The Genii Forum

I have always liked Michael Ammar's Fab Fruit. I have set and really like them for practicing without the hassle of real fruit (Has anyone ever forgotten real fruit in your close-up case? Yuck!) Unfortunately, they have been unavailable for years and have commanded crazy prices on on-line, if you could find them.

Good news! The Ammar Fab Fruit(s) are once again available: http://store.ammarmagic.com/deonfabfr.html

I spoke with Michael about them at The Workshop and he told me they were impossible to bulk source to his standards. The supply is limited because they are now handmade.

They aren't cheap, but if you've been searching for a set, here's your chance.

PS: His site is also running a 15% off sale on everything (including the fruit).

There is an entire neighborhood in Tokyo devoted to making realistic food of all kinds out of plastic. It's used in the window of almost every restaurant in the country. I suggest searching online for one of those Japanese companies.

Everyone that I've ever seen selling fake fruit or food is buying them from these Japanese companies and then reselling them.

Richard Kaufman wrote:There is an entire neighborhood in Tokyo devoted to making realistic food of all kinds out of plastic. It's used in the window of almost every restaurant in the country. I suggest searching online for one of those Japanese companies.

Everyone that I've ever seen selling fake fruit or food is buying them from these Japanese companies and then reselling them.

Japan demo of making wax food. It's an art.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PPQrNkOgttQ

The trouble with the other faux fruit I've seen is the lack of weight. The Ammar fruit that I have has just the right heft.

Do the Japanese products have the same weight as real fruit? If so, it sounds like they'd be worth looking into.

The Japanese products are heavy.
This is what you want: https://fakefoodjapan.com/collections/all

Richard Kaufman wrote:The Japanese products are heavy.
This is what you want: https://fakefoodjapan.com/collections/all

I want my final load to be a Boiled Egg in Soy Sauce Ear Pick.
"This is a great looking boiled egg for the ear pick enthusiast in your family."

Ever been disappointed by that soggy burger that in no way resembles the succulent beef-fest portrayed in the picture?

Then travel to Japan where you will be guaranteed to receive a meal that looks exactly like the fake version displayed in the window.

It’s amazing.

Andrew

Bill Mullins wrote:

Richard Kaufman wrote:The Japanese products are heavy.
This is what you want: https://fakefoodjapan.com/collections/all

I want my final load to be a Boiled Egg in Soy Sauce Ear Pick.
"This is a great looking boiled egg for the ear pick enthusiast in your family."

Two words: Paddle move

Do people really walk around with fake food in their hair?

After scanning all 7 pages of that Japanese website I didn't see any lemons, limes, tomatoes, or turnips. I stuck with Ammar and picked up some limes. They look very realistic.

Most items were small novelties, key chains, hair ties etc. But the fried squid as a final load... Like Leonard, I went with the Ammar product.

I gave only one example of a website. There are many and you can find fake fruit with no problem.


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Do you have any idea how long I have been looking for a slab of salmon on a keychain?

AJM wrote:Ever been disappointed by that soggy burger that in no way resembles the succulent beef-fest portrayed in the picture?

I always thought that this could have been a possible premise for an episode of "Seinfeld." Imagine Kramer's outraged antics after receiving some flat burger that looks nothing like the luscious picture on the poster in the window.

Wow, you'd have to sell your luxury cups to afford these fake fruit loads...

https://nippondom.com/products/fruit-en/

These are considerably more affordable though...

Vegetables:
https://www.displayfakefoods.com/store/ ... Category=5

Fruits:
https://www.displayfakefoods.com/store/ ... its-c4.htm

Ted M wrote:Wow, you'd have to sell your luxury cups to afford these fake fruit loads...

https://nippondom.com/products/fruit-en/

The turnaround time for those is pretty long as well (1 to 1.5 months) if you want the type of lemon we see in CONUS.

I never said it was cheap. Good replica food from Japan is expensive, but looks EXACTLY like the real thing.

Ammar's Fab Fruit gets the job done at a fair price and the transaction is stateside. I think his limes look pretty good and that's from his old stock. I haven't seen the new ones yet but the fake I own is indistinguishable from a real lime. In any case, the final loads are not left on the table for any length of time anyway.

Ammar's newest version of his Fab Fruit gets my vote for best magic accessory of 2017. The lemons and limes are bit larger and more shinier than the old incarnations that he used to sell. 3 thumbs up!

I concur with Leo. My Fab Fruit arrived in the mail. They are terrific! They look a lot better (and the old ones were pretty good) and have a slightly different size than the previous (2nd gen) set. The heft is just right and they will easily fit a standard sized cup (Johnson Products size and larger) (I can also attest that they can survive sub zero weather). I can post comparison pictures at some point if possible buyers are interested.

I'll have to concur with Leo and erdnasephile about the new Fab Fruit. The Ammar team did a great job.

I just got mine in the mail as well, they all look great except for the lime, which is duller and a slightly unrealistic color compared to the others, which are indistinguishable from the real thing. Is this normal or did I get a dud?

Also, one small quibble: considering they can be made of any shape, why not make them more round so they can be loaded with ease from any angle, rather than oblong?

Luigi Anzivino wrote:I just got mine in the mail as well, they all look great except for the lime, which is duller and a slightly unrealistic color compared to the others, which are indistinguishable from the real thing. Is this normal or did I get a dud?

Also, one small quibble: considering they can be made of any shape, why not make them more round so they can be loaded with ease from any angle, rather than oblong?

My lime is greener than the previous version, but it still looks like the limes in my grocery store. It fooled family members when I showed it to them.

In terms of shape, that's a fair point. I've found it only comes into play with the lime and then only with my Johnson Cups. (Fox, Owen, Riser Stds, Sherwood = no problem) It's pretty easy to compensate for when using the Johnson cups if you load along the axis of the fruit. The older models were more rounded and smaller.

PS The lime also does not fit into the medium size Hidden Wren Chop Cup. (Alan RNT Standard Cup = no problem).

My limes look perfect, and as Erdnasephile pointed out, it's a bit darker than the older version. These Fab Fruits are a bit on the oblong side but as E points outs, just load it along the axis of the fruit. Real limes and lemons are usually oblong shaped and loading them can present the same problem of the fruit getting jammed on the way into the cup.

These FFs fit into all my regular sized cups and chop cups without a problem. My Hidden Wren cup must be the larger model.

I'm always partial to a nice juicy pear in large cups.

Never done the cups and balls however.

Andrew

You can also find fake drinks that look like a liquid. Google movie props:

https://www.propsamerica.com/food.asp

erdnasephile wrote:My lime is greener than the previous version, but it still looks like the limes in my grocery store. It fooled family members when I showed it to them.

My lime definitely doesn't fool… I may have gotten a dud. Ok, I'll see if I can get a replacement…

In terms of shape, that's a fair point. I've found it only comes into play with the lime and then only with my Johnson Cups. (Fox, Owen, Riser Stds, Sherwood = no problem) It's pretty easy to compensate for when using the Johnson cups if you load along the axis of the fruit. The older models were more rounded and smaller.

Yep, I know I can compensate and make sure I load along the right axis, but when buying actual produce I do try to find rounder limes and lemons so I don't have to fumble with them when loading. It's too bad that these special loads end up being a little harder to load than real produce, although I'm sure I'll get used to them with practice.

I thought we were all friends... when the chief Genii talks about fake fruit available through other sources.....Really, how about helping someone out...I thought this forum was magicians helping magicians............................................................................................................

Mike Kaminskas has thrown his hat into the ring so in addition to the cups, chop cups, and wands he sells, he now supplies fake fruit. I picked up three of his limes and they are wonderful! He sells the lemons, limes, and oranges with faux versions of those little barcode stickers one would see in grocery stores.

The Kaminskas limes are just as realistic, if not a bit more than the Ammar fruit--but a little smaller. I'm going to leave on those little stickers to differentiate his limes from the Ammar limes in my box. Kaminskas has a tendency to sell out fast:


https://www.mkcups.com/product-page/everlasting-lime

Kaminskas has a tendency to sell out fast

Apparently, as they're sold out right now.

When I purchased the three limes, the lemons and oranges were already sold out.