This is a normal deck with 4 gaffed cards, a d/b, a gaffed card for making the case appear empty (please read the last paragraph), a card with an image of a Mechanics Industries coin in the card and torn out, and lastly a gaffed card that creates an optical illusion of a hollowed out deck with the queen of hearts poked into the side about halfway down.

The deck and inking is very nice, typical USPC fare which you're familiar with if you've ever handled a Bicycle deck and I imagine you have. The hollowed deck and empty case gaffs are interesting and seem they wouldn't fool anyone so when you look at them remember how you were fooled enough to purchase this. I tested the hollowed deck illusion on my usual suspect (wife) and she freaked out. I don't have an Mechanic Industries coin so that gaff is useless to me, and personally I doubt I'll ever mess with the empty case gaff as well for another reason which I'll now get to.

In the description here at Penguin Magic, it's mentioned to not damaged the box's seal because it's used in a trick. It is, the empty box illusion. But, here's the thing. I used a blade and cut my seal along the edge and moon cut out as I and most magicians normally do to keep the seal appearing pristine and not leave any sticky portion exposed, but that was wrong. It needed to be cut straight across the top, not along the moon cutout. That way the sticky portion of the seal will be exposed in the moon cutout of the box and which is needed for the gaffed card. I wish Penguin would have elaborated a little further on this aspect since I'm surprised they're not aware of how their instructions would be interpreted, maybe it's just oversight. The website where all the tutorials are located isn't anything secret, it's Mechanic Industries' normal website. Penguin should have simply referred us to there to get an understanding of how the seal needs to be cut. So, because of this lack of specific detail, my empty case illusion is ruined. For the price, it's a good buy and done quickly and tongue in cheek the hollow deck illusion is very disarming and surprising. It does require sleight of hand, and honestly not easy sleight of hand either. If your hands are thin with very long fingers, you'll have no problems. For the rest of us however we're limited to how much of this deck's capability is accessible.

This new deck from Mechanic Industries is brimming with innovation and illusion. The previous Optricks deck was in black, while the second edition is in red, and takes all the animations and innovations of the original deck to the next level. The difference with the tuck box of this new edition is obvious: it's simply undergone a respray with the black being replaced by red. For the rest, the details are the same - why fix something if it ain't broken? But as we all know, fire engines are painted red because it's a faster colour, and there is something about the impact of this visually captivating image that grabs us from the get-go, especially in red.

ANIMATED CARD BACKS:

The subtitle of the deck gives us some indication of what we're in for when we take this bad boy for a joyride: "Animated Playing Cards" and "Illusion Backs". In other words, get ready for a real head spin, courtesy of some optical illusions! Don't say you weren't warned - one look at the back of the box will already give you an indication of the kind of hypnotic impact this deck can create, since it appears as an optical illusion. The card backs feature this same signature hypnotic design, which has been inherited from the original deck, and is composed of a series of squares. The more you look at the back design, the more different shapes and styles you see popping out at you. The cumulative impact of the red and white lines in a geometric style creates a hypnotising and mesmerising look that can start making you go giddy just by staring at it!

But what is especially great about the back design is that when the deck is riffled, each card back flips from one to another, and due to slight differences from one card to the next, this creates a mesmerising and hypnotic illusion as the cards are flipped through. It appears as if the squares sink into each other and come to a point, and truly is a great piece of optical trickery. For this to work, however, the deck ideally does need to be in its original order. The flip animation doesn’t look quite as effective when the deck has been shuffled, but it still does look impressive!

FACE CARDS:

The Ace of Spades hasn't changed from the successful first edition, and is composed of black and white lines, that simultaneously does its job of communicating the Spade suit, as well as continuing the illusion effect. Besides the Ace of Spades, the cards have a relatively standard look - which is what we'd want in a deck that is also intended for card magic. The Jokers are custom (we'll get to those in a moment), and the court cards have undergone some simple customization by giving them a simple red and black colour scheme. This adds to their striking impact, despite the familiar look.

GAFF CARDS:

But you can take things to the next level once you realize that besides the optical illusion and animations of the card backs, the Mechanic Industries crew have also built in the potential for some more great magic courtesy of four special gaff cards. These extra cards allow you to perform some great and creative magic, especially with the help of the great (free!) video tutorials available from Mechanic Industries.

1. Double Backer: The first of the gaff cards is fairly standard: a versatile double-backer.

2. Grinder card: The previous version of this deck had two Jokers that featured a coin-like back design, and could be used in conjunction with the blank faced card to create the illusion that the ink was being shaken off the Joker card, or that the coin design was being pulled off. This illusion worked best when performed with a matching Grinder Coin available from Mechanic Industries. The Red Edition of this deck improves on this concept by making the artwork of the coin on the card much more realistic. It's now a double-faced card, and while one side pictures the Grinder Coin, the other pictures a very realistic tear hole. This gives possibilities for creative routines which make it look as if the coin is being ripped right out of the card!

3. Anamorphic Gaff: This is perhaps the best gaff card of them all, and certainly will add a whole new dimension to your card magic. This gaff card pictures a Queen of Hearts, which can be used in conjunction with the regular Queen of Hearts from the deck, to create a most original optical illusion, that makes it look like the card is somehow being seen through the deck! Known as an anamorphic illusion, it relies on distorting or stretching an image to create an artificial sense of perspective. It really does bend the mind, and gives the potential for performing magic of a type that has never been seen before!

4. Optibox Gaff: The final gaff card requires some set-up, but once it is ready to go, it will make your card box look empty - even though it contains an entire deck. Angles and lighting are important in order to pull this off, but it is a very creative and convincing illusion when everything comes together perfectly. While not likely to be a headlining routine in and of itself, this is something that can easily be used in conjunction with other effects, for that extra punch that really blows peoples minds.

VIDEO TUTORIALS:

Given the unique nature of these gaff cards, you'll need some help getting started with these fun cards. Fortunately Mechanic Industries is providing us with everything we need, including full online instruction via detailed video tutorials. In fact, you don't even need a secret code to access these - you can go ahead and check these videos out right now on their website for free. So you'll know exactly what you get, how it works, so that you can make an informed decision about whether this is a deck for you. With innovative gaff cards, and tutorials explaining how to get the most out of them, this deck is definitely something that an experienced card worker and magician can use to make people's heads spin, and blow their minds! - BGG reviewer EndersGame

I love collecting card, so this was going to make its way into my collection some day. Cards look nice and meet any expectation for a deck of cards. I was a bit disappointed with the video on how to use some of the gimmicks. I would have liked a bit more of a formal tutorial.

It is OK!!