Hello everybody,

being pretty new (and clumsy, I guess that's not helping) to card magic I thought I'd give me an unfair advantage over my unsuspecting audience and got myself a Bill Wilder marked deck. Now, either I've eagle eyes which is unlikely or ... it's just a poor deck.
What's your take on marked decks- are any worthwhile, or should I just skip the idea altogether? I'm fine using a normal deck and can throw in a stripper deck if needed, so I don't really need the marking but for very specific things.

Thanks so much!

I am unfamiliar with that deck, but it seems you are saying the marks are quite large and/or obvious. Really, that is not something to be concerned with. Any time you use a marked deck if you treat it right and condition the audience they will not expect a marked deck and won't even look for markings. I know people who never used a thumb tip because they felt guilty using it. They thought it was obvious.

That being said, I do not used a marked deck or any other trick deck simply because I do not want to be somewhere and someone say "show me that trick where you ..." and I cannot because I do not have my trick deck with me.

I think marked decks and such are good within the confines of a set routine.

Just my opinion.

Thanks magicurt, maybe I'm overly harsh with the deck as I looked at it with the knowledge of it being marked. As the marking includes numbers, some stick out more than others, but your point about proper treatment&timing is well taken. I guess I'll see how I can slot it in and keep embarassment to a minimum until I figured the right circumstances to risk it.
Thanks for your feedback- much appreciated!

Please don't skip out on the opportunity on using a marked deck!

Sorry…I am confused…In the title of the post you said you were using a Boris Wild marked deck, but in your post, you said you were using a Bill Wilder. I have never used or heard of the Bill Wilder marked deck. Sorry!

If we are talking about the Boris Wild marked deck, then I can chime in. I own this one, and I am quite satisfied.

Remember: The first time a magician looks at a good marked deck they have never seen before, they can't find the marks. Once they are told where the marks are, it seems painfully obvious to the magician. Although you can see the marks as clear as day, your spectators can't! Here is a story: I performed a bunch of marked deck routines (about 10). At the end, I handed out the Boris Wild marked deck for examination. One spectator commented, "Check to see if its marked!" Everyone (11 people) examined the cards including this woman who brought up the idea of marked cards, and they couldn't find anything wrong or any marks.

PM me if you have anymore questions. I hope this helped,

Zack Johnston

:bluebikes:

Hi everyone, Hi Zack,

apologies for the late reply, was travelling a bit workwise.
I took your advice and did a bit of playing with the marked deck, and you're right, worked like a charm and allowed some really nice effects I could not have performed otherwise yet.

So, it helped indeed

Thanks again!

That is great…once you have overcome the magician's guilt of using a marked deck by performing with it for the first time, you shouldn't have any trouble in the future!

Zack Johnston

:bluebikes:

Another thought is sealers are easy to buy, and folk trust a sealed deck.
Steve

That can be risky, especially with the BW deck, or any other one that can't hold up to a riffle check.

You are absolutely right…I was feeling very confident that day.

Boris Wild will make you want to use a M***** deck. He is incredible.

My 2 favorite marked decks are the Boris Wild and the Ted Lesley.. If you think Boris's deck is boldly marked.. Check out Ted Lesley's. =:-o
And I can say I have never been caught using either deck.

I have used this deck for a few years now and have never had an issue with someone seeing any of the marks. I made mine originally with the transfers that he used to sell. Then he started having them printed and I have a couple of those decks as well. Never had an issue.

The best new Mar*ed Deck now is probably "The Code" by Andy Nymaan, just released some months ago. It is top contender at this stage for the Café Trick Of The Year award, and the accolades are well deserved.

Easy to read, fantastic DVD, great routines and teaching by Andy Nyman. Great price too.

Highest recommendation - it takes the normal MD and put it on steroids making it capable of FAR more, with 3 pieces of information which are well hidden and easy to see.

Given that the original poster's concern/reason for posting about the Boris Wild deck was that he felt the marks were *too* visible, I will note that (while a fine deck) The Code has more markings. If they're more hidden or not than the original poster's take on the Boris Wild deck... that's highly subjective so I won't bother offering my opinion on that. That being said, I've used Boris Wild, the Ultimate Marked Deck, and The Code in working situations and none have ever been spotted. I'll admit to only having used the code a handful of times before returning to the Ultimate Marked Deck (thankfully, I bought a few bricks of these with the knowledge they were going out of print) for two reasons: 1) not having the flexibility of using Rider Back gaffs was disappointing (The Code is only in Maiden Back), 2) there's not a single effect in The Code that I can't perform with the UMD although, yes, I may need to use the alternate hand at times (this will not be the case for anyone that doesn't know their stack inside-and-out).

Maybe you want to give the Phoenix Decks and their marked versions a chance. You can find all important information and a close-up look how the markings work here (they are based on the Ted Lesley markings btw, but are much easier to read): http://www.release-the-power.com

Thanks

Aaaah Christian, I was wondering when someone would come up with the Phoenix, and I was about to! I just bought the MD pack with the DVD and I loved it, I'm really satisfied with it, and in comparison to other MD, I find that it is better. Even only for the special design of the normal Phoenix cards, I would stick to Phoenix.

Until I watched Boris Wild's lecture I didn't realize that a key advantage of his deck is that you can find a specific card quickly. He uses this fact to create some interesting effects that would look awkward with other decks. That said, identifying a card is slower. So which deck to use is dependent on the effects you are interested in.