Coin Bend?

[Antonio Diavolo]

I wanted to start doing coin bends and decided I didn't really need it to be bent in real time and for me personally, it might just be easiest to use a pre-bent coin.

Anyway, I wanted a method to pre-bend the coins that wouldn't leave marks on the coins. I was thinking about using Superman or some cheap pliers but I'm not sure.

Also, has anyone here tried doing real time bends vs pre-bends? Do you personally feel the trick is more powerful with a signed coin?

Thank you!

 

[RealityOne]

Superman does leave a barely perceptible mark -- which is worth it if you are doing it real time.

You want to look at "soft jaw" pliers. Do not get needle nose or long nose pliers but some that have a wider base. You may also want to consider getting a vice which will give you more control over the bend. You can get non-marring vice jaw covers or use rubber jar openers to cover the sides.

 

[WitchDocIsIn]

What size coin? For most US coins you can wrap an old playing card around the coin and go to town. Wider based pliers like David mentioned will make a nicer bend, in my opinion. Though you may want to explore the idea of doing bends that look a bit different.

I already responded to your message but I'll put it out here, too - I don't think signing the coin necessarily makes it better. If their take-away from the experience is to wonder if you switched the coin, I feel the routine has missed its potential.

The coin itself is a metaphor, or a reminder for the story you're telling them. The reality you want them to engage with. If you're scripting properly they're not thinking about what you did at all, they're thinking about how you made them feel.

 

[Antonio Diavolo]

What size coin? For most US coins you can wrap an old playing card around the coin and go to town. Wider based pliers like David mentioned will make a nicer bend, in my opinion. Though you may want to explore the idea of doing bends that look a bit different.

I already responded to your message but I'll put it out here, too - I don't think signing the coin necessarily makes it better. If their take-away from the experience is to wonder if you switched the coin, I feel the routine has missed its potential.

The coin itself is a metaphor, or a reminder for the story you're telling them. The reality you want them to engage with. If you're scripting properly they're not thinking about what you did at all, they're thinking about how you made them feel.

Thats what I was thinking about the signed coin as well. I think I said Ive never had issues with people thinking im using duplicates in card magic. And even when they do, I can just hand them the deck and they’re usually content.

 

[Ocelotl]

I wanted to start doing coin bends and decided I didn't really need it to be bent in real time and for me personally, it might just be easiest to use a pre-bent coin.

Anyway, I wanted a method to pre-bend the coins that wouldn't leave marks on the coins. I was thinking about using Superman or some cheap pliers but I'm not sure.

Also, has anyone here tried doing real time bends vs pre-bends? Do you personally feel the trick is more powerful with a signed coin?

Thank you!

See my post "a subtlety on coin bending you are welcome to use" from a couple weeks ago.

 

[ID4]

You could look into using Muscle Bend by Paul Harris.

 

[Justin.Morris]

I pre bend. I fold a playing card into quarters and slip a quarter in the middle. Then I use two pairs of normal pliers to make the bend. I used to use two cards for extra padding, but you get the right feel after a bit. The card does a nice job of protecting the coins.

I still have spectators sign the coin. I use Morgan Streblers method that works really well - they end up signing the bent coin without realizing it.
But if i didn't have a sharpie, I would just miss-call the date.

 

[Ocelotl]

Vice grip, a pliers, and a couple old rags. Bend it, rotate the coin slightly, and then bend it again! It will appear to be bent more on one side than the other. You can bend a pre-bent coin, and then appear that it bent even further in your hand. I prefer nickels.

 

[The VIP Gentleman]

You could Spun by Morgan Strebler.
I have it, but I haven’t gotten around to doing it. The preparation isn’t really that hard, but I found it a bit annoying, so I haven’t really felt like continuing too much. I tried it out a bit, and the effect is great.

Basically, you visibly bend a borrowed (*cough cough* “borrowed”), signed, coin. Did I forget to mention that it’s bending mid air while spinning? Visibly.

The effect is not really “hard” but it requires practice to get it right. Basically, it doesn’t require years of practice, but you don’t watch the DVD and do it immediately.

If you order the DVD instead of the instant download, you get some supplies too. But the supplies are basic magical items that you may or may not have. If you don’t, a quick trip to your nearest magic shop shouldn’t cost too much.

 

[Antonio Diavolo]

You could Spun by Morgan Strebler.
I have it, but I haven’t gotten around to doing it. The preparation isn’t really that hard, but I found it a bit annoying, so I haven’t really felt like continuing too much. I tried it out a bit, and the effect is great.

Basically, you visibly bend a borrowed (*cough cough* “borrowed”), signed, coin. Did I forget to mention that it’s bending mid air while spinning? Visibly.

The effect is not really “hard” but it requires practice to get it right. Basically, it doesn’t require years of practice, but you don’t watch the DVD and do it immediately.

If you order the DVD instead of the instant download, you get some supplies too. But the supplies are basic magical items that you may or may not have. If you don’t, a quick trip to your nearest magic shop shouldn’t cost too much.

I sorta figured the trick out from watching the promo video. It seems cool and I like the visual but I'm not sure how I feel about combining a levitation with a coin bend. Just seems like a weird combo for me personally. I thought maybe I could use patter about induction heating like this:

But Idk. Might come back to that at some point. Thanks for the suggestion.

 

[The VIP Gentleman]

@Antonio Diavolo

He also teaches how to pre-bend coins without scratching them, and how to get them to sign the coin without them notices it’s bent
It’s relatively cheap from what I remember, so it can’t hurt to buy it. Your choice, though.

 

[Antonio Diavolo]

@Antonio Diavolo

He also teaches how to pre-bend coins without scratching them, and how to get them to sign the coin without them notices it’s bent
It’s relatively cheap from what I remember, so it can’t hurt to buy it. Your choice, though.

I'll look into it