Adding a coating to cards

[leecreighton]

A friend of mine thought she was doing me a favor (and, truly, she was). She did a stint teaching in China, and she found a magic shop that sold gaffed cards. The guy at the shop showed her...well, it goes by a lot of names. Million Dollar Monte, maybe? It's a version of the classic three-card monte with an A♡, 2♧, and 3♧, with gaffed indices.

Of course, she was mystified and thought I'd love a set of these cards. When she found out they were 99₵ each, she bought me FIVE SETS of them, and they arrived in the mail today. The suits aren't the same, but the trick works out. The Bicycle imprint on the back isn't the right color. It's not terrible, just a little oranger than it should be. All of that could be dealt with by not using these with a red Bicycle deck in sight.

The worst part, and something I'd like to fix, is that these cards are simple white cardboard. Their thickness is fine, they're just unfinished. That means they'll wear out or get marked up super quick. And they don't handle well at all.

I know there's no way I'm going to get an air-cushion or linoid finish on them, but I'd like to try something. Perhaps I could spray them with some Krylon shiny enamel. I've no idea. My question to the forum is whether anyone else has tried to coat cards so they're a little more durable, and perhaps slide a little better than mine do now. I'm not that invested in them, but thought this might be a good time to experiment.

Thanks as ever.

 

[Maaz Hasan]

Try using some car wax. Someone here told me about "Slick" cards earlier this year. Went to Walmart (or whatever store is near you) and bought some Turtle brand Paste Wax (you can get whatever brand you want). You do NOT want the one for tires, get the one for the actual body of the car (if it says "Shine" and doesn't specify tires, you're good to go). Put a very little bit on the sponge that it comes with and spread it around in circular motions. Spread it around the whole thing and keep buffing it until most of the wax isn't visible. Buff it some more and let it dry (probably in a plastic bag, and then put that in a book, to keep it from sticking and bending).

I would try it on some regular cards first (maybe scuff one up with an eraser a bit)

Alternatively, you can try one or a combination of these (no clue if it'll work):
*Clear Coat
*A Polyacrylic finish (the type used in wood working)
*Maybe spreading a very thin layer of epoxy over the card?

 

[ID4]

I don't think making slick cards is what he wants. In my opinion using fanning powder/zinc stearate would be the better way.

 

[JarrettC2]

A clear coat and fanning powder might do the job. I think slicking raw card stock wouldn’t achieve the finish he is looking for but that’s a good call. I’d experiment with a few and memento the others.

 

[Maaz Hasan]

I mean, I've made blank cards by completely erasing both the ink and the finish off of them. I slickifyed them and they are slick enough to slide across one another (obviously not as good as a card straight outta a box, but it worked).

And I'm sure there is some sort of finish on it more or less.