Does the quality of cards matter?

[Alucard31]

I am absolute beginner and I am using cards that were literally less than $0.50 and feels very low quality.

Am I putting myself at a disservice to practice sleights with them?

 

[trikuxabi]

You don’t need fancy $20 decks to get started, go for standard Bicycle cards. They will be a hundred times better than yours and they are very affordable. Enjoy your journey!

 

[WitchDocIsIn]

The only thing I could see being an issue is if you're using a deck that has a flat, almost laminated style finish. That might make certain things difficult.

Keep in mind, a lot of card magic was invented when cards were just essentially thick paper.

Also keep in mind that there's very little practical difference between a deck of Bicycle Rider Backs from Target and any of the more expensive custom decks. Unless there have been some dramatic changes in the last four years since I left the magic industry, most of these decks are printed on the same machines and the differences are largely psychosomatic.

Though credit where credit is due, I have been seeing some really impressive tuck case designs lately.

 

[GWMA]

Yes if you do slight of hand you need a standard size deck of cards with good finish. I recommend Richard Turner gold seal. You don't want it to old that it clumps. You want it nice and smooth but broken in

 

[Haileonh]

+1 on Bicycle (coated) cards. Off-brand cards to me feel like pieces of cardboard. They don't shuffle all that well and they tend to get creases in the center of they're riffle-shuffled a lot.