RNT2 Traditional Copper CupsThe Back Story:I don’t know what it is, but I have always liked the shape of Traditional Cups. Maybe it is my fondness of magic props from the 19th and early 20th century. Props of these eras always look so mysterious and magical to me.
I don’t own many Traditional shaped Cups other then the TF Phoenix and Birelli Cups. It is not that I wouldn’t mind owning more of these tapered truncated wonders, but there are not many available to purchase (or that I can afford) and many current Cup manufactures just don’t offer this shape.
To make a long story short, when RNT2 first started to drop prices at the end of August 2008, I took this as a sign that I must purchase their Traditional Copper Cups. So I ordered a set and waited… and waited… and waited. Finally the mailman brought me a small heavy parcel from RNT2. I could not believe how heavy this small box was… maybe there were two sets of Cups inside. To my surprise it was one set of Cups, the Traditional Copper Cups and boy are they beautiful.
The Cup Review:The RNT2 Traditional Copper Cups as sent came with the standard 3 Cups and a cloth bag. Currently RNT2 are not including balls with their Cup sets sold at the discounted prices. The bag that came with the Cups was a little disappointing when compared to other RNT2 bags of the past. It is made of a simple thin black material with a ribbon like draw strings. The bag serves it purpose and I can understand why RNT2 made the bag as it is. For me this is no big deal, I like to make display boxes for all my Cups.
The Cups arrived highly polished and as stated above are quite heavy (PHOTOS 1 & 2). I wish that I had a scale, but I don’t. For reference they are heavier then my set of Mendoza Cups, which are heavy Cups. Besides being heavy they are a large Cup, with a mouth opening approximately 3 1/4” wide and a height of 4” (PHOTO 3 & 4). This makes for a large stack of Cups (PHOTO 5 & 6). There is also very little wobble when the Cups are stacked. For comparison of size PHOTO 7 shows the RNT2 Traditional Cup next to other Traditional Cups I have on hand.
Because of their shape, the Traditional Cups have a rather unique looking bottom (or top as magicians look at them), that is the bottom has a deep depression framed by a ring (PHOTO
. PHOTO 9 & 10 shows the Cup with 3 each 1” and 7/8” balls and for those that must know how they stack with 3 balls in the attic PHOTO 11 & 12. PHOTO 11 shows that there is a slight gap with the 1” balls and none with the 7/8” balls. At the moment this is no bother to me.
Like a great many of RNT2 Cups the Traditional Copper Cups can handle a tennis ball easily for a final load. PHOTO 13 shows how deeply a tennis ball can go within the Cup. I did not have any larger balls on hand to see what else might fit. Because of their tall tapered sides, the Traditional Cup creates the illusion that the tennis ball might be to large for the Cups (PHOTO14).
Just for fun… the following PHOTOs show how the Traditional Copper Cups compare to other similar shaped Cups using a tennis ball and a lacrosse ball for final loads (PHOTO 15 – 18).
The Cups in Use:I have not had as much time with the RNT2 Traditional Copper Cups as I would have liked, the holidays kind of sucked up time. My comments are based on about a week of play. First off… If you have read my other reviews, you know that I like heavy Cups. The Traditional Cups are certainly that… heavy. Because of their heft, they feel solid and placing the Cups on the table takes getting used to, so one does not slam the Cups. The same goes for doing the Cup through Cup move. In a short amount of time one can get used to them. Secondly… because they are a tall Cup, sometimes stacking them felt a little odd. Again some play time and all was well with the world.
I found the RNT2 Traditional Cups are quite easy to load due to their wide mouth. Also because of their weight, I could always place the Cups on the table squarely and surely (that is level and with confidence each time… I hope others will understand what I am trying to say).
I defiantly preferred the feel of the RNT2 Traditional Cups to that of the TF Phoenix Cups and the Birelli Cups. The RNT2 Cups and the TF Cups felt very similar, however the Birelli Cups felt bad no matter what (I never liked using these Cups and still don’t) they are much too light.
Summary:I know that I must sound like a broken record, but the RNT2 Traditional Copper Cups are another set that I would recommend, especially if you are into Cups of this shape. They are just beautiful to look at… a classic shape of a by gone time and so shinny. I will admit that I am going to let them turn, to me Cups of this shape call out to be brown and aged as if they are a treasure of old. The more I played with them, the more I became use to their large size and weight. I can’t help but think of something that James Tong wrote… one must practice with Cups of all sizes to be ready for all situations (I kind of paraphrased). Oh how this rings true.
With the announcement that RNT2 will be closing down at the end of January 2009, now is the time to act. The price is right and as they say… When they are gone they are gone.
As always, please post any comments or questions.
Thanks for reading,
Bruce
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