CUT by DANIELmadison

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INTRODUCTION

Effect overview

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MAKING

CUT

Requirements and construction instructions

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HANDLING

CUT

Creating the illusion of a regular deck

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CUT

MENTAL

A hands-free mentalism force for the CUT MENTAL main performance

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CUT

FULL

SWITCH

Further handling technique for deck switching

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CUT

PSYCH

A psychological force of the 4 of DIAMONDS followed but a hands-free force of the card

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CUT

CHRONIC

A mentalism effect allowing the performer to name every card in the spectators’ half-deck

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SUCKER

CUT

BONUS EFFECT - The spectator cuts to their selected | thought-of playing card

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DOUBLE

SUCKER

CUT

BONUS EFFECT - Another spectator cuts to the spectators selected | thought-of card

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FACE

CUT

BONUS EFFECT - A face-up hands-free force of a predicted playing card

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CON

MANS

FLOURISH

BONUS EFFECT - A con-flourish revealing the selected card (by Randall Freeman)

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ADDITIONAL

Final notes and acknowledgments

A DECK OF CARDS IS SHUFFLED BY THE SPECTATOR… WITH HIS BACK TURNED AWAY THE WHOLE

TIME (OR EVEN BLINDFOLDED) THE PERFORMER WRITES DOWN A PREDICTION BEFORE ASKING THE

SPECTATOR TO CUT THE DECK AND LOOK AT THE CARD WHICH THEY HAVE CUT TO. THEY ARE THEN

ASKED TO CLOSE THE DECK AND KEEP HOLD OF IT. THE PREDICTION IS REVEALED TO BE CORRECT!

The performer always writes the prediction before the effect begins | No swami or false predictions – the

prediction can even be shown to everybody else in the room before the effect begins | The deck is shuffled by the

spectator before the effect and can be examined after | No peeks, mirrors or glimpses | Very minimal sleight of

hand | CUT can be applied to any deck of cards and any force card of your choice | The effect can be repeated

as many times as you like | CUT has no setup and has an instant reset

The CUT principal offers you one of the strongest – if not

THE strongest force conceived in the art of magic and cardistry –

The entire force is hands-free and happens all in the spectators hands… you are always left clean.

CUT covers 7 different achievable effects, each designed to fit right into your repertoire; from absolute mentalism to underground street-magic, this is a

reputation making effect not to be missed… Once you get CUT, you won’t leave home without it…

INTRODUCTION

Welcome to CUT and thank you much for making the purchase, you won’t regret it. If you’ve purchased any of my other effects you’ll know that I

won’t settle for anything less than astonishing, and astonishing to me is an effect that happens in the spectators hands for this allows for that

stigmatic control [common to magicians] to become diminished; making way for real magic.

If you have discovered any of my previous effects you’ll already know that I have beef with those magicians who release marketed effects at

extortionate prices that could be self made for only a 10

of the price; this is always explained away as

you’re paying for the secret as well,

not just the gimmick. I hate that. Alas, CUT was presented to possibly the biggest worldwide magic manufacturer as you are about

to see it, but the offer was made to manufacture the CUT gimmick and sell it at 6 times the price which you paid for this

downloadable make-shift edition. Had this effect been released as a ‘product,’ my reputation would have begun its downfall.

The time it will take for you to construct the gimmick is more than worth the price had this effect been marketed as a product

(and not a download.)

First things first… The secret! CUT is a DIY trick deck which will allow you to instantly know/name any card cut to by any

spectator… A sincere hands-free force… Even with your back turned and/or even blindfolded.

You’ll need a deck of cards and some double-sided sticky tape.

THE DECK

- CUT consists of 30 free cards and a block of 22 cards, ie. half of the deck is stuck together, as in ‘a block.’ The

lower card or bottom card of the block is the main force card, but not the only force card. Before we get into the handling,

performances and effects you’ll need to make the CUT block gimmick. (It’s not as simple as just sticking each card together, there is a reasoned

method.) For those readers who have just thought

is that all it is? A bunch of cards stuck together? Please be patient and keep reading and

please try the effects before judging the idea, I assure you that, like me; you won’t quite grasp the level of impact this principal will have on

your repertoire until it has been tested.

MAKING CUT

Take 22 cards from a new and shuffled deck. You’ll need to apply aprox 2 inches of double-sided tape onto the back of 18 of the 22 cards, positioned about

1cm from the edge as in image03 Once done, stick the cards together alternatively so that the tape is divided equally causing a sleight zig-zag effect as in

image01. Apply the same amount of tape to the back of 3 of the remaining cards, but this time the tape will need to be dead centre (image02) to even out

the feel of the final CUT packet product. Stick the final card to the top completing your CUT block gimmick. The lower | bottom card will be your main CUT
key force card.

HANDLING CUT

Returning the CUT gimmick to the rest of the 30 free cards in the deck, you will see that the deck will appear normal when held squared. You will also find
that the deck can be fairly shuffled using a Hindu or over-hand shuffle. The deck can also be dribbled, spread (to a point) and even scanned through. The deck

can be openly cut and even multiple-packet flourished: all actions that shade the gimmick and sell the deck as legitimate.

Place the CUT packet on top of the deck, and then place aprox 8 free cards on top of that. As the 8 cards on top are free, this will hide the gimmick even

more so, it also positions the CUT in a comfortable cutting position for the force. You will find that when you cut the deck you will automatically lift the CUT

gimmick revealing the force card.

At this point you will consider the hypothetical ‘spectator cutting lower than the CUT gimmick….’ You can avoid this by simply adding more free cards to the

top of the deck, however, throughout the performances, and when asking the spectator to cut the deck, you’ll always say

cut the deck – about half way. That

chance of a deeper cut will always be there, but if you have your performance and spectator control under hand you’ll never fail.

I shall cover more handling methods throughout the performances…

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CUT MENTAL

This is the main and basic mentalism | mind reading | prediction effect that you will use CUT for. You write the prediction, shuffle the deck, give the deck to

the spectator, they cut and look at the bottom (force) card… The prediction is revealed. This is the basic effect, without switching out the gimmick. This is

a one-off effect leaving the gimmick in the deck…

Write down your main CUT prediction card (bottom card on the block gimmick) and show it to everyone other than the participating spectator (if you chose to

do so) this only adds to the thought that no deceptive writing could have taken place after the cut. Once written, place the prediction aside and don’t touch

it again.

I always start with the basic overhand shuffle, you don’t want to oversell the fact that the deck is legit; I’ve never enjoyed the Hindu shuffle, whenever I see it

I hear

hey, look at me, I’m a magician and this is how controversial I can be, crap. Once shuffled, cut the CUT gimmick to the top of the deck adding a further

8 or so to the top of that. The deck is now ready to be cut by the spectator.

You don’t really have to be cautious with the deck, it’s worth practicing on somebody you know or a fellow magician a few times so you can come to terms

with how hidden this bulky gimmick really is.

Place the deck in the spectators hand and ask them to cut it,

about half way, and look at the card they have cut to (bottom card of the CUT gimmick. (the

force card.)) Ask them to immediately close the deck and place the deck aside. At this point the deck becomes obsolete and no longer important. However,

as you ask the spectator to look at the prediction you are given the opportunity to make a deck switch, but believe me, it’s not that necessary, especially as

they may ask you to repeat the effect.

♠

Once again, you really have to try this on somebody to believe how well it works, I’ve been using this gimmick for over 3 years now and have not once been

stumbled. Even if the spectator only gets a grip on the top 15 cards, the entire block will be lifted, and held at an angle where the bottom card is seen head

on, none of the overlap is seen, or felt for that matter. The spectator will also be settled to close the cut asap to avoid any chances of

you seeing the card.

Should the spectator ask

can I shuffle the deck? You simply respond with there’s no need, we won’t need the cards again for this one. You can go to the

extent of scanning the cards holding the block at the back, once scanned half-way (to the block) simply shuffle cards retaining the block at the back and then

re-scan, this will substitute the image of a fair deck.

CUT FULL SWITCH

This is the version you’ll want to do if you’re not confident with the basic effect, but it does involve those sleights that most of us try to avoid, yet some of us

live for… This technique will allow you to switch in or out the CUT gimmick within the performance. You’ll need a notepad slightly bigger than a deck of cards;

you’ll also need the CUT gimmick, both of which you will place in your back pocket; gimmick behind the open notepad.

Using a full (normal) deck, ask your spectator to shuffle. As they do, remove the notepad from your pocket hiding the CUT gimmick behind it. Write your

prediction and get rid of the pen. Position the CUT gimmick into a lower cop position ready to tilt back out of the spectators view as you place the notepad

down as in image04. Ask for the deck back, as you take it with your right hand; bring it back to your left hand holding it above the CUT gimmick as in

image05. Square the deck on top of the gimmick and slightly forward tilt the deck as in image06. Cut about 22 cards from the top of the entire stack to the

bottom, do this in a natural fashion holding the deck tilted so that the depth of the deck is hidden. As you place the cut 22 cards to the bottom, hold a break above them

separating them from the deck as in image 07. As if squaring the deck, move the entire stack to the back of your hand and then back to a normal lower mechanics grip, as

you do this you leave behind the lower 22 cards in a lower cop grip as shown in image 08. The deck will shade any angles of the copped packet. This entire switch should be
done naturally and happen within a few seconds.

At this point, take the now-gimmicked deck handing it back to the spectator, keeping the copped packet in lower cop position as in image04. Keep this packet held by your
side as you ask the spectator to cut the deck (about half way) Once done, ask for the deck back and repeat the switch; switching out the gimmick as the spectator looks at

the prediction. You can then put the deck down as you ditch the gimmick or retain the entire packet should you be asked to attempt this again.

This method of handling will require practice and a little confidence and is only recommended should you feel you cannot get away with using the strictly gimmicked deck.
This is the method I always use and the beauty of it is that you can perform the effect with a borrowed deck.

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CUT PSYCH

This effect id written strictly for the well-practised mentalist, I’ve met a few magicians who claim that some of my psychological forces do not work, the

short answer to this is that psych-forces should not be attempted by magicians, not to deny them of the skill to achieve such a thing, only a mentalist has

the relevant practice and knowledge on how to apply and put forth such a fete. Here forth; a psychological force…

I tried this on my friends Ruby and Jules’s the other night, actually it was more like 2, 3… 5 o’clock on the morning.

I asked Ruby to take off her… erm… ring. She did so and gave it to me, then cut the deck at any card, showed Jules

the card and closed the deck, as I had her… ring, I claimed that having her ring made it easier for me to manipulate

Ruby’s selection, therefore having read the card… I then knew what it was. Think of a number between 1 and

10, than a colour and a suite to go with it…

I tried this on my friends Ruby and Jules’s the other night

- Two common jewels or more randomly

know as DIAMONDS

Actually it was more like 2, 3… 5 o’clock on the morning

- Counting from 2 to 5 making the 4

silent will allow this gap to be subconsciously filled in by the spectator

I asked Ruby to take off her… erm… ring

- Another silence gap, subconsciously filled

in with the word diamond. Constant reminders of Jules and Ruby should set the

suit in play

…therefore having read the card

- Exaggerating the word READ as RED

Narrowing their selection from any card to a number diminishes

their thought process to select the obvious QH/QD/AD/AH.

Asking for a colour is a sure-fire way to hit RED. Using the

lower card of the CUT block as the 4D, once the psych force has
been set and revealed, ask them to cut the deck anywhere (using

the CUT gimmick of course.)

Spec cuts to the force card…

Done.

CUT CHRONIC

This is the class of effect I just love to perform… You basically ask the spectator to cut the deck in half, they chose a pile, and you name every card in that

pile. It’s a simple idea and a simple method with a massive reaction. I did argue with myself that if a performer is good enough to memorise half a deck, he

may as well memorise a full deck and go one step further, and this is an effect that doesn’t really require the CUT gimmick, however, if you’ve made a CUT

deck, you may as well utilise the deck for all that it’s worth, and knowing all of the other cards in the deck can be a serious advantage.

I’ll explain how I operate my own CUT deck... The 30 free cards are divided simply and never in order, once the deck has been cut and the free pile forced

(magicians choice) on the spectator, I simply ask them to count the cards, as they do so I say

you should have 30 cards there. I then ask them to separate

the colours, as they begin to do this I’ll say

you should have 16 black cards and 14 red. Then I say you have ever card of the CLUB suit and two that are

spades… the Jack, Queen and the Ace? I then ask them to separate all of the hearts from the diamonds, at which point I say you have 6 that are diamonds

and 8 that are hearts. I now ask them to hold them all up together, I then name every card in their hand one at a time.

All I have to remember for this is 5 simple things…

There are 16 black and 14 red

All the black cards a clubs apart from three: Jack, Queen and Ace of Spades

There are 6 diamond and 8 heart cards

The 6 diamond cards are all odd cards starting from the Ace, as there are 6 of them (in consecutive order) there can only be the following:

Ace, 3, 5, 7, 9, J

The 8 heart cards are all the even cards and every face card:

2, 4, 6, 8, 10, J, Q, K

When reeling out the red cards individually, it’s quite important that the spectator doesn’t clock the order, in that each heart is odd etc. And so you should

do so randomly, as in ‘no order.’ Name a 2 then a 9 then a 6 etc.

Should any spectator realise the pattern of odds and evens, this can simply be explained as another level or twist in the effect, not that it would make any

difference.

BONUS EFFECTS

It wasn’t mentioned in any of the effects and I was hoping that I wouldn’t have to suggest this but do think ahead and realise that any free card can be forced

using this gimmick by simply placing it below the CUT block and having the down card selected. I had many more thoughts on the CUT idea but ultimately

decided to focus on those which you have just read. Throughout all of my work I try to offer more than just the effect and I hope you feel you have achieved

more than just a bunch of cards stuck together. I feel the technique for deck switching has more value than initially presented as it’s one thing that all

performing magicians should be able to achieve even when surrounded, I hope my thoughts on this have inspired you to risk such attempts; you’ll be richer in

clarity should you succeed. Following are some of the effects not up to making the final listing but I feel still need and deserve at least a minimal ‘additional’

mentioning…

SUCKER CUT

In this effect you’ll ask the spectator to call stop as you dribble the cards. You’ll shuffle then place the deck down and ask the spectator to make an attempt

at cutting to their card, as you guessed, they always do. As simple as it is… The CUT gimmick is on top of the deck, you dribble, anytime they call stop you

simply drop every card below the block, show them the force card on the bottom of the gimmick and shuffle the cards… Continue by performing the cutting

technique to achieve their cut to their card.

DOUBLE SUCKER CUT

After performing

SUCKER CUT

, you’ll be able to have another spectator cut directly to the first

spectators cut card.

FACE CUT

The CUT gimmick allows you to offer an open selection force whereas the spectator cuts the face-up deck;

therefore cutting to a pre-determined free card.

CONMAN’S FLOURISH

My good friend Randall was playing around with this idea and got some fairly decent reactions, it’s not

of my recommendations but still worth a mention, if not just to add something more to Randall’s CV.

After the CUT force, shuffle the deck ending with the block on top, begin a Charlier cut with the block and keep a

grip on all of the free cards as you thrust the block into the air spinning and landing face up on the free cards, thus
revealing the force card. Pants.

ADDITIONAL

I hope this idea has been a little inspiring and at least rewarding in the fact that you didn’t have to pay a shelf-price for a DIY gimmick. I know

a lot of people will object to this idea and/or prefer other similar ideas on the market, designed from research, CUT cuts all the flaws

found in those effects and hopefully finds a place near the front of your magic collection. As a few of my other effects have, this idea

has been snapped up by a popular televised magician, and consistently annoyingly banishes me from announcing who that is, hopefully

you’ll see the effect performed by the anonymous and be able to appreciate the secret.

Thanks to r3man, R, and every sucker at Blackpool 2007 who fell for this, I apologise for taking this long to reveal the secret, I

shed sympathy for your annoyance right now.

www.DANIELmadison.co.uk www.mySpace.com/DANIELmadison www.MAGICisDEAD.com