Gaffed in Cards

Making dry-mounted gaffs just got a whole lot easier!

This new 80 page ebook introduces you to the wonders of dry mounting tissue (a.k.a. "DMT"). What's DMT? It's an adhesive that lets you make gaffs that look, feel, and snap like a normal card. If all you've ever known are rubber cement, sprays, and glue sticks, then you've been missing out big-time. This book will open your eyes.

On the other hand, perhaps you heard of DMT, but never bothered to try it because the equipment costs turned you off. Or maybe you gave up on it after getting horrible results with a clothes iron. Well, it's...

Ronald Haines, through his business Haines House of Cards, sold a deck of gaffed cards called 'Fa-Ko' cards. This deck is not anymore available but perhaps you can find it second-hand. However, now that it is very easy to make your own playing cards (see DIY Playing Cards) this collection has gained in value.

From the foreword

Jean Boucher's "The Dark Card" is one of the greatest utility card gimmicks ever--you can do MIRACLES with it! In Dark Thoughts, Scott teaches seven incredible routines using the Dark Card.

PART ONE: ALONE WITH THE DARK

• Olympic Champion: Two spectators' signed cards (with different colored backs) transpose!
• Red & Blue Times Two: The Alex Elmsley classic, with an impossible instant repeat!
• The Legend of Scott Star: A tale of the Old West, with lawmen, card cheats, killers, and a hangin' judge. There is magic all the way, including a poker deal, and a finish that they never see coming...

The most successful effect of this kind was Dan Harlan's CardToon where a deck of cards doubled as a flip book. Riffling through the cards one would see a cartoon magician drawn on the backs find and reveal a chosen card. This effect was a huge success, potentially it was the most successful magic trick of all times (my guess, I don't really know).

Toony Angel builds on the basic idea to use a deck of cards as a flip book, but rather than animate a cartoon character on the back, the angel on the bicycle, from the Bicycle back design, starts to cycle towards you, zips around on the back of the card and...

This set consists of 52 gaffed cards with Bicycle backs. The cards are listed below and can also be seen in the image to the right. They come in a white tuck box that has a small window on one side.

• Ace of Spades with inverted black Bicycle back (2 cards)
• Ace of Clubs with inverted yellow Bicycle back (2 cards)
• Ace of Hearts with inverted red Bicycle back (2 cards)
• Ace of Diamonds with inverted blue Bicycle back (2 cards)
• King of Hearts - King of Spades horizontal split face, Ace of Clubs on the back (11 cards)
• King of Diamonds - King of Clubs horizontal split face, Ace of Clubs on...

The combination of special cards and sleight-of-hand is far more powerful than either alone. When the two are combined with inside knowledge, the resulting magic can be astounding in ways that enable you to leave audiences speechless and dumbfounded. The combination is synergistic: The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.

When the minds of Rick Silberman and Wesley James combine with William Coffrin, Jean Hugard, and Fred Braue, you have a level of knowledge and experience rarely equaled in magic's long history. The whole is far greater than the sum of its parts.

When special cards, sleight-of-hand,...

Effect: Show to spectator 4 blank cards. Suddenly the blank cards change into four normal face cards. Additional supplies may need to be purchased to perform this effect.

length 3min 29s.

Here is an astonishing ending to one of the classics of card magic - "Oil & Water". There are many ways to perform it, but Mario Tarasini has created an extremely visual final phase with face-up cards and just before the very eyes of the spectator. After a couple of your favorite phases of Oil & Water, this is an amazing way to end the routine. Just tell the spectator to not blink and she/he will witness a miracle. Requires arts and crafts to prepare the gimmicked cards.

length 9min 7s.

The Card Guillotine is one of the most visual, mysterious and interesting card tricks. Mario Tarasini has brought it back to life. This is a new method that, when applied, can make the trick even more interesting and can fool any magician. The trick can also be performed with the spectators finger. Requires arts and crafts to make the gimmick.

1st edition 2020, video 11 min.

Place a coin on a card. Just wave and the card will change. Mario Tarasini brings a new ultra visual card change system to the magic world. It is called "Jumping card system" and it looks impossible. Take an old trick to a next level.

• Use a borrowed coin
• The coin can be singed
• Highly visual
• Easy to do
• Requires some arts and crafts to construct the gimmick

1st edition 2020, length 6 min 55 s.

Burmese Change is a triple card change using a gimmick and sleight-of-hand.

Spectator signs a card which is returned to the deck. The magician takes a random card and the card changes two times in to different cards, and the third change is when a random card changes in to the card signed by the spectator. After the trick, the card can be given to the spectator as a souvenir.

Requires the preparation of a gimmick which is three cards thick.

1st edition 2020, video 13 min.

A Card Warp effect that ends with an 'impossible' signed card with half turned face-out and the other half back-out.

Effect: A playing card is folded and then signed by a spectator. This folded and signed card is inserted between another folded card, just like in the classic Card Warp effect. Then the inside card is pushed from left to right and from right to left. First the direction of the white border of the card's back switches position. Then one half of the card turns face outward. At this point the folded and signed card can be handed out as souvenir to the spectator. It will have one...

This is Tarasini's version of a popular trick on Instagram where a card appears to be melting through another one.

• No threads
• No magnets

1st edition 2020, length 8 min 45 s.

Few people know that there is a secret assistant in each deck of cards. “Secret Assistant” is a little helper for card magicians. It will definitely help you find the chosen card. The card can be signed. The gimmick can be used for other tricks. The gimmick requires various supplies to construct.

1st edition 2020, length 18 min.

A collection of new and novel gaffed decks, which you can easily all make at home, and strong effects that go along with them. Requires little to no sleight-of-hand.

From the introduction:

The magician shows two cards: a regular picture card and a blank face one. The magician stacks the cards on top of each other and the card with the picture visually turns white. After the effect, both cards can be examined by the spectator. Includes a bonus idea by Zaw Shinn. Gimmick requires arts and crafts and some supplies you may not have at home.

1st edition 2020, video 15 min.

The magician takes a spectator signed card, folds it in half, and splits the card into two parts! Only one hand movement and the card becomes whole again. Before and after the trick the spectator can inspect the card.

1st edition 2020, length 8 min 26 s.

If you didn't like Burmese Change because of the setup, then here is a different way you may like much better. Zaw Shinn has created this version in pursuit to find the most practical and visual effect he can perform up close in front of the camera. This vanish is easy to do and it looks like CGI. No fancy set up is required and the materials to make the gimmick can easily be found.

1st edition 2020, video 17 min 27s.

The magician shows a card and a black disc. In front of the spectator's eyes the disc jumps on to the card and turns into a hole. After the trick the card with a hole can be handed out to the spectator as a souvenir. Usual card gaffing supplies are needed.

1st edition 2020, length 10 min 40s.

Created by Zaw Shinn and taught by Mario Tarasini. This visual ink moving effect is easy to do and it looks just like CGI. No fancy or fragile set up is required and the material to make the gimmick can easily be found. Zaw likes to thank Martin Lewis, Alan Rorrison, Rizki Nanda, and many more for inspiring him to create Triangle Theory.

1st edition 2020, video 24 min 12s.

Take one card and place it on top of the card box. With a wave of the hand the card melts through the box and appears in the middle of the deck. The effect is so convincing that the spectator will think it is an optical illusion.

1st edition 2020, video 13 min.

There are different tricks which use a hole in a card. Mario Tarasini presents one of the smartest and simplest methods to perform this effect. Just punch one hole on the selected card and the hole will multiply. The best part is that after the trick the card can be given to the spectator.

1st edition 2020, length 6:40.

The Spectator chooses any card from the deck. The magician rips off the corner of that card. One hand wave, and the corner changes color. The magician throws the corner on to the card, the card is restored and the whole card changes color. And that’s not the end. The magician places the card on the deck and the entire deck changes color. Four effects in one trick. (Supplies may have to be purchased in order to perform this effect.)

1st edition 2020, video 17 min.

Visual and practical effects are rarely combined into one trick. Hallucination is a very practical and visual trick. Imagine you draw 4 points on a playing card, after which you shake the deck and they line up, and that’s not all, you shake the deck again and the points completely disappear.

1st edition 2020, length 6:27.

There is nothing new when a card visually changes color. The market is flooded with hundreds of visual color changes variations base on a few dozen methods. But what if you can do a visual color change with a coin on top. The same coin on top of a card before and after the card color change. Crazy right? Give yourself a chance and watch the trailer.

[Please note that the video is in Korean with English subtitles. Everything is clearly described visually as well.]

1st edition 2020, video length 29 min.

Imagine the viewer selects a card (forced). You take the card box, remove a card and with one wave of your hand the card turns into a candy box. You open it and there is the viewer's card.

To construct the gimmick you will need elastic thread.

1st edition 2020, length 17min.

It's not a trick, it's a system ... Imagine that you have an option to change the color of a freely chosen and signed card. Mario Tarasini introduces his new portable flap system. You can place a special portable flap system on any card to immediately change its color and hand it over to the spectator.

1st edition 2020, video length 10 min 51 s.

Visual movement of holes on a playing card.

Show a playing card which has random holes in it. This is best done by putting it in front of a light source, such as your phone's screen. In an instant the holes rearrange to something meaningful. It could be a simple image, the name of a card, a spectator name, a date, anything you can think of. It is a great way to reveal a prediction.

1st edition 2020, video length 17 min.

Take two cards, fold them length-wise, and stab one card into another. (Gimmick requires elastic thread.)

1st edition 2020, video length 10:14.

The spectator chooses one card and signs it. The magician tears off the corner of that card and places the card in the middle of a deck. The corner visually disappears and appears on top of the chosen card - right in the middle of the deck.

1st edition 2020, length 15 min.

A visual vanish of a playing card which looks like real magic. The gimmick can be made in a few minutes.

1st edition 2021, video 7 min.

You start with three cards one of which has a big hole. Mixing them up a bit and suddenly the card with the hole has two holes. One moment later it has three holes. Another mixing and everything is back to where it started, one card with a hole, the other two regular cards.

1st edition 2021, video 3 min 42 s.

You show four double backer cards, one of which has a big black spot painted on it. You again show the cards and suddenly the card has actually a big black hole and the remaining three cards are double backers as before.

1st edition 2021, video 2 min.

You show four cards blank on both sides. Suddenly one changes to a Jack of Clubs with a regular blue back. One moment later all four change to blue backs and Jack of Diamonds on the front. Barely a moment later they have all red backs and Jack of Hearts on the front. If you haven't seen enough color changes the four backs change to yet another color. The fronts are blank again with one exception, a Jack of Clubs. You end where you started with all four cards blank on both sides.

1st edition 2021, video 3 min 25 s.

You show four queens. The two black queens are placed on the table, the two red queens are retained in the hands. But despite this separation, they change places and the red queens are now on the table and the black queens are in the hands. The next phase is a little 'oil and water' sequence where the queens are mixed black, red, black, red but quickly separate themselves again into two black and two red queens. The startling climax is that all four cards change their back colors.

1st edition 2021, video 4 min 57 s.

You show four blank cards and one ten of clubs, five cards in total. They all have red backs. Suddenly the ten of clubs has a blue back. Then you fan the remaining four cards and all the blank faces have changed to a royal flush, an ace, king, queen, and jack. The ten completing the royal flush. As a final climax all cards are turned face down and they all have different colored backs.

1st edition 2021, video 2 min 36 s.

An extraordinary magic trick in which the spectators will see four jacks turn face down one by one. For the final climax, the magician explains that sometimes, if poker cards are used for magic, very strange things can happen: That's when the four jacks suddenly turn into a Royal Flush. A trick with which I bluffed the audience and magicians. All you need is a special card, which is very easy to find. But this little effort is really worth it.

An impromptu version of the effect is also described, in which the cards from Ace to Four, one at a time, turn face down and then magically transform...

You show four nine of hearts face up. Count them again and one has turned face down showing a red back. Count them again and a grey-colored back is showing. Then a gold-colored back. When the fourth turns over, and reveals a green back, all cards are now face down showing four different backs. Then you turn them face up and they are now all queen of spades. You can go again through the same sequence as before, where one card at a time turns face down showing four different backs. The climax is that at the end all four faces have changed to aces.

It is hard to imagine more color changes mixed...

You show four red nines and four black nines. Then you interleave them openly and fairly one red, one black, one red, one black, a.s.o. into two piles of four cards each. One simple wave of the hand and the colors have separated themselves, one pile has all the red cards, and the other all the black cards.

1st edition 2021, video 3 min 50 s.

A visual penetration like no other. The preparation of the gimmicked card requires some arts and crafts but is not difficult. You will need a blank face card among other easily obtainable items. (No threads are required.)

1st edition 2021, video 18 min.