Split Spades Lions vs. Smoke and Mirrors V4

May 23, 2010
157
0
Singapore
Hey guys , no , this thread is not a 1 on 1 battle thread for a deck but rather a thread seeking opinions and other people's comparisons of this deck.


Box : Both look equally nice at first but the S&M box would sometimes have Metallic Ink smudged onto the box.The Split Spades box is very nice , packed with a few illusions.

Winner : Split Spades

Feel : Both feel equally nice right out of the box but I noticed that the Split Spades feel much better after a period of time.

Winner : Split Spades.


Long Lasting : The Split Spades definitely last much longer than V4s from what I have observed.The recycled paper doesen't do much justice in this area.

Winner : Split Spades.

Back Design : The Split Spade's design is just phenomenal.Simple yet complicated... I don't know to describe it.The V4 design is very simple and damn the Ds....

Winner : Split Spades

Popularity : I noticed that the Split Spades deck is just not as popular as the V4 and it is probably due to lack of hype for the Split Spades.V4s sold out in an hour.... actions do speak lounder than words.

Winner : Smoke and Mirrors V4

Face design : The court cards featuring faces that ressemble other magicians are definitely better than simplified green court cards in my opinion.The AoS for both decks are just as elegant.

Winner : Tie



What are your thoughts guys and gals ? Which do you prefer and why ? Personally I prefer Split Spades and I tend to agree with my friends that the Ds are terrible but then if D&D can redesign the Ds , why not ?
 
Apr 20, 2010
286
1
Split spades don't sell out because they are not made in small limited quantities. If it's limited at all, it's a huge quantity.

I like split spades a lot but I cannot say it's better because I do not have V4s.
 
Personally I prefer Split Spades and I tend to agree with my friends that the Ds are terrible but then if D&D can redesign the Ds , why not ?

Just to clarify, the reason D&D will not redesign the deck is because the deck is their deck. They made it for themselves. They said this when they came out with the S&M. They wanted a deck that they liked and that they could always get ahold of. The reason they sell them is because everything is cheaper in bulk. Buy 10,000 decks and I am sure the price of each deck is a lot cheaper than 1,000. WHat do they do with the excess. Sell them and turn a profit. Now I am sure the main goal of the V4's was to make a new design to turn profit and a little less for them, but it is still their deck and that is why they will still have D's.

As a side note, even the Split Spades deck had Blaine's logo on the back and his name is on the ace, along with his face on the king of spades.

Now as for the topic of this thread, I do prefer split spades to V4's solely based on feel alone. No deck in the world feels better than a Split Spades in my opinion.
 

RickEverhart

forum moderator / t11
Elite Member
Sep 14, 2008
3,637
471
46
Louisville, OH
I have performed with both and do not like the Smoke and Mirror v4's at all. The stock didn't hold up at all and the Split Spades get compliments all of the time from audiences. Not once did I hear someone tell me..."Wow..those are some great green cards." But...for the most part I think it has been said that they designed the decks for themselves and if they are happy with them then their goal was accomplished. That being said...the v5's will probably sell out just as quickly because they run them in small batches.
 
May 9, 2008
603
0
I would have to say that Split Spades Lions are better cards all around. The V4s just don't feel the same as the other versions. I don't mind the D's at all. To me, they look like the old fashioned mirrors magicians used to use.
 
May 10, 2010
138
0
Split spades don't sell out because they are not made in small limited quantities. If it's limited at all, it's a huge quantity.

I am pretty sure the Lions are definitely made in limited quantities. Some even say there might be even fewer SS than v4s. That and the fact that the current editions won't be reprinted (David Blaine and crew are already working on the 2nd edition). But, I may be wrong so please correct me if I am.

I believe the v4s sold out quickly because of the hype that the Buck twins bring to cardists and magicians. I don't think that's a very bad thing, but many people ride the hype train as the brothers hint an arrival of a new version of S&Ms. This causes the cards to get sold out really quickly when they just arrive in the market.

Nonetheless, I have nothing against the v4s. In fact, I enjoy using them, just not as much as the SS Lions. Firstly, I prefer the finish that was put into the SS, the lionoid finish that resembles that on Tally-Hos. As a hardcore user of the Tallys, I really enjoy the Linoid finish and that's why handling the Lions become seemingly easy and excellent. To top it off, the Lions don't even require much breaking in after you take them out of the box, and paired along with the fact that they are extremely long lasting, I've found myself the perfect deck.

In terms of looks, I think metallic green looks pretty cool. But green gets boring after a while. Unlike the earlier S&Ms the back design isn't all that sophisticated anymore. On the other hand, the SS comes in three colours and the back design is pretty sick. With optical illusions and a reveal on the face cards, I'd say the Lions win in looks hands down. Well, Lions have four legs so legs down! :D
 

S.G

Feb 9, 2010
664
1
I am pretty sure the Lions are definitely made in limited quantities. Some even say there might be even fewer SS than v4s. That and the fact that the current editions won't be reprinted (David Blaine and crew are already working on the 2nd edition). But, I may be wrong so please correct me if I am.

I believe the v4s sold out quickly because of the hype that the Buck twins bring to cardists and magicians. I don't think that's a very bad thing, but many people ride the hype train as the brothers hint an arrival of a new version of S&Ms. This causes the cards to get sold out really quickly when they just arrive in the market.

Nonetheless, I have nothing against the v4s. In fact, I enjoy using them, just not as much as the SS Lions. Firstly, I prefer the finish that was put into the SS, the lionoid finish that resembles that on Tally-Hos. As a hardcore user of the Tallys, I really enjoy the Linoid finish and that's why handling the Lions become seemingly easy and excellent. To top it off, the Lions don't even require much breaking in after you take them out of the box, and paired along with the fact that they are extremely long lasting, I've found myself the perfect deck.

In terms of looks, I think metallic green looks pretty cool. But green gets boring after a while. Unlike the earlier S&Ms the back design isn't all that sophisticated anymore. On the other hand, the SS comes in three colours and the back design is pretty sick. With optical illusions and a reveal on the face cards, I'd say the Lions win in looks hands down. Well, Lions have four legs so legs down! :D

I am sure that you are wrong about there being more v4's than SS. SS have been selling everywhere for the past year or so (possibly more) and just recently run out. And you can't say that people weren't buying SS. One of my friends recently bought about 60 SS. So...yeah.
 
Jun 10, 2010
1,360
1
I don't own any S&M's, but I own one deck of SS and I love them. It might just be me, but I barely had to work them in, they were amazing out of the box and stayed that way.
 
May 10, 2010
138
0
@ SG: Well I'm really not sure whether the rumours of there being lesser SS than v4s are true or not, it could be just assumptions. But neither of us really know specifically how many of each deck was produced in the first place. Could JB or any of the T11 crew clarify this?

@ saborfang: It's definitely not just you, my SS didn't need to be broken in much either, they just felt in perfect condition out of the box for flourishing, not as slippery as many other decks. And they're seriously durable cards.
 
Searching...
{[{ searchResultsCount }]} Results