Looking for a trick I had as a kid

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danhughes
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Looking for a trick I had as a kid

Postby danhughes » March 3rd, 2010, 9:10 pm

In about 1960, I bought a self-working trick at the hobby shop, and I'd love to find it again.

It was a metal slide with a small pouch and about three sets of nested metal shells. You put the pouch over the end of the slide and held it on with a rubber band. Then you put the three layers of shells over the pouch, one at a time, each held with two or three rubber bands. You then hung this thing over your belt, behind your back.

You borrowed a coin from your friend, he noted the date, and you put it behind your back and dropped it into the slide. With the same motion, you pulled the shells off the slide and handed them to your friend. He took off the three layers of shells, one at a time, and found a pouch inside. When he took the rubber band off the pouch, he found his coin inside.

Is this thing still around?

Thanks!

---Dan, http://danhughes.net

Bill Duncan
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Re: Looking for a trick I had as a kid

Postby Bill Duncan » March 3rd, 2010, 11:51 pm

Royal Magic makes one using a small wooden matchbox, a metal box, and a red cloth bag. My first trick.

Fun Inc. possibly?

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John M. Dale
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Re: Looking for a trick I had as a kid

Postby John M. Dale » March 4th, 2010, 1:53 am

danhughes wrote:In about 1960, I bought a self-working trick at the hobby shop, and I'd love to find it again.

It was a metal slide with a small pouch and about three sets of nested metal shells. You put the pouch over the end of the slide and held it on with a rubber band. Then you put the three layers of shells over the pouch, one at a time, each held with two or three rubber bands. You then hung this thing over your belt, behind your back.

You borrowed a coin from your friend, he noted the date, and you put it behind your back and dropped it into the slide. With the same motion, you pulled the shells off the slide and handed them to your friend. He took off the three layers of shells, one at a time, and found a pouch inside. When he took the rubber band off the pouch, he found his coin inside.

Is this thing still around?

Thanks!

---Dan, http://danhughes.net


I may still have one of these buried in a box in storage. I pretty sure it was made by Adams. I got it when I lived in rural Missouri in the '60's and Adams was pretty much the only magic I had access to.

I checked Magic Makers, who bought the rights to Adams stuff and they carry this nest of boxes which was apparently marketed by Adams at a later time.

Last I saw the set I have, I think the bag might have been missing. If I remember correctly, the boxes were different color. Each of the round shell-like boxes had notches so the three rubber bands on each box would stay in place. The slide had a bend at one end that acted as a hook to attach it to your pocket so you could slide the loaded boxes off of the slide when you stuck your hand into your pocket.

If I find it, I'll let you know. I'm not sure if I'd want to part with it for sentimental reasons, but I'll think about it if do find it. I'll post a pic at least if it turns up.

JMD

Henley
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Re: Looking for a trick I had as a kid

Postby Henley » March 4th, 2010, 3:15 am

They sell itand a bunch of other surprisingly good magic stuffin the 100 yen ($1) shops in Japan. The equivalent of the Dollar Stores in Canada, with the same Chinese supplier.

Edwin Corrie
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Re: Looking for a trick I had as a kid

Postby Edwin Corrie » March 4th, 2010, 4:00 am

It sounds a lot like Tenyo's Penetro Coin, which was one of my first tricks too (late 60s or early 70s):

http://www.tenyoworld.co.uk/Tenyogallery2/penetrocoin.jpg

If you got it in the 60s it was probably the Tenyo version as that seems to have come out around 1969 or before ( http://www.tenyo.co.jp/magic_en/alllist/index.html ).

danhughes
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Re: Looking for a trick I had as a kid

Postby danhughes » March 4th, 2010, 9:12 am

John M. Dale wrote:I'm pretty sure it was made by Adams. I got it when I lived in rural Missouri in the '60's and Adams was pretty much the only magic I had access to.

Last I saw the set I have, I think the bag might have been missing. If I remember correctly, the boxes were different color. Each of the round shell-like boxes had notches so the three rubber bands on each box would stay in place. The slide had a bend at one end that acted as a hook to attach it to your pocket so you could slide the loaded boxes off of the slide when you stuck your hand into your pocket.


That's it! My hobby shop had an Adams counter rack, one of those rotating racks with little tricks on pegs. And this trick had different-colored notched nesting shells, exactly as you describe.

If I find it, I'll let you know. I'm not sure if I'd want to part with it for sentimental reasons, but I'll think about it if do find it. I'll post a pic at least if it turns up.

JMD


Oh, no, I don't want to buy yours! I was just hoping it was still being made and I could grab a new one somewhere. Guess I'll have to wait until I go to China to pick one up.

Thanks for the info!

---Dan, http://danhughes.net

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John M. Dale
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Re: Looking for a trick I had as a kid

Postby John M. Dale » March 4th, 2010, 12:47 pm

Edwin Corrie wrote:It sounds a lot like Tenyo's Penetro Coin, which was one of my first tricks too (late 60s or early 70s):

http://www.tenyoworld.co.uk/Tenyogallery2/penetrocoin.jpg

If you got it in the 60s it was probably the Tenyo version as that seems to have come out around 1969 or before ( http://www.tenyo.co.jp/magic_en/alllist/index.html ).


This Tenyo item is very similar. The Adams item that Dan & I are talking about had a third box and they were rounded rather than flat bottomed like the Tenyo boxes (no logo inside either). The "flanges" weren't as wide either. Each box was a different color (both pieces of each matched) I think they were white, red & blue (from biggest to smallest). The final cloth bag was bright red.

It looks like there is a safety pin thing on slide of the Tenyo product that wasn't on the Adams version either. There was no handkerchief with the Adams product (tho' I noticed that Magic Makers includes one with the item in my previous post).

I looks like one company or the other copied (or licensed) the basic design.

danhughes wrote:Oh, no, I don't want to buy yours! I was just hoping it was still being made and I could grab a new one somewhere. Guess I'll have to wait until I go to China to pick one up.

Thanks for the info!

Dan - You're welcome.

I didn't assume you were wanting to buy the one I have. I just didn't want to think I was offering it and then disappoint you later.

Still looking (since I rarely throw away anything I've acquired related to magic, it'll probably eventually turn up.)

BTW, you might check eBay once in a while, I've seen a few rather obscure Adams tricks show up there in the Toys section.

JMD

Frank Yuen
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Re: Looking for a trick I had as a kid

Postby Frank Yuen » March 4th, 2010, 1:16 pm

I believe it was called the Jiffy Coin Trick and was indeed put out by Adams. You can get one here .

Edwin Corrie
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Re: Looking for a trick I had as a kid

Postby Edwin Corrie » March 4th, 2010, 1:29 pm

Ah, okay. I guess I shouldn't have said it was "probably" the Tenyo one and assumed it was the first version. Yes, the Tenyo model had a safety pin on the slide, and the handkerchief was gaffed for the vanish of the coin.

Come to think of it, there was another very ingenious Tenyo item called Coin in Nest (T-73) which may be more similar to the one you're talking about:

http://www.jackymagic.net/images/PRODUCT5/TENYO%20COIN%20IN%20NEST.jpg

In Penetro Coin you place a glass tumbler on top of the nest of boxes and drop the coin in from under the hanky, and the effect is that it penetrates through to the inner box.

danhughes
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Re: Looking for a trick I had as a kid

Postby danhughes » March 4th, 2010, 1:29 pm

Thanks, Frank! I found it here:

http://tinyurl.com/yfqpxce

And here is the lowest price:

http://www.phatdogmagic.com/servlet/the ... ams/Detail

Either my memory is off, or they've dropped one set of shells from the trick.

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John M. Dale
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Re: Looking for a trick I had as a kid

Postby John M. Dale » March 4th, 2010, 2:58 pm

danhughes wrote:Thanks, Frank! I found it here:

http://tinyurl.com/yfqpxce

And here is the lowest price:

http://www.phatdogmagic.com/servlet/the ... ams/Detail

Either my memory is off, or they've dropped one set of shells from the trick.



We must have the same memory issue, Dan, because my recollection was three boxes, too. Now I'll have to find the damned thing to check to see if Alzheimer's is kicking in.

JMD

Philippe Billot
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Re: Looking for a trick I had as a kid

Postby Philippe Billot » March 4th, 2010, 4:23 pm

This trick was patented in France in january 4th 1954 by Jean Elambert.

Bill Duncan
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Re: Looking for a trick I had as a kid

Postby Bill Duncan » March 5th, 2010, 2:08 am

Wow. Someone patented the coin in ball of wool?

I better get hopping and patent that idea of mine to hollow out a groat.

Edwin Corrie
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Re: Looking for a trick I had as a kid

Postby Edwin Corrie » March 5th, 2010, 3:52 am

Philippe Billot wrote:This trick was patented in France in january 4th 1954 by Jean Elambert.


FR1049916
Dispositif d'escamotage et d'amusement

The impossible location is a set of shell-like containers secured by rubber bands. Presumably that's what the patent examiner considered to be "novel and inventive" in relation to the old ball of wool, though it would be interesting to see what sort of prior art was consulted.

Philippe Billot
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Re: Looking for a trick I had as a kid

Postby Philippe Billot » March 5th, 2010, 5:37 am

Bravo Edwin !

Edwin Corrie
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Re: Looking for a trick I had as a kid

Postby Edwin Corrie » March 5th, 2010, 1:12 pm

Merci!

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Re: Looking for a trick I had as a kid

Postby Philippe Billot » July 18th, 2010, 12:49 pm

I come back to this trick because I have found an ad and a review in The Linking Ring, Vol. 20, no. 10, December 1940 regarding a trick named The Jiffy Coin Trick.

REVIEW by John Braun (page 754).

A marked coin is placed in your pocket. Immediately you produce a red sealed metal box encircled with rubber bands. Inside this is a green metal box, also encircled with rubber bands, and inside this is found a tiny red cloth bag, also dealed with a band. Inside the bag the marked coin is found. The outfit is well made, and as described, almost works itself. Good value for the money.

This trick was marketed by S.S. Adams. So Jean Elambert can't be the creator.

Dale Bower
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Re: Looking for a trick I had as a kid

Postby Dale Bower » October 16th, 2010, 10:34 pm

Back in the 70's I guess, Doug Henning was on the "Tonight Show" with Johnny Carson (a magician himself, and great promoter of the art). He told Johnny he was going to perform a "miracle" and this coin effect was what he did. A simple trick, but he made it look very magical indeed. Proves that price is NOT the object in performing great magic--the simplest trick can look like real magic! *DALE*

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Richard Kaufman
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Re: Looking for a trick I had as a kid

Postby Richard Kaufman » October 17th, 2010, 12:00 am

The coin in the ball of wool is a stage or cabaret trick, while the coin in the nest of boxes (either metal and held together with rubber bands ala S.S. Adams or plastic ala Tenyo) is a close-up effect.

They're really hugely different, with coin in the ball of wool winning by a mile. Even at its most insignificant puzzlish aspect, the ball of wool is harder to contemplate because of all the strands. The ball of wool resides in a large brandy snifter and the undwinding of it across the stage or swirled around a wand makes a showcase out of it--and the sudden appearance of the coin rattling around inside the glass snifter is a surprise.

There is no surprise when doing coin in nest of boxes: unless the audience has just arrived at your show on the bus from a morning at pre-school, it will be quite apparent that you are opening all these little boxes because ... duh ... there must be something inside. Could it be ... that initialed coin which vanished a few seconds earlier?

The coin in ball of wool doesn't give itself away nearly so easily.
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Jeff Pierce Magic
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Re: Looking for a trick I had as a kid

Postby Jeff Pierce Magic » October 21st, 2010, 8:13 am

The trick that literally got me started in magic was a vanish of a ring and it appears in a nest of 3 silk bags.From a magic kit.

Good times!

Jeff


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