Thumbs-Up

It's supposed to be a super realistic TT. I'm just wondering how much better it really is than the various other brands.

Is it worth it? On the one hand, nobody's supposed to see your TT anyway, so it shouldn't make a huge difference how realistic it is. On the other hand, $14.95 isn't all that much to spend on something that has so many different uses if it really is a huge step up from the $4.50 versions.

Does anyone here have one? What are your thoughts?

I bought one of the soft versions of
Thumbs-Up because I wanted a super soft (crushable/ditchable) TT for an idea I was working on. Saw it in a magic shop and was overcome with that weird "must buy it now" fever that strikes one when visiting magic shops!

As far as using it as an all purpose TT I would say that it is not necessarily any more "invisible" than any other TT you happen to own (unless your TT is from an old Adams "Disappearing Lit Cigarette" trick!)

I prefer the latex (semi-soft) one's from Japan or even the Vernet.

As you already noted, if you're using a TT correctly no one should ever see it to begin with, but if someone were to stare straight at your non-moving hand with the Thumbs-Up on it they would certainly see it. It's not invisible.

Over-priced in my opinion. On the other hand (pun intended) HotTrix "Hands-UP" is worth the money. Since the audience will be staring straight at the thing (unknowingly) it pays to get the most realistic one available.

"Hands-Up" is very well made.

I had bought a couple of their TT's at one time and was very disappointed in the coloring. If I was a dead person, they might have worked and been satisfactory to me. However, they are nowhere near as invisible as the Vernet TT's, IMO. Now for the stupid part... even after I had purchased their TT's and wasn't satisfied with them, I was stupid enough to buy their 'Handz Up' which does look real.... that is, if you discount the dead man coloring. Once again, because of my stupidity, I'll have to try and sell another one of their items. Anyone interested in 'Handz Up'?

Jerry
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Jerry -

I must have pale ("dead man") hands because the Handz-UP gimmick matches my skin tone pretty good!

Seriously, you can always touch it up with make-up that is the correct skin tone to match your own hand.

David

David,

I thought about that and even heard that they have a kit for doing that, but I haven't seen it. Anyway, won't the makeup rub off on whatever you're using the gimmick on? I remember my old romancing days when I went home with makeup on my shirt collar.

Jerry
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I bought both the soft and regular thumbs up TT's. They were the only magic items I have ever returned. Considering the drawer-full of magic junk in my office that I will never use, you can probably imagine how displeased I was with them (for all the reasons previously mentioned). All my Vernet's are much better and much less expensive.

Too thin, too small, too unnecessary.

But does it actually have anymore uses than the one costing $4.50?

And you're right - no one ever sees a normal one (so the colouring shouldn't matter). On the 'Handz Up' it matters because they're looking at it.

'Thumbs Up': thumbs down: pointless. Buy a spare Vernet instead.

Cheers,

Matthew Blackwell

As I've said, I'm very disappointed in the coloring of 'Handz Up', but I see that Stevens Magic Emporium has a like gimmick advertised that looks better, IMO....at least from the catalog photo it does. Has anyone seen the Steven's version and could make a comparison of it to the Handz Up?

Jerry
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Thanks for the input, guys. I guess I'll stick with my Vernets.

Thumbs Up, Stevens, or anybody else...no matter who makes it, we've done fine with our inexpensive Vernet's for ages, why waste money improving it if nothing's wrong with it to begin with?

In case anyone is interested in seeing how the Handz Up coloring matches up to an old man's, e-mail me and I'll send you a picture with side by side comparison. I'm not saying who the old man is.

Note, this item is for sale, so there's a price on the picture.

Jerry
jecar@comcast.net
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Except perhaps for very brief and fragmented glimpses between the fingers, the only angle a TT should be visible from, if at all, is straight on. As such, the Thumbs Up, the Vernet and the Japanese semi-soft are all pretty much equivalent.

Given that, it IS nice to know your TT is as realistic as possible from other angles as well. Sure, if you do everything right, it should never be visible from those angles, but it is a fool who assumes everything is going to go right. What if you goof and someone gets a side angle view, or whatever? I would certainly take the more realistic TT over the less realistic one, even at $15, if it gave me even a small improvement in realism. Even if I NEVER ended up needing it, it would help my confidence to know I'm insured from accidental bad angles as well as I possibly can be.

Okay, but guess what? Even on this count--at least for me--the Vernet is far superior to the Thumbs Up, for two reasons. First, the Thumbs up has a thicker edge, so it blends in very poorly from a side view compared to a Vernet (again, this is only meaningful as insurance, since you never show the side view intentionally anyway). The Vernet has a very thin edge, which is hardly noticeable and blends in much better, in my opinion. Secondly, sorry Thumbs Up, but I am a guy and do not wear nail polish!

If it really was more realistic, I'd spend the extra money, even for 1% extra insurance against detection. But for me the Vernet is the one that is more realistic. The bells and whistles like fingerprints and more realistic wrinkles are just silly, and have no effect on realism from any angle, unless you have a routine that calls for shoving the TT into the spectator's face.

I bought a thumbs up and it was way too dark coloured for me, so I am sticking with my vernet.

I think we can get some sort of make up to "colour" up the gimmick to match our skin colour.

Hello All,

The web site for Hottrix
http://www.hottrix.com has coloring techniques for both the Thumb tip and hands up. If own them there are serial numbers in the instructions. Log on and you can download a pdf file of hint and extras for almost all of there tricks.

Mr Phil

I've seen a performance (at magic camp, when I was a kid) where the TT was dayglow orange. And someone told me that Daryl did this as well.

The point of the perfomrace was to show even a "magic literate" audience that the color, shape and size (within reason) of the TT does not matter. If you are "doing it right", the spectators will not be focusing on your thumb(s) and you can just about "get away with murder" if your technique is correct.

When was the last time you took a REALLY CLOSE look at someone elses thumb?

So, stop stressing about the "color match" of your thumbtip. Close is more than close enough.

I was taught 3 things: 1) Cover your thumb if possible 2) Keep your hands moving if your thumb is exposed 3) Keep your thumb pointed right at the spectators nose.

Right on the money, BDormer! I've seen several magicians lecture over the years that used brightly polished silver thumbtips to prove you're not suppose to see it. Once again: Don't run when they're are not chasing you.

greg

On the subject of TT's, are they FAKES or are they classed as GIMMICKS?



Thanks,


Frank.

The colour for me was a problem and also the loose end. The marketing really does convince you that you probably need one of these, but like many of the others, I have gone back to Vernet. They're inexpensive and effective.