Just wondering who you guys consider to be the best living card mechanic/mechanics out there today. Forget the showman ship, magi's or whatever, were talking the hardest knuckle busting moves their are.

I think Richard Turner has got to right up top, but then again you got to think about people who are not in and never will be in the magic industry, the people who are acctually out there pulling off some insane moves.

Opinions?

As much as I loath him, Brian Tudor is likely the best card handler on the planet - as far as knuckle busting goes.

As far as skillful execution of realalistic sleights: Richard Turner.

I thought Daryl was the top card man.

As a teacher and inventor, yes.

I don't loath him, but I have to agree, he has some mad skillz when it comes to cards.

True, he is the definition of knuckle busting

Alan Ackerman


Sean

Tudor has some very fast hands indeed but I'd like to add Ricky Jay. He's pretty darn sick.

-JT

Yea, I was going to say ricky jay. Brian tudor can do a lot of knucklebusting stuff but over half of it either isn't natural looking, doesn't fool me, or doesn't even make sense. That has nothing to do with showmanship. It just has to do with good card handling. Ricky Jay on the other hand can do incredibly difficult things with cards without you even suspecting it. AND you can actually understand what ricky is trying to show you. AND it fools the heck out of you every time.

If you said best xcm guy or whatever you call them, I would have considered brian tudor (though I don't know much about that stuff).

But since you said best "card mechanic, I would definately say ricky jay. But that is just out of people I know of really well. I have heard that richard turner is great too but I've never really seen his stuff.

Dan & Dave Should be up there.

I always thought card mechanic referred to gambling moves, a la Marlo and Ricky Jay. But Dan and Dave are sure as edited talented with a deck.

-JT

I second Richard Turner. The blind ace.

BILL MA-LONE!! BILL MA-LONE!!

I think dan and dave are btter than brian tudor. Their like 25, and extremly talented. They are the kind of guys who will learn a new sleight, and a week later have it perfected.

That's my understanding as well. A card mechanic is someone who cheats at cards and specializes in gamblings sleights. It would be hard to be known as the best mechanic because mechanics do not like to be known at all...being known as a mechanic is not a good career move. Tends to have violent consequences for the mechanic.

Pick up The Magician and the Cardsharp for an excellent biography of both the best card magician and the best card mechanic that have ever lived (both have passed on). A fascinating read.