The Fournier 605s (Lee Asher Signature Series)
Well I just got these cards and thought I would give you all a review. Since there is no convenient “sticky” to guide me down the path of a card review I will strike off on my own here and try to cover all the bases.
Price: $10:99 per deck or $98.88 per dozen
Where to buy: http://www.leeasher.com/store/playing_c ... brown.html
Initial Impression: When I first pulled them out of the box I was struck by the smooth surface of the cards. The cards that are locally produced (Korea) have a similar finish, are made entirely of plastic, and are AWFUL! So I was initially concerned that I had wasted a lot of money. That impression was completely dispelled not long after playing with these cards. These cards do have a plastic coating but they are not plastic cards. After about 20 minutes of fiddling with them I began to see why Lee Asher had chosen these cards for his signature series.
The Look: This one is too subjective to get a rating so I’ll just give you my thoughts as well as an idea of what you will find inside. I love the look of these. In my opinion they are by far the most unique cards on the market right now. I enjoy the look of the Bikes as well as the Ghost, Black Tiger, Propaganda, etc. however there is only so much you can do with black white and grey. The colors are subdued green and brown and the design harkens back to a time when card players and magicians went to the tables wearing tuxedos. The court cards, like the back design, have an old world feel to the artwork. There is no heavy metal or glam rock flash in this design. This one looks dignified and classy.
Card construction: As I said in the intro these will feel decidedly different then a bike right out of the box. Bike use an air glide principle (the dimples you feel on the backs and faces) where as the Fournier decks are smooth to the touch. The marketing description mentions they use a thicker stock. I assumed this meant it would be a thicker card but this was not the case. There is a thick card stock sandwiched between to thin pieces of paper that are coated in plastic. When all is put together the Fournier deck is a few cards thicker than a standard Bicycle deck but a few cards thinner than a Bike Masters ed and the other UV500 decks. This may be of interest to those with smaller hands. The length and width is the same as any poker sized playing card. The cards are individually cut from the press giving the cards perfectly rounded corners. This also perfectly aligns the artwork so in theory you could cut two cards in half and line it up perfectly with one and other (this will be of use for people who make their own Gaffs).
Durability: Durability will factor in over time as I edit this post in the future. See the appendix for a better understanding of how to interpret this.
Handling:
Fanning: This is perhaps the Fournier weakest attribute. They tend to fan a little blockier, and a little less even than a standard Bike. This should be taken with this in mind. I have always used my fan more for card selections and displaying a shuffled deck (practical applications) as opposed to a flourish. As such I tend to do a no frills one handed fan and never bothered to properly learn a pressure fan. Therefore if you are good with fanning you may better adapt to how these handle. One thing I did notice is that stronger pressure on these cards improves the fan.
Out of the box: 6
2 weeks: 8
3 weeks: 7
1 month: 8
2+Card Obfuscations: (Hiding 2 or more cards as one as in DL, Fluke moves, etc.) These cards hold together in a group nicely. I can see why the inventor of the Diving Board Double liked them so much. In addition the smooth finish makes it a little harder to detect if you were to pull a slightly misaligned double.
Out of the box: 9
2 weeks:8.8
3 weeks: 8.5
1 month: 8.8
Spring Moves: If you like snapping your cards for productions or springing cards this is the deck for you. They spring so sharp and nicely you may have to adjust your technique to keep from having them go flying on the floor or worse yet….imbedded in the eyes of your spectator! Ninjas could use them as throwing stars!
Out of the box: 9.8
2 weeks: 9.5
3 weeks: 9.0
1 month: 9.0
Dribbles: It will take more hand strength to dribble these cards but when achieved these seem to dribble singly and not in clumps. I’ll give this an 8.5. If you have strong hands slide this rating up and if you have weaker hands slide this scale down.
Out of the box: 8.5
2 weeks: 9
3 weeks: 8.5
1 month: 9
Crimp hold and recovery: The cards crimp nicely and retain their shape until you remove the crimp. After removing a crimp it is near impossible to find any damage done.
Out of the box: 9.5
2 weeks: 9.5
3 weeks: 9.0
1 month: 9.0
Single card glides: This one is hard to evaluate. As mentioned with both fanning and 2+obfuscations the cards seem to hold together well, however for certain single card moves (Erdnase changes and similar moves) they glide free from one and other quite nicely. For other single card moves (Venus and other similar moves) the sticking properties seem to come out. I’m no physicist so don’t ask me why that is.
Out of the box: 8
2 weeks: 9
3 weeks:8.5
1 month: 9
continued
Well I just got these cards and thought I would give you all a review. Since there is no convenient “sticky” to guide me down the path of a card review I will strike off on my own here and try to cover all the bases.
Price: $10:99 per deck or $98.88 per dozen
Where to buy: http://www.leeasher.com/store/playing_c ... brown.html
Initial Impression: When I first pulled them out of the box I was struck by the smooth surface of the cards. The cards that are locally produced (Korea) have a similar finish, are made entirely of plastic, and are AWFUL! So I was initially concerned that I had wasted a lot of money. That impression was completely dispelled not long after playing with these cards. These cards do have a plastic coating but they are not plastic cards. After about 20 minutes of fiddling with them I began to see why Lee Asher had chosen these cards for his signature series.
The Look: This one is too subjective to get a rating so I’ll just give you my thoughts as well as an idea of what you will find inside. I love the look of these. In my opinion they are by far the most unique cards on the market right now. I enjoy the look of the Bikes as well as the Ghost, Black Tiger, Propaganda, etc. however there is only so much you can do with black white and grey. The colors are subdued green and brown and the design harkens back to a time when card players and magicians went to the tables wearing tuxedos. The court cards, like the back design, have an old world feel to the artwork. There is no heavy metal or glam rock flash in this design. This one looks dignified and classy.
Card construction: As I said in the intro these will feel decidedly different then a bike right out of the box. Bike use an air glide principle (the dimples you feel on the backs and faces) where as the Fournier decks are smooth to the touch. The marketing description mentions they use a thicker stock. I assumed this meant it would be a thicker card but this was not the case. There is a thick card stock sandwiched between to thin pieces of paper that are coated in plastic. When all is put together the Fournier deck is a few cards thicker than a standard Bicycle deck but a few cards thinner than a Bike Masters ed and the other UV500 decks. This may be of interest to those with smaller hands. The length and width is the same as any poker sized playing card. The cards are individually cut from the press giving the cards perfectly rounded corners. This also perfectly aligns the artwork so in theory you could cut two cards in half and line it up perfectly with one and other (this will be of use for people who make their own Gaffs).
Durability: Durability will factor in over time as I edit this post in the future. See the appendix for a better understanding of how to interpret this.
Handling:
Fanning: This is perhaps the Fournier weakest attribute. They tend to fan a little blockier, and a little less even than a standard Bike. This should be taken with this in mind. I have always used my fan more for card selections and displaying a shuffled deck (practical applications) as opposed to a flourish. As such I tend to do a no frills one handed fan and never bothered to properly learn a pressure fan. Therefore if you are good with fanning you may better adapt to how these handle. One thing I did notice is that stronger pressure on these cards improves the fan.
Out of the box: 6
2 weeks: 8
3 weeks: 7
1 month: 8
2+Card Obfuscations: (Hiding 2 or more cards as one as in DL, Fluke moves, etc.) These cards hold together in a group nicely. I can see why the inventor of the Diving Board Double liked them so much. In addition the smooth finish makes it a little harder to detect if you were to pull a slightly misaligned double.
Out of the box: 9
2 weeks:8.8
3 weeks: 8.5
1 month: 8.8
Spring Moves: If you like snapping your cards for productions or springing cards this is the deck for you. They spring so sharp and nicely you may have to adjust your technique to keep from having them go flying on the floor or worse yet….imbedded in the eyes of your spectator! Ninjas could use them as throwing stars!
Out of the box: 9.8
2 weeks: 9.5
3 weeks: 9.0
1 month: 9.0
Dribbles: It will take more hand strength to dribble these cards but when achieved these seem to dribble singly and not in clumps. I’ll give this an 8.5. If you have strong hands slide this rating up and if you have weaker hands slide this scale down.
Out of the box: 8.5
2 weeks: 9
3 weeks: 8.5
1 month: 9
Crimp hold and recovery: The cards crimp nicely and retain their shape until you remove the crimp. After removing a crimp it is near impossible to find any damage done.
Out of the box: 9.5
2 weeks: 9.5
3 weeks: 9.0
1 month: 9.0
Single card glides: This one is hard to evaluate. As mentioned with both fanning and 2+obfuscations the cards seem to hold together well, however for certain single card moves (Erdnase changes and similar moves) they glide free from one and other quite nicely. For other single card moves (Venus and other similar moves) the sticking properties seem to come out. I’m no physicist so don’t ask me why that is.
Out of the box: 8
2 weeks: 9
3 weeks:8.5
1 month: 9
continued