The Big Blind

Bear with me while I present and explain the 'below standard' rating that I submit to you.

Before I get there, though, Craig Petty is masterful and genius at the craft we all know and love. His YouTube channel is full of treasures for entertainment and education. I've watched tutorials from Craig as well as own his 'Cheater Chips' set and I was excited to order this as soon as I heard of it.

For those who know, the more you work in the illusion arena the less surprised you are by the 'way' these things 'work' so to speak. And so I noticed and suspected the working of this trick by watching the videos of the performances. No problem, as with all of Craig's products there's plenty of value in the education and explanation of multiple 'routines' available for any given product of his.

My low rating, as many may be surprised, is all related to the product, and has nothing to do with the invention, performance or routine. I honestly was disappointed when I opened the box. The chips are so lightweight and 'cheap' feeling compared to his other 'chip' set. That was a major disappointment for me. However, that was not my biggest disappointment. I was really dumbfounded as soon as I turned the chips over in my hands. It has been discussed whether the 'chips' can be examined by the audience or not, but these chips don't even allow for the discussion to make it to that point. As soon as I turned the product over I didn't need to handle/examine them, it was visible. And that is a major issue with this product.

For those who will purchase the item you'll find in the 'explanation' portion of the set a lengthy discussion of the 'why' this design was chosen over a previous design. It's a valid point and I agree, you don't want to 'fuddle' during the critical moments of the illusion. However, for the price of the item I was expecting a much better unit. After all, every magician I know wants to look good, and it's hard to do so when wearing clothes that don't fit.

I'll continue to support, follow and learn from the brilliance of Craig Petty. However, this one leaves a bad taste in my mouth because in its current state, it's well below standard. I'm pretty sure I have a drawer for it somewhere.

I saw the marketing trailer and thought this was a great trick. Once again, I was fooled by marketing. Great job on the marketing trailer. Without exposing how this works, when I did this trick for a group, several quickly figured out how simply by looking at the chip. The people who say no one wants to see the chips... wrong. Everyone wants to see them. I didn't let anyone handle them, but it was so painfully obvious, they didn't need to handle them. This trick goes right into the bin of never to use again tricks.

I just received this, road tested it a bit, and I am LOVING IT. There is some chatter about the quality of the gimmick and I have to say the one I received feels very good and it will last a long time. Examinability is minimal due to how the gimmick works but its been in their hands the whole time so I think its pretty clean. Craig goes through a lot during the tutorial but my preferred handling is the one with the purse as everything is well motivated. I think the fact that this is plastic shouldn't deter people from buying it given how powerful this routine is.

This is another hit by Craig Petty (who seems to be on a roll lately) and is destined to become a classic EDC!

The method is pretty straightforward and easy to do and will require a minimum of practice to get it done.

It is what I thought it would be but I was blow away with how "efficient" the method and props to make it work are.

The video tutorial is just about 2hrs long and as to be expected from Craig it covers everything you need to know, very direct and clearly, and then some.

If I had to ding this a bit is, just so slightly, on the quality of the chips. Don't get me wrong, they are very well made and they will last a lifetime. I just, personally, would have liked a chip that's a bit thinner and a bit heavier.

Other than that, this is a great effect, easy to perform and no one will see it coming!

I originally gave this a mostly negative review. I spoke too soon, sadly. I've fallen pretty hard for Big Blind. One of my concerns was with the examinability of the chips after the reveal. That was taken care of with a newly added video detailing how to ease those worries. Did it on my chips and BOOM! they are examinable now. The routine is great and the chips are a great EDC. I'm excited to include Big Blind with Petty's Cheater Chips. Love his work with poker chips. Get this now! Only reason it's not a 5 star review is still due to the $50 price point. It just doesn't make sense why this costs 50 bucks, in my opinion. But if you can get past paying $50 for three poker chips and a special something that makes this effect possible... GET IT!

Absolutely love it. Probably my favorite Craig Petty effect.