Sleights for small hands.

Hello t11,

I'm new on the forums and i was thinking if someone can give me an advice regarding how can i improve my sleight of hand moves ( the classic pass, palming, etc ) if i have small hands. It's a pain in the bottom part to do the pass with my hands because different things happen: a card gets reversed in the deck( if you make a trick out of this line i want my part ), some cards fall on the ground, one card stays side jogged and i cant complete the pass, etc.

Any tips?
 
Mar 4, 2012
11
0
have you tried the Herman pass? its a lot easier but it is angle sensitive best for very small audience. as for the palming i cant help sorry.
 
i think it comes down to practicing and coming up with alternative handlings for things you want to do. lots of great magicians have small hands and can handle cards better than half of the magicians i have seen. I cannot help much since i have average hands.
 
The Herman pass was the only pass that i could do when i was younger. Now i managed to learn the classic pass by looking very carefully at Jason England's Classic Pass video. btw very good video i totally recommend it. he teaches you little things that combined help you very much with your pass if you happen to be like me.
 
Dec 9, 2011
15
0
@Ezekhial: The Herrmann Pass isn't any more angle sensitive.

He didn't say it was more angle sensitive.

Don't think that the things going wrong are all due to your hand size, when I started passing I reversed cards etc.
 

WitchDocIsIn

Elite Member
Sep 13, 2008
5,877
2,945
Actually, I have discovered the absolute answer to solve the issue of small hands:

Practice.

If magic were easy, no one would be impressed by it. Keep practicing until you get it right. You will subconsciously make the adjustments you need to make in order to make the sleight work. You may have to work at something for years before it's performable, but that's how it works. I have small hands and I can do palms, passes, clip shifts, etc. because I just keep practicing them.
 
Gonna copy everyone else and say practice!

But I'll also add some sleights that you will find easier for the mean time.

-Turnover Pass (like a Hermann Pass but more burnable and natural looking)
-Tenkai Palm (any size hand can conceal a card this way)
-Gamblers Cop (same as the Tenkai Palm, hand size doesn't matter as much as your ability to be natural)
-Overhand Shuffle Control (why use anything else if you don't have to)
-Table Cut Control (why double undercut clumsily in your hands when you can do it to the table)


But apart from performing sleights that are easier will small hands, practising and mastering what is naturally difficult for you will make you a better magician and person. The same as investing time into any art.
 
Just persevere. A lot of great magicians and sleight of hand experts throughout the years have had small hands. You may at times have to make small adaptations, but you'll be able to do most sleights.

Even if, say, your hands aren't big enough to cover a whole card when palming, with good timing and misdirection you can get away with it. I think it's Max Malini who is said to have had hands so small that he couldn't fully cover a card when palming, but it certainly didn't stop him performing amazing magic.

Don't use bridge-sized cards, the quality is not the same and they just don't look as good.

Work at it, you might have to work a bit harder than people with larger hands, but you'll get there.
 
May 2, 2010
207
1
37
New York, New York
I have to agree with Christopher on this one. Keep working at it. I know plenty of people with small hands palm, pass etc. I have seen kids as young as 10 years old perform such sleights. They had to make adjustments in the technique if accomedate their smaller hands.

I remember seeing a Magic-Con clip of a guy in a wheelchair and no hands perform passes, shifts and a side steal. It was amazing.

Dont get discouraged. Keep at it.
 
May 21, 2011
47
0
Practicing sleights will not make your hands bigger. To compensate for small hands, you will need to practice misdirection. I have really bony fingers so you can see the card in between when I palm them. You just need some misdirection and audience management. Also you can substitute the pass with a double undercut unless you are using it as a color change so do that when you can. Also someone suggested the Herman pass which is good when you have the proper angles (also the turnover pass). Also, bridge sized bicycle cards are fine as long as you aren't performing for magicians. They will clown you for it. Spectators won't know the difference.
 
Nov 2, 2007
246
0
Norway
Why would magicians clown you for using bridge sized cards? Doesn't make sense.

If you are still a kid, then just wait until you are grown up and have larger hands. Meanwhile you practice. I'm 26 and I have tiny hands. I do all my flashing sleights while not looking at the deck and while talking. If you are quiet and look at the deck while doing a pass. Everyone will be looking at the deck as well. If you look up and talk, everyone will look at you. You don't even have to do a pass, just a swing cut. No one will notice it.
 
I have small hands too!
You must find a way to accommodate this situation by using different sleights, or performing them differently.
For the classic pass, work on doing it on an off-beat, while the spectator's are not looking. Most of the time, I will tell and joke, or ask a question, and immediately execute the pass.
Also, if you are looking for alternatives, take a look at the Turn-Over Pass, Kim Krenzel's One Card Pass or the cull. The TPC (Juan Tamariz) will get their selected card in left hand full palm. The position of your left hand is a lot more natural for palming a card, so I definitely recommend checking it out as well!

Hope it helps,


Marc-Antoine
 
Searching...
{[{ searchResultsCount }]} Results