Coin Magic!

Nov 10, 2014
426
337
Okay, so because my birthday was a few days ago I got Bobo's Coin Magic for myself. Then I got it in the mail and realized something: I know a lot of coin tricks use half dollars and I don't have any... So before I delve into the depths of the book I have a question: What coins do I need to use Bobo's Modern Coin Magic to it's extent. I know I will need half dollars, but how many? Will I need silver dollars? I want to set aside a small box, or bag, or something of coins dedicated to magic so I would like to know what coins I need and how many of each.
 
Jun 6, 2015
119
84
Charlotte NC
I haven't looked at Bobo's yet, but half dollars are pretty standard for coin magic. I just went into the bank with a $20 bill and got 40 half dollars, which will last me pretty much forever (seeing as the only ways to lose a coins functionality is to use it or to perform a coin bend routine). It can sometimes be tricky to find a bank that carries half dollars though, so you might have to try a few before you find one that does.
 
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RealityOne

Elite Member
Nov 1, 2009
3,744
4,076
New Jersey
You can do most routines with four 1964 Silver Kennedy Half Dollars or Walking Liberty Half Dollars. You don't need to get them in "mint" condition -- just as long as they all look like they have the same amount of wear. Actually, circulated coins are "softer" and don't make as much noise when they rub against each other. Also, circulated coins are less expensive.
 
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Prof_Utonium

Elite Member
Oct 6, 2009
38
17
Hamburg, Germany
If you use Half Dollars or Silver Dollars doesn´t really depend on the trick but rather on the size of your hands.
The smaller coins are certainly easier to hide but if your hands a big they might be more difficult to hold than a bigger silver dollar. The visibility of silver dollars is much better than that of half dollars but they might be diffcult to handle if your hands are too small.
A lot of coin routines are using three or four coins and sometimes there´s a hidden extra coin. So you should be good with five coins.
You might also want to get two matching copper coins (old english Pennies are the size of half dollars.) for transpositions / color changes.
These days a lot of people prefer chinese coins to copper coins because the difference between the silver coins and the chinese coins is much clearer (thanks to the hole) while the difference between copper and silver is difficult to see if the light is dim (like in a bar).
You can get different chinese coins from a magic dealer. Unfortunately these coins are often very lightweight which makes their handling strange. Also the edges are often very soft which makes them difficult to palm. I recently bought some from Tango Magic and they are the best ones I´ve had so far. But I´m still not 100% satisfied...
 

DavidL11229

Elite Member
Jul 25, 2015
589
314
Seattle
Go to your local coin show! They will have everything mentioned above at good prices and you can see before you buy. The older coins are good for reducing noise as mentioned about, but the uncirculated halves and dollars with nice sharp edges are easiest to grip.
 
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