Almost a century ago as a young boy starting out in magic I had this effect. It was well made then and it is well made now.

Back in those days most men carried boxes of matches with them. Then came the ubiquitous and cheap lighters which did away with matchboxes, and then came the second hand smoke people who did away with cigarettes and cigars in public space.

So, the most difficult part of this effect is explaining why you have a box of matches. Once you get past that, it is terrific. I personally use a story about the classic illusions - levitation and boxes on stage and sawing in half or piercing an assistant with a sword. I mention that I have encountered a miniture version of all of those things.

'Imagine - this as a magician's box, with a beautiful assistant therein - and picture this match as a sword.'

With great seriousness I pierce the box with the match and say, "I can almost hear the assistant screaming. Maybe I should have levitated her.'

"But you probably can guess how this was done - a simple box with a hole in it and a trusty match. Here try it.'

Once the spectator has tried and found resistance, I ask him or her to open the box and check out the assistant. "Rather heavier and more solid than your ordinary assistant. No wonder I didn't levitate her.'

Easy to do, spectacular effect that seems to happen in the spectator's hands. Easy to do as the magic is done where there is no heat on the objects - and then they are in the spectator's hand.

This was a no-brainer 5 star rating.

Whenever I see a gaff advertised as "virtually undectable" I cringe, having experienced too many that were far from it (Captain & Coke anybody?)But I was thrilled to see the quality machining that went into this piece.

While I'd probably classify this as more of a puzzle than a magic trick in the traditional sense, it is indeed worth every penny.

I like that it's compact for walk-around. I like that you can switch out the match box for a local one. I love the sound the box makes when you drop it on the table or plate. This is just a quality effect.

Finally, I wanted to address one part of the demo where he covers the box with his hand before dropping it for the reveal. This is entirely unnecessary and attracts needless suspicion that you palmed the metal, which isn't even close to true.

An all-around "outside of the box" effect. Good work!

Ok. Perhaps it's my banter, but the Matchbox Mystery seems to overreach a bit. I've performed it and had a pretty unimpressed reaction. The gimmick is well made and pretty clever, but I've had problems getting anyone to really care about it. They assume its a gimmick and, given enough time, they'll figure it out. I guess I'd hoped for more. I'll use it, but I won't bank on it getting much of a reaction. Plus, a block of brass is a pretty unusual and suspicious object. I wish it was some other, recognizable, every day object that was revealed at the end of the mystery.

When I ordered and received this effect, I was a little disappointed when I opened it. I immediately knew the secret and thought to myself "If I noticed it that quickly, the spectators will". HOWEVER.....
After examining the "how to.." video I discovered that this was merely because the setup was not completed correctly. After about 5 - 10 minutes of practice, I had the routine down, and was performing for my usual test subjects. They loved it!
For the time required to learn this effect you really CANNOT go wrong and I will be adding this to my "always on my person" list as it can be very impromptu. Perform, disappear for 2 minutes to reset, and you're ready to go again!

Pros:
- Easy to learn (literally mastered in minutes)
- Can be done with vast majority of matchboxes, not just the one that comes in the package. The instructional video even gives you the "How to" for preparing your own matchboxes!
- High Quality gimmick
- Very powerful impact, for very little effort on the magician's part!

Cons:
- None. Really - I thought about this for 20 minutes.

Bottom line: I really cannot recommend this effect enough!

This trick can be great for any occasion. At a bar, out chilling with friends, family gatherings or you can even incorporate this into your walk around gigs. Takes up little pocket space and definitely a nice change from cards & coins. Other recommended tricks other then cards & coins I recommend are listed below:

Ring Leader by Gregory Wilson
Haunted Doll by Rogue
Ignition by Chris Smith
5&1 Transpo by Jay Noblezada
Drawn again by Danny Archer

I like this a lot, it's a little more portable than there versions, takes up small pocket space and is a lot of fun to play with. I gave it a knock because it's a little "sticky" on the reset. It should have a little but I feel like the one I had years ago was a little easier to get back to the "starting point."

Don't buy this if you want to perform this 100 times back to back. Resets a little weird in a room full of people. However, after the show and you are hanging out, this is a wonderful trick to talk about mystery.

If you like this version, check out Jamie D Grant's wonderful one. It's a little more expensive BUT it's a HUGE chunk and the size adds a lot to the impact.

Enjoy :-)

I bought two of these just to make sure I wasn't being too judgmental or that I had received a flawed version first time.
You can see a gaffe.

If you want something to carry with you as an all-occasion close-up effect, this is worth getting. An excellent trick - especially for those occasions when your mind is burned out and you need a bulletproof prop to help carry your burden.

I must say - this is not 100% "Examinable". If in daylight or a well lit room - then don't hand it out. If in low light such as a Bar you should be OK. I do like the drop onto a Plate "clunk" ending. You can still amaze people without handing out the Brass Block - which would be my recommendation.

either I received a duff or I'm missing something to easily seen and to say it fools anyone well sorry mines clearly visable and you can feel it and wiggles if u wiggle it have used it like 6 times and been found out 3 of them six the 3 who didn't had really good reactions but they didn't check the brass !!!