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Jay Sankey: Camouflage Review

Enough stuff to make about a dozen or more gimmicks, about a half-dozen effects you can do with the gimmicks, one DVD and $30 bucks. Is it gem or is it rubble? Stay tuned to find out.

Effect/Method

There are several ideas shown on the DVD. Watch the ad trailer and read the ad copy for a sense of what is possible. What you're getting is a very simple and humble "thing" that you can use to make a whole bunch of gimmicks. It takes seconds to make a gimmick. The reason you have to make your own gimmick is simply because the size of the gimmick is determined by the effect you're doing and personal choices you make.

Rather than include a whole bunch of different shapes and sizes, you receive two large gimmicks that can be cut down to fit what you need. You can make several gimmicks out of the two large ones that you are supplied. This should last you for quite a while. The method (i.e., "operating" the gimmick) is super easy to do. It will take a little practice to handle everything properly, but it's very doable.

Ad Copy Integrity

The ad copy is very solid. There is one minor issue, but it's more of a product quality (i.e., teaching) problem, so we'll address that in the next section. The same "issue" exists in the ad trailer as well, but again, it's a more of a product quality thing.

Just one point of clarification: the claim that you can do a levitation with this gimmick is true. However, you still need some form of I.T., loops, etc. This gimmick just allows you to make the apparent levitation of a deck of cards easier.

Product Quality

Gimmick

The gimmick is very sturdy and well made, and very durable. It looks great, and you're supplied enough to make nearly 2 dozen — you'll never need that many — gimmicks. You just need a pair of scissors, tape and a minute of your time to make what you need.

DVD Production

The DVD is well shot, lit, mic'd, etc. — typical Sankey. The DVD menu, however, just had a "trailer" button and an "explanation" button. I would have liked to have been able to have chapters to select each effect as needed. However, as you'll see in the next section, there was an issue that made it so that the above type of menu wouldn't quite have worked.

Teaching

I have to say, I was a little bit disappointed with the teaching segment(s) which is very unusual for a Sankey Magic product. To make the gimmick, you simply need to cut out a segment, trim it down, and connect it to whatever it needs to be connected to, depending on which version of the gimmick you're making.

It's simple to make, but when creating a gimmick myself, I found that I had a few questions about cutting it and handling once it has been put together. There were no tips or finer handling points, etc. on the DVD.

With a little experimenting, I was able to get what I needed figured out, but there is still one point I'm not clear about. It won't impact the handling of the effect necessarily, but it would have been nice if more details were covered.

Regarding each effect, for the most part, Jay just kind of walked through the handling very briefly. An example of what I'm talking about is the effect mentioned in the ad copy where a pencil is pushed through the deck. In the ad copy, it says that the deck can be handed out a moment later and be fully examinable. Well this is true; the deck can be fully examined without a deck switch. However, you do have to ditch the gimmick, which I have no problem with, and I don't feel that the ad copy was dishonest in its statement. The problem, however, is that nowhere in the DVD is this covered.

A brief walk through of the handling is shown, but nothing covering how to cleanly get the gimmick out of play so that the deck can be handed out. The point of the ad copy claim was to emphasize the fact that the deck is unharmed and not switched. It's just a bit of an issue that the DVD didn't really cover how to get rid of the gimmick.

It just felt like the explanations were rushed through and not enough attention was given to each effect or the gimmick. Because all the effects were sort of all talked about together at once, this is why it would have been hard to find a clear break for making chapters in the DVD menu.

Final Thoughts

The good news is that the effects are very clean and clear and look as good as shown and/or claimed in the sales copy. The method is super clever, easy, and nearly self-working. The concept lends itself to a variety of effects limited to, as they say, your own imagination. This is a utility concept that has a ton of potential for many uses. The basics of the concept are definitely covered, and you'll learn everything you need to know to use this gimmick with the only two exceptions of a minor issue you may run into while customizing your gimmick, and the fact that details regarding ditching the gimmick were missing on the handling of the pencil through deck.

You will easily be able to start using this right away if you like the concept. Even if you're not a card person, there are applications for you as well. You can show a card box with a deck of cards in it. Then instantly with no switches, reach into the card box and produce anything (assuming it will fit in the card box).

So for $30 bucks you're getting a clever concept with the stuff to customize nearly 2 dozen gimmicks that can do many, many, many things. Just be prepared to spend a little more time fidgeting, testing and practicing on your own.

Final Verdict:
3.5 Stars with a Stone Status of gem.