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Bicycle Svengali Deck

Deck of cards by US Playing Card Company
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4.8 | 32 reviews

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Bicycle Svengali Deck

5.95 usd

Deck of cards by US Playing Card Company (From $5.95)

In stock.

The Svengali Deck is one of the most versatile tools a magician can own. This special deck of cards allows you to perform a variety of seemingly difficult card tricks without any complicated sleight of hand. It’s a must-have trick deck of cards for any beginner magician and is used by professional magicians around the world.

How Does a Svengali Deck Work?

With a Svengali Deck, the cards alternate between normal playing cards and cards that have been trimmed down slightly. These shortened cards (often referred to as a “force card”) are all the same value and suit, and are cut in a way that allows you to shuffle the deck (unlike a stripper deck).

When you spread the deck between your hands face down, it looks like a regular deck. You can even dribble or riffle shuffle the cards to show that it’s a seemingly ordinary deck of cards. However, the tiny little secret the Svengali Deck holds unlocks a world of amazing and super easy card magic tricks.

What Card Tricks Can You Do with a Svengali Deck?

Svengali Decks are the easiest way to force a card. The spectator can cut the deck anywhere they want and will always end up on the force card. This is great for prediction effects, mentalism tricks or other feats of mind reading.

The spectator can also put their selected card in the deck anywhere they’d like and, without you even needing to touch the cards, you can make it jump to the top of the deck. This makes beginner card tricks like the Ambitious Card Trick easier than ever and allows you to perform a stunning finale where all the cards in the deck transform into their chosen card right in front of their eyes.

Svengali Decks are one of the most popular trick decks in beginners magic trick sets. In fact, Marshall Brodien, aka Wizzo the Wizard, sold millions of Svengali Decks under the name “TV Magic Cards” throughout the 1960s and 1970s. However, the quality of the trick decks included in some magic sets can sometimes be inconsistent.

With the Bicycle Svengali Deck, you get a premium quality trick deck manufactured by the United States Playing Card Company on the same high-quality stock found in the Bicycle Playing Cards you know and love. As they look just like an ordinary deck of cards, your audience will never suspect you’re using a trick deck.

Each Bicycle Svengali Deck comes with special illustrated instructions from World Champion Magician Daryl that will teach you everything you need to know to start amazing friends and family right away.

Available in either Red or Blue and the classic Bicycle Rider Back or Mandolin Back styles.

As a special new offering, you may also choose a Red Bicycle Rider Back Svengali Deck with a Queen of Hearts as the force card—which has been scientifically proven to be one of the most commonly chosen cards in the world alongside the Ace of Spades.

NOTE: Due to the way Svengali Decks are manufactured, the ability to fulfill requests for specific card values is not available at this time.

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Customer reviews for Bicycle Svengali Deck

Reviewer

Dave

An absolute classic and a must have addition to your magic tool box!
There are so many effects this little tool can be used for and will save you the stress of having to hit a force!
Let your creative mind go wild with the fantastic little prop!

 
Reviewer

James

This is the standard in any magicians magic trunk. These cards are a wonderful standard for the beggainer of magic or even the top pro. Having them with the Bicycle backing makes them even more normal and beautiful.

 
Reviewer

Zack

Great quality deck at a very reasonable price. They are capable of many routines that would otherwise require a decent level of skill with a regular deck. Very, very easy to use. Recommended for both beginners and professionals.

 
Reviewer

Pasquale

Excellent deck of cards, possibility of many routines, convenient price and simple to use. I advise.

 
Reviewer

Amanda

Having starting off in magic back in the day with a Svengali Deck, I decided to invest in this magical tool especially after being influenced and witnessing what Nick Locapo can achieve using this very same deck. Essentially, I have been exposed to performances that showcased the Svengali’s potential to create moments of sheer astonishment.

The design is deceptively simple, concealing its true magic within. Each card appears ordinary. It can be used as a powerhouse, capable of producing a myriad of mind-bending effects limited only by the magician’s creativity. Here are some effects below:

Force and Reveal
Ambitious Card Routine
Multiple Selections
Color Changes
Predictions

The deck’s adaptability makes it suitable for magicians of all skill levels. It has a thoughtful design and endless possibilities it offers for creating magical moments that linger in the minds of spectators.

 
Reviewer

Francisco

It is a deck of cards that every magician has to have, it is very versatile. Games can be made for all levels. It comes with its instructions, I think a classic like this doesn't need much explanation. Whenever it breaks, I don't hesitate to order a new one.

 
Reviewer

Kris

This is a great deck! I've owned one other sven deck before but this one blows it out of the water. If you're familiar with the secret then you know what you're getting in terms of function but it's the quality that sets these apart from other decks of this kind. Since Svengali decks can't really be examined by spectators I'd highly recommend that buyers learn a deck switch or two if they don't already have one in their arsenal. I usually swap it out for a deck with the force card removed and do "card under box" but that's just an example.

 
Reviewer

Garry

This is a great trick deck, you can do either a short or a varied long routine with this deck, also very easy to perform these, also suitable for a beginner, comes with basic instructions which are very useful, so you will also no how to use this deck.

 
Reviewer

David

Bicycle cards are the best for accuracy and reliability. For trick decks they are a necessity.

 
Reviewer

Gerhard

I have renewed my love for the svengali deck and the bicycle svengali is the best out there. Check out Daryl"s routines using a svengali. Also Ben Harris' book parity and symmetry! This is the best svengali deck!

 
Reviewer

Kevin

Easy to master and unlimited possibilities of providing delight!

 
Reviewer

Chris

This is my go to Svengali deck. A lot of people are familiar with Sven decks so I feel like having bicycle brand helps disarm them. Also the handling is important. If you handle the deck like a magic store clerk doing a demo, it's more apparent, but there's so many great ways to handle this like a regular deck. You can riffle shuffle and many other things to appear to handle them casually. I recommend the new book Symmetry, Parity and the Chimera by Ben Harris, who goes over several methods.

I feel like it's more powerful when you don't reveal all the cards to be the same. Just use it as a force deck, or do what I do, and use it as ACAAN. Force the force card from your Sven deck, and have them name any number between 1 and 52, and you can count down to it every time. I get lucky and they name my force card about half the time (mine is QH). You can have an ID on standby as an out, if they name another card, or just do a different routine.

From a quality standpoint I have no complaints.

 
Reviewer

James

One of my all time favorite trick decks from when I was new in magic. It’s a lot of fun to play around with and it’s far more versatile than I ever realized. The quality of the deck is typical bicycle so it’s going to last.

 
Reviewer

Jeff

Been a long while since I’ve used one of these. Mistake. This is an easily handled deck. If you don’t have one, get one.

 
Reviewer

Lucas

I remember seeing the svengali deck demonstrated for the first time. I was so fooled. This deck gives you the ability to create miracles as a beginner, amateur or a professional magician. This is a must have for anyone.

 
Reviewer

Thomas

One of my very first trick decks as a kid! Of course, they weren't Bicycle, so in the hands of an eleven-year-old, they didn't last very long. The Svengali deck can be used for HUNDREDS of crazy tricks, if not more! CAAN? It practically does itself! Spelling tricks? EASILY done! With a little imagination, you're pretty much set!
But a word of advice... get more than one, so you're not constantly forcing the same card, or your observant spectators will catch on; don't let that happen! PEACE.

 
Reviewer

Joel

No slight of hand needed. If you're a beginner this is perfect. If you're at an intermediate level then you can muster different handlings for this. Looks and feels great.

 
Reviewer

Taylor

The perfect deck for a beginner. I am new to magic and I could do a trick within five minutes of opening up this deck of cards. It’s so much fun and I can’t wait to get my next trick deck of cards!

 
Reviewer

Teddy

Probably the most popular trick deck of cards ever. The Bicycle version is the best one. I love how there are bicycle cards available in a stripper deck as well, with these two decks you can perform so much without even needing sleight of hand.

 
Reviewer

Stuart

One of the first decks I ever bought, and I still go back to using this method 10 years later! Even though you can buy it as a beginner and use it, laymen are still unaware of this method. It’s great as a forcing deck, especially to use on stage.

 
Reviewer

Harry

An essential deck of cards for any magician. You can perform miracles with this deck, and it’s super easy. There is a great DVD called Svengali as well that teaches some strong effects to go with this deck.

 
Reviewer

Isaac

I bought a few different Svengali decks before I realised that Bicycle make one. This is by far the best handling Svengali deck there is. Just buy it it's great.,

 
Reviewer

Noel

The easiest trick I ever learned and it's even practical to do in a walk around setting. I used to think it was too easy to perform at a proper gig, but I started using it recently and got such great reactions so now I carry one with me whenever I perform! Brilliant trick deck of cards.

 
Reviewer

Gerard

I haven't used this deck of cards for years because I got it as a beginner and thought of it as a beginner's trick. I watched a magic lecture recently and the lecturer fooled me badly, it turned out he was using a Svengali deck! I'm so glad Vanishing Inc. sell a Svengali deck that's made by bicycle because it blends right in with the deck of cards I usually use. I never realised that there are certainly different effects you can perform with a simple Svengali deck, and what's more you can even riffle shuffle these!

 
Reviewer

Victor

This is possibly the first magic trick I ever bought, and I have bought it a few times since then. There are not many tricks that can be performed by beginners and professionals alike that are less than $10. There are so many effects you can perform with this, people forget how good a way a Svengali deck is of forcing a card, but it looks so clean to a spectator. Highly recommend.

 
Reviewer

Garry

You cant go wrong with this deck, as there are so many trick routines that you can do with this deck, its so worth getting this.
This is great for beginners too.

 
Reviewer

Mats

It fits just as well for experienced magicians as beginners! You can always come up with new routines and tricks using it. And for the price, I’d consider calling it a steal!

 
Reviewer

joseph

the Svengali deck is one of my favorite effects, and the bicycle Svengali deck is by far the best version I've ever seen.

 
Reviewer

Michael

It does what it is supposed to do, but always with cards, people and especially kids, are always suspicious you did something fishy. With some trick decks you can spread the cards and show everything is as it is supposed to be, but you can't do that here exactly - there are some ways to show everything looks normal....except the typical way of just spreading the deck. So 4 out of 5 stars (5 stars only go for perfect or near perfect items - not being able to do a normal spread of the cards makes this imperfect for me).

 
Reviewer

Kyle

i found this to be very helpful in the begging of my journey, as it was a great confident booster. it's a one time,one person thing. nice addition to the gone deck, if u can manage to get a deck to match said card. i highly recommend too never show the whole deck as the same card, with the reverse riffle. if u get a few in dif decks,colors ,numbers. easier too switch it up. anyway, super cool, really gives you that boost of confidence you need to go further

 
Reviewer

Jouko

I was rather disappointed of the quality of these. Nothing wrong with the printing and the material-- guaranteed USPCC. But cutting of the (short) cards was uneven and two corners were not rounded.
Fortunately I have a guillotine cutter for photos at home and a corner cutter (which has r=3 mm) so I could easily fix these 26 cards. With the same effort I could have purchased 1-way forcing deck and cut the cards myself (which I actually did).

 
Reviewer

Adam

Whoever preps Svengali Decks over at Murphy's needs to re-calibrate their process. The cuts are so drastically shorter then the normal cards, there's almost no border on one end.

 

Community questions about Bicycle Svengali Deck

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.

  • Jacob asks: can you get the cards so that they can have a personalised backing?

    • 1. Vanishing Inc. Magic responds: We do not sell personalised Svengali Decks, I'm afraid.
  • Colin asks: Is this a standard bicycle back? Or is it a different pattern?

    • 1. Vanishing Inc. Magic responds: Yes this is a standard Bicycle back deck of cards.
  • Michael asks: I recently got a deck of Svengali with eight of hearts is it possible to order a few decks with different force cards?

    • 1. Vanishing Inc. Magic responds: I'm afraid that we do not offer a specific force card. But if you email to Magic@vanishingincmagic.com when you order, we can try our best for you
  • Hillary asks: If I order two decks of the same color, is it a guarantee that they will be different force cards in each deck?

    • 1. SGKYDUYEN answers: You need to email to vanishing and they will be happy to help
    Post an answer to this question
  • John asks: My dad had a Svengali deck for years. They were regular playing cards – cardboard with a thin plastic coating. Now that I"m a grandfather myself, I had to get one for myself. I bought one online, and have been working with it, but the cards are plastic – not cardboard with a coating. I have been working with them since last summer and I cannpot make them easily pliable or flexible. I can do the trick, but my grandson is only three and he'd see through it in a flash. So I'm asking – what is your deck made of? How easy is it to break in.

    • 1. Vanishing Inc. Magic responds: These are made from real Bicycle decks (the kind that you can find in any store that carried playing cards). In my opinion, fairly easy to break in. I hope that helps!
  • Asher asks: Do these cards come in a standard rider back box with a cover or does the box say “svengali deck?”

    • 1. Vanishing Inc. Magic responds: They come in a standard Bicycle box. What you see in the photo is just a sleeve.
  • Paul asks: Can the Svengali Deck be used for everyday use like a regular deck.

    • 1. Vanishing Inc. Magic responds: Because this is a gimmicked deck, you’ll only be able to perform the tricks that use this deck. There are only 26 normal cards.
  • Lester asks: Are there 48 or 52 cards in this deck?

    • 1. Vanishing Inc. Magic responds: 52.
  • Ronald asks: Can I get these in the blue back or is it only available in red?

    • 1. Vanishing Inc. Magic responds: You can click the "Select Option" button to choose blue back
  • Christoph asks: Do you also have a machine cut svengali deck with bicycle backs?

    • 1. Vanishing Inc. Magic responds: This is the only version we have at this time.
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