Bandit by Trick Trick Boom

Bandit is a device that allows you to steal a folded card (or folded bill) from a plastic baggie that has been placed in a card box.

When I first watched the trailer for this, I was admittedly underwhelmed. I thought the steal seemed pretty obvious, but the more I thought about it, the more I started to question whether it was just obvious to me because I’m a magician, or if it would be obvious for spectators as well. Having watched the full tutorial, I think there are some really clever things going on, and with the proper use, I think it will fool most people.

The tutorial begins with a few performances, an introduction, a look at what’s in the box, and then a quick overview of the method. I always appreciate when a tutorial just “gets to the point” and teaches the basics so that the buyer can immediately know the workings. The idea is exactly what I suspected, but I was pleasantly surprised to see that there was nothing sticky used; instead, it uses a much more reliable method of keeping the gimmick in place.

After the overview, you get a detailed look at how to personalize your gimmick. Unfortunately, this doesn’t come “ready to use” right out of the box. You’ll have to do a little something to get the gimmick performance ready. There’s really no way around this because you have to be able to fit the gimmick to your hand, and if they just sent a gimmick “ready to go,” it would only work for a small number of people. I sized my gimmick, but once complete, discovered it didn’t quite work as well as I hoped, so I had to re-size it. They provide just enough material for about 2 chances and thankfully, my second attempt was better than the first and it works perfectly. If you need more material, they tell you the exact product they use so that you can get more.

They then teach multiple ways to hold out the gimmick before you’re ready to use it. The hold out ideas are very simple but very effective. The moment of obtaining the gimmick is completely invisible and happens in natural actions that you have to do anyway. 

We then get a breakdown of the card steal itself followed by a studio performance and a magician’s POV of a live performance. Noel then shares some tips for how to ensure everything works smoothly every time. 

Roddy then takes over and teaches his handling with only one rubber band and his brilliant idea of how to load the card into your phone case. This is so smart and so easy. If you don’t have any of the “devices” to load the folded card into, you can set up your phone case at a moment’s notice and use that as the load without altering the phone case at all. Not all phone cases will work, but most will. I think his one band handling is also a little superior to the two band approach. This is also the first sort of “full performance” idea that we get. Up to this point, it’s only been about the steal–the idea being that after you’ve stolen the card, you can do whatever you’d like with it. And I have to say, the method of removing the card from the ziplock bag is genius and totally flew over my head. It allows you to remove the folded card from the bag very quickly and efficiently with no fumbling about.

Next we get an alternative handling that doesn’t use the baggie but uses a paperclip instead. I know why they included this, but I think this hints at the method a little too much. It also adds in an additional obstacle that means there is slightly more work. I prefer to use the baggie.

Finally, they teach a couple of full routines. The first is a pickpocket themed routine, and the second is a clever card transposition where their signed card in the baggie changes places with your signed card. They also teach an idea of using a normal baggie and a sticker in case you want the spectator to be able to put the card or money in by themselves, a TNR idea, some additional tips, and a bonus trick of using the gimmick to balance a sharpie on your fingers.

Overall, I was surprised at how much I liked this. One of the big things that was holding me back from purchasing this was the attachment method of the gimmick. I was afraid it would be impractical and rely on sticky substances which I never enjoy working with. I was very happy to see it uses a cleaner, more reliable method that makes this entire thing super practical. It takes up hardly any additional pocket space (really just the size of the little baggie) and it’s a unique way to handle the first half of a folded card to impossible location effect. From my limited time with the gimmick, I can say it takes some practice to get the feel for it, but once you do, it’s super reliable and works every time.

I'm also dropping a quick performance on The Magic Review's Instagram which will show my very small addition that makes it even more natural. The idea is simple: wear the rubber band on the wrist that holds the box. Check it out on Instagram and you'll see what I mean!

Available for £40 GBP here:

https://tricktrickboom.com/products/bandit-by-noel-qualter-and-roddy-mcghie