Just purchased a Delben Wrist Chopper. Two things... #1... I need a copy of the original instructions. Can anyone help me, PLEASE! #2... Can anyone give me some history on these? (When were they made? How many were made... since there is a number stamped into it? What is the value? Etc.) Thanks a million.

Danny @ Danny's Trick Shop (or a very similar company name) in Houston, Texas acquired the rights to Ben's stuff. Danny made excellent Delben Wrist Choppers.
I do know that several years ago his business sufferred a fire and that he rebuilt. I haven't had any contact with him for probably ten years. Maybe a check in the Houston phone book would direct you to him...

I remember talking to Danny. Wasn't it called Tricks and Kicks in Spring Texas? It has been quite a long time. I know George at Viking knows him. Maybe he can put you in touch with him.

Yep, that's the name of the shop.

That's not quite correct. It's Danny's Tricks and Kicks in Humble, Texas. He moved from Spring. The business did not suffer a fire. The dance studio next door, which his family also owned, suffered a fire.

Danny's wrist choppers, sadly to say, were never quite up to the quality of the original Ben Stone wrist choppers. I used mine extensively in my show. I owned two of them. I wore the first one out. I had to re glue several parts of it, because he had finished some of the pieces before he glued them together. He denied that he finished them this way, but the pieces that fell off tell me differently.

The second one finally became useless about two weeks ago. As far as I know, they are no longer made. I picked a practically new one up at an auction in Austin, TX, for about 1/4 the original price.

Danny spends more of his time selling costumes than building magic. Magic Makers has knocked off his money maker, and he hasn't pursued any kind of litigation on it.

Bill

Thanks for the first person clarification!

I should add this. Ben Stone started manufacturing the double wrist chopper about 1975 or 1976. The first ones had plain stainless steel blades, but then he decided to add the engine turning to the blades for a number of reasons. I think the primary reason was to cut down on the glare when the lights hit it. I don't recall ever getting a set of instructions with either one of my wrist choppers.

I don't know how many of them were manufactured. I would imagine the number would be somewhere in the high hundreds.

Danny Gurganus bought Mid-America Magic from Ben Stone, Joe Stevens and Ed Tamborello sometime during the 1980's. I want to say about 1986 or so. I had written a few sets of instructions for Mid-America Magic, notably the instructions for the giant safety pin through the balloon, the Delben Domino, their Professional Three Ring set of linking rings and the Floating Steel Ball Bearing.

They also made the first run of Daryl's Ultimate Ambition. I know, because I built them! But they owned the rights to all the Delben products. It's too bad that they are no longer being manufactured.

Bill

You'll remember Danny's is where our good friend Vince McGrath used to hang-out.

I believe Terry Seabrooke does this trick on one of his videos.Performance only

Ben made mine for me as a custom order, with a custom case. But, amazingly, he never gave me any instructions.

Speaking of Ben, he alos made me a one-off prototype set of linking coat hangers....he decided not to market these due to fear of legal infringement. I sold them to Bob Spray, he sold them to Joe Stevens...so somebody, somewhere has the only set made by Ben (no hallmark either).

Very interesting story & history on the Delben Chopper - in "Joe Karson: Beyond Zombie" book

Thanks for the info Moxahalla. I had been looking at the book and now I think I'll buy it. Stevens Magic has it on sale.

I just want to add that Ben actually made the chopper and sold it BEFORE 1975 because I worked for Ben in his home working on Al Baker dye tubes for Rice and helping him with other things while I was in college. I lived two blocks down from him on Kickapoo street in Springfield, MO.

Ben helped set up my first newspaper interview when I was in grad. school in May of 1976. Ben was one of my early mentors along with Ron Miller, also of Springfield.

Warmly,

Millard Grubb

Hmmmmm....maybe I'm the guy who bought these from Joe Stevens years ago during a Desert Magic Seminar in Las Vegas.

Is it possible that I'm the only person who owns a set of Delben lin king coathangers? if so, that would be pretty amazing!!! Five coathangers in the set and it came complete with a BEAUTIFUL routine.

My understanding is that Ben got a "cease and desist" letter from Mike Caveny (or his lawyer) when he started making these, so he stopped.

I have no idea how many sets of Delben linking coathangers were sold...I would be curious to know.......

Most civilians who have seen linking rings performed cannot fathom linking coathangers......because they are so DIFFERENT.

And, obviously, there are some moves you can perform with these that you simply cannot perform with round rings.

I wonder how much these are worth today? I LOVE my set of Delben linking coathangers.

So does the audience, by the way........