Part-time magician and fully passionate by gambling gaffs and memorabilia as well as gambling sleights, he started acquiring gaff decks to try and get the feeling card cheaters of the Far West had when they worked on a mark using marked cards or strippers. But he would always end up with the same problem, the poor quality of the playing cards. The cut would clearly be visible and anyone could spot it and see the trick.

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While reading books like Sharps and Flats and The Annoted Erdnase, he decided he should do his own gaffed playing cards. He searched for the tools (card trimmers, corner rounder, etc.) needed by asking questions and writing to gambling sleights specialist and various magicians. His quest brought him to Las Vegas and the WSOP. There, he met a retired hustler who taught him how to trim playing cards.

 

Back in his hometown with his newfound knowledge, he started practising this ancient art that is card trimming. With the help of various people, he finally acquired the necessary skills to reproduce the old playing card gaffs and various decks that cardsharps and magicians used and are still using today.

 

Of course, fueled by his recent discoveries and still driven with his passion for gambling sleights and gaffs, he acquired more and more equipment. Always on the lookout for auctions or a retired magician that has something to sell, he found other card trimmers, shiners, bugs, pegs, jigs and many tools related to gambling. Many things that you can now see in the museum section of this site.