I was gonna get Raven but was advized not to by a couple people, i was wonderng why, and what other good tricks there are wth smilar effects that have a good effect??

Just get it people always trash talk it, but before they had it it was so amusing. I think its just kinda one of those "once you know the secret it sucks" tricks, but not really. TO you it may be, "oh wow..this is so simple" but to the specs its "Whered the quarter go?" Get it I say.

madferit52 is absolutely right. From an audience's perspective, Raven is one of the most astonishing effects imaginable; But like with all great effects, the secret is sometimes astonishingly simple. But if you get it, get the Raven video as well. It shows you some pretty cool moves.

O.k. I'm going to be honest about your silly raven. It's a clever gimmick, but it's also VERY simple. The vanish it can accomplish can be great if done properly. The thing is, to be creative and try to gaff some other objects to be used with this, sugar packets, peanuts....etc. Even if you become really skilled in it's use and get creative with different types of vanishes. It still loses it's flair after a while. You'll get bored with it eventually. Do yourself a favor and purchase Jay Sankey's revolutionary coin magic- right here on Penguin Magic... It's a little more than the Raven, but you'll learn so much more.... the key words are "LEARN"- which you should be doing constantly as an amateur magician.... and "MORE" which is what you'll get out of Jay Sankey's coin work... Much More than a silly prop that does basically one thing and a limited amount of variations. Stop following Blaine and find out about the tons and tons of magicans who do the real work!

I agree that the Raven is an impressive effect, but I also agree that there are better coin effects that dont reguire gimmicks. I'm currently learning a technique where you can transport several coins one by one from one hand to the other and back again that doesnt require a gimmick. Not only is this more impressive than the Raven, you also dont have to pay for the equiptment.

if you want raven type effects with gemmics just buy the pro pl micro 5 and you will never sleep

Some of us arent very good at sleight yet.. And, very amatuer... I mean, I have spent 140 here on gimmicks in the past month, I work a lousy part time job at a restuarant so I dont have much money... I always buy gimmic, Including the Raven.. Which just shipped.. Is it a good one though, for those of us that dont have the sleights (Skill) yet... Cause right now I dont have the time to sit down and build dexterity...

~Lulach~

Well the Raven will take some practice, don't expect to take it out of the box and be doing it in an hour. Also hopefully you are getting the Deluxe with the Video. It will make it much easier to understand.

The Sylvester Pitch by any chance?

I was thinking that it sounds like Jay Sanke's Mr. Clean Coins Across...I'm workin gon this one as well. It can be found on The Very Best of Jay Sanke Vol. #3. Great DVD.

As is the case of 99% of all magic.