Hey Everyone,

I am looking for a source for small, mechanical moving goldfish. I am producing a small bowl of goldfish, and I want them to move.

Any recommendation for best sources.

Yes, of course I have Googled. I am looking for recommendations from people who have actually owned them and been pleased with them.

Thanks in advance!

Lou

I have a solution for your problem but I have been forbidden to discuss it with you here by the "management" of the Magic Café because I wrote about it in an e-Book that is sold, so if you are interested in learning about my solution, you'll have to contact me where we can communicate freely.

Hi Jim,

PM with my email address sent.

Lou

There are battery operated mechanical toy fish that start swimming when they get wet. They look kind of real from a distance. You can get them on Amazon for $15 or so. I've tried them, they make noise if I remember right. You have to take them out of the water right after the trick or the battery wears out and so they don't keep making noise, if I remember right.

Https://www.amazon.com/Swimming-Activate......8&sr=8-7

Hi Frank,

Have you used these?

Lou

I've used those. They are great if you don't pretend they are live fish, but robotic fish with lights and all. They look very pretty but exactly like what they are, not live fish. Still, you can catch a robotic fish on a line baited with a magnet. You can toss it in a bowl of water and it wiggles around like a robotic fish and blinks its light. You can feed them to a robotic cat. The kids love it, but it's a robotic act all the way through. Goes nicely with my Rubber Duckies act. There are also swimming turtles, but those are wind up, not battery operated.

Thanks Jim.

If you are thinking of performing the Catching Fish effect, the best method is Alan Shaxon, it is published in his book. All the details to make the rod and gimmicks is given. It uses real fish.

One advantage with producing robotic fish is that is when the batteries die, they can be replaced so the fish don't "die" unless they are smashed. Live fish can die from a variety of causes, most of them not under your control when using the old methods of "Catching Fish from Air".

One of the tricks I describe in my "Where Do the Duckies Go?" e-Book is how to produce robotic fish, one by one on a fishing line, then drop each one into a bowl of water to "bring them to life" swimming, and finally, transform the entire bowl of robot fish to live goldfish that have been treated gently throughout, leaving the robot fish to take the brunt of the handling. It's worth thinking about. Or you can just end the routine with a bowl of robot fish and avoid the problems of dealing with livestock if you prefer. Only the adults in the audience are impressed with the live fish, anyway. The kids are happy with winking blinking robots.

Hi Bill,

Thanks, but I am not looking to perform Aerial Fishing. I am producing a goldfish bowl and need a realistic looking fish in the bowl so that I don’t have to deal with goldfish.

Thanks though!

Lou

Https://www.amazon.com/XMHF-Aquarium-Art......7H5J249C These are not robotic, but just decorative goldfish, but you could make them move about using the method I described to you privately in my PM. I'm not sure they would really fool anyone, but having them move around might give them a better chance.

Okay, you are about 20 or so years to late. Abbott's Magic use to make a nice plastic gold fish with a weight. The movement of the water made it look really good. I use to use them in my bowl productions.

Okay, I did a quick search, found they are available for fish tanks, just search plastic gold fish for fish tanks. You can attach a fishing weight with clear fishing line from Wal-Mart. Put 3 in a bowl and they look good.

Here is one site I checked, but there are others.
https://www.amazon.com/uxcell-Aquarium-G......1BGLTRM8

As far as movement, all you need to do is move the water or bowl a little, the water will move the fish. No need for a mechanical fish. Also a table with a light in a stand makes the bowl look great from stage. This method does not require the water to be neutralized.

Thanks for all of your suggestions Bill!

Warm regards,

Lou

No, I haven't used the fish I linked to before just did the search for you. I hadn't read enough to realize that they have lights but I would just paint over them myself. I think they are cheap enough to gve them a try.

I have made the Shaxon pole (with permission) and also have another in the works.
I just saw some of the Abbott fish on the eBay and week or so ago. They did not go cheap.
As Bill said the key is the light in the bowl.

Thank you Jim, Bill, Frank, and Richard!

I ended up buying a nice, non-mechanical version that I found on Amazon. I appreciate all of the suggestions and input!

Lou

Don't forget to come back and tell us how you like using the goldfish you bought. Maybe some photos?

Will do!

Amazon sells a mechanical swimming goldfish.
I bought one last year for an effect where you pull a goldfish from a chosen photo in a book and put it in water where it swims.