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thegreatscungilli Regular user 166 Posts |
I see this effect ranging from $150 - $600.. As far as I can tell they are all made of turned aluminum and have from 8-12 bottles so can anyone advise on what makes the difference between a $150 set and a $600??
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Pop Haydn Inner circle Los Angeles 3691 Posts |
The finish of the bottles vary. The thickness of the aluminum is important. Many sets are thin and will dent if they fall off the table. That can be hard to fix. The difference in size among the bottles varies from set to set. Some routines, like the Ken Brookes routine, require nine bottles--three three bottle sets--other sets of bottles have ten or twelve bottles. I would not buy a set until you have handled several different ones and know what you want to do with it. You will probably need a dedicated table, and a way to move the bottles off stage without them tipping over. I would study everything out there, buying videos, books and pamphlets on different routines so you know as much as possible before making a big investment.
I use the Ken Brookes bottles which I have had stripped, anodized and labeled with my own labels. The table I made. It is on wheels. The Ken Brookes bottles are very heavy aluminum, and I have dropped them several times without damage--as in this video: It is good to do as much research as possible. |
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Bill Hegbli Eternal Order Fort Wayne, Indiana 22797 Posts |
My Ken Brooke 9 Bottle set are thin walled aluminum I purchased from Ken Brooke's Magic Place, London, England, in the 1970's, by mail order. They are anodized Green and I had to put the labels on myself. The Ken Brooke routine can be performed with 8 and 9 bottles, possibly more, as it was not hard to adjust the routine for 8 bottle on the routine and presentation if well learned. Anodized is the way to go, as it reflects light just like a glass bottle. Paint can chip off and be scratched off over time.
There is a new set sold by a company in Japan, they sell for $1,500. I read her on the Café, they are only selling them to order from Japan now. They are beautiful bottles. There is a 3 bottle set sold many years ago, called the Comedy Passe Passe Bottles. Ken Brooke published his routine in the book that was published after his death called, Ken Brooke Magic The Unique Years. This title references his effects he invented while working for Harry Stanley magic store, is defunct now for many years. Supreme Magic republished the book and when they went out of business the remaining books were stored. A years ago they were released for sale again here in the U.S. The book has both routines explained in the book. If you get any bottle set, it is best to purchase of make your own bottle tray. It allows the bottles and tubes to carried on and off without worry of them toppling over and onto the floor. Fab Magic makes such a tray at a reasonable price compared to $300 trays offered by other places. To put it simply, the difference is "Quality" and what you would be satisfied with presenting to your audiences in a stand-up show. I would not present this in a house party or Birthday Party setting as it should be seen from a distance, not close-up. Children can figure it out instantly, and there is a routine published how to overcome the logical minds of children. If memory serves correctly, it is a hard bound Marconic book. |
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thegreatscungilli Regular user 166 Posts |
Pop and Bill, thanks for the info.. Lots more homework to be done on my part but your postings have helped me clarify what I should be looking for
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thegreatscungilli Regular user 166 Posts |
Still doing research on a good set of multiplying bottles but not an $1800.00 set. Any views regarding bottle sets from these three makers:
Abbotts, Mephisto (Dutch made), and Supreme.. Comments pro or con?? |
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Bill Hegbli Eternal Order Fort Wayne, Indiana 22797 Posts |
It seems this is a bad time for Multiplying Bottles, not much available.
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thegreatscungilli Regular user 166 Posts |
Yes not much around except the Tenyo ones but I have found one set from each of the companies I mentioned, one looks to probably have to be re-anodized but they are all pricey so before I pursue any further I wanted to see if anyone had any thoughts about these makers regarding quality of the bottles etc.
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hugmagic Inner circle 7655 Posts |
I have liked my Abbott set as they are spun from steel so they hold up well. The paint job was not the greatest as the brown color looked funky. I also have a set that is a gun metal gray that is a little better. They certainly could be stripped and repainted. It is shame that Abbott's no longer makes them. I said something to Greg one time and he said they did not have the spinning chucks for them. They were left at the spinners and he did not know who they were.
I think the most realistic bottles were the Himber bottles (original). The whiskey bottles looked really good.
Richard E. Hughes, Hughes Magic Inc., 352 N. Prospect St., Ravenna, OH 44266 (330)296-4023
www.hughesmagic.com email-hugmagic@raex.com Write direct as I will be turning off my PM's. |
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AllanK Loyal user Australia 212 Posts |
I have a set of the Donnelly Multiplying Bottles. These are currently available on the Hocus Pocus site for $499. I think they are magnificent. They look good and they have the Ken Brooke "lip", which makes them easy to handle. They are not anodised, but the paint work is excellent. The only negative is the tubes - they are just plain cardboard, so you will need to cover them. I just made my own from a mailing tube covered with contact paper. There is a very good photo of them on the HP site. Nick Lewin recommends these on his Multiplying Bottles DVD, and I believe Denny Haney also recommended them. I used the Supreme set for about 30 years before buying this set - the Donnelley set is vastly superior, both in looks and handling.
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Bill Hegbli Eternal Order Fort Wayne, Indiana 22797 Posts |
Abbott's sold two sets, there painted model, not very nice looking brown painted bottles and chrome tubes. They also made and sold a set Morrissey Magic made. Morrissey made a nice shaped bottle version, but never advertised them. They also made a coin pail, the design of a famous Canadian magician that was never advertised.
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CDenys New user 56 Posts |
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FrankFindley Inner circle 1028 Posts |
There is also the Jieli Magic 10 Bottle set. It typically runs $250 to $300 but I purchased an unused set off eBay for $135 including shipping and tax. It gets good reviews. The bottles look like real glass and the labels are nice. They can stack as two sets of five but of course you can divide them into three stacks if routine calls for it. They do not have lip protrusions but I've had no issues manipulating them. They also don't have a liquid kicker but that would be no problem to add. The DVD comes with a nice routine. It is not in English but it is easy to follow. The set includes nice brushed metal tubes. I believe there are two label styles. My set has the same Merlot wine style as shown here:
https://www.martinsmagic.com/allmagic/st......n-jieli/ |
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thegreatscungilli Regular user 166 Posts |
Yes the ones from Japan are supposed to be the best but $1,800.00 is out of my price range..
Frank are these from China? I have seen what looks to be a similar set made in China.. |
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FrankFindley Inner circle 1028 Posts |
Quote:
On Feb 7, 2021, thegreatscungilli wrote: Yes. Jieli Magic is a premier magic manufacturer in China's Shenzhen district (often called "China's silicon Valley"). They produce magic items and provide training for China's theme parks. In US they are best known for their silicone multiplying billiard balls and linking rings. |
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Rac New user 7 Posts |
Back in the early '60's Himber sold a pricey set of bottles that were anodized dark amber and looked beautiful. I believe he called it the Milk Bottle Monte. You had three nested sets of bottles. Each set had two large and two small bottles, all with lips for easy gripping. The tubes were in pairs with an outside aluminum tube and another blue anodized tube nested within wo at the end of the routine you could pull those out as some kind of finish. Doesn't make sense to me, but that is how it was sold. The effect was presented as a sort of a three shell game where a glass was covered by one of the tubes, then the tubes slid around to mix them. The appearance of the bottles was supposed to be bewildering to the magician as he attempts to demonstrate the shell game. Using large and small bottles allowed different size bottles to be alternately produced from the same tube unlike the usual multiplying bottle routines you see now. To produce a large bottle you just lift the tube. The next time you lift the tube you secretly lift up all bottles except for the innermost small one. I believe the notion of producing bottles of alternating large and small sizes in a routine such as this was original to Himber.
Himber also sold a single set of four bottles (two large and two small) for a routing called Battle of the Bottles where a box full of bottles is shown, then all bottles disappear. In this case, the two large bottles had two different labels attached on opposite sides so that the same bottle could be shown twice. In brief, the bottles were lifted up from the box one by one and shown in such a way as to nest them. You remove the nested set as one bottle you want to "keep for yourself", then show the box to be completely empty - all the bottles vanished ! Himber later retooled the bottles into a set of three large and three small for a more conventional routine using two tubes and two bottle sets. This configuration was called "Half a Loaf". All of these props and more were regularly advertised in Genii back then. The picture shows the original three tube version with all twelve bottles. |
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Rac New user 7 Posts |
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thegreatscungilli Regular user 166 Posts |
Frank seemed to like the Jieli (Chinese Made) set and it had a few positive reviews so I found a used set of the Jieli bottles, these look to be the same ones that are advertised at Penguin and others as "10 Ct. High Gloss" set. They look pretty good and handle fine..so I'll give them a try and see...
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FrankFindley Inner circle 1028 Posts |
I like them so much I actually purchased a second set directly from China. It was $165 delivered. The latest one even included a p**l for the included routine. So for $300 I have four stacks of 5 bottles each...enough to do any routine. I am considering refinishing four of the smaller ones to produce different drink bottles towards end of routine.
Regarding Himber's vanishing bottle routine, I saw Neil Foster do that at a convention. Coincidentally, when searching for another routine of his, I recently came as cross a video showing him performing it. See here at 6 minutes 15 seconds. Enjoy! |
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thegreatscungilli Regular user 166 Posts |
Thanks Frank,
I am thinking about whether I would want to add a liquid kicker and how to do it. If I decide to add it, I am thinking maybe a stainless steel whiskey jigger with velcro so it could be removed and washed.. |
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Donald Dunphy Inner circle Victoria, BC, Canada 7563 Posts |
If you're looking for a Multiplying Bottles set, but don't want an alcohol theme (for example, family / kids shows), I would suggest checking out the ones offered by Jef Eaton / Kandu Magic.
https://kandumagic.com/current-products - Donald
Donald Dunphy is a Victoria Magician, British Columbia, Canada.
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