types of coins

Aug 14, 2008
4
0
Singapore
I know how some of you guys get certain coins to perform magic. For me however, i prefer to use coins from my country's currency. I feel like it makes my magic more real, what do you guys think ? ( PS. sometimes i feel like if I get too used to these coins, I cant adapt to larger coins)
 
Jun 29, 2009
22
1
Saginaw, MI
It is always good to become comfortable with your own currency for times when your put on the spot, you can borrow from the spectator and blow minds!!!! But if you have any coins and your good and smooth with them, I really don't think the spectators will care. My motto is if your good, your good, and with enough practice your magic will always look real.
 
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I think it's important to use your own country's currency when ever possible while doing money magic. I think it makes it easier for your audience to relate to you that way. However, that being said, if you want a good coin to do magic with I highly recommend looking into Morgan silver dollars, Walking Liberty half dollars and the copper English penny's. They feel good, and look good.
 
Jun 10, 2010
1,360
1
I think it's important to use your own country's currency when ever possible while doing money magic. I think it makes it easier for your audience to relate to you that way. However, that being said, if you want a good coin to do magic with I highly recommend looking into Morgan silver dollars, Walking Liberty half dollars and the copper English penny's. They feel good, and look good.

Isn't it true that Walking Liberty half dollars don't make as much noise as some other coins when handling them? I remember someone saying something about them being softer then most coins, something along those lines..
 
Aug 17, 2010
411
4
by "being softer', they mean beacuase of their age, and composition (90% silver), the relief is worn down. Magicians call worn-down coins "soft", because they are quieter when the faces slide against one another.

If it makes sense that you might have the coins you plan to use, then it's fine. When I'm busking, it makes sense that I would have props like that. If I was an 18 year old starving college student, probably not. It's all about consistency.

Also, Peace dollars, Franklin halves and Kennedy halves (1964 ones are minted in silver) are pretty nice as well, and may be a little cheaper than Morgans and Walkers.
 
Nov 8, 2007
1,238
3
I only work with quarters. Half-Dollars and Silver Dollars are American coins, sure, but no one carries them and they just don't have the same immediate organic feeling quarters do. People touch and handle quarters every day and are used to seeing them, so they're a common item, and I like that feel they give to my magic.

I do recognize the benefits of using halves and silvers, they just don't suit my style is all.
 
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RealityOne

Elite Member
Nov 1, 2009
3,744
4,076
New Jersey
So I like Walking Liberty halves, to me they sort of look elegant. Morgan dollars s have a classic look to them - I may use them with Victorian Coins routine. The Peace dollars have almost an art-deco look to them. My recommendation is to find a coin that you like the look and then see if the size works for you.

If you are using any of those (or even a 1964 Kennedy) you will need to explain the coins to the audience. Honestly, the reason we use those coins is that the older coins are larger and easier for a parlor audience to see, the size makes the magic seem more difficult (although for me a larger coin is easier to handle), the silver has a nicer look to it (shiny or aged) and the silver just has a better feel to it. There is some value in a performance to introducing a prop (no, don't say this is a normal coin...). The coins I use were in my wife's grandmother's coin purse -- barely circulated. When I use Kennedy halves, I talk about how there was only one year when the coin was all silver (well, 90%) and then in 1965 it was a silver clad coin. It also happens to be the most collected coin in history. A backstory is always good (it doesn't have to be true). It can be as easy as "when I began in coin magic, I was fascinated with the look of these coins. The age of them and the design of them just felt magical to me."

P.S. In the future, don't post in 9 year old threads, but start a new one. I'll leave this open for now in case you have a response, but will probably close it in a couple of days.
 
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Oct 10, 2019
33
20
66
Europe
I am in europe, so i use euros for impromptu and bar-work. For more formal work i use halfs and pennies. Euros and new american coins are just too small for stage-work. When a customer pays me a lot of money for a show a trick with some loose change just does not look right. The silver and copper coins add to the mystery, they look much better. If anybody asks about them i tell them i inherited them. Same with C&B, paper cups in the pub or coffeeshop work just fine, but i use shiny brass or silver for the better jobs, simply because the customer expects a magic performance. I would advise you to go for half-dollars, the gaffs are relative cheap and the coins are easy to handle, even with big hands. The power of using ordinary coins is that you can borrow them, but that is not easy nowadays because people don't carry much cash anymore. And then you are that guy who does tricks with borrowed coins, cool. That is what the audience experiences.
If you pull out a purse with a few large silver or copper coins and you do exact the same trick, they see you as a magician who does some serious magic. You have to be good, otherwise you wouldn't use those coins. This sounds crazy, but that is the way the spectator thinks.
 
Aug 7, 2018
32
11
I'm trying to decide between Peace dollars of Morgans any suggestions Thank You,
I know I’m a little late, but I was wondering if you’ve decided yet.
I have a peace dollar my grandfather gave me. But I REALLY want a Morgan silver dollar. For a majority of them, Morgan’s are slightly more expensive (sometimes only by a few dollars) but I love the look of Morgan’s. That could just be because I don’t have one yet, though.
If you’re into comics at all, the coin that the Villian Two Face from Batman uses is a double sided peace dollar. So it’s cool to thing of that whenever I have my peace dollar.

Just a thought.
 
Dec 22, 2019
169
68
I know how some of you guys get certain coins to perform magic. For me however, i prefer to use coins from my country's currency. I feel like it makes my magic more real, what do you guys think ? ( PS. sometimes i feel like if I get too used to these coins, I cant adapt to larger coins)
I live In Europe and the € aren’t of good dimension to do coin magic(probably the best one is the 50 cent coin), so I have to search (and then spend money) to get some good walking liberty half dollars... Sigh
 
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Dec 22, 2019
169
68
I think is not a big problem using another currency instead of your currency, because when your good at coin magic (thing you should be before performing to an audience) your ability fully fills that thing because you’re still able to paint on the spectator’s face that wonder and astonishment. An other reason why I think this is just that most of the people can understand you when just saying the truth: you use this kind of coins because they’re thinner or bigger or smaller, depending on the currency and value, because they’re better to handle.
P.s.
Have a happy 2020
 
Aug 7, 2018
32
11
I live In Europe and the € aren’t of good dimension to do coin magic(probably the best one is the 50 cent coin), so I have to search (and then spend money) to get some good walking liberty half dollars... Sigh
Liberty half dollars are expensive. If you want the same size you could just get some non silver Kennedy’s. They’re pretty shiny and plentiful so it should be a lot cheaper.
i personally do prefer walking liberties though
 
Aug 7, 2018
32
11
Maybe it is my imagination, but the non-silver coins don't have the same feel to them as the silver. Silver Kennedy's are usually less than $20 each so they are an inexpensive option.
It’s not your imagination. Silver feels different than the copper clad. The non silver looks “shinier” but when you hold it next to a real silver coin even the dull shine of the actual silver looks nicer in my opinion.
They also sound different. If you use a coin to lightly tap on a real silver coin it will give a nice ring. But yes, they’re about $10 -$20 since the 90% silver ones were ONLY made in 1964.

BUT (if you’re like me) it’s weird to buy a coin for anything more than its face value. In that case non silvers are a cheap and ok substitute.
 
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