I am very new to magic and I am very interested in cups & balls.  Would you recommend starting with a classic three cup routine or a chop cup?

Thanks in advance.

Welcome to CupsCon, Angio!

I started with the classic 3 cup routines. That's what I use almost all the time. I suppose a Chop Cup is easier to learn since it's only one cup, but I prefer 3 cups. I have also used one standard cup for a routine, not a Chop Cup.

Let us know what you decide. And we always like to see photos of your cups!

Tom

Thank you.  Right now I am just using the cheap plastic ones from Magic Makers.   They are big enough to hold a hackey sack.  I didn't want to make a real investment until I made sure I was going to stick to it this time.

Angio333,
                 Welcome toCupscon! There are alot of great people on this site,and they wil be very helpful to you.If you are serious about cups,check this site out.http://sherwood.com/   He has a great set of cups,Feather Weight Aluminum Cups for 150.00. Would be a great investment and you would hooked for sure.mel

Angio333
                 Made a typo,try       http://sherwoodmagic.com/   sorry,mel

Cheap plastic ones work just as well, at least for learning. After you're sure the like the C&B, then get more expensive ones. They handle better, but we've all used cheaper cups to start out.

Angio,

Welcome to CupsCon and it is good to see a new member posting. The good thing about magic is that you can come and go as you’re your interest peaks and wanes.  It has been such for me over the past 40 years.

Your question is a good one and is often asked by many. Speaking from my magic experience (I am a hobbyist and Cup collector), I say that the two are kind of different animals, however techniques learned for one can always be applied to the other. I started with a Chop Cup and over the years my go to Chop Cup routine has gone from the standard… is it here or in my pocket, to a routine more like a C&B presentation with balls appearing, penetrating the Cup and such. Not that any trick is easy to learn and perform in a short time, I found that the Chop Cup can be learned in a reasonable short period and that he C&B takes some time to learn to be effective. I still find over the years that I don’t know all there is to the C&Bs and there is much out there to learn if you look for it.

As Tom wrote, you do not need any fancy Cups to learn with; however I believe that you should have something that you will be proud of to use. If you are a member of The Magic Café (and have posted 50 posts to be able to access their selling section) there are always good deals for used Cups (especially in these times) if you wait long enough. My preference is Copper, I find aluminum a little on the light side to feel comfortable using.

Good luck with your quest learning the Cups!

Bruce

Angio,

Bruce is right about copper cups being better than aluminum. Heavier cups are easier to handle. Lighter cups are easier to knock over! Embarrassing! Get in plenty of practice, then show everyone you know.

Tom

Thanks everybody.  To me the chop cup seems harder to learn since you only have one cup.  Doesn't that mean that your slight of hand and distraction has to be be better since you don't have the extra cups to help you?  Am I mistaken? 

Angio… the Chop Cup because of its nature assists you in ways standard Cups don’t, but that does not mean it’s a self working trick.

Good luck with whatever path you go down and keep us in the loop as to your progress.

Bruce

Angio,
           Maybe Bruce or Tom could direct you to a good instructional video to help you in the basic workings of the Cups and balls.That way not only would you see a performance,but the explanation of the effect,whether it be copper, aluminum or mere dixie cups ;Dmel

Welcome Angio!

Like Bruce, I am a cups collector and magic enthusiast. Be forewarned... cup sets are like potato chips, seems you can't have just one. (Well, that's true for me anyway!)

The choice of 3 cups vs. chop cup is dependant on your performing style and preference. The cups can be a bit more 'formal' in presentation and 3 cup routines are typically longer containing several phases. Chop cup routines are more direct and 'to the point' so to speak. Both can be amazing if presented well.

Concerning good instructional videos; Michael Ammar has all of his DVDs on sale for 50% off right now.

http://store.ammarmagic.com/dvds1.html

I would highly recommend getting the Complete Cups and Balls DVD set. This will give you a world of information and get you moving in the right direction. At the moment you can get both for $30 and that's a deal that can't be beat.

Good luck in your journey and please keep us posted.

Best,

Doug

Doug hit the nail on its head with his suggestion for learning material. I will also throw in The Vernon Book off Magic and if you can find one Ammar’s book on Cups and Balls (as of 1/2011, they have been offered for sale at TMC and e-bay). For the Chop Cup, my favorite book is Mark Wilson’s The Chop Cup Book (again hard to find, but they are out there).

Once you get the basics down, there is enough out there on the C&Bs to keep you busy for a life time… at least mine.

Bruce

Sometimes we look at our magic backwards. Are you learning the cups and balls for your audience or are you learning the cups and balls for yourself?

The biggest advantage of the chop cup is that it gets to the loads more quickly than the usual three cup routine. It is no more difficult to learn than a three cup routine, but it can have an immense amount of impact. Not only that, it takes up less real estate on the table, so if you are walking around doing magic, you can perform this on an area about six inches in diameter. In other words, you won't be dropping your loads in the customer's salad.

I prefer the Don Alan routine. It's fast, direct and well-routined. It is to the chop cup as the Vernon routine is to the three cups routine. Get Ron Bauer's booklet.