Looks good but unfortuantly I am having trouble sourcing the appropriate caps in Australia - if it included the caps I would give it an extra star or two.
I like the idea but looks like I am going to have to make my own gimmicks...

I like the idea of the effect but I'm not sure that this method (and more importantly these gimmicks) are the best way to achieve the effect. I love Alex's tricks but the problem with most of them is that the gimmicks just aren't good enough and unfortunately thats the case here. That all said though the effect is pretty good and you probably could just about get away with it but you'd need some guts to perform this.

Effect: Spectators are shown two different bottle caps. They are told that through the power of suggestion the magician can hypnotize them into thinking that they are looking at a different cap. To prove the point the magician places one cap in one spectator’s hand (say Budweiser) and another cap in another spectators hand (say Guinness). Both spectators squeeze their hands so no one can tamper with the caps. The magician counts back from three, snaps his fingers; the spectators open their hands to reveal that the caps have changed places.

Overall thoughts: This is a very refreshing take on a classic transposition. It is also gives you something to do with a bottle cap besides penetrate a bottle. The second I saw the demo video for this I knew I would want it. How often do we see demo videos with a full performance and no camera cuts? Saying I was not disappointed with this effect was an understatement. I was thrilled!

What you get: 8 gimmicks, two of each for the following brands, Guinness, Budweiser, St. Paulie Girl, and Sam Adams. A carrying case that can hold up to 4 gimmicked bottle caps at one time. One fold out pamphlet with instructions on care, handling, two routines, and a description for one more routine idea.

Teaching: The teaching on this one is old school. No DVD, no download, just a fold out pamphlet with all the basics you will need to perform this trick. Other than the usual necessity for good presentation CAPtivated is all about the gimmicks so detailed instructions were not really needed. There is a total of 12 full color, thumbnail sized photos, to help with a few visual references for critical steps and techniques. The pamphlet covers the following topics.

Preparation: What you will need to do with you gimmicks and bottle caps before performance.
Gaffs: How to use your gaffs.
The Switch: A description of how to do the basic effect described above.
Three Cap Monte: A description of how to do a Monte routine using bottle caps.
Tips on Care: Self explanatory

As I said earlier, once you see the gimmicks you will know what to do with them. The teaching was what it needed to be. Nothing to brag about but it was clearly written so no complaints either. I would recommend reading the whole pamphlet even though it might seem unnecessary. He adds a few tips here and there that will make this trick go a little smoother.

Specific Effects:

The Switch: Same effect as described above. Two different caps are placed in the hands of two different spectators. After some presentation the spectators open their hands to show that the caps have changed places. This is the basic switch effect using the CAPtivated gimmicks. It is fairly easy to do and very clean looking. The pamphlet offers a hypnotist style patter but if you watch the promo video he uses a pickpocket style patter. Those are both great ways to present this effect but if you let your imagination flow I am sure you could think of more.

Three Cap Monte: The magician shows three different bottle caps but tells the spectator to follow the one in the middle (let’s say it’s the Guinness). After mixing up the caps the spectator is unable to find the cap. The magician then points out the two odd caps (lets say the Bud and Sam Adams) and says, “Don’t worry about these two look for the Guinness.” After some more mixing the spectator fails to find the Guinness again. This time the magician unveils all three caps showing that all three have changed into St. Paulie Girl caps. This is another nice application for these gimmicks. The handling he describes is a bit trickier that the basic switch but still relatively easy with a bit of practice.

Unnamed Trick Idea: A spectator holds onto a cap (we’ll say Budweiser). Another spectator picks a card from a deck that has many different alcohol brands written on the backs. The card selected says “Mikes Hard Lemonade”. The spectator with the card waves the card over the hand of the spectator holding the cap. The hand is opened up to reveal that it is now a Mikes Hard Lemonade cap. Lourido doesn’t give much in the way of handling instructions for this effect. That said, a basic knowledge of card magic and CAPtivated will make this effect self evident. I really like the idea and it could be used with either blank faced cards or even business cards. Though it is a neat idea I am not much for carrying around a deck of cards that I can only use for a single effect. The best part of including this is to give you a thought springboard that may help some to come up with other ideas on the use of these gimmicks.

Quality of Gimmick: Fantastic! These are great. The CAPtivated gimmicks are bases on a principle that I have thought about on and off for the last few years. I have to hand it to Alex Lourido for coming up with an effect that is perfect for this. The gimmicks are well made and should last a while if well cared for. The design of the gimmicks makes them very easy to handle. This is not a trick that will require lots of practice to master. This leaves you free to work on your presentation. The only problem with the gimmicks is that you will only be able to use them for four different brands of beer. The US version has Budweiser, Guinness, St. Paulie Girl, and Sam Adams. I don’t have the Euro version but I believe it keeps the Budweiser and adds Stella Artois, Kingfisher, and London Pride. If anyone has the Euro version please chime in with either a confirmation or a correction.

Quality of Carrying Case: The carrying case is basically a small mint tin. It is just big enough to carry 4 cap gimmicks which should be plenty for a night out performing this. It does its job and it is always nice to have something to help organize and protect your gimmicks.

Difficulty: This is an easy trick. Any one with even the most basic coin sleight skills should be able to perform this with no trouble. The best part about the ease of this effect is that it’s an effect that centers around BEER! It is nice to have a trick that you can safely perform while tanked.

Applications: This is an obvious trick if you work in bars. It is also a great trick for people who party at bars, BBQs, Weddings, camping trips, Baby showers…err…well just anyplace you might want to drink beer. One of the best parts of this trick is all the prepatory work you will have to do before you can perform it. He recommends having the following bottle caps, 3 St. Paulie Girls, 1 Budweiser, 1 Samuel Adams, 1 Rolling Rock, and 1 Mikes Hard Lemonade. If you take care of that all in one night lets just say that you will never have more fun practicing a new magic trick. For additional “practice” I recommend 1 Guinness, 1 Budweiser, and a shot of Laphroaig single malt Islay with a splash of cool water.


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Disadvantages: If you are underage don’t bother. It would just raise to many eyebrows watching a 14 year old do this. In all seriousness the biggest complaint I have heard about this is the limited numbers of gaffs available. Right now this is a trick that works well in the US and England. The Euro Version is not really Euro. Even for US customers in the west (the land of micro brews) there are some limits. St. Paulie Girl and Sam Adams, while available, just aren’t that common in the mountain west. Sierra Nevada is a much more popular beer in that area. I’ve traveled quite a bit and can confirm two of his choices as perfect. Budweiser and Guinness are common around the world. The next most common brands world wide would likely be Corona and Heineken. Heineken would be problematic but Corona would have been an obvious choice over Sam Adams and St. Paulie Girl. Another minor problem is that Budweiser has a slightly different cap when sold abroad. It is still red but it says Bud, not Budweiser. I doubt spectators will notice this during performance but it is a possibility.

There are a few things that can help to offset these disadvantages. One of which is something Alex Lourido has already done. Listen to customers! Whoa…Cool! It was requests from people in England which basically prompted the Euro version of this. In time, if this trick is successful, I hope he continues to produce versions tailored to different parts of the world.

The other thing that could help minimize the disadvantages is to make homemade gaffs. Once you get this trick and know the method it shouldn’t be to difficult to recreate these. Indeed I made my own gaffs for two common Korean brands to replace the St. Paulie Girl and the Sam Adams. The quality is certainly no where near the commercially made gaffs they work well enough for the task.

Overall Rating:
I absolutely love this trick. I would recommend it to anyone who drinks beer and does magic. I bought this here at Penguin for $26.00 and felt it was well worth the price. If I had paid the full list price, $35.00, it might be a different story. I think, considering the previously mentioned limitations and the fact that those limitations apply directly to me living abroad, that I might have been mildly satisfied with my purchase. If I was still living stateside $35.00 would be a reasonable price. Fortunately we have Penguin to thank for the low price and if you are living in an area where all four brands are common don’t hesitate to snatch this up while supplies last.
10/10 for customers in US, Canada, UK
7/10 for customers in areas that sell Guinness and Bud
5/10 for pimpled faced teenagers whose voices still crack uncontrollably.

Very clever idea. The props are well-made and will stand up to scrutiny. Despite the simplicity of the handling, the impact of the effects you can pull off are killer. This is the sort of prop a layperson won't anticipate, so their attempts to deconstruct the effects will lead them far down the wrong path.

Obviously these are great routines for a bar or restaurant, since bottlecaps are part of the environment... and these pack so small and are so easy to carry-around, you can always have these on you when heading for a night out. Highly recommended.