Bill Hegbli,

Thanks so much for your advice. I was knew you would provide useful guidance. First, it is very helpful to learn that neither the Fakini nor the JIELI balls work well with Ball in Silk. I won't search any further in that direction.

Second, I much appreciate your advice to use the soft rubber Billiard Balls that can be purchased on Ebay. I found a set there for $10.23 that is described as "Multiplying Billiard Balls 50mm (Soft Rubber) Yellow Magic" and ordered it, because it seems to be the closest to what you describe. At present, I couldn't find the red or white sets -- only yellow -- but yellow will serve my purpose, because I'm looking for a color that contrasts with a red or dark blue silk.

I will report back later on my experience with these balls. Thanks again for saving me weeks of useless experimentation and pointing me in the right direction.

Jim

Hi Jim, I hope I’m not derailing the thread. In addition to searching for a set that will allow you to do the ball thru silk and hold the silk by the ends, you got me thinking of whether there could be alternative handlings for sets that don’t cooperate? Here’s some handling I came up with. I’m using the JIELI set that I purchased after Bill Hegbli made me aware of it a few years back. The silks I purchased years ago from Duane Laflin. There is a gag in there about the fake rabbit that I got from Duane’s great routine with the silks but I adapted and changed the gag a bit. While trying to put something together I was influenced by thoughts concerning the multiplying balls that Dick Oslund expressed and has shared in his great book “Road Scholar.” I was also influenced by Fred Kaps’ performance of the Homing Card when I was thinking of this! Anyway, it’s a rough idea that needs some work but I wanted to share it in case it could be of interest to others: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=odrkhBtlNEw
John

Hi John,

Thank you for sharing your very charming routine. I particularly liked the ending, which was a complete surprise -- and funny! I also thought that your method of tugging the ball through the silk, with great effort, was very effective. And it was clever how you managed to do the Ball Through Silk with a ball that won't stick firmly into the shell. I hope Dick Oslund sees this routine because it borrows some of his good ideas and adds much that is creative.

Jim

John, another very nice, fun, and magical routine! Your creative juices are flowing for sure!! I really enjoy your work.

I've nothing to add to the main topic. I am still using the metal (and grip tight) gaffs/gimmicks (Dick which is proper?) of the old Ireland set. I am down to only six original Ireland balls left and several of those are starting to either harden or split. I just paint them and carry on. At some point they will be gone and I'll just have the gaffus things. I keep buying any set in decent shape that comes up for sale. I pretty much use the Billy McComb and Dick Oslund handlings. I agree with John (Kanawati) that Dick's book is a treasure. Good philosophy, tips, and routines therein.

Thanks, Harry, for your kind words! Jon Racherbaumer twisted my arm until I agreed to write "the" book! It's selling all over the world. (I never dreamed, when I was 16, that someday I would write q book that would be of interest to so many magicians!

I was hoping that Dick explained in his book how he used Fakini balls for his ball through silk routine, but he didn't share that. Were any of you fortunate enough to learn his secret? Would you be willing to share with me? I surely miss Dick's wisdom. Thanks.

This is a very old thread but thought I'd put this out there. I used to do the ball through silk all the time with Fakini balls. I don't know what Dick did but I found that just before "pushing" the ball through the silk, if I gave it a very slight twist, it would provide enough friction to hold the ball in place.

Thanks, Dave, I'll give that a shot.

Here is Billy McComb performing the Golf Ball Thru Silk (starting at the 5:05 mark in the video) -

https://youtu.be/gAKeUAipj9Y?t=305





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Reading back through this old topic I noticed Quentin's post from 2016. That sent me searching through my DVD collection. Sure enough, on the Greater Magic DVD Volume 26 "Our Best" , Billy McComb explains his handling of the Golf Ball Thru Silk. He says that he always uses the Ireland balls.

Sadly,the Ireland golf balls are no longer available because the particular type of foam rubber golf balls that Ireland/Magic Inc. used became unavailable. Also, over time those type of balls tend to discolor to an off-white and over a very long time they will harden and start to disintegrate. (in the rare event that you should happen to still have a set in good shape or come across a set for sale that have not fallen apart , you can slow down the aging process by storing them in a sealed container in a cool, dark storage space. I recall that Dick Oslund had mentioned in one of the threads on the Café that it is possible to paint them with white sidewall tire paint if they start to discolor, but are otherwise in good shape). Should you be able to locate one of the Ireland sh _ _ ls on a used magic website or at your local magic club swap meet the big problem is finding a proper size foam rubber golf ball that will fit. Most of the foam practice golf balls are between 1.61 - 1.65 inches in diameter, but a regulation golf ball is 1.68 inches in diameter. The smaller size 1.61 - 1.65 practice golf balls will not fit snuggly in an Ireland sh _ _ l. I still keep an eye out in sporting goods stores for practice balls that might fit. There are dozens of brands of practice golf balls available on Amazon , but I'm pretty sure most of them are made from the same molds in the same Chinese factories, only the branding/packaging is different. I keep hoping to find a brand that is the same size as a regulation golf ball (1.68" diam.). Many of the practice balls are yellow , green, orange , or other bright colors. If your sh _ _ l is white , you can just paint the balls and shell with the same shade of white paint to match. But it's the size that is the issue.

An alternative would be to try using the inexpensive Loftus Empire Magic Multiplying Golf Balls. Unfortunately those are made using the smaller yellow golf balls , so they won't match your Fakini balls if you've been using the Fakini golf balls for a multiplying ball routine and then want to transition smoothly into the golf ball thru silk phase. Of course, if the desire is to do the Dick Oslund ball routine described in his book (Perpetual Ball, and then the Ball Thru Silk) then you could probably use the Loftus Empire set. If you don't like the yellow color you could paint them white. As long as you're not showing the Loftus Empire ball side by side with a real golf ball or a Fakini golf ball, it should pass.


I think Dave Scribner's tip for the "twist" is a good tip. Thanks, Dave. I will have to try this. (honestly, I've never really played around with the ball thru silk bit. It never seemed to fit what I was doing , but reading this topic and reviewing Billy McComb's handling and also the Dick Oslund handling , it has piqued my interest in it.)



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Thank you both, David and Dave, for the extra help. I appreciate your insights and extra effort to answer my question. I have an old Ireland sh**l that Rick Fisher gave me a while back. We just moved south so I'm not sure where it is, but as I unpack, I'm hoping I'll find it again. As I recall it was yellowing so I'll need to do something about that.

Oh, and once again Dick helps even though he's gone. Thanks, Dick.

Thanks again for your help.

Bruce

On the Billy McComb video Mr. McComb recommends using Liquid Paper correction fluid (yep,they still make it!) to touch up chipped areas on the sh _ _ l , but I expect if the whole thing has gone off-white then a coat of Liquitex white should get it back to looking "like new". The challenge remains finding the foam rubber practice golf balls that will fit. I just ordered some foam practice balls from Amazon that claim to be regulation golf ball size of 1.68". We shall see ... If they fit the Ireland sh _ _l I will let you know.

Well, I'm happy to report that these balls: Callaway HX Soft-Flight Practice Golf Balls fit the metal Ireland sh _ _ ls I have. I have not yet tried it with the Ball Thru Silk move. The downside is these Callaway balls are only available in Green, Pink, and Orange and they have the Callaway logo on them. So they will need to be painted with a white latex paint (or whitewall tire paint as Dick Oslund had suggested).

But I'm encouraged that these Callaway practice balls actually do have a nice fit with the Ireland sh _ _ l , not loose like other slightly smaller practice golf balls I've tried. Adheres to the sh _ _ l snuggly for the "toss it up in the air" move. Rolls out of the sh _ _ l smoothly for the standard producing a ball move. (although not as smoothly as the old softer foam practice balls I have ... these are a firmer foam material, not as "squashy". But from what I've read the original Ireland balls from the 1930's - through - 50's were a firmer rubber. I think it's just a matter of practicing and getting used to the feel of them. Now I just have to find out if it works smoothly for the Ball thru Silk move, although I am hopeful it will.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00IVJFICM




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Just spent a few minutes trying out the Ball Thru Silk . Works fine using these Callaway HX Soft-Flight Practice Golf Balls with the Ireland feke, following Billy McComb's handling as shown on the Greater Magic Video Library Vol. 26 .

Next up , painting the green balls white.


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By the way, I want to clarify something about using the whitewall tire paint: I found a few other references in old magic magazines to this tip about reviving the Ireland golf balls with whitewall tire paint , but that the whitewall tire paint should only be used on the balls, not on the sh _ _ l. Apparently the whitewall tire paint will not dry evenly on metal. For the sh _ _ l use a paint that is recommended for metal surfaces. (and as mentioned previously, Billy McComb said he used Liquid Paper correction fluid for small touch-ups on the sh _ _ l. )


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Just a heads up for anyone who might be wanting to try getting these green (or pink, or orange) Callaway foam golf balls to use with Ireland sh _ _ ls, I've been inquiring about painting these balls white and on another magic discussion group received this advice:

"Not much will stick to foam. A company in North Hollywood called Motion Picture FX has a great foam primer that works really well. I’d paint on their primer and then try painting the ball. Then make sure the sh _ _ l gets the same so the colors and sheen match. Those bright colors will be HARD to get white to fully cover."

Liquitex Professional White Spray Paint is rated to work on styrofoam, but I am not sure about how it will react on these foam golf balls. I'm going to try the recommended foam primer from Motion Picture FX and see what results I get. Who knows, after applying the primer coat I may try the old timer's trick of using whitewall tire paint on the balls ...

https://motionpicturefx.com/products/pro......5f8c4588



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David, thanks again. I noticed you mentioned not using the tire paint on the sh*** but the whiteout instead. I'll give that a try. Thanks again for the great help.

Yes, everything I've been able to read about it (through the Ask Alexander search engine , searching through old magic magazines) says that the whitewall tire paint will not adhere to the sh***, only to the foam rubber balls. (and it might not even adhere properly to the foam Callaway practice balls , because those are likely a different formulation of foam rubber than the old Ireland balls which have been variously described as "foam rubber" or simply as "rubber" golf balls.)

On the Billy McComb video he recommends using the Liquid Paper (whiteout) to touch up chipped areas sh*** .

Here's a screen capture from the McComb video.

For anyone who has some of the old Ireland sh _ _ ls and is looking for replacement golf balls, I also found these balls on Amazon which fit the Ireland sh _ _ ls , and they are white golf balls, so no re-painting is necessary like with the green , pink, or orange Callaway practice balls.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0728H3FLW?psc......_details

18 white golf balls for $9.99.



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I'll say this about McComb's tip of using Liquid Paper for touch-up of chipped areas on the edge of the sh**ls: I tried it and I don't like the results. It may be that the formulation of Liquid Paper has changed in the 25 years (or longer?) since Billy McComb made that video, but I found that after a few days the areas touched up with the Liquid Paper I used had turned a slightly "greyed" off-white tone. I wouldn't recommend it. I'm going to sand it off and just use a good quality white paint that is recommended for metal.


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