Does anyone know of a list of magic tricks patent free, that anyone can build and sell? I love working in my wood shop and thought if I could build some tricks for sale it would be an enjoyable side hobby. I tried searching the magic Café but it turned up very little. Thanks!

I think that's a great idea! One that I tossed around doing myself as a side gig but I'm doing more writing these days.

Give me a few days (it's been a hectic week) and I'll send you pics of some things that I've built.

I don't know how many are still using a bunny but I made an inner black-art bunny box with three sets of two outer shells (square circle principle but nested rectangles). One looks like a castle, one like a barn, and the other like a pet shop. This way I had three different fun routines while using the same basic prop.

I made my own magic show box, where the legs drop down and the lid swings open to make the table top. I made a few smaller props but I'm too tired to remember them now. I'll make a list.

If you don't get a PM from me by mid-week, shoot me a reminder.

It's been a very hectic week.

Check out TCC Magic. They have some great remakes. In the magic community, you have to remember it isn't just about patent free tricks. Often you can still be bullied into not selling a trick if enough magicians believe you don't have the right to sell a particular trick, routine, or secret (whether rightly or wrongly so) regardless of a patent.

Jerry, I look forward to your photos. Are these items that anyone can make and sell?

Bentpenny, I agree, this is why Im asking if there is a list out there that someone has put together as a starting point. I have looked over TCCs site, but will revisit it once more.

Thank!

Oh, sure. Anyone can make them. They're basically custom props based on classic principles.

You're not remaking what someone else has done, you're doing your own creative take on them and that's okay.

Do you have a scroll saw as well? If so, I'll include a pic of a display stand I made for a common prop I used in my kid shows. A band saw won't do the job.

It's going to be sunny tomorrow so I'll take those pics and we can go from there about materials, dimensions, etc.

Geoff,

Look for my PM to you for details.

Thanks,

Jerry

Jerry, thanks for the email and advice! I will get back to you soon.

Hi Geoff

You might want to check Mel Babcock's site as an example. Over the years he has developed quite a business producing classic magic props constructed from wood harvested on his property. (Mel Babcock's House of Magic)

Julie

Wow, Mel Babcock's work is beautiful. I'll bet he does a varnishing act.

Geoff, I look forward to hearing from you.

Julie, nice suggestion!

Jerry, check your email and thanks for your suggestions.

Google "Building magic tricks" or "Building magic illusions" and you'll see whole lot of books on the subject. All sort of things you can make.

Mario the Maker has some interesting looking books that add animatronics if you're so inclined...

Find an older magic catalog to get some ideas

Two easy staple items that come to mind are Square Circle and Tip Over Box

Build in different sizes & designs to give them a choice

Also, go to somewhere like home depot, stay for a couple of hours, and just look around
You never know what idea might pop into your head
Maybe buy some pipe and make some Chinese Sticks.

Tom

Thanks everyone for some great ideas!

Geoff, there are some really great sources for ideas and plans for the do-it-yourself builder.
Osborne Illusions systems was the Goto for many plans and books on construction.
He also ran a series of articles in MUM magazine called Shop to Stage. This series ran from early 2000's to around the mid 2000's, not sure on the exact dates.
He covered very standard apparatus items all of us have come to love (think Abbotts, Mak, etc).
There were plans in the works to have all the plans compiled into a single book but Paul passed before that project happened. You may able to find the various issues to get these. There are typically excellent with the Osborne flair.

The other great source are the books by Jack Hughes, 3 volumes covering his range of magic. They are getting hard to find but show up on the big auction site.
One of the volumes is really difficult to find but contains some very creative items.
There is also a book on Jack Hughes' magic which is a partial compillation of the three books but is not complete.
Finally check Abbott's site, they have offered plans for a long time and now are compiled into books at a reasonable price.

Keep us posted on your progress, we are always on the lookout for new takes on classic items.

61magic, I will try to locate some of your references. Thanks!

I believe the books you are speaking of are Jack Hughe's World of Magic. The three volume set is available in PDF format at Lybrary.com for $100 last I checked. I was going to buy this and do the same thing you're thinking of but then COVID hit. The books have a lot of small table top illusions you can build. You'll find these days, nobody wants to haul around the larger props. Good Luck.

Yes I would go with mostly smaller items (not large illusions)
because that gives you a much larger market to sell to.

Tom

A number of years ago a friend asked me to build a prop for him which was described in a book. He owned the book and couldn't build the prop himself, so I agreed. He was going to use it himself (not sell it), so I didn't see anything wrong with it. I re-designed the look, modified the "works" some, and added a thing or two.

Later, he suggested that I build a few to sell.

The prop was described in "The Berg Book," and Stevens Magic owned the rights to the book. So I contacted them, they were interested, and agreed to let me build a few to sell through them. I re-designed the look again and made a couple other changes, and it turned out to be a run of twelve.

Over the next few years I made runs of three other props from the same book for Stevens, each time re-designing the look and adding some of my own ideas. They all sold out.

I could have looked in some of the older books, like Hoffmann, for pieces to build, but Berg's book provided a lot of material, and I was building them for a company that owned the rights to them. So it worked out well: Stevens had a far-reaching network of clients and a great reputation and handled all the advertising and stuff.

For me, the primary thing was to make sure I wasn't making and selling other people's material unless they agreed to it.

George, really nice story. I enjoy hearing how others have approached this topic. I will look up the references you have suggested. would love to see your final product.
Geoff

As a kid, the Mark Wilson Course and the Tarbell Course both gave me a lot of ideas on building my own props.

Penguin Magic sells plans to various illusions, and they also have listed a series of titles on prop-building by Paul Osborne, which I cannot personally vouch for, but perhaps someone here can?