Magic Tricks

I made the gimmick very neatly using new card boxes, exactly as in the video. Even when exerting a HUGE amount of force on the gimmick, the flap would not open.

After I tore the small tabs off of the box, the gimmick then worked perfectly... with an empty box. But once I put in a deck of cards, the flap again refused to budge even when pulling down hard enough to rip the gimmick.

This simply did not work for me, and I don't want to keep cutting up boxes in the hopes that the next one will behave better. But apparently some others have had success, and it looks good when Oliver Smith demonstrates it. Unfortunately, there is no trouble-shooting advice in the video for what to do when no amount of force will make the flap move. It's not obvious how to remedy the problem, as the force is necessarily applied at a sharp angle to the direction that would most effectively open the flap.

If you make the box and it works, GREAT! Four stars. Easy to construct, simple handling, and a snappy visual effect, all from a very inexpensive download. But I can't guarantee you won't make a balky box that will leave you only with a frustrating afternoon trying to get it to pop.