Magnetic Magic

Discuss your favorite close-up tricks and methods.
User avatar
Tom Frame
Posts: 1339
Joined: January 17th, 2008, 12:00 pm
Favorite Magician: Del Ray
Location: San Francisco
Contact:

Magnetic Magic

Postby Tom Frame » May 15th, 2021, 10:43 am

When I was 16, I bought Anverdi’s wondrous Enchanted Ring. I performed it frequently for several years until the mechanism failed. I was a callow youth, so I threw it away and forgot about it. I still have and use the flashlight trick Laser Beam, that I bought in my teens.

I recently purchased and love Dave Powell’s wonderful, novel version of the Enchanted Ring. It’s methodology indirectly caused me to peruse the Collectors Workshop/Viking inventory, where I purchased and await receipt of Alan Wakeling’s Loaded Dice. I also stumbled upon this captivating effect:

https://www.martinsmagic.com/allmagic/c ... orkshop-2/

That compelled me to re-read America’s Foremost, the terrific book about my favorite magician, Del Ray. I’m now obsessed with close-up magic using electromagnetism. I’m fantasizing about creating some type of “wired” close-up pad akin to Del Ray’s legendary close-up table.

I’d like to employ magnet-loaded dice, magnet-shimmed coins, cards and critters, electromagnets, reed switches, toe switches, remote control, the works. I’m interested in exploiting both the repulsive and attractive potential of magnets.

My knowledge of electromagnetism is limited to my ability to change a battery. Do magnet-shimmed coins and cards have a north and south pole, or side? I want to perform Ray’s “Million Dollar Card Trick”, in which a face-down selected card flips face up.

I’d also like to perform the ultimate Rising Card, in which a card slowly levitates up of the close-pad, remains suspended and then slowly descends. Can I attach a rheostat to an electromagnet to slowly increase the voltage to cause the card to slowly rise?

For thinness sake, I know that I need a flat electromagnet. Does it matter if it's round or square or rectangular? How big/powerful does it need to be to affect small objects?

Do I run the risk of being electrocuted and bursting into a fireball every time I perform? Not that I mind. Talk about a killer closer.

Can someone please enlighten me?

Jonathan Townsend
Posts: 8704
Joined: January 17th, 2008, 12:00 pm
Location: Westchester, NY
Contact:

Re: Magnetic Magic

Postby Jonathan Townsend » May 15th, 2021, 1:36 pm

Magnets have a north/south. That can be edge or side.
You can make things using small neo magnets which have their n or s sides outermost - say a ball for a chop cup.

There are all sorts of goodies to be found here: https://www.kjmagnetics.com/categories.asp?cat=9

User avatar
Tom Frame
Posts: 1339
Joined: January 17th, 2008, 12:00 pm
Favorite Magician: Del Ray
Location: San Francisco
Contact:

Re: Magnetic Magic

Postby Tom Frame » May 15th, 2021, 7:11 pm

Thanks for the link, Jonathan. I understand polarity. When I buy a magnetic card or coin, I'll have to insist that the magnet or magnets within the gaffs are S on the face and N on the back, or vice versa. I'm primarily interested in the repulsive possibilities. The gaffs must be bipolar which, as a therapist, delights me.

I'm sure that a number of you guys who are reading this post have some experience with magnetic gaffs. Please chime in here or email me if you are willing to school me in these magical magnetic matters. tomframe1@comcast.net

Thanks,

Tom

User avatar
Brad Jeffers
Posts: 1221
Joined: April 11th, 2008, 5:52 pm
Location: Savannah, GA

Re: Magnetic Magic

Postby Brad Jeffers » May 16th, 2021, 2:04 am

Tom Frame wrote: I’m fantasizing about creating some type of “wired” close-up pad akin to Del Ray’s legendary close-up table.

Me too!

I have an idea for an effect that requires a remote controlled electromagnet concealed beneath a close-up pad.
You would think it would be easy to find something that would fit the bill simply by searching online.

Not so.

I ended up buying a wireless remote control, a three inch electromagnet, and a 24 volt battery.

I couldn't get it to work :oops:

Tom Moore
Posts: 635
Joined: February 7th, 2012, 6:45 pm
Location: Europe
Contact:

Re: Magnetic Magic

Postby Tom Moore » May 16th, 2021, 3:23 am

My knowledge of electromagnetism is limited to my ability to change a battery. Do magnet-shimmed coins and cards have a north and south pole, or side? I want to perform Ray’s “Million Dollar Card Trick”, in which a face-down selected card flips face up.


Without going into too much science here- that’s not how it works. Opposing poles oppose each other and the shimmed object will want to get away from the magnet via the easiest direction possible (which would usually be to slide across the table) as physically turning over would require vastly more energy. To have enough magnetic control to make an object turn over you would in reality have to have it held in a precisely controlled magnetic field and have some physical barriers in place to stop it moving out of the field, only then by manipulating the field could you cause the object to turn over. It’s how LIM / maglev
Trains and rollercoasters work and in magic look at Tenyo’s “eye of the idol” to see what huge quantities of magnetic power and physical constraints are needed just to achieve a very modest movement.
"Ingenious" - Ben Brantley: New York Times

thomasmoorecreative

User avatar
Tom Frame
Posts: 1339
Joined: January 17th, 2008, 12:00 pm
Favorite Magician: Del Ray
Location: San Francisco
Contact:

Re: Magnetic Magic

Postby Tom Frame » May 16th, 2021, 9:18 am

Tom,

Thanks for the information. Damn. I fear that my fantasy will remain just that.


Brad,

What were you trying to achieve and why didn't it work?

Joe Lyons
Posts: 874
Joined: November 13th, 2017, 8:27 am
Favorite Magician: Wonder
Location: Texas

Re: Magnetic Magic

Postby Joe Lyons » May 16th, 2021, 9:55 am

I’m also working on an effect inspired by Del Ray. I’m limiting myself to rare earth magnets so far, though an electromagnet could greatly improve it.
Jonathan Townsend wrote:
There are all sorts of goodies to be found here: https://www.kjmagnetics.com/categories.asp?cat=9

This has been the most helpful site so far. They have magnetic pull calculators, mention magic several times and even reference Harry the Hat. Though they specialize in neodymium magnets, they sell wire and have videos on electromagnets as well. Tom, I would reach out to them for information or pointers on where to find the info your looking for.

User avatar
Tom Frame
Posts: 1339
Joined: January 17th, 2008, 12:00 pm
Favorite Magician: Del Ray
Location: San Francisco
Contact:

Re: Magnetic Magic

Postby Tom Frame » May 16th, 2021, 1:03 pm

Joe, thanks for another endorsement of KJ Magnets. Current technology is certainly superior to what Del was using in the 70s. I look forward to checking out their goodies.

Jonathan Townsend
Posts: 8704
Joined: January 17th, 2008, 12:00 pm
Location: Westchester, NY
Contact:

Re: Magnetic Magic

Postby Jonathan Townsend » May 17th, 2021, 11:13 am

A shimmed object will be attracted to a magnet. The trick to flipping an item using magnets is to have small magnets in the target and flip the larger magnet on suddenly, but just for an instant. The metal in an electromagnet will attract other magnets so you need to balance that force with a little distance. The strength of a magnetic field drops inversely with the cube (or fourth power) of the distance. Think stepper motors, solenoids and large current bursts to make magnetic fields appear, vanish, and reverse direction. Making fields turn on and off requires power.

OTC Levitation toys are fragile and use ICs to control the field over the base. The entry price point for a base which floats something with magnets in the bottom is less than a hundred dollars these days. The learning curve for AC power and magnetic... you can spend lots of time having a bipolar educational experience.

Jonathan Townsend
Posts: 8704
Joined: January 17th, 2008, 12:00 pm
Location: Westchester, NY
Contact:

Re: Magnetic Magic

Postby Jonathan Townsend » May 17th, 2021, 3:25 pm

If you'd like to try DIY floating... have at: https://www.instructables.com/DIY-Elect ... evitation/

User avatar
Tom Frame
Posts: 1339
Joined: January 17th, 2008, 12:00 pm
Favorite Magician: Del Ray
Location: San Francisco
Contact:

Re: Magnetic Magic

Postby Tom Frame » May 17th, 2021, 7:13 pm

Thanks Jonathan,

I just bought this magnetic levitation module to get a feel for things. I chose the fully assembled 300 gram lifting option.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/324364840413?_ ... %3A2334524

Edward Pungot
Posts: 922
Joined: May 18th, 2011, 1:55 am

Re: Magnetic Magic

Postby Edward Pungot » December 24th, 2021, 11:35 am



Return to “Close-Up Magic”