Hey everyone,
I had an idea going on a year ago to do a bill change with a signed bill. I finally constructed the gimmick, and I'm really really pleased with how it looks.
What I like about it is that you can borrow the bill, change it, and then immediately hand it out to be examined with the signature still on it.

I'm quite happy with it, so I thought I'd share.
(Btw, I'm using an erasable pen in the demo so I can reuse the bill... The camera didn't pick it up very well unfortunately)
http://youtu.be/9k7k-rDIeIk

Thanks for sharing, Magikyle. Perhaps a spectator could initial it with a Sharpie while you hold it, then it would show better - but you couldn't redo it right away.

Richard

Definitely, Richard! I'm thinking for a situation like a tv spot or trying to seal a gig (anytime that I would ACTUALLY give away the 20 at the end) I would definitely use a sharpie but for walk around, or casual performances, I think an erasable pen is the way to go. And since recording this, I experimented with a red pen instead, and the contrast is much more noticeable.
Thanks for your comment

Kyle

Hi Kyle,
I have given out hundreds of signed cards and bent 1-cent coins. They make great souvenirs at little cost to me. I think giving away a real $20 bill would seem too extravagant, and wouldn't be kept as a souvenir. Promoters might even be confused as to why you did that. What about using a gag bill such as those $1,000,000 bills that you can get fairly cheaply? You would still get a great reaction, and you could do it often.

Richard

Magikyle, how did you over come being able to use a bill in the same worn condition as the one that was borrowed?

Note, did you know that an eraser will remove the ink from a bill. So doing it to often will remove parts of the printed bill. That was an old method used in using matching serial numbers on some tricks way back when, bill numbers were the convincing proof factor for dollar bill tricks.

I find your statement strange, "then immediately hand it out to be examined". You are a very trusting person it seems. You do realize that once you give a bill to someone, it is no longer yours, and you have no legal claim to it. So you cannot claim they stole it, as you freely gave it to him/her. Just sayin'.

Hi Bill!
Thanks for the critique.
Your first point is very fair. I have still a lot of audience testing to do, so it's hard to say whether or not that will be a problem. I'll definitely continue to be mindful of it, however. My guess is the the signature on the bill will diffuse any suspicion regarding quality discrepancies.

About the eraser... I use Frixion pens that erase with heat, so the bills (at least thus far) aren't even fading a little bit... Which is awesome

And lastly, I know that when browsing visual bill changes in the market, a concern that a lot of potential buyers have is if the bill is examinable at the end or not. Most of the time, the answer is the latter. That's why I designed this one so that immediately after the change, you could hand it out... If that is a concern you have. Of course you'd have to show discretion. I tend to be a very trusting performer, so this suits my performing style well. If you would be hesitant handing the bill out to be examined, then you definitely wouldn't have to do that.

Thanks again for your comments, Bill. I'll keep you updated as I do more road testing with this effect.

Kyle

That is awesome Kyle . To get round the problem of handing out a $20 you could go $20 to $5 using the 'never trust a magician, you had better sign this' type of line.

To Bill's point, not only does one need to be concerned about the ages of the two bills(I've been caught), but also the style of the five. The latter could be managed by how the bills are folded.

Anyway, I like the way you "rung in" your gimmick, I hadn't seen that used with bills before (although I'm not sure why I hadn't), that opens up some new possibilities for myself.

John

Great idea Hydrostevo. That's a nice tip (In more ways than one).javascript:emoticon(':lol:')

Richard

I have been working trade shows for many years. One of the highlights of my show is: borrow a $100.00 bill(any bill will work), have them sign it or initial it, and change it to a one dollar bill. You say no big deal. Well their signature is on the one dollar bill which they can keep. And no, there are no stooges or pre-show work. I have dicussed with people such as Gregory Wilson, Richard Osterlind, and Martin Lewis just to name a few. Its as close to magic as I've seen.

Let see if I understand this correctly; you borrow a $100 from a spectator, and give them back a $1 with their signature on it.

and how long did you say you were doing this at trade shows? (I'm assuming not the same trade show, or at least not the same vic.., uh volunteer)

They don't call that magic here in New Jersey

Well John when a spectator signs a bill and the bill changes with their signature on it, not a whole lot to say. In the reverse very easy to take the money and run. This routine allows for a lot of opportunity to explain change. I did give them their signed $100 back but I did play with them a bit. After all the $1 had to be their bill since it was signed. I have done this for 30 years about 20 times a show. In Jersey they don't call it magic, its called Christie. Sorry couldn't resist.

Best

Ok, otherwise I don't think you would get too many request to "let me see that again". Although you are working a very different venue than I've done, so I'm not familiar with what you might do to "explain change", but I can see it as a starting point for a conversation.

If you achieve a signature on both the $100 the $1, then you have a method that I'm not familiar with.

Still, from a magical perspective, if you give them both bills back, and both are signed doesn't that raise suspicions in their mind? Some would change the $1 back to a $100, to avoid what would be an obvious "hint" that two bills are at play.

In regard to Christie, well that is a big topic.

John

[quo a personte]On Jan 16, 2015, John Long wrote:


I am the only one doing this. Think about this, if a person signs a bill and you change it for another, the signature must transfer. The spectator is only aware of one bill. So, I do make the change from the one back to the hundred. All I've added which is huge is the transfer of the signature.

Best