I had a lot of success with both shells and 3 card monte (table hopping for families) because I did it as "this is what happened to me". If you make it a story you are telling, the moves are just as astonishing and there is no pressure because they are not put on the spot.

Thanks all. I was raised pretty strict and taught gambling is wrong. And although I don't necessarily adhere to those beliefs today I do try to respect others and not offend people intentionally. I think if presented as a guessing game or told in the third person as a story that happened to me I would be safe. Thanks all, I may give the shells a try. I just need to decide on what kind of shells to purchase and begin working with. I am open to suggestions of which type of shells I should purchase and why. Thanks.

School for Scoundrels - Street Shells

http://www.chefanton.com/scoundrelsstore/menu.htm

New - The Street Shells

Shot Glass availble for an additional charge
This is a set of three shells, seven of our ‘Perfect Peas’, and a suede bag. The shells are expertly created and designed by Whit Haydn, and include little-known features such as the Chanin Dip that when used with our Perfect Peas allow them to work smoothly on any surface – even glass or marble. The metal shells are cast in heavy pewter and then heavily plated in either 24-K gold or antique copper. The Street Shells are cast in museum-quality plastic resin for the look and feel of real walnut shells.

“This set of shells and peas is going to be for the shell game what the Paul Fox cups were for the cups and balls.”
--Johnny Thompson
- $45

^^These are the ones I own and I love them.^^ - ^^(the street shells)^^



There are many makes out there, some pros even swear by the cheap plastic Vernet brand shells. I found a site that really makes some cool looking sets (I may get a set just for the "collector" in me) http://www.3shells.com/

Paul,

It is all on how you present it. In my opinion, with your concern of the shell game being known as a gambling game, I would not use the walnut shells or bottle caps.
These are known tools for the con game. There are many other type shells that are designed around different type themes for entertainment.
Just a fun game to play with a different theme.

If you're worried about the shells being too well known for gambling, you could look up thimble rig or use bottle caps.

Bottle Caps are used more for gambling even more than walnut shells.

We know that bottle caps are used more, but the lay public associates the shells with gambling more so than the caps.

Maybe because there are so many beautiful girls passing by, t that can not remember ever seeing the shells or the caps played on the streets of NY. For that matter, the only place that I've seen gambling cons played were in small town carnivals and that was years ago. I think that you can pretty much get away with shells or caps in a magic routine if you present it properly.

I agree, anything can be used if presented right. As any three containers with a ball can be used for gambling.

I have seen them played in many towns at Walmart parking lots, always with bottle caps. If you know about bottle caps, you know about walnut shells. Plus if you watch T.V. you will see them. Why not use shells that fit you and the people you want to play too.

I have many shells for different type crowds. Now I buy my shells from shellgame-al at 3shells.com. There is no other site that has such a large variety of shells of good quality. Check out his site, then you decide.

At this point I have too many shells. Street shells, magnetic street shells (I made a trade for a new set of these about 2 years ago ... haven't used them yet), Karl Norman thimbles, (I bought those from Karl Norman upteen years ago), the Roscoe shells that I love, and 'mags' which I realy like a lot. As far as the audience is concerned, they could care less what I use. I think that it's time that I got rid of all but the mags & the Rosco.

I'm thinking about writing up my routine for using bottle caps and a little plastic bumble bee. I just want to know if anyone has seen a shell game in which the three shells (walnut, peanut or bottle cap) are three different colors or shapes? I use bottle caps because I can use them the regular way, and then, to "make it easier" for the spectators, I put three different color stickers on each of the bottle caps and put the bee under the color identified cap of their choice. Is this something new, or has someone beaten me to the concept?

I have a new set I just put out that are call "BeeKeeper Shells" at 3shells.com. This set is three shells shaped like bee hives with a bee on the hive.

This set brings many features to deliver an amazing entertaining routine.
Comes with the 21st century bottom ridge design, that works so well you can use a 1/2" honey colored ball with the shells. This will make the display much more visual.
The balls are softer than most other balls used and makes them easier to handle. The creative patter that you can use is unlimited to relate to bee's, honey, money,winning & losing.

Here are a few examples
"Keep your eye on the hive with honey to win" ~" The hive with the honey brings you the money"
"If the hive has no honey, you lose the money" ~" Finding the honey can double your money"
" Bee's love honey just like we love money" ~ " This time we'll only use two, which hive do you choose?"

Comes with a plastic bee hive player chip to place in front of the hive shell that they think has the honey. The chip can bring more hands on fun for the player in the game and there is never a misunderstanding on the shell they pick.

Also included is a 1-1/2 super soft yellow sponge ball for a surprise ending that the ridge can hold in the shell when the shell is held up off the surface to appear to be empty before placing it down. This surprise can be done many different ways however you choose.

The bottom ridge is not a gimmick, it is just the opposite. The playing ball is never hidden or held my the ridge in anyway at anytime. The shell has an entire flat bottom surface.
The ridge just gives the ball another easier path to continue its travel inside the shell to make it a fair game and to bring the confidence that it is a fair game to play.
But you can change it from being a fair game anytime you choose to win. You are never force to take any actions.
You have full control with nothing to hide. These type shells will even fool the ones that know how the shell game is done.
Everything can be fully examined at anytime if need be. The shells without the clues and rules of the past.


Specifications
BeeKeeper Shells: High-impact plastic resin
1-11/16 ” Bottom Base Diameter X 1-1/16” High
13 grams per shell

Also, I do have another type set that fits more to what you are talking about called "Stinger Caps" or Flash Caps. These are large bottle caps.
You can get with or without Bee stickers. You can also get a surprise load of a plastic bee.

Specification
High-impact plastic resin
1-7/8” dia. x 5/8"H - 13 grams per shell - Bottom Ridge design bottle caps

Here is a link of some pictures of the color type thing you are talking about.
These are called " Color Blind Caps or the larger type " Color Blind Cups".

http://4photos.weebly.com/color-blind-caps--cups.html

So far it seems my routine is different because the stickers put the color on the outside of the caps. Years ago, I actually used to do this with walnut shells painted red green and blue, but they looked hokey. The caps and stickers are much more natural and I started using them when the middle school students in the school where I taught went through the fad of "cap tossing" (I forget what year that was). But if you have three different color caps (or color stickers on the caps) it is very easy for a spectator to put the bee under the red cap and then simply follow the red cap around as I try to confuse him, only to discover that the bee has flown under the green cap when he wasn't looking.

If I were using your products, I could do the routine with three black caps, three color stickers, and a yellow pea painted with black stripes for the bee. Then I'd have to have a letter "B" show up for one of the sucker endings, and a bunch of yellow B-B's for the other swarm of bees sucker ending.

There are shell routines with different colored shells being used in some of the older shell books, doing what your talking about, but don't use a bee. Like a red, white and blue shell. Without colored stickers. Myself I have never liked this idea of a different marked shells, as you can not make it seem like they lost track of right shell in the shuffle. This is why I put the different colors on the inside of shells with three different colored balls. When you say you try to confuse them, that is where the problem is, there is no confusion.

What your doing, they will always know you cheated. As they know a plastic bee cannot go through walls and fly.

Good Luck

I'm not conning them out of money- for me this is a magic trick, plain and simple, like the three card monte. It's like crimping the card in the monte and they follow the crimp which turns out not to be on the same card at the end. In fact, when people ask me how I do it, I simply say,"It's easy. I cheat."

Sounds like you and the people you are playing too, are having fun. That is all that matters. Not what anyone else thinks.

Keep having fun!

Someone posted a routine on Youtube in which the shells were painted res, white & blue. His finale was to shor 3 peas, one under each shell, in colrs corresponding to the colors of the shell.