Go "old school" would be my suggestion.
That darn TT still works well even tho its in every kid's beginner's magic kit and you would think that it's overexposed.
However, none of those kids are ever in the bar eh?
Vanish a small 6" silk, or salt( then re-appear), or even a lit cigarette butt (if anyone still smokes...). I have a love/hate relationship with those TT's, but I always have one in my pocket. After all these years, who knew?
Another oldie that I love/hate is the "Hot Rod" or "Fantastyk" (cheaper version). It always amazes people, you can finish totally clean and let people touch/feel the damn thing.
Yes, I still shake my head when seeing this...again, after all these years.
I know that you're not looking for card tricks, but as you probably know, you can't go wrong with any 'monte'...especially the ones where you tear a corner pip off and the card still changes ;-)
And, per a comment that I'd seen just a few weeks ago, I've been sealing the old, reliable invisible deck into an envelope and letting spectators write any card on that envelope...only to reveal it later.
The old stuff still plays strongly.
Hopefully, you'll get lots of suggestions. I always love the answers from others.
Good luck.
