Crazy Sam's Handcuffs

Video download by Sam Huang and Hanson Chien
Price: £18.25£21.90inc VAT
23 reviews
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Hyper visual madness that ushers in the next evolution of the Crazy Man's Handcuffs. This is a piece of rubber band magic that every close up magician will want to add to their repertoire.

"This trick looks like real magic." Michael Ammar

Brought to you by Hanson Chien Presents, "Crazy Sam's Handcuffs" by Sam Huang is a super visual rubber band penetration effect where two bands that are stretched between your fingers melt through each other in a way that's cleaner and more impossible than ever before.

Countless magicians have been performing "Crazy Man's Handcuffs" for decades. It's a classic of magic that has stood the test of time. It would be impossible to ever replace such an iconic effect, but "Crazy Sam's Handcuffs" is one of the most incredible new versions we've ever seen.

Since being first posted online, magicians have been begging Sam Huang to share the secret to this unbelievable effect. And, now, he finally is.

New Method, New Features

"Crazy Sam's Handcuffs" uses a revolutionary new principle that unlocks a whole new world of possibilities. Since there are no gimmicks needed, this innovative method can also be applied to other objects besides your fingers such as scissors, markers and more. Some of the most respected rubber band magic creators in the world have provided their unique thoughts on this amazing effect including Joe Rindfleisch, Dr. Cyril Thomas, Nicholas Lawrence and Hanson Chien.

  • No complicated setup
  • Perform it anywhere
  • 100% examinable

40-minute online-only instructional video is in English and Chinese with subtitles available in English, Spanish, French, German, Japanese, Korean, Traditional Chinese and Simplified Chinese.

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Customer reviews for Crazy Sam's Handcuffs

Walter
This trick is a clever illusion. Suitable viewing angles should be fairly wide, but limited generally to the front of the performer. Actually, the technique to accomplish the clever illusion is flexible enough to apply to things other than rubber bands, and Henson & Sam include several such applications, some of which are presented by the other magicians who thought of them. The "move" that produces the illusion is simple to understand; however, as anyone should expect, practice will be required to get the all-important "smoothness" that Henson correctly advises is crucial.
The price we pay for purchasing this bit of magic is almost entirely to pay the clever magicians, Sam and Henson, who developed the method and produced the video instructions. It's a 37-minute video, well-organized and easy to follow, in spite of the necessary language dubbing. Also included in the package are about 20 of Joe Rindfleisch's size 19 latex-free rubber bands in multiple colors. As a bonus, there are also a couple of "shaped" rubber bands, as a way to promote a couple of other tricks they sell. If you purchase this for children, you may choose to remove those, since one is "adult-themed."
I had hoped that the video instructions would show up in my Vanishing Inc downloads section, but unfortunately the video instructions are only available to view online (with a supplied password, of course). Therefore, I would rate this purchase between "Good" and "Excellent," but I selected "Excellent" for the review.
Craig
I just went through the instructions for the basic move about 5 times. It took me a while to actually see what was happening which indicates how great the actual illusion really is!
I have since done it several times for myself and just stare unbelievably at what I see! I would swear the bands have somehow melted together.
I can't wait to look further in the video to see the other possibilities.
Daren
I love this, the illusion is perfect this is the perfect effect to do just before the classic CMH!
Ace
Absolute knock out effect. What a revolution. This is why you keep being hooked to magic. These moments of beauty are what you live for as a magician.
The effect is not that hard to do, but if you really want to sell the effect, be patient, work on the finesse and master it first.
Excellent tutorial, clear instructions.
Massive impact, cherish it. Must have for workers.
Richard
Yes, magicians really DO stop thinking too soon! You and I have doing Crazy Man's Handcuffs since the beginning of time (or at least since that early Copperfield special). This takes it a step beyond. The basic move is simplicity itself but takes some work to maximize the impact and visibility. The "advanced handling" REALLY sells the effect and is of slightly greater difficulty. Combined with the original Crazy Man's Handcuffs, this is hard to beat for walk-around. It's as good as it looks in the video, but pay attention to the subtleties in the instructions! It took me longer than it should have to make this look good!
Vernon
This is a different handling send a traditional rubber bands that I’ve learned years ago. The handling to me seems a little odd and could be problematic with some specific angles and an observant audience.
Sterling
I could not understand the basic method. I watched the video at least 10 times and could not do the move. The effect should have the move at different angles to see how it was done. I am disappointed and feel I wasted my $24.
Martin S
I've deliberately waited a few weeks before reviewing this, so that I could test it at a gig. As others have said, it's an illusion and like many illusions if you're not watching in the proper frame of mind, looking in the right direction, and thinking in the right way, the illusion can be weak. But... getting an audience into the proper frame of mind, looking in the right direction etc. etc. is what magic is all about, and is what we're supposed to be good at.

Anyway, after a couple of weeks of practice to get it smooth and deceptive, I wasn't fooling myself because I knew what was going on. Would it fool the public? Absolutely. People were amazed by it, and lots of the "Do that again" which we magicians love. And, of course, when I do "do it again" I use the standard Crazy Man to put them off with a different method.

Sure, I haven't got the angles and smoothness as good as the videos (yet) – they still fool me, even though I know what's going on. And I can't (yet) get it to performance standard with anything except rubber bands. But we're getting there.

Summary: £20 well spent for a good, practical (and surprisingly versatile) sleight which is now a permanent part of my walk-around repertoire.
Magicman
I saw this online and thought it looked great, but was wondering if it would work in the real world. I decided to get it and after watching the video (it’s a shame you can’t download it) I started practicing it. The move itself isn’t that hard to learn, but will take practice to make it look like it does in the video. I wouldn’t say it replaces crazy man’s handcuffs, but it’s a great effect to do with it. I would recommend also practicing it in a mirror so you can see what they see. The video instructions are good quality, and some explanations are better than others. As a working professional I’m still in two minds exactly when I would use it at an event as I do a few effects with rubber bands and at the moment it doesn’t fit in my rubber band set as it breaks the flow of them. I could see myself performing this out and about in coffee shops, bars ect where people might want to see crazy man’s handcuffs again, but it hasn’t yet been added to my working set. Overall it’s worth adding this to your bank of rubber band magic.
Adam
Love it, so easy to do and such classic of magic??
Jeff
This is one of the tricks I’ve wanted and waited to receive.
Simply put, it turned me on to rubberband magic and is fantastic.
Only need to find a bag of strong, regular bands to make it work even better visually.
John
I was so anxious to get this amazing piece of magic and after watching the tutorial I thought the moves were not that difficult .
However , it would have made life easier if the presenter took more time explaining the basic move and also showing the moves as if one was looking over his shoulder .
I can’t wait to perform this piece of magic .
Chip
Wow - what a great step forward with a classic effect. I'm still working out the basic handling, but I can already tell this is incredibly strong visual magic.

The one thing I wanted to add is that if you're following the 'basic handling' - they very clearly explain the move. However, they do not call attention to the position of both pinky fingers. I had to *really* look closely at the video to understand that element of the move. Once I understood what those fingers were doing, the effect is much, much stronger. If you're getting frustrated - check your pinkies!

One additional pointer - try different rubber band sizes. I have fairly large hands, and had been doing this with #19 Rindfleisch rubber bands. Recently I got a pack of #16's ... and wow - what a difference. I was able to 'nail' the move much more easily with the 16's.
Jared
Crazy Sam's Handcuffs is a great addition to your Rubber band routines. I like to use Split, Crazy Sam's Handcuffs, and end with Crazy Man's handcuffs in the spectators hands. Works like a charm! Being able to make the bands cross each other both ways really melts brains.
Adam
Great effect, easy to do and great for all situations??
Barry
This is visual, startling magic that you will use if you do close-up work.
David
This will take work, but it’s well worth it. A great visual improvement that allows me to vary the original routine.
Skye
It's, frankly, amazing that no one has come up with this before. One of the few genuine steps forward for the 'Crazy Man's Handcuffs' effect, with a method that's almost too simple given the intense visual impact of the effect.

Rubber band workers NEED this.
Michael
Crazy Sam's Handcuffs is a great variation to the classic Crazy Man's Handcuffs trick.
While the effect is very visual (as the original) and fooled me badly, even though (or maybe because) I knew Crazy Man's Handcuffs, I wasn't able to get this down in a performable way. Or at least in a way that the basic movement is not exposed by doing it. I'm not that experienced with rubber band magic, so it may be a specific problem with my skill set, but I would say, this trick definitely requires some advanced level.

There are two videos, a recorded live lecture in the download section and the "real" instructions in the "product instructions" section. The additional lecture is a nice bonus and gives additional insights and tipps, but it can be very confusing, if you haven't watched the instructional video linked at the product instructions section.
The teaching of the basic effect itself could be more precise and detailed at some points. After watching the tutorial a few times, I noticed some subtleties, that weren't explained in detail verbally in a way that I could catch it the first time watching the tutorial, but seemed to be quite important in order to perform the effect in a fooling way.
Jim
I found the instructions confusing. It is being taught from a spectator's POV instead of over-the-shoulder. Also, the video is low resolution and too far a distance for me to actually see and understand what is happening. For the price, there really should be an OTS, close up of the process. I would not recommend this based on the limited teaching.
Luciano
Excellent! It is a genius idea from Hanson Chien that adds perfectly to a rubber band routine. The explanations are clear and the additional applications of the method are also very interesting. It will take a while to master it but it is not extremely difficult, it will just take practice to make it look smooth and to control the angles. It comes with a few rubber bands, which I don't think it was necessary, I would rather have just a download for a lower price.
Ricky
It was great , I'm really excited to start performing this.
Michael
Excellent thinking and wonderful attention to the details which make the most of the illusion of penetration.

Community questions about Crazy Sam's Handcuffs

Have a question about this product? It's possible others do too. Ask here and other Vanishing Inc. Magic customers will be able to respond with assistance! Alternatively, email us and we can help too.

  • Eric asks: The video ad for this product as well as the screenshots on the page advertise that there are additional video clips with ideas from Hanson Chien, Joe Rindfleisch, Nicholas Lawrence, etc. However, I ordered this and the video in my Downloads doesn't have any of this. Is there another video that is missing?

    • 1. Vanishing Inc. Magic responds:Please email us at Wizards@vanishingincmagic.com and we can look into this for you

  • minjun asks: Can I do this trick another props? (I mean can I do this pen or any stick)

    • 1. Vanishing Inc. Magic responds:It's a rubber band trick. You need to use rubber bands.

  • Ken asks: I purchased Crazy Sam's Handcuffs, but unfortunately had to miss the free lecture. Any chance it was saved somewhere that I can access?

    • 1. Jim responds:Did you check your account's library?
    • 2. Ken responds:Thanks ??
    Post an answer to this question

  • Forest asks: I'm thinking about getting Crazy Sam's Handcuffs, and I really want to see the free zoom lecture on December 10th. Can I buy Crazy Sam's Handcuffs on Boxing Day and still get the free zoom lecture, or do I have to be present for the zoom lecture?

    • 1. Jim responds:If a recording is made available, we will add it to the library. If not, then being there live is the only option. Time will tell.
    Post an answer to this question

  • Chris asks: I previously purchased Crazy Sam's Handcuffs from another (not VI) large online dealer. Does that mean I'm not entitled to the free lecture and extra handlings?

    • 1. Jim responds:This is a question for the other dealer.
    Post an answer to this question

  • Gary asks: If I Purchase this will i get the Instructions instantly in my Account, Regards

    • 1. Jim responds:You will get access to a link and password for the online instructions.
    Post an answer to this question

  • Stephen asks: Can you do this wearing white, cotton gloves? (I'm a "Magical Santa Claus," and white gloves are part of the costume.)

    • 1. Scot responds:I have a problem during normal Crazy Man's Handcuffs with the rubber bands slipping down from the tips of my fingers, (for maximum impact, it seems like they want to really be around the nail bed). With the traditional effect, this really doesn't have a huge amount of impact, but I find I'm struggling with this one because of that same issue. Not sure if cotton gloves would help this, or exacerbate it. This being said, I just received it Saturday and I'm continuing to work on it, so jury is still out.
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  • Roel asks: How many bands are included and which bands are the right ones when I want to order some more bands?

    • 1. Scot responds:Mine came with what appears to be about 20. In addition, there were two bonus bands for different routines. One thing I WILL say is that one of the bonus bands is adult in nature. I didn't care, personally, but some might be taken aback by it. If you go through those 20, you can get Joe Rindfleisch's Rubber Bands on Amazon, pretty readily, which are the ones they primarily recommend.
    Post an answer to this question

  • Hector asks: I already have a lifetime supply of rindfleisch rubber bands. If the effect doesn't require special bands, would it be possible to purchase the video? I wouldn't mind paying full price for it even without getting the rubber bands

    • 1. Jim responds:Customer service can help. Contact them at magic@VanishingIncMagic.com
    Post an answer to this question

  • Peter asks: So the instructions are in my profile but it’s saying it’s not the instructions, can you provide me the correct link that I paid for please?

    • 1. Jim responds:The link has been updated. Check your account again. Refresh the webpage, if needed.
    Post an answer to this question

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