Hi All:

I have heard from very reliable sources that Frank Radtke's family will continue to manufacture his line of silicone products.

I have no details as to when the products will be produced or when they will make it through to the magic shops.

But I am sure we can all agree that this is great news for all of us manipulators and a tribute to the legacy that my friend Frank created over the years.

Best regards to all,
Levent
http://www.LeventMagic.com

YES! Thanks for the information!

Regan

I believe that Randy had been working with his father making several of the balls in the last couple of years.

Richard

That is good news.

Hi All:

I would like to point out something. When I was a kid in the 1970s, I used to go into Tannen's Magic Shop in Times Square and the counters were filled with products by Rings & Things, Milson Worth, U.F. Grant's Mak Magic, Rice's Silks and George Kirkendall's Reels.

Today almost all of that stuff is gone from the retail market and the few remaining props are hidden away in collectors shelves or sold at inflated prices.

One of the things that irks me is that nobody has taken the place of Kirkendall's reels. George made a good copy of the old P&L reel and they were very reliable and inexpensive. Today I haven't been able to fine a good reel at a decent price.

On another front we have the Mak Magic line of products. When I was a kid their catalog had a great variety of stage magic props. Overall the build quality was not fantastic, but they were the physical manifestation of the brilliance of U.F. Grant's mind. That product line had a LOT of fantastic effects that just needed to be slightly re-built by the purchaser to be used on stage. Today, I would guess that 90% of the Mak Magic line is sadly discontinued by the current owners.

The lesson here is that magic is a cottage industry. If there is a magic prop that you like to use, make sure you have a good supply of those items as you can never count on them being around forever.

For instance after 60 years, the US Playing Card Company has stopped making Jumbo Bicycle cards and I recently had to convert my Jumbo Card routine to the Austrian Piatnik Giant Cards!

We are lucky that Fakini's family will continue to supply us with Franks products. But if you want to use any Fakini products, I suggest you get them as soon as you can. And if you use them and if the audience likes your routine, then buy some spares as well.

I'm still using the same custom set of Billiards that Frank Radtke made for me 5 years ago. They work perfectly. But I still have 3 more complete sets in reserve.

When I started using Richard Hughes' "World's Fastest Trick (by Delage)", I bought a complete spare unit as soon as I could. Then later, I bought a third unit, just in case!

I'm gonna say it again: magic is a cottage industry. If you have a favorite prop, buy spares and keep them safe!

Best regards to all,
Levent
http://www.LeventMagic.com

P.S. On a side note it is interesting that so many prolific makers were based in Ohio (Fakini, Rice, USPCC, Hughes, Kirkendall, Mak Magic!)

Levent,

Stevens Magic says they have the Kirkendall reel made by one of his assistants. Here: http://www.stevensmagic.com/index.php?ma......attstma5

What happened to O'Neal Magic that took over the smaller line of Grant Products?

It is a shame that the owners of Mak Magic are so lazy, what few items they do have are being made in India. They went all the way to India to make arrangements to have Grant/Mak Magic products made with Indian soft wood and overly sanded to make dips in the surface.

Abbott's has chosen the same route somewhat, they would rather buy mass markete junk instead of selling their exclusive line. This is mostly do to poor purchasing policies.

WmHegbli:

Wow, thanks for relaying that information about the new Kirkendall reels.

Best regards,
Levent
http://www.LeventMagic.com

Wow I'm excited to here that to!!!! Thanks for showing that great information!!!!!

Well, it's time to buy those 2" balls I've been wanting.

I've been thinking the same thing.

This is great news.

Dave

There have been many attempts to recreate Frank's products both here and abroad but they have failed miserably. We are certainly glad to hear it. The general quality of magic is dismal at best. The imports have flooded and saturated the market. Why have magicians accepted such poorly constructed props? As many of you have mentioned there WAS a day when you could buy an item that was built to withstand hundreds of performances - sadly - today most of what is available is pure junk. We are striving to remedy that situation. We are working 6 days a week building square circles, rabbit vanishes, etc. out of good quality material and keeping the price affordable. We believe there is a real need out there.

Case in point: After the woodshop finishing a tube for our new ABC blocks I held up chest high and dropped on the floor several times to the dismay of my workers.Then I held up a tube purchased from an unnamed wholesaler and dropped it...the wood split immediately (at least we think it is wood) I was trying to prove a point.

Magicians have had to put up with poory crafted products long enough and we hope to change all of that.

Our hat is off to Frank and his family for continuing a business that still produces quality magic.

This is what Percy Abbott's daughter thought about our latest.....this makes it all worthwhile....

http://fabmagic.blogspot.com/

Unkowning new 'magicians' have accepted the junk import products, quite simply, because of JOBBERS, WHOLESALERS, and DEALERS who want to increase there profits 3 fold over their previous standard of return on ivestment.

There is not one Magic Dealer that does not carry and sell this inferior junk to unsuspecting customers. Dealers now hide the fact that it is junk, do not give honest discriptions of the items and workmanship, as they should when it is copy of a standard product.

The only happy and satisfied person in the whole deal is the India Manufacturer who sees the rewards of making 10,000 pieces of junk and peddle it off to 1st World Countries.

I couldn't agree more....and unfortunately we have to carry some of the India stuff too - but as we move forward and manufacture ourselves we are eliminating them one by one but it is a slow process unfortunately. When labor is so cheap they can mass produce at a moments notice.

Levent, thanks for the great news about the Fakini products continuing.

YES!!! THANKS A LOT! I'm so excited! This is a GREAT news!

As Levent mentioned we should start getting more spares.

Any seasoned performer will tell you that when you find something that works for you, buy a GROSS of them. Eventually, what you use will wear out and when you go back, they will be no more.

This has happened to me so I always buy two or three of something "just in case".

We live in an instant gratification society. IF an item takes too long to be produced because it is being made by hand to ensure quality, people complain. If they don't complain, it's too expensive and no one wants it.

There is a reason rice silks and old PnL apparatus go for so much at auctions.

Stucky,
Please contact me so I can start on your gross of botanias. I might get them done before my time is up. It should take 10 to 15 years.

Seriously, you are correct. If you find something that works, get backups to the backups.

Richard

I have learnt through bad mistakes the hard way, especially when something happens you don't have spares to back you up. I am now considering even having spares for my spares.