How to do Magic Tricks

Advice and Support for Magicians

The Best Time Travel Magic Trick

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Time Travel Magic Trick

Greg asks: 'I'm doing a new magic show based on time travel, and wondered if you could suggest a time travel magic trick which may be suitable?'

 

HI Greg, You have a huge range of choices here. Remember that the magic trick itself doesn't have to be directly linked to time travel. It's the presentation you wrap around the magic trick that will make it fit in the theme for the show.

Here's some of our suggestions for a good time travel magic trick:

 

Newtons Nightmare 

Newtons Nightmare

This little tube could be an excellent time travel magic trick. It allows you to show your ability to slow down time. A small weight falls down a tube, but you can make it fall in slow motion. Find out more about Newtons Nightmare here

Healed and Sealed Time Travel Magic Tricks

Healed and Sealed

How about having a crushed can on a table throughout the show. At some point in the action, you make it go back in time by going back into shape and restoring to a point before it was opened. Find out more about healed and sealed here

 

The Merchant of Magic Facebook Group

We asked the Merchant of Magic Facebook group to give some more suggestions about time travel magic tricks. Here's some of their ideas:

Jay Sankey has an effect I think it is called "Back in Time" – Mark P Cook

Alex Elmsley "Between the palms". A prediction made at the start is shown to be a signed card which happened later. – Bob Yelland

I wouldnt worry about the tricks just get your patter and performance down and then work tricks you know around that. – Chris Curley

If you can put close up magic in the show, try "The trick that never was" by Paul Cummins. – Philip Bynorth

How about something like a torn and restored? Going back in time restores the paper? Similarly a vanish/production/change box (time machine) can turn apples into seeds, birds into eggs etc.  If you look for the time travel magic trick to match the theme you may struggle, try adapting a trick to fit the theme. – Good luck! – Jonathan Nicholson

More close up but I seem to remember a time travel card trick on Matthew Dowden's Party Animal. There's Timeless, which I believe can play well to a bigger audience. I think there was some watch and clock related effects on one of the iCandy dvds. – David Macpherson

Garden of the Strange has some cool stuff in it that could be geared towards time travel. – Ross William

 

 

Self Working Coin Magic Tricks – Metal Sheep

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self working magic tricks - Automata

Do you currently perform any coin magic? It's amazing how many working magicians shy away from coin magic because they think it is too hard to learn.

It's easy to spend so much time working on your card magic that you don't want to 'start right back at the beginning' learning the basic mechanicis of coin technique.

You don't have to do that

Watch this video showing you a trick called Metal Sheep. This is a brilliant example of self working coin magic tricks that you can start performing right away. It fits perfectly into any close up magicians working set of routines.

The best part… There is no sleight of hand!

That's very rare for good quality coin magic, so I know you will love this:

metal-sheep-trick

As Gary Jones shows you in the video, you can do self working coin magic tricks easily at any tables or at the bar. Just approach, show the guests some coins, and then blow their minds. There are no funny angles, complex techniques that can go wrong on the night, or boring plots to spoil the flow of the action. It's simple, easy to follow and totally plays with your heads. Best of all it's so easy it should be made illegal by the sleight of hand police!

Why the book is usually better than the film

90% of coin magic tricks tend to involve productions and vanishes. That's great and it's definitly eye candy. However, coin magic can be much more than a series of moves where coins appear and vanish. Metal sheep adds MYSTERY into your magic. Ben Williams recently wrote about how visual magic tricks are killing magic. He argues that sometimes a closed fist, or a sealed box increases the experience of magic for the spectators because it allows them space to 'wonder what could be inside'.

What's happening in the magicians hands?

How is the transformation happening?

It's powerful for the same reason that films are usually disappointing if you have already read the book. There's no space for YOUR imagination in a film. Metal Sheep allows the spectators to use their imagination when they think back to what happened in the magicians closed hands.

automata-1T

Metal Sheep is just one of the magic tricks taught on Automata

The DVD is packed full of working material that is sleight of hand free, so you can start building it into your armoury of working magic right away.

LEARN MORE ABOUT AUTOMATA HERE

Jay Sankey Versus David Stone – Who is Best?

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Jay Sankey Vs David Stone

Bradley writes: What would be the best option between David Stone and Jay Sankey dvds? I am looking at walkaround with lots of coin sleight content.

Dominic Reyes:

Jay's DVD will give you more material, especially revolutionary coin magic. I prefer David Stone personally as his delivery is excellent. For style and a few select working pieces of material go with David Stone, for content quantity and some great ideas, go for Jay Sankey

 

Ben Williams:

I would totally agree with Dominic on this one, I think he hit the nail on the head with his comment. David Stone’s teaching is thorough and precise. The effects he teaches are more for the classic approach to coin magic, very classic routines like copper/silver and coins across are taught. Jay’s DVDs have a wealth of material on them, he teaches lots of different routines and sleights. All of the routines Jay teaches are his own or his own variations, also some of the sleights he teaches are his own. Because of this you will not learn these anywhere else, apart from on a Jay Sankey tutorial. So if you like the classic approach then David Stone is the magician for you, if you like quirky, unique ideas then Jay is your man!

 

Revolutionary Coin Magic Jay Sankey

Revolutionary Coin Magic – Jay Sankey

David Stone Coin Magic

Basic Coin Magic – Vol.1 by David Stone – DVD

 

Our facebook group discuss Jay Sankey Vs David Stone:

Jan Erik Larsen : 'I would say David Stone or Eric Jones who got alot on coin magic which works great for walk around. I think they are some of the best on coin magic.'

Ben Allen : 'Jay Sankey would suit this style. He’s got a lot of solid routines and some great dark tricks too for walk around.'

Sean Mccarthy : 'Depends on your skill level. Sankey and Eric Jones have stuff for all skill levels. David Stone and Garrett Thomas have great material, but it is a bit more advanced.'

 

What do you think? Share your thoughts in the comments section below: