Ok, so I'm not saying you can't BRIEFLY let people see these up close, you can, they are extremely
well made. I am pleased with the purchase. However the description clearly states that these coins
can be examined, and that statement just doesn't hold water in my opinion. I purchased it based on
that and I'm a bit disappointed.
These coins will NOT hold up to any scrutiny, especially
1 of the 2,.. also I think you should be aware that you can not have the same person hold or examine
the same 2 coins, at the same time.
The routines presented are amazing and it can be done
using the spectator, which in my opinion is worth the cost. And the precision is amazing. With some
thought, you can definitely use both of the coins you're getting in many different ways not
mentioned on the DVD. As for me, I will NEVER hand the one coin out without a switch, which is
annoying considering they didn't mention anything about that and no one in the Penguin Q&A forum did
(at the time of my purchase), and not one of the reviewers. And someone in the forum also mentioned
that they could be handed out. While this is the kind of talk that's just not straight forward, or
what I would say is, "Not the whole truth". It implies things using clever wording that leads you to
believe things that just aren't true, and it's not like they said anything that was a flat out lie,
but the wording is what takes most down that garden path. And sometimes you don't find out until
it's too late, that once again you've purchased something that was too good to be true. I wouldn't
hand out the gaff to anyone personally, anyone who's ever seen or felt a US Quarter will spot an
inconsistency immediately.
So take it for what it is, an amazingly precision crafted gaff
that will allow you to create miracles in the spectators own hands, and while using correct
structure, without them ever knowing how. And for me this is what makes this purchase all worth it.
Just keep in mind they can not hold up to any serious scrutiny! You've been warned, if you don't
mind those conditions (which I do not) then you'll have a true miracle. Just think about having to
do a switch,.
All in All, I'm happy with the product, just wish the description and
reviewers before me had said what I'm saying. So 3 stars just because the effect, method, gaffs are
amazing. 2 stars off for claiming they could be examined without clarifying that they can not be
handled together by the spectator, and for only including 1 effect on the DVD with a gaff that is
clearly capable of a million other things! They could have added a few more applications, they are
not hard to figure out, but they could have gone into some extra effects and handling, wouldn't have
hurt.
These are completely examinable. No one would have any idea what they are even looking for. Especially beforehand. Even afterwards they can look, it took me longer than anyone would ever hold them to even figure out how to open it. And there is no noticeable mark for the gaff at all. The only thing is they can't be given out together, but that's a tiny issue. Out of hundreds of magic products I've bought, this is easily in the top three of the most unbelievably perfect creations.
I did say that I'm still happy with them, but they are not able to be examined thoroughly as I'd hoped. I've still had great success with them and they are in my act. Maybe yours were different, but mine feel fake in my hands. (Not the second one, just speaking of the flipper. There's a very distinct sharp edge around the brim of mine that is very noticeable as regular coins from the US mint have no distinct "lip" that can be felt from just holding it at the fingertips..
And again, my review was based on the minimal teaching, and the somewhat diluted description, for the price, I felt it could've been a little more thorough. As I said in the review, I don't mind so much and can work my magic around it, thus using it to great success. So overall I was happy with the product. Not to be taken out of context. Was just hoping to warn potential buyers of the issues I honestly had with it. And now they are posting my review on December 8th, when I wrote it on November 24th, not sure what that delay for Penguin was about either.
I don't think I posted it as anonymous either. I clearly stated that I was happy with the overall precision and product, my 3 stars was fair in my opinion and I stand by it.
The examinability factor has far less to do with the coins and much more to do with the presentation and audience management skills of the performer. Sure, if you dare a spectator by saying, "Check these out... See? They aren't trick coins!" then you are opening yourself up to undo scrutiny. These are extremely unassuming gaffs. If you just hand them out without a challenge statement, the spectators will give them a couple quick turns and that's it. My set has a decent sized gap between the edges of the f*****r, but out of about 30 performances so far, no one has come close to thinking "trick coins."
And if you want to hand both to the same person, how hard would it be to ring in one regular quarter? The moment of impact is so strong and lasting. You could do the dirtiest pocket switch and get away with it every time.
AGAIN,
Not meant to be taken out of context. I never once mentioned that they can not be used successfully and handed out casually. I am only stating facts about them, that people should be weary of when purchasing this product. I have used them this month alone, near a 100 times, with 100% success, but I'm very careful with them. The product claimed that they can be handed out and inspected, this is simply not true.
I never challenge my audience, nor do I disagree with you at all about the impact it has. If you feel the need to hand them out, I would recommend a switch. Everybody over the age of 12 knows that you can get gaffed coins from any magic dealer, and if you hand these to someone, without keeping your guard up, they will notice that there's something fishy about them! Although that won't necessarily give away the method, it will force them to settle on the idea that there is a method, thus diluting their feeling of experiencing "magic"
I agree that they cannot be examined. The quality of construction is so poor that the gimmick coin can be spotted from far way. The face of the coin doesn't line up and doesn't resemble a normal coin and the inner core of the coin is clearly visible.
@Nilpo,. Thank you!!! finally someone with some sense! To say it's examinable in the description, is a little far fetched.
@8ofclubz, since writing my last comment, I have received a set of replacement gimmicks. These are much higher quality that the first set. These can be handed out, in certain circumstances. They will not stand up to careful scrutiny, but they will pass a casual inspection as you mention. For the benefit of others, there are two gimmicks in the set. One is completely examinable without question. The other a little less so. I choose to just hand out the first one. Most spectators assume they are both the same. The coin that "passes through" is the one that gets handed out anyway so no one has any reason to care about the other coin. It stays in full view the whole time anyway. So to answer the question correctly, yes the coins can be examined in most cases, but a better handling eliminates the need to hand out the risky coin in the first place. The description probably shouldn't say they are examinable. It is a bit misleading because it implies that there is no risk of being detected at all which is not true. The gimmick is very deceptive but any spectator is capable of detecting it at any time if it's in their hand.
Yeah, and mine were definitely great quality, and I've been using them daily still with great success. I never meant for a moment to say that I was disappointed overall. I wasn't. I was just a little upset that I trusted the description fully. I contacted Nick asking him to clarify for me before I made the purchase, and he saw my message, and read my follow up message. Yet didn't respond! I posted the review on here over 2 weeks before Penguin finally made it public. So there's something fishy going on there which I just don't appreciate. I didn't say anything revealing. I also clearly stated in my review that I was happy overall with my purchase still and didn't regret it, but was just trying to be informative. Who knows how many Penguin sold in that 2 weeks while they withheld my post?! I just watched as the (Positive) reviews filled up the page, but mine for some reason was omitted for that duration. As soon as it got posted, I had gotten attacked by others on here who obviously didn't read what I had written. I had this same problem when I posted a honest review on Ellusionist.com which only makes me weary of writing reviews. It's kind of sad too. I have only been more outspoken with Penguin because I believe the reviews help potential buyers make informed decisions, as much as they help me. Someone was keeping my review (which was only honest) from showing up on the product page. That's just seriously unacceptable imo.
Again, I'm happy with the purchase, I thought the DVD was lacking a bit for what it was worth. And the description (AND people in the forum who work for Penguin) were being misleading by saying that they were "fully examinable"! To go back on it later by justifying your words with comments such as, your performance style shouldn't be challenging, or,.. you can hand them out casually and no one will notice because as long as you don't hand them out together, and other similar excuses like that, is just plain insulting. To say that your audience can look at them, when you KNOW that if they hold both in the same hand for even a second, then the gaff will be exposed, or to say that me being honest has something to do with my performance style being to "challenging", is condescending. Those "magicians" (not @Nilpo) can keep pretending that their viewers are that simple minded. I give my audience a bit more credit than that. I will continue to switch out that "f*****r" coin for a real one, because I like to be safe and open. And I don't pretend my audience is too stupid to consider that I may have a trick coin set.
I really don't think those that said that have actually performed this trick for people before making those ignorant comments to me. I've been performing this as the video describes everyday for a couple months now. And every couple performances, someone always blurts out, "Let me see those quarters!" And I also think it's a bit of a tell to hand them only one. I don't use gaffed decks often, but someone always asks to see my cards, in which case I hand them the deck, not just a card or two.
Lastly, people don't get to experience magic while you're performing the effect at hand. They don't come to the conclusion that something was magic, until they've exhausted all other possible methods in their mind. This is what magic is all about psychologically. To say that no one will want to see the coins unless "YOU" presented it wrong, is the same as assuming your audience is completely mindless and is impressed by anything, without them going through all the thought processes that make them human, the thoughts that you, as a "Magician" are supposed to allow them to go through and help them eliminate. That's why we EVER allow anyone, to examine anything we use at all during our performances. Without that, we allow them to come to their own conclusions about possible methods. And even if their conclusions are wrong, they leave puzzled, but no closer to the love that comes from experiencing true astonishment and sense of infinite wonder of what could be possible that comes from believing that what they just witnessed was and could only have been, "real Magic". This is Magic 101,.. the most basic concepts in the theory behind why we perform, if you're not considering that as critical, and you think your audience is "SO AMAZED" by what you do that they fail to think rationally enough to ask to see the coins. Then more power to you, but they may have already come to the conclusion in their mind that you are using trick coins, but they're not saying that to you out loud, and you're happy in your ignorant, blissful little bubble than so be it. Nonetheless, you have failed.
And just for the sake of completeness, I'm adding my switch that I now use to get over this whole problem, because I do love to perform this effect and I have been everyday since just before Thanksgiving, here's what I've come up with, because I was being asked to see both coins.
1- I try and borrow the quarters (or pretend to)
2- I keep them attached to me with a Magnet hold-out so I don't have to go to my pocket to switch them
3- I keep the real ones finger palmed during the routine
4- At the end, since they stick to each other, they're real easy to palm while bringing the 2 real ones back into view and letting them jingle in my hand.
5- I ditch the 2 gaffed ones back to the magnetic hold-out
6- Hands are clean holding 2 real solid quarters which I can hand back and leave with them. Forget examination, because now I've eliminated the need.
7- I'm reset to do it again ;)
woal go and take a chill pill 8ofclubz.
Not a bad trick but does pose some handling problems with the quarter size, didn't know it came in a 1/2 dollar size and would recommend the larger size, wish I had known!
Thank you 8ofclubz,I appreciate your honesty and value your review. a little long but you had to get your point across ,I understand.Don't let the others stop you from giving your opinion.I thought you were spot on.
Dude, make a movie and I'll watch it. I got tired after your 752 post. Sounds to me like you have issues with being wrong vs conveying a solid comment. This trick is brilliantly crafted and can easily be examined after the performance. You came across as excited and relieved when someone finally agreed with you, which was quite telling. You're wrong so get over it and move on.
@boatys
Here's a thought,.. Don't read it all if it's too much!.. I'll admit I did get a little over excited due to several reasons that were not mentioned here and couple of my posts removed by the powers that be, and my review was meant to be honest, and open, and keep people from spending their money on something that they were getting lied to about.
No one is forcing you to keep scrolling and reading, I was being thorough, and I got backlash,.. now a couple years later, even more from you,.. FUCK OFF YOU DICK... HIT THE BACKSPACE AND SPEND YOUR HARD EARNED CASH ON THIS THIS LIKE I DID,.. Don't share how deceived you felt about it, and no one will complain to you, NO one will get pissed and yell at you for being honest.
Fact is, I still perform this with great success,.. but I switch out the coins, I son't pass them out in their current state. You think you can get away with it like others here have argued, then go for it. For crying out loud if it's too much for your short attention span to read, then don't fucking read you pile of horse shit!
(Grown quite tired of certain people in these comment threads making it a place to unleash their personal nasty attitudes upon people trying to help out their fellow practitioners and loyal Penguin customers. Did you read all that too??
Why? (Dumbass)
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Elephant in the Room? Anyone?
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