Even if the volunteer does exactly what you ask, some spectators may think they bumped or touched the box. This will reduce the impact of this effect.

Audience management seems to be the answer for everything these days.
Like if you tell them not to be nervous then they will instantly stop being nervous.
But some people do get nervous, some are clumsy, some imagine they see things which didn't happen.

Perhaps magicians should quit entertaining people and become psychologists so they could instantly cure everyone by applying their amazing management skills. They could simply tell someone not to feel depressed or anxious and BOOM...they're cured!

Sounds good to me!

No matter how much I play with the little round gimmick in the sweet spot I cannot get the chains to a point where the box does not stay open on a flat surface. They’re too tight, and the box closes unless I tilt it up somehow. There must be a mechanical fix of some sort?

Did you passed the magnet under the box as stated in the instructions?

Yes. I was trying not to actually reveal that there is a magnet. That’s why I was using the cute little phrase “round gimmick”, etc. Sometimes I can get it To work but most times not. It’s a very sensitive. I’m wondering if there is a mechanical way to loosen the one chain that seems stationary and too tight so the box is not quite so precariously ready to close.

Sounds like yours is a little too tight but even at it's best it is "precariously ready to close" hence the previous discussion. Although it should remain open easily on a flat surface.
I'd contact either the dealer you bought it from or Joao himself and see what can be done to get it working properly or exchanged.

I acquired a standard Haunted Box after posting a WTB ad here on the forum. I was lucky that a fellow member was willing to let his go. He had already "aged" the finish on his box, I added just a little bit more age conditioning myself.






I am getting excellent reactions from my spectators (friends). I performed it for the fourth time tonight after first playing up the whole "got my hands on a vintage wooden box that once belonged to Houdini" angle. The female friend that was handling the playing cards literally screamed (and jumped) when the box slammed shut. The reaction was priceless.

Rather than using a Rider Back 1800 "vintage" deck (which the seller provided to me as a bonus), I've ordered this "vintage" deck:








In my mind, that back and pip styling seems much more in line with playing cards from Houdini's era.

I ordered a couple of additional tags to go with the new cards.

My thanks to Ron for selling it to me. I'm going to have a lot of fun with this one.

Mark

Glad you liked my aging Mark and also having fun with it I almost did not sell this as I like it a lot but I’m trying to thin out my magic.

Ron

I love the aged look. Nicely done.

It was easy. I lightly sanded the box. Then I used some black spray paint and applied it to s cloth. Next I rubbed the painted cloth on the box and then rubbed it off with another cloth while it was still wet.

Ron

I “aged” the interior felt bottom (Ron had done the interior felt top) by using a small piece of foam and wetted it with black sharpie ink, moving immediately to smearing the still-damp ink on various spots of the box. I also applied it to areas of the chains, to the latch surfaces, and to the inner lip of the wood in a few spots.

Mark

The Haunted Box continues to get outstanding reactions from my friends. Thank you, again, Ron!!

I received the Vintage deck pictured above, along with a couple of extra RFID tags. After watching several card splitting videos, I tried my hand at splitting cards for the first time. Turns out I'm not very talented with it comes to splitting cards.

I contacted Kevin Reylek (magiciangear.com) and he quoted a decent price to create a custom gaffed card. I mailed him several of the Vintage deck cards and an RFID tag.

It's going to be very interesting to see if it works out. Kevin uses a dry-mount method that requires heating the card to about 200º F but only for a minute or so. Both of us did a little online research and, as best we can tell, the RFID tag is able to withstand that temperature.

The total cost for me (including paying a little extra for Priority Mail shipping) is going to be $33 to get one gaffed Vintage card. That's not too bad when you consider that Joao Miranda sells a single gaffed Rider Back card for $25.

Still, if the RFID gets damaged by the dry-mount process, that will be $33 out the window. Oh, the price we pay for our art!

Mark

Kevin finished constructing my Vintage deck gaffed card this weekend. I won't have it back for a few days but he sent me some photos.








His workmanship is outstanding! And what a terrific guy to do business with. EXCELLENT communication and downright uber friendly in the process. Which is very refreshing, given some slow response times of other magic retailers I've been trying to give my money to.

Of course, we don't know yet whether the RFID tag's solid state chip survived the heat of the dry-mount process. Kevin seems reasonably confident it will be okay. I should know or sure by Wednesday.

Mark

Looks great. Your cards and aged box look perfect for your routine. They just look haunted. Hope the RFID works.

The vintage card that Kevin gaffed for me arrived today. It works perfectly with the Haunted Box! I'm going to have him make me two more RFID gaffed cards, one each in blue & red Rider Back.

One little thing I didn't think about... the edges of the gaffed vintage card are whiter than the edge of a normal vintage card. Kevin used two layers of dry-mount paper when constructing the gaff. When the gaffed card is placed in the center of the vintage deck (which has dark edges), it's possible to notice a very thin white line where the gaffed card sits.

I also placed the gaffed vintage card in the center of a new standard Rider Back deck and the thin white line isn't visible.

I doubt anyone will notice. But it's something worth noting for anyone considering doing the same.

Mark

Maybe try running a slightly damp tea bag around the edges?

Thanks for the suggestion. Kevin suggested I try running a pencil lead around the edges and that did the trick.

Mark

I received two more RFID gaffed cards today from Kevin Reylek (magiciangear.com). He ordered the extra Haunted Box tags from Murphy's and had them sent directly to his house. I had him do one in red and one in blue (both standard Rider back). They came out perfect.

The Haunted Box remains my favorite magical purchase of recent. But Andy Hursts's Blue Phantom and Caramba Magic's Cubes (Cube-A-Libre) are close runners up.

Mark

I have a Haunted Box and absolutely love it. I feel it requires some close attention to audience handling. However, with the right patter, it is very reliable. I may be buying some additional RFID tags for it in future. Overall a great effect!