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Machinations by Ben Harris - Book


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"The Trapdoor Card" is one of the most unforgettable, yet often overlooked, plots in card magic. Popularized by Martin Gardner and Bob Neale, this effect features a small card with a "door" cut out, just off-center. Someone is invited to hold the card by this makeshift tab. The magician is then able to turn the card inside out while it is IN the spectator's hands. This an unbelievable and impossible topological illusion that you can watch over and over and over again without ever figuring it out.

With Machinations, Ben Harris has taken "The Trapdoor Card" puzzle and pushed it to the limit. With over 20 new effects, Harris has broken this trick out of its card magic background to explore new routines with paper, ticket stubs, schematics, and more. The legendary Bob Neale even contributes his own amazing impromptu handling.

If you love origami or are looking for something unusual and memorable, Machinations is for you.

Learn mind-boggling effects like:

Zoo Ticket - A zoo ticket printed with donkey images changes into a ticket with penguin imagery.

The Wishing Paper - A spectator blows out the candles on a piece of paper in their hand which is then unfolded to reveal their "wish" on the other side.

Houdini's Escape - Help Houdini perform his world famous trapdoor escape with a "paper" padlock.

And more than 15 others!

Every effect in Machinations is easy to perform and requires almost no practice.

The book itself is a slim, handsome, and fully-illustrated, 100-page volume with detailed plans for each effect.

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Customer Reviews (showing 1 - of 4)
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Spice up your closeup Report this review
Pro Privacy ON (login to see reviewer names) on February 18th, 2023
(This review is for Machinations by Ben Harris - Book)
I bought this book about a year ago and finally dipped my toe in. I'm kicking myself in the head for waiting so long. Ok. I'd put this in the general arena of good rubber band magic (but better). With the included props you don't have to do ANY arts and crafty stuff to start immediately. All you need to do is fold on the pre-scored creases to loosen up the not-really gimmicks. Nothing's "gimmicked" in this topological effect. The book/props are excellent for performing a number of mini-routines which are well beyond the "oh look, that was a cool effect" approach. This makes a great change of pace for closeup. Lots of create-your-own possibilities.
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Amazing origami magic! Report this review
Pro Privacy ON (login to see reviewer names) on November 4th, 2022
(This review is for Machinations by Ben Harris - Book)
I bought this book a month ago and finally had time to dive into it. The instructions are clear and concise. I really like the performance suggestions and tested them out on family and friends. I’d recommend this book without hesitation to anyone interested in expanding their repertoire.
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Machinations is great Report this review
Verified buyer Pro Privacy ON (login to see reviewer names) on September 10th, 2020
(This review is for Machinations by Ben Harris - Book)
I just received this book yesterday but have been playing with the trapdoor contest ever since.

The included props are excellent and the ability to download printable replacements makes this great value for money.

Overall a good book and great service from Penguin
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Love Machinations book Report this review
Verified buyer Pro Privacy ON (login to see reviewer names) on June 24th, 2020
(This review is for Machinations by Ben Harris - Book)
Have loved the effect after I was shown it some great ideas highly reamend it
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