I am putting the finishing touches on my Jumbo Sidekick routine. I have seen this performed a few times by other magicians. One of those times there was a loud sound that triggered the table. Then the table did not work.

Now the question. Do any of you have a "out" setup in case the table does not work. I thought about putting a card in the deck with a hole cut out with burn marks one it. That way if the table does not work I can open the card box and reveal that the card now has a bullet hole.

Does anyone else have any options or suggestions.

Pete Biro used to have a column in Genii called "The Reel Works". The title paid passing tribute to that mechanical device, that when working and only when working, can create true magic. It is a phrase that has stuck with me and has kept me clear of highly mechanical tricks. I figure I make enough mistakes on my own.

An out I have used once and have talked to others about is to have the "designated" card have a hole in it, as if the gun put a hole through it and none of the other cards. It was not very strong but at least I could finish and move on. I had a friend come up afterward and remark that she sensed that the trick was not as planned. She was right!

Robert

PMed Tim with all kinds of info I've gathered after performing this effect for almost 15 years now. Firstly, I've NEVER had anything go wrong with my Sidekick II...and I've also never used the SOUND feature, strictly the remote operation. Now that I've said that...I'm going downstairs to promptly replace the battery in the remote.

Steve

Robert,

What you said is what I had in mind. I will probably put some burn marks on it also. I was wondering what others may have done for the situation you had happen. If the table does not work properly then there needs to be an out. I think any out is better than just moving onto the next trick. Especially since I have a pre-recorded sound track and full routine that I am working on. I would have to stop the music and just say something to explain that something went wrong.

Thanks for the input Steve and others.

Tim