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ImpromptuBoy Special user Toronto, Canada 898 Posts |
That sounds like the MM shells. The SFS wouldn't come to you in a jewellery bex, they'd come to you in a drawstring bag, with 7 peas, and a shot glass. The shells and the monte DVDs is the combo offered by PenguinMagic, two DVDs, golden three shell game, a pack of bicycle cards.
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magicmafia22 Regular user 110 Posts |
What do you think is better to get-SFS street shells, or the La Maggiore shells? And Why
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Dave V Inner circle Las Vegas, NV 4824 Posts |
Neither is better, or is it both are better? I'm not sure...
It's a personal choice, it's like Italian food vs. Chinese food. I have the La Maggiore shells so of course I like them better. The SfS shells (for me) looked too small, although comparing them to standard grocery store walnuts you'll see they're exactly the same size. I was looking for something larger, for a Ren Faire application rather than close-up, the same reason I have jumbo cups instead of standard cups. Like I said, it's a personal thing. Find a good Brick and Mortar store that has both and try them out for yourself. Or, just "bite the bullet" and pick one. They're both equally good.
No trees were killed in the making of this message, but a large number of electrons were terribly inconvenienced.
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Whit Haydn V.I.P. 5449 Posts |
Quote:
On 2005-07-15 22:11, Dave VanVranken wrote: I've always thought that it was odd to want larger shells for the shell game for the sake of visibility. This would make sense if the pea was larger as well. The pea is the star of the game, and that is what people need to be able to see. It is like the Cups and Balls--the balls and the loads are the stars. They need to "pop" more than the cups. That's why dark colored cups are better than shiney cups. Having bigger cups in the cups and balls for the street makes sense because you can use bigger balls and larger oranges. But having bigger cups and using the same size balls and oranges that you use with the small cups wouldn't really be much of an improvement, and probably wouldn't look as good. Bigger shells with the same size pea just make the pea look smaller, and don't aid in visibility for a larger crowd at all. I think the La Magiorre are great shells, and they are a big advantage for handling if you find them more comfortable in your hand--if you have big hands, for example--but I don't think they add anything to the ability of the crowd to follow the game. I have used big shells and normal size walnut shells and really don't find any difference in the audience's interest or ability to follow the game. |
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Dave V Inner circle Las Vegas, NV 4824 Posts |
Good points, all of them. From now on I'll just simply stick to "They feel more comfortable for me, you might feel otherwise. Try them out for yourself and you decide."
No trees were killed in the making of this message, but a large number of electrons were terribly inconvenienced.
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sleightly Elite user New Hampshire 500 Posts |
I would have to respectfully disagree with my friend, Whit. In a good routine, the spectators (and the performer) are the stars of the show. The game they play involves chance, cunning and a little cheating. The pea (or its location) is simply the subject of the wager. The true fun of a shell game routine is the back and forth "contest of wits" that the performer and audience are engaged in. Who cares where the pea is? Ultimately, no one. However, can the sucke... I mean audience member actually take the operator to the cleaners? Will they actually win some money?!? This is where the fun really is.
I regularly perform the shells as part of my formal close-up show. When working for larger groups (and I often work for groups of up to 300), the shells are seen more often than the pea. Audiences are asked to hazard a guess as to under which "shell" the pea resides. The revelation of the location of the pea is telegraphed not only by the performer's subsequent revelation, but also by large audience response (and by lifting a single shell to display the location of the pea). I strongly suggest you never lift up more than one shell to reveal the location of the pea (forcing spectators to "search" for the pea) except to show where the pea "is not" (lifting the two empty shells to infer that the pea is under the third--a move easily overused). A larger shell can serve many purposes. They can allow for more movement on the pad; an action that more closely aligns with the romantic notion of the shell game being about broader motions. Aesthetically, the larger shells "read" as shells from further away, making them ideal for street or larger performances. Additionally, the more defined texture of a larger shell can aid significantly in technique. La Maggiore shells have several features that other shells do not. Increased texture, side ridges for enhanced handling (La Maggiore shells were the first shells to incorporate this specific feature--one which has since been appropriated by another manufacturer without permission), a solid shell set (another innovation appropriated by the same manufacturer), smooth sloped interior for greater control when stealing from any direction, life-long guarantee against chipping or breakage... But then, you can read about all the features on the various manufacturers websites. Whit has repeatedly mentioned that La Maggiore shells are good for those with large hands... I guess one could infer from this statement that SfS Street Shells are particularly good for those with *small* hands. Yet many performers who swear by La Maggiore have small hands. Remember, it is not the size of your equipment, but what you can do with it that matters (great, now you know my personal mantra). The truth of the matter is that a set of shells is a matter of personal preference. Try them all out. La Maggiore/SfS Street Shells are both high quality shell sets with different features that will appeal to different people. Find the ones that fit your needs and live with them. You may find that you want different shells for different purposes. ajp |
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bishthemagish Inner circle 6013 Posts |
One of the really neat things about the copper set of shells I got from the school of scoundrels is that I can use the small by gosh sponge ball with this set. The shells are beautiful and because of the weight I can use the small sponge ball with this set.
The weight of the shells push the sponge ball down and the shell sits flat on the mat. If you want to use a small sponge ball as a large pea and play big tables and do formal shows in small rooms. This is a great feature of this set of shells. The copper set from the s4s is my favorite set in my collection. And the set I most often use when doing the shell game.
Glenn Bishop Cardician
Producer of the DVD Punch Deal Pro Publisher of Glenn Bishop's Ace Cutting And Block Transfer Triumphs |
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RS1963 Inner circle 2734 Posts |
I would advise as others have. If you want gold shells stay away from the ones made by M.M. there not good and you will be very disapointed. For gold shells the SFS are the ones to have.
For standard shells as most who know me well tell you I will use only the LM shells. |
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Ragman Regular user 161 Posts |
Well I have to add that making your own shells has an appeal to it as well. It does occur to me that if you are a master of the 3 shell game this would also encompass the manufactuing of the shells to use in the game. Then you will be able to say you made the shells exactly as they were 100 or more years ago. Oh and I do agree with everyone stay away from the MM shells you will be able to make them better with real walnuts.
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Bill Palmer Eternal Order Only Jonathan Townsend has more than 24312 Posts |
I actually have all of the above. Most of them are on my cups and balls museum web site. I don't have the m******c Golden Shells or m******c Copper Shells, but I do have the others that have been mentioned.
The Ne Plus Ultra of the shell game are the Colorado Silver Shells. No doubt about it. I'm speaking from the standpoint of the way that people look at the shells. The S4S Golden and Copper shells are also outstanding. If you want normal looking shells, the S4S street shells are outstanding. The La Maggiore shells are nice, but they won't fit under a normal shot glass. For me, this is important. It may not be to you, though. All of these shells I have mentioned, as well as the Vernet shells are set up for proper movement of the pea. The metal shells from MM are not. They are simply a shell-shaped hollow piece of metal. The shells from Black Fox are also very nice. Frank makes a very wide assortment of shells, including turtle shells and scarabs. If you want big shells, go with the S4S Trade Show Shells. They are awesome. The MM Monster shell game is a bad joke. If you want to make your own shells, by all means, do it. But remember, homemade shells have a lot of internal stress. They can crack without warning. So make a few extras, just in case.
"The Swatter"
Founder of CODBAMMC My Chickasaw name is "Throws Money at Cups." www.cupsandballsmuseum.com |
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MagicbyCarlo Inner circle has squandered his time making 1062 Posts |
So many shells so little...
Anyhow, my experience with the shells now spans a solid month. I know what your think’n; What can you learn in mere month? Well I hurt my back around October 15th and have worked the shells several hours a day and I now have to figure out what to do with all of this cash… Just kidding, I know exactly what to do with it! My first shells were the La Maggiore ($70). I bought them this July from Denny Haney at the SAM Convention in Boston. I'm not sure why I bought them, but it turned out to be my first step into this thing called the shell game. I like them and they do have a nice feel, they are large, well made, cleanly finished and work nicely for the "Sheets Aquitment", side steals, and work great on a padded or covered surface but for all of the features that they do have they lack one that SfS shells all have, the Channin dip. Natch they can be modified, if you want to mess with sanding and chance ruining your $70 shells. The $45 SfS Street shells were my second set. I did have a couple of issues with these shells and when I notified Whit, he immediately offered to replace the shells. In fact they have a lifetime guarantee. When’s the last time you saw THAT associated with magic equipment? Actually my problem was with the finish of the shells edges, which I ended up taking care of with a fine Emory board. Having done this also allows the shell to now fit cleanly under a shot glass. I now own 2 sets and these are my everyday shells. With the perfect pea, these shells work on just about every table surface without giving away the steal and do not require a close-up pad. I also have 3 sets of Black Fox Scarab shells in different colors ($40) and 1 Walnut Shell set ($30). These shells are beautifully finished and the attention to detail is amazing. Only drawback it that again like the La Maggiore, they don’t have the Channin dip. The Walnut shells are larger than the SfS and very different looking than the La Maggiore. Now for my current favorites; the SfS Gold Shells ($100). I have decided that it’s not size but weight that matters. These babies are awesome. Work great, and have the bling factor. Now SfS also make these in copper($70) and solid silver ($350). I don’t have those yet but a couple more suck…er I mean clients and they’ll be in the collection too. The ONLY peas to use are SfS Perfect Peas. Well there you have my unabashed and shell shocked opinion on this nutty subject. Peas man. Peas.
Carlo DeBlasio
<BR>Entertainment specialist <BR>and all around fun guy! |
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Bill Palmer Eternal Order Only Jonathan Townsend has more than 24312 Posts |
Carlo:
You make some really good points. And with the DVD from S4S to practice with, you can't go wrong. I ran across two sets of Chanin shells in my old box of goodies. I sent one set to a friend in California, and the other is still in my collection. Jack would be spinning in his grave if he knew how valuable those things are! But the shell game is fascinating. Have fun. Peas out.
"The Swatter"
Founder of CODBAMMC My Chickasaw name is "Throws Money at Cups." www.cupsandballsmuseum.com |
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Bob Johnston Inner circle Philadelphia, PA 1251 Posts |
Quote:
On 2005-07-13 23:15, Frank Starsini wrote: Listed here are all the tricks that Magic Maker did not rip off: Start of list.. End of list. Bob |
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Whit Haydn V.I.P. 5449 Posts |
Actually, they are not a knockoff. They are nothing like our Golden Shells, and the idea of gold-plated metal shells is not original to us at S4S.
We have no complaint with the Magic Makers shells now. Our complaint was that they appropriated our name for their shells, thus trying to confuse the marketplace. They originally called their shells "The Golden Shells" which is the name we had been using for our set since 1996 when we first put them out under the distribution of Bob Kohler, along with the DVD of his routine. They also copied our advertising copy, and made claims about their shells which were true about ours, but not about theirs. After we complained loudly on this forum, and talked to them several times by phone threatening legal action, they changed the name and ad copy. Later they did the same thing with their plastic shells which were a direct copy of not ours, but the Vernet shells. They called their rip-off of Vernet "The Street Shells," the name we had used for several years for our completely different and much higher quality plastic shells. Again, they changed the name after considerable protest on this and their own forum. They managed to confuse a lot of consumers for a considerable amount of time after their original release of each product. We kept getting many requests for refunds from their customers who didn't like the shells and thought they were covered by our own lifetime guarantee. Although we disapprove of this marketing tactic, and believe it to be both dishonest and bad for the marketplace, it did not hurt our reputation as much as we had feared it would. This is largely because of the ability of a huge forum such as this one to clarify the issues involved for so many potential customers. But after they changed the name of their product, and quit using our ad copy and making untrue claims about their own product, we had no more beef with their company. We are satisfied that there is no longer a confusion in the marketplace. The large shells they have recently put out were never called "The Trade Show Shells" and they bore such little resemblance to our jumbo shells that we had no problem with them at all. They were really such a badly thought-out and manufactured product that we really kind of felt sorry for them--we realized that there was a great expense in creating such a set of shells using injection-molding processes, and they would likely never recoup their original investment. They must have a huge supply of those shells that are probably only useful as knee pads for laying carpet. |
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KirkG Inner circle 1391 Posts |
I really find it hard to believe that this thread is so long. The main point was made many posts ago. nuff said. S4S all the way!
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