How to Do Full Deck Setups and False Cuts in Magic

Card tricks are an essential part of magic. Most magicians use card tricks because they are easy to manipulate when forcing an outcome. Two ways to manipulate the deck to force an outcome are setting up a full deck and false cuts. Master these two techniques and hundreds of magic tricks open up to you.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Deck of cards

1. Open a new deck or get a deck of cards. All cards made with the American Card Playing Stamp contain the ace through king in four suits.

2. Take the first two suits of cards from the full deck. Reverse the order so it's king through ace. Arrange the suits so the colors alternate. Stack the spades first then the diamonds, the clubs and the hearts.

3. Take the deck setup in Step 2 in one hand to start a false cut. A false cut allows you to cut the a deck of cards three times and still end up with the cards in the same order.

4. Take about 1/3 of the cards from the bottom and place it on top of the deck. Use your middle finger to hold the top of the deck in place. Cut the section away from the deck. Do this smoothly without anyone noticing the finger is holding the cards.

5. Cut another third of the cards and place them on top of the deck.

6. Pull out the last third and place it on top. Check the cards. If done correctly, all the cards are in the same order you started with in Step 2.