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Vintage Magic Trick: Nick Trost’s Cardcentration

Today’s vintage magic trick is Nick Trost’s Cardcentration. The effect is a prediction of which card out of 8 that someone will pick, then there’s a kicker ending.

Here’s what it looks like:

@louiefoxx Vintage Magic Trick: Nick Trost’s Cardcentration! #cardtrick #magic #magictrick #vintage #cardmagic #louiefoxx #nicktrost #closeupmagic ♬ original sound – Louie Foxx

The effect of this trick is great, the method is garbage. There’s no reason for the envelope, you put a card into it, then immediately take it out. This trick would be equally as strong if you did the hot rod force, Quinta force, or the PATEO force. Sure, there’s nothing to sell if you don’t have a gimmick, but those would be superior methods.

I will say that of the three times I did this trick, only once no one asked to look at the envelope after the trick. That confirms to me that it’s the weak spot in the trick. Sure I could have come up with a reason or way to justify the envelope, but I try to do these tricks as written up in the original instructions to preserve what the creator intended.

-Louie

Oil and Water

Awhile ago I found a set of lecture notes called Something From the East by Haruhito Hirata. In the notes there was an oil and water trick that wasn’t for me, but it did have one part that did appeal to me. The cards were dealt out in rows and then the rows were mixed. The cards then separated by color.

The method was fairly complex and involved. I thought the trick could be streamlined a little bit, so I came up with this:

Then I realized that I could get a bonus trick out of it if the cards had different colored backs, so here’s the second version:

I’d like to get a third effect out of it, but not sure what that would be. Maybe it’ll come to me one day…

-Louie

Jumbo Coins Thru Table

Sometimes I see a trick and I’m not sure how I feel about it. The effect is a coins through table, but with jumbo coins.

Watch the video:

From a magician’s standpoint the jumbo coins add difficulty. From a non-magician standpoint, I’m not sure if it enhances the effect. Sure, everyone knows that doing sleight of hand with a 3 inch diameter coin is much harder than with a 1 inch diameter coin. That difference is something that doesn’t really matter in the moment, unless you sell the trick as a “try to catch me” sort of trick.

Also, why jumbo coins?

I get that it’s a coin trick made bigger, but wouldn’t drink coasters work instead of the jumbo coins. Now you have a trick with a natural object that belongs on a table.

I think the effect in the video is very well done, however not sure how I feel about the trick.

-Louie

Vintage Magic Trick – Destiny Deck by Nick Trost

The Destiny Deck by Nick Trost is a fun little routine that has a few effects that happen one after the other. Here’s what the trick looks like:

@louiefoxx Vintage Magic Trick! Destiny Deck by Nick Trost! #magictrick #cardtrick #vintagemagic #cardmagic #nicktrost #louiefoxx #dice #closeupmagic #antiquemagic #antique ♬ original sound – Louie Foxx

What I’d probably do to change the trick is eliminate the dice and have people hold up fingers for their number. That frees up some pocket space and the trick will still work. It’s a fun trick to do, the only problem is the reset and because of that it’s something that I really won’t carry with me. However I did have fun doing it for a couple of days!

Also it looks like Abbott’s Magic has a few left in stock: https://abbottmagic.com/shop/ols/products/nick-trost-destiny-deck

-Louie

Magic Monday in Seattle!

I was up in Seattle on Monday last week, so went and performed at Magic Monday! This show happens on the second Monday of the month and has been running for something like 25 years!

Before the show I met up with Chris Beason for a quick drink at Teddy’s. This bar was one of the places where Cliff Gustafson used to perform when I was a teenager (and not old enough to get in to see him)

The performers were Jim, Evan, Payne and me.

Sorry Jim, somehow I didn’t get a picture of you.

It’s not just the show, a lot of magic happens, like Ruben doing some close up magic for the audience after the show.

I look at this show like a magic open mic. It’s a place to try new stuff for a great audience! It’s also like a magic club meeting as we all get together in the pub downstairs and hang out after the show.

If you’re ever in Seattle on the second monday of the month you should come out to the show!

-Louie

Best Spoons and Forks for Metal Bending!

Frequently, I see people ask in social media groups “what are the best spoons/forks for metal bending?” The answers are all over the place, from ones specifically being sold at magic shops to Walmart. For me, you can’t the the Costco spoons and forks!

The cheap ones less than 31 cents per fork and less than 27 cents per spoon. They’re soft and ready to go out of the package. The normal Costco doesn’t normally stock these but the Business Costco does! A normal Costco membership will get you into the business Costco and walking around you might find other things you need for your show that the normal Costco doesn’t have.

I don’t know if Costco sells them online, but you should be able to search based on the info in the pictures above.

Happy spoon/fork bending!

-Louie

Magnet Ankle Switch

I have a prop that I altered to run off of an ankle switch. I made a simple holder for the straps to hold the magnet and the switch. These are the tops of an old pair of socks that I cut off.

I simply folded them in half upwards to make a little pocket. Then I sewed them to make the pocket hold the magnet or button. Simple solution, however if I keep the prop running this way, I’m going to make a better version.

-Louie

Paper Magic!

There have been several viral videos on social media of a guy doing floating paper at a coffee shop. His name is Arnold Drake World and the coffee shop he’s at is the one attached to Powell’s Books. When I was there over the weekend, I caught him doing his thing!

It was cool to see this live!

You can learn more about him in this news article.

– Louie

Media Spots and Magic

Not all media spots are rockstar spots. Here’s one that I did, and it was fine:

I should have cut out the multiple force and maybe just started with the card selected. I was very rushed for the trick, and while I think it played OK, it would have been better if I did it slower.

One thing I did do before we started was that I told the reporter that I was going to ask them to draw something on a card. I wanted them to think of something simple to draw so we didn’t waste time for them thinking of a card.

If you’ve never done a live, on location TV spot, they can be very challenging. You get a general idea of how much time you have, but that can quickly change and change during the media spot while you’re performing and you have no idea. Before live media spots, I always try to come up with a signal for the reporter to give me when I need to wrap it up. There’s usually a producer talking in their ear telling them how much time we have or don’t have left.

These live spots are fun, but also very challenging!

-Louie

Lucky Penny!

After long wait, I finally got some custom made gimmicks for my penny to keychain trick.

These were worth the wait and way better than what I had been using for the trick. Having been in magic and creating magic for a while, I’ve got a network of magic builders that I can reach out to for custom projects.

I had a few of these made, as the cost to make one is pretty high, but getting a dozen isn’t much more. I’m hoping to write up instructions for these and have a few of them for sale soon!

-Louie