decks from _______." No big deal, I have been ordering from this specific website forever and always get excellent service. But I went through all of my Stripper decks (and I have alot) and I found that one of my son's decks, which was from a Melissa and Doug "Card tricks Unshuffled" set, was practically undetectable. It was not Bicycle brand, but it was cut real good. I wonder if I just got lucky and that happened to be cut better than the others or maybe they are all cut that good.
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MT Elite user 414 Posts |
It's a real bummer that the cards aren't as good as they use to be.
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Mr. Mystoffelees Inner circle I haven't changed anyone's opinion in 3623 Posts |
Not much of anything is a good as it used to be- including us...
Also known, when doing rope magic, as "Cordini"
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