Review: Bicycle Pluma (Blue and Orange)

The Bicycle Pluma deck is one of Bicycle's most recent mass releases. We find it's origin in an updated version of an apparent historical plate found in USPCC's archives. The deck was officially released in a light blue color in August of 2013 and an orange deck of the same name/design was released as well but has only been spotted in select Wal-Mart stores.



The Specs:

Name: Bicycle Pluma
Company: USPCC/Bicycle
Release Date: August 2013
Stock: Standard Bicycle Stock
Finish: Air Cushion Finish
Colors: Light Blue/Orange
Face: Standard
Size: Poker

The theme of the deck features "avian" or bird-like and tribal imagery. Pluma, which can be translated into "feather" as well as "pen" in Spanish, is the perfect name for this deck as it takes on the principles of both a feather with the avian imagery and a pen with the tribal line work. The tuck case (seen above) is heavily customized with wings spanning behind a huge Spade filled with tribal and detailed line artwork. The wing span gives us the impression that the Spade is taking on the the shape of a bird. The wings wrap around the sides of the tuck case and brings us to the back design.



The back design features more of the same feather work from the tuck case that is worked in and out of intricate tribal detail. The centerpiece of the back design on both sides features an acorn-shaped face design with a fanned feather headdress on top and a maple leaf-shaped bib going underneath the face design. Four white fanned feathers are the focal point in each corner of this two-way back design that contrasts perfectly with the swirling of the darker tribal detail that marries each design element perfectly and evenly.

Once the deck is opened we find the standard 52 cards, 2 Jokers and 2 ad cards. The Ace Of Spades features the same Spade that is found on the tuck case. However, the difference with the AoS design is that the border and the wings are dropped. This is a nice design tactic as it forces the focus and your eyes to gravitate toward the swirl and tribal design. By dropping the wings/feathers it takes the attention off the avian theme and reminds us that there is more of the design to be seen. Outside of the Spade, "Bicycle" is written above the Spade in an Art Nouveau font similar to the font used for "Pluma" on the tuck case minus the stylization. The use of the Art Nouveau font style ties in the historical aspect to this deck. It reminds the handler that the deck has depth beyond the design.



The deck features historic court and number cards similar to the designs found on the Bicycle Expert Back Deck. The courts and numbers take their look from early decks from USPCC beginnings. The main customization on the Bicycle Pluma Deck courts and numbers comes in the form of a re-color. For the light blue deck, the Anglo-American courts' patterns are filled with light blue, sea blue, white, brown and black. For the orange deck, the courts' patterns are filled with yellow, orange, brown and white.



With the number cards we are presented with a darker red for the hearts and diamonds than on a standard Bicycle deck. The Darker red helps contrast the lighter blue and orange keeping the color palette theme in focus.



A disappointment with this deck is the lack of customization on the Jokers. With this deck we are presented with the same style Jokers as on a Bicycle Standard without any colorization. In fact, these Jokers are simply black and white. If full customization is not an option, it would have been a pleasure to see a recolor of the Jokers with the blue or orange deck color palette used on each deck.

Handling these cards are actually more aesthetically pleasing than functionally pleasing. While the deck features the same stock and embossing as a Bicycle standard deck, there is something about the back design that tricks the mind into thinking they perform better. At any rate, the design provides a great deck to play with or perform tricks with, which adds to the functionality and handling even if it is just our love of the design telling us so.

Notes on the Bicycle Pluma Playing Cards:

• While this deck features an updated plate from Bicycle's past, there are no actual historic decks referenced as its predecessor.


• The Orange deck is not available on BicycleCards.com but can be found at select Wal-Marts.


• Often time USPCC/Bicycle creates exclusive decks to be sold at different big box retailers. These exclusive decks can very from full customization to slight differences in the bar-code.

Final Assessment: Bicycle Pluma is a dream to play with. The artwork is top notch coming out of Bicycle, who aren't all that known for creating extremely custom or intricate pieces. Although, as of late we have seen an improvement in design with decks like the Sideshow Freaks, Speakeasy and now Pluma. The deck's design is versatile for all kinds of playing card fans including performing magicians. The collectors will go crazy over the orange Pluma deck as it is not readily available on the web. A rare deck is a wanted deck!

Score: 9/10

We are currently offering Bicycle Pluma Orange on Ebay.

Review: Bicycle Expert Back (2010 Heritage Series)

Released in 2010 by USPCC Bicycle, the Bicycle Expert Back pays homage to one of the first ever back designs ever created by the company in 1895, also called the Expert back. The design is extremely similar and often times confused with another back design called the Old Fan back. According to jimknapp.com, "USPCC itself misidentified" the two on another release the same year. The Old Fan back was also re-issued in 2010 on another "tribute" type deck called the 125 Years Anniversary Edition deck.



The Specs:

Name: Bicycle Expert Back (2010 Heritage Series)
Company: USPCC/Bicycle
Release Date: 2010
Stock: Standard Bicycle Stock
Finish: Air Cushion Finish
Colors: Distressed/Red Back
Face: Standard
Size: Poker

The tuck case features a vintage or early USPCC issued Ace of Spades with the "Statue of Freedom" design on the front of the tuck. The entire tuck case has a distressed overlay with rustic coloring. This creates an old or worn look as if it were an actual Expert back deck from the late 1800's. From a far this can be taken as such but on close inspection this is clearly identified as artificial and an intentional design element. The distressing looks like a brown tie-dye or marbling up close. Some may even say it looks like coffee spilled on the deck. The distressed tuck case gives the deck a very distinguished look from other standard Bicycle decks. If it were a simple red on white, or off white even, design the vintage or heritage aspect might end up being lost.

On breaking the seal, we are met with 56 cards in total, which includes the standard 52, 2 Jokers and 2 ad cards. The entire deck comes with the same distressed look found on the tuck case. This was predictable. The look is consistently one-way on the backs of the cards (seen below), meaning the distressed patterns that overlay the original two-way back design only go in one direction. This makes the complete back design one-way even though the original Expert back was a two-way design. This is disappointing but it makes sense why USPCC did this as true aging never mirrors itself.

Here you can see the new Expert back with the distressed overlay:



Seen here we can compare the original 1895 Expert back design with the new and "distressed" Expert back:

Photo courtesy of www.jimknapp.com

The Ace Of Spades continues the theme of bringing back the old design as it features the "Statue of Freedom" design found on earlier decks. It is refreshing to see USPCC keep the vintage theme going beyond the back design. Indices are smaller on the Expert back decks when compared to standard Bicycle decks. Reading these cards can be difficult for some that are used to the larger indices or those with bad eyes. Add the smaller indices plus the weathered and faded distressing together and it can cause even more reading difficulty. One thing to note that is different on the face and number cards is that the distressed element is different on each card. This is a tremendous bonus and shows that the design is not limited by lazy design.



Moving on to the court cards, we are greeted with standard Anglo-American royals with more of the older characteristics found on earlier cards. Once again we see USPCC carry over the old school theme. One disappointment with some of these cards is that the distressing is sometimes too much. It would have been acceptable to tone down the number of "coffee stains" or dirt on these cards as it overtakes some card designs to the point of distraction.



Number cards come with smaller indices but the center pips are fatter and boxier than what you get in a Bicycle Standard deck. These fonts and design styles are reminiscent of design capabilities in the late 1800's. The distressing is carried throughout as well.

The Jokers feature black lined playing card kings on bikes with the 808 milestone. A warranty is included on one of the Jokers.

These decks come with standard Bicycle and the embossed air-cushion finish printed in Kentucky. The stock and finishing process has since been updated since 1895....obviously! ;) Handling these cards is very similar to what you expect from a Bicycle Standard. With that said, you may feel as though two standard decks feel different and you would not be incorrect. Bicycle has a range of acceptable paper thickness per stock that they use, which are currently the Bicycle stock and the Bee stock. It is possible that two decks labeled as standard Bicycle stock have slightly different thicknesses. This thickness may not be noticeable to the eye but it is measurable and some with a good touch can tell but overall it is minor.

To show you the Old Fan Back design similarities noted in the beginning of the review, here is the 125 Years Anniversary Back:



Along with the original Old Fan back:

Courtesy of www.jimknapp.com

Can you spot the differences?

Notes on the Bicycle Expert Back Playing Cards: 

• These cards were not a one time production. In Fact, Bicycle still produces these decks and sells them on their website.


• The deck used for this review is dated 2012.


• Theory 11 sells a Heritage Series set that included 4 non-distressed decks that do not include the Expert Back.


• Ellusionist sells a Vintage Series 1800 deck that comes with a distressed look.

Final Assessment: USPCC Bicycle does a good job keeping this deck with the vintage theme. It practically screams old, worn and vintage. From the early design elements of the Ace Of Spades and court cards to the original back design that gives this deck purpose, the Expert deck is great for anyone looking to dive deeper into the history of this 100+ year old company. The deck has a few downsides in mainly over distressing or "coffee spilling" that make it too much to take sometimes. The design shouldn't get in the way of practicality. It is definitely something a magician probably won't use too much but it can be a fun deck to break out on a Saturday night game night....As long the distressing isn't too annoying. If it gets to be a lot, switch this deck out with a Theory 11 Heritage deck and shelf this one for the collection.

Score: 8.5/10  

Kevin Reylek Talks Kickstarter and House of Playing Cards

A couple of days before Randy Butterfield launched his latest project, Imperial, last week on 8/13 he posted a letter regarding the way it would be released. Earlier this Summer it was announced that House Of Playing Cards (HOPC), part of The Blue Crown Network, would take on the full release but in Randy's letter we were made aware that both Randy and HOPC changed directions and Imperial would launch on Kickstarter. This would be the company's first attempt at a Kickstarter project. It was something that came as a surprise as well as a blessing given some of the scams that took place on Kickstarter in the past year. The letter also left some very important questions about the state of HOPC and where they were headed, which you can read here in our response to Randy's letter. After all, the majority of fans felt HOPC was a Kickstarter alternative and vice versa. As mentioned, it was surprising to see them join Kickstarter train but overall, it was a positive response.

When Imperial eventually launched on the 13th, funding  took a steady pace. In less than a week the project reached the funding goal of $10,000. It was no surprise. However, the questions about HOPC still lingered.... until now!  This week we spoke with HOPC and The Blue Crown's Director of Production, Kevin Reylek, about Kickstarter, HOPC and how everything fits together. Read further as Kevin lifts the veil on their world at HOPC, The Blue Crown and you will ultimately learn their thoughts on one of the biggest marketing tools in playing card history - Kickstarter....

Tuck Case: With Randy Butterfield's Imperial Deck being launched on Kickstarter, is this something we will see more often going forward with House Of Playing Card (HOPC) releases?
Kevin Reylek: Additional Kickstarter campaigns from HOPC are certainly not out of the question. Doing the Imperial project with Randy is obviously a sort of testing ground for us.  Depending on how it goes (and whether or not we find [out if] it's easier or more complicated than a more standard release format) will determine if we continue to use Kickstarter in the future.

Tuck Case: What are your thoughts on how Kickstarter has changed the playing card scene?
Kevin Reylek: Kickstarter has undoubtedly changed the playing card market. It's allowed anyone with strong design skills to offer their art to the community for very minimal risk. Also, it lets the market decide. If a design is weak and nobody wants it, the campaign will not be successful. If the design is great and everyone loves it, it will be a smash. It also helps to eliminate some guesswork. Instead of a creator just blindly running 2.5k, 5k, or 10k decks, they can see how much demand exists and print accordingly.

So for the most part, I'd say that Kickstarter is a good thing.  Naturally, there are some drawbacks. For example, those who are good designers, but lack the business skills to see the project through to the end, or don't have the time/facilities to ship large quantities in a timely manner.  But for a well-organized and motivated individual, it's a great platform.

Tuck Case: Out of the decks that you see launch on Kickstarter, do a lot of them come to you for funding first?
Kevin Reylek: Some decks come to us first, some don't. I would say that a majority of the decks that are on Kickstarter do not come to us first.

Tuck Case: Why do you think some designers opt to try Kickstarter instead of trying to go through House Of Playing Cards for a release?
Kevin Reylek: It could be because the creators have not heard of us, or they simply like the Kickstarter environment. If a creator wants to do a really limited and specialized release with a lot of community feedback, Kickstarter is a good place for that. Others have their own brand/market strategies that they want to pursue.

Tuck Case: Some designers have made mention that they do not get approved or picked for release through House Of Playing Cards, what is the approval process like at HOPC?
Kevin Reylek: We would love to say "Yes" to a lot more projects at HOPC.  At the end of the day, we are one small company, and we can only produce so many designs per year. We get a TON of submissions coming in daily. We have to say "No" to several designs simply because of volume issues. I think if you were to send all of our submissions and divide them amongst us, Dan & Dave, Ellusionist, Theory 11, and Conjuring Arts, we still could not produce them all.

Luckily, we are not the only game in town. People have many different options to produce their decks. Naturally, we love for people to submit their designs to us, and highly encourage it. But if we can't accept a deck for one reason or another, we hope that people will still find a way to share it with others.

Tuck Case: What advice can you give designers looking to submit their designs/ideas to you?
Kevin Reylek: For those who are wondering what to submit, I'd say that they should keep an eye on our site and see what kinds of things we've already been producing. Designs like Americana, Mechanic, Curator, and Ornate. All wildly different, but all equally awesome. We're looking for designs that will make us (and others) say "Wow." We're also looking for something new. A design may be well-executed on a technical level, but just be too similar in theme/design to something else that has already been produced. Generally, we're not looking to re-do what's already been done, we want to break new ground.

Tuck Case: When a deck is submitted and approved by HOPC, who ends up owning the artwork or is this a case by case basis?
Kevin Reylek: Artwork ownership is mixed on the site. If we approach an artist and commission them to design a deck for us (like we did with the Crown deck, Vaudeville deck, and a few others) then we usually retain those rights. For submitted decks that come to us fully-formed, we usually leave the ownership with the creator, and HOPC is simply granted the printing rights for decks. This allows the artist to also produce other related items on the side; like posters, t-shirts, etc....

Tuck Case: Recently, you released the Summer NOC through The Blue Crown Summer Club and then the mass release through House of Playing Cards. How do decide whether to release a deck through House of Playing Cards or The Blue Crown or through both?
Kevin Reylek: Deciding which site a particular deck is featured on depends on several factors. One big factor is who we think a deck will appeal to - magicians or collectors. Obviously there's some overlap there but generally, we find that collectors are into the more fancy, 100% custom designs like Randy's ORNATE series. Magicians tend to be looking for something a little more standard that they can use for all of their effects. A good example there would be the White Aladdins. The special stack and other features that we put into the Aladdins are GREAT for magicians. But a collector could probably care less what order the cards are in.  What other decks we have in the pipeline and where we think they'll fit best are also factors in deciding which decks go on which site - or if they're featured on both.

Ornate deck released through HOPC in 2012. 

White Aladdins released through The Blue Crown in the Summer of 2013.

Kevin continues....
Ultimately, we created HOPC as a solution to allow artists to be artists. Some artists want to wear multiple hats and create the deck, plan the marketing, do the shipping, etc. But there are many more who do not want to do that. They want to share their art with the world, but the thought of having to do all of the other "Stuff" can be daunting. We want to raise the bar and push the envelope with playing cards. We originally put ourselves out there to artists as an alternative to Kickstarter, but over the past year and a half, we've realized that Kickstarter does not need to be excluded. We can still provide excellent design and marketing feedback, shipping services, etc, while still offering the community involvement and broad audience that Kickstarter provides.

When I first created the Lefty deck about 4 years ago, I did not have a social funding option, and the minimum print run at USPCC was five thousand decks. I had to fund that run out of my own pocket, and ship all of the decks myself. If an option like HOPC had existed then, I would've jumped at the chance.  I can speak from experience in saying that I do not want to personally ship thousands of decks by myself ever again!

Editor's note: The Lefty Deck was just re-released on HOPC in mid-July.  

It is interesting to highlight a key point that Kevin brought up - HOPC gets a ton of submissions (answered in question 5) but only a small amount end up on Kickstarter (answered in question 3). Since HOPC does not put out decks on a weekly basis, the new question is - Where are those decks that were not released? The only people that can answer that question would be the designers and people that submitted those designs in the first place. It is a shame that there are means for people to release decks by using Kickstarter but they are not being brought to that market. Kickstarter is extremely "crowded" and it is amazing that it could get even more crowded if these designers moved forward. Some designers move forward but it seems that the majority don't. What does everyone think about that? Does this open doors for new opportunities? 

Review: Bicycle White Allure Playing Cards

Bicycle White Allure Playing Cards come from the New Jersey design outfit TPX Designs, which is run by Noel Quiles of Millville, NJ. TPX Designs launched their Kickstarter project on April 26, 2013 for the White Allure playing cards and successfully funded the project on May 25th with 449 backers totaling $17,685. The Bicycle White Allure playing card project is TPX Designs' third playing card deck created through a Kickstarter project. The first project was the Bicycle Genesis and the second was the Allure deck. Bicycle White Allure is an extension of the original Allure project.

It should be noted that TPX Designs is currently running a Kickstarter project for their fourth playing card project called Bicycle King of Kings.



The Specs:  

Name:  Bicycle White Allure
Company:  TPX Designs
Release Date: End July 2013 (Decks started shipping)
Stock: Standard Bicycle
Finish: Magic Finish
Colors: White, Gold, Red, Black
Face: Standard
Size: Poker

According to the deck's Kickstarter page, Bicycle White Allure was brought to market due to demand for a white version of the original Allure playing cards, which was an all black deck.

On to the review....

As seen above the tuck case features a classy white and gold design. It is clear from the start that this deck was originally intended for a darker version as the white version loses key details that made the original Allure pop. The White Allure tuck feels rather bright and lacks contrast to bring out detail that was originally very prevalent on the original. Metallic gold inks or embossing would have possibly done the trick.  While the White Allure strictly uses one light color for the embellishments on a white background, the original Allure deck contrasted with multiple bright colored embellishments on a black background that gave the overall design depth. At inspection of only the tuck case, there is certainly more to be desired in this follow-up release, which seems to be typical of re-colored releases.

The deck features 56 custom playing cards - 52 standard, 2 jokers and 2 gaff cards. With the back design, which is also featured on the tuck, we are met with the same bright, almost washed-out look that the tuck case features. In certain parts the design elements are lost in the background, where they originally popped in the first Allure deck. With that said, the back design is a two-way design with heavenly embellishments. Two harps are featured as the main focal point with many abstract geometric shapes intertwining around a cross in the direct center. The back design is bordered with more abstract shapes similar to those found in a doily or decorative lace.  The design contains many tiny details that takes a close eye to fully appreciate.



The court cards are an improvement as they feature bolder colors, which provides much needed contrast. The royals are positioned in the middle inside somewhat of a frame with a gold to white gradient background. The royals are then recolored and skinned providing the boldest elements on the deck. This is quite the change from the back and tuck case designs. TPX Designs did a good job tying in the overall theme by adding an outside border in the same style that is found on the back design. This border fills out the cards nicely by adding resolve or closure to the design.



The Ace Of Spades features a blacked out Ace with no ornate design or intricate detail within. The style here is refreshing and modest. A  bold but lightly colored abstract floral pattern adds contrast in the back. There is also a very light and subtle floral pattern even farther back in the design that is very unnoticeable unless inspecting these cards very closely. In fact, the camera does not even pick this up. This feature is actually on every card in the deck.  Although this is more noticeable on the original Allure cards, this design element is a very nice subtle and hidden element that finally brings out some depth in the cards. This is one element where we do not want to see it contrast with the background or else the cards would look too busy. Moving on, a stylized "Allure Playing Cards" is written across the bottom of the Ace, which fills out the Ace Of Spades as the arch of the deck. The rest of the Aces are similar to the Ace of Spades without the name of the deck written across the bottom.



The number cards are custom. They feature the same border as the court and aces feature as well as the subtle floral pattern deep in the cards. Although these elements provide consistency throughout the deck, a negative to the number cards are the way the indices and pips were designed with a highlight or glowing border that creates a blurred effect on the white background. They are bold enough that they are not illegible but it is slightly unflattering.



The Jokers are interesting with a leaping angel of sorts that is silhouetted on both cards. Each joker is red and black, which is a nice way to keep things different between the jokers that are often times left the same. The angels keep the theme of "Allure" alive. The Jokers use the classic  intertwined "US" indices. This is a very nice tie in with the standard Bicycle decks. A lot of times custom decks do away with any sort of tie in with the traditional Bicycle deck but it is nice to see Allure keep it.



As mentioned in the beginning of this review, the deck comes with two gaff cards. While one gaff card is a double back that is often times standard with custom decks, Allure also comes with a gaff card that features a blurred out Queen of Spades. This gaff card is extremely impressive as it can be used in a lot of different magic routines. This is the first time we have seen a blurred out card used for the gaff and it is certainly exciting.



White Allure playing cards handle similar to the standard Bicycle playing cards as they feature bicycle stock and a magic finish. They spring nice and work well right out of the box. They will obviously need some breaking in as all decks do but there are no disappointments in the handling or feel department. These cards work and work well.

Notes on White Allure Playing Cards:

•  With the release of White Allure,  a Limited Edition Gold edition was also released at only 1000 available.


• While 4000 of the original Allure were printed, only 2500 of the White Allure were printed.


• The original Allure produced 1000 gilded edged decks that were dropped from the White Allure.


• All of TPX designs tend to have a religious theme.


• These can be found at site sponsor PlayingCardz.net for European customers.

Final Assessment:  Overall this deck may fall short for some looking for contrast but it is perfect for those looking for a bright and heavenly design. This contrast issue on the backs could have very well been the intention of TPX, which in that case would make it a non-issue.  Aside from the contrast choice, TPX designs gets points for knowing how to create elegant and classy looking cards with exciting design elements that you don't normally find on other cards. Given the unique gaff card, this deck is perfect for magicians. After all, what is the point of creating a unique gaff card like that if it isn't going to be used?

Final score: 7.9/10

Kickstarter: Former Marvel And D.C. Comics Artist German Garcia Puts Talent On Display With ZOM-B-GIRLS Playing Cards

Editor's Note: I originally intended to publish an interview with Justin from ZOM-B-GIRLS but the interview was posted earlier than intended on The Discourse Playing Card Forum. Check it out here. Since it was published, I wanted to switch gears a bit and focus on the art behind the cards.

Last week on August 1st, Justin Hussain launched his first Kickstarter campaign called ZOM-B-GIRLS Playing Cards. Zombies have certainly made their way on to playing cards in recent years. In fact, USPCC/Bicycle has already released two zombie decks within the last year. However, Justin and the rest of Team Zombie have decided to do something different. Justin's zombie playing cards marries the trendy new zombie theme with the pin-up theme of the past that was popular on playing card decks in the 1950's through the 1970's.

The project combines a little bit of the old with a lot of the new as the entire deck is 100% drawn and illustrated in a comic book style of art by multiple artists. Team Zombie's creator and project lead, Justin Hussain discussed with us that it wasn't an easy process finding the best talent for his project. Justin went through a grueling 40 interviews in a process that goes back 6 months before settling in with the best artists for this project including renowned comic book artist, German Garcia.

Hailing from Spain, German Garcia is a highly talented illustrator, who can count working for both Marvel Comics and DC Comics among his career highlights. While an excellent penciller in his own right, German is lending his talents as the principal colorist of the project.

Here are some images of German's comic book art courtesy of Marvel and D.C. Comics:





Team Zombie shared with TuckCase.com multiple process sketches and color photos that have been worked on by German as well as the project's other artists, Robert Elsmore who works as an illustrator and Illias Dante who works as a second colorist.













The decks are not going to be printed by USPCC but the UK based project will be using high quality German Black Core playing card stock with an embossed linen finish. The stock is associated with a mainland Chinese company called Shenzhen Wangjing Printing Co., Ltd., which mainly prints playing cards for Asian casinos and promotional use.

Going with an overseas printing company is not new to the custom playing card industry, just recently Conjuring Arts Research Center launched The Expert Playing Card Company who printed their first release, Global Titans, overseas in Shanghai.

ZOM-B-GIRLS Playing Cards project will be in funding for another 27 days when it ceases on September, 5th.

Review: Lawrence Sullivan and CARC's Legends Playing Cards

The Legends No. 852 playing cards are the result of a collaboration between Honk Kong Magician, Lawrence Sullivan, and Conjuring Arts Research Center.  The Legends No. 852 playing cards, which come in three colors - red, blue and green, were printed by a playing card factory in Taipei, Taiwan. The factory is mainly known for producing playing card decks for casinos in the Far East.  The design was commissioned out to designer Mark Stutzman, who has done with with David Blaine and most recently the Whispering Imps Playing Card project on Kickstarter. For UK and Europe fans the decks can be purchased from JP Playing Cards.  



With Legends Playing Cards, Conjuring Arts Research Center (CARC) and magician Lawrence Sullivan did what a lot or the majority of playing card companies/designers are afraid to do - they did not print their playing card project Legends No. 852 with United States Playing Card Company. In the industry, Bicycle is considered the standard and anything that doesn't have USPCC's signature on it, are considered by some to be sub-par or are at least put through some heavy skepticism. Some collectors, magicians and/or enthusiasts won't even give a non-USPCC deck a chance. This is what happens when a company has deep historical roots and a very long tradition making decks for some of the best magicians around. Kudos to the USPCC for becoming the giant that they are but TuckCase.com is here to see and prove if the Legends really have something to offer....

The specs:

Name: Legends No. 852 Playing Cards
Company: Conjuring Arts Research Center/Lawrence Sullivan
Release Date: Early 2013
Stock: Overseas Factory/Unknown 
Finish: Embossed
Colors: Red, Blue, Green - Standard court colors
Face: Standard
Size: Poker

On to the review...

Most folks will wonder how the Legends differ from USPCC stock, whether it be Bicycle or the thicker Bee stock. Because of that we will start the review describing the handling and feeling of the cards. The Legends No. 852 playing card stock is slightly thinner than standard Bicycle playing cards. However, the difference is within .5 to 1 card thickness difference. Although the cards are embossed similar to the air-cushion finish that USPCC cards have, the finish is somewhat glossier. Given the glossiness, one would think they are slippier than standard Bicycle cards but that just is not the case. There is almost a "magical" grip to these cards that fan and separate incredibly smooth when you want them to but stay together when you want them to. The edges are also smoother than USPCC cards.

When you first open the tuck case and pull out these cards you quickly notice that these cards have a varnish-like scent to them. After handling these cards for some time the scent does not go away but thankfully the scent does not transfer over to your hands.

The cards only come 54 in a box. They do not come with an ad card or an extra gaff card.

On to the design...

The overall design is not a showy or over the top design but rather it has a classic look and feel with some hidden details that make this deck more than your average playing card deck. The design is done in the same vein as standard Bicycle Rider Backs. Looking at the Legends one would not think the deck looks like a gimmick by any means like some other custom decks give. Despite all that, the Legends feature a design with enormous depth, detail and substance. At a quick glance the deck looks simple and not much different from a Rider back as each deck in the Legends series features one prominent back color - red, blue or green.

The front of the tuck case (as seen above) also includes "Legends" in standard placement with a crest-like symbol donning the majority of the front.  At closer inspection you will see the intricate detail added to these cards and tuck case. You can tell right away where the name of this deck comes from as the back design (both on tuck case and on actual card backs) includes fire-breathing dragons, fierce tigers and other beast-like creatures as well as a lot of fire that swirls in and out of the two-way design.



The bottom of the tuck case includes a three of hearts reveal:



Speaking of reveals and as mentioned earlier, the deck design features some hidden details in the design. Coming with a QR Code equipped with a secret link in the flap of the tuck, the link unveils 8 riddles to be solved. These 8 riddles reveal elements that can be used for certain routines. The following riddles include:

• One way to amaze is found on the tip of a wing


• Riffle to stoke the flames of fire


• In the heart of a blind man, the eight is king


• Dragons reveal smoke and rubies


• Pearl is to dragon as Koi is to waterfall


• Hearts are found split in the embers


• What language do computers understand?


• An Lámh Fhoisteanach Abú

For the sake of this review, TuckCase.com will not directly go into pointing out each riddle but we will touch on some of the design elements they are calling out (It is up to the deck handler to put them together). These riddles certainly add to the "Legends" name and create somewhat of a legend or story out of the deck itself.



The Ace Of Spades continues the theme that the tuck case and back design set in motion by featuring a dragon prominently displayed within a spiked spade shape. The dragon's smokey breath exits the spade forming the deck's name "Legends" across the top. Unlike if the name of the deck was created with a separate banner or disconnected type, the use of the dragon's smoke to create the name of the deck is exceptionally creative as it ties the entire Ace together.



The Jokers feature an actual dragon simmering smoke. There is a city in the background, which is likely Hong Kong. The reason it is Hong Kong is because that is where deck creator Lawrence Sullivan resides. The 852 written in stone at the dragon's feet is actually the area code for Hong Kong. There is a man at the feet of the dragon which symbolizes somewhat of a "no fear" attitude.



One of the Jokers features a 2 of Spades reveal, which is quite difficult to read unless you really look close. Using it in a routine even may be difficult to point out to a spectator. There is also another interesting reveal that is the word "Ruby" designed right into the smoke of the dragon's breath. This element is also difficult to point out.



The court cards are standard Anglo American in design and color but have custom faces and elements built in. The addition of the custom faces further differentiates this deck from standard Bicycle cards. Anything more custom would change the traditional feel of the deck.





It is important to note that the indices are thick on top and thin on bottom, which creates an interesting but subtle one-way feel design to the cards.

Notice a few of the cards reversed to see the varying thicknesses....



Other than the one-way design, the number cards are standard.

Notes on Legends No. 852 Playing cards:

• The No. 852 comes from the area code for Hong Kong, which is where Lawrence Sullivan is based.


• The actual names of the deck colors are Porcelain Blue, Firecracker Red,  Jade Metallic Green.


• The cards have a varnish-like scent to them that is much different than USPCC paper-like scent.


• Very subtle one-way court and number cards.


• The riddles that reveal different hidden design elements creates a depth to these cards that other cards do not have.

Final Assessment: Despite there being a giant in the industry, some people (Conjuring Arts and Lawrence Sullivan) feel there could be better. With Legends, they set out to find a better product and some may agree they found it. While claiming these cards are better or superior than a USPCC product can be considered fighting words, there is no doubt the Legends offer some stiff competition minus the slightly obnoxious varnish-like scent. Call it a David and Goliath story or some other tale of triumph over the giant, the Legends put up a fight and are here to stay providing magicians and card handler's an exciting alternative to the industries leading brand. It will be interesting to see new card decks produced out of the Taiwan factory that made these cards.

Final Score: 9.8/10

Editors Note: The Legends No. 852 were sent to TuckCase.com from JP Playing Cards in the UK. JP Playing Cards is a leading retailer of custom and standard playing cards in the UK.  

Review: Encarded's Aurum Sovereign and Aurum White Gold

Encarded is a staple in the playing card community. It didn't take them long to get there thanks to releases like Aurum. Aurum was launched on Kickstarter in October of 2012 for early supporters and then released to the masses (5,000) shortly after. The deck comes in a few editions with the flagship deck being the purple "Sovereign" edition (4,500 released) and a special "White Gold" edition  also being released in very limited quantities (500). Both decks will be reviewed here on TuckCase.com in this post. There was also a very, very limited release of 90 Aurum Laser Cut edition decks.

To get started here is what Encarded.com has to say about Aurum:

Aurum is designed to be intricate, elegant and fit for the Venetian royalty that inspired it. Every card is intricately designed and features multiple metallic inks and was also carefully crafted to be "purposefully imperfect." The court figures are all based on the familiar Bicycle court but were painstakingly redrawn to have many subtle imperfections and asymmetric features. 

The specs:

Name: Aurum Sovereign and Aurum White Gold
Company: Encarded
Release Date: October/November 2012
Stock: Bee Casino Stock
Finish: Magic Finish
Colors: Deep purples, Gold
Face: Standard
Size: Poker

Before we go in depth, most are probably wondering what makes Aurum Sovereign different from the Aurum White Gold playing cards. The only difference in these two decks is with the tuck cases or card boxes. Sovereign features the purple tuck and White Gold features the pearlescent white tuck. As stated previously, Aurum Sovereign was released with 4,500 decks and the Aurum White Gold edition only released 500. The actual playing cards are not different.

On to the review...

The strongest element that both Aurum decks have over every other deck released in the playing card industry are their tuck cases. Aurum's tuck case features gold metallic inks, embossing, custom colors, pearlescent finish (White Gold edition) and custom diecut on the back.

Both tuck case designs features an intricate gold swirling centerpiece design reminiscent of the design/patterns on a Venetian mask.  This centerpiece design wraps around the front to the right side of the tuck case, which forces you to examine the entire case. You are eventually greeted with the unique diecut element on the back revealing the inside of the deck and the actual playing card.   While a lot of today's modern decks feature metallic inks and embossing, Aurum is taken an extra step further by adding the custom diecut element.

Although an incredible design style, the diecut feature does leave the actual cards more exposed to the elements so be mindful of that. If you put this deck in your pocket make sure the edges of the diecut do not get caught on anything before you take it out. You may want to use a card clip if you are going to take these over a friend's house for a weekend poker game.

The White Gold Edition features the white pearlescent finish as seen here:

Once you can get yourself away from admiring the tuck case, you will open the tuck case to a deck of 56 cards. The standard 52, two jokers and 2 gaff cards. The back design is a white bordered, purple back with the Venetian swirl design in the center creating the two way design. There is a continuous line that swirls in the background of the cards. This is more of a secondary but up-close design feature found while examining the cards beyond a glance. The background is then bordered by a gold line with an inside shadow. The line work combined with the border creates a depth to the cards that would not be there if it was just a solid purple background to white border.

Notice in the photo below you can see the swirls within the back design of the card:

The Ace of Spades features a spade in the form of what looks like a Venetian fan. The spade shape is in black with the more intricate design elements of the fan in gold. The spade pops out as the primary design element, while the gold creates the depth and ties the entire design in with the Venetian theme. A downside to the Ace of Spades is that the company's name is located on the card in an illegible small font in gold ink. Since the Ace of Spades also features the continuous line work in the background, it fights with the name. Ultimately, the name ends up getting lost.

The court cards are an interesting and exciting bunch. Although the court cards are in the Anglo-American style as your standard cards are, they are completely redrawn and recolored. If you look closely on each court card you will notice that there are minor differences in the faces, hands and dress. All of these differences make these court cards somewhat flawed but it is not a bad thing by any means. According to Paul this subtle design element was intentional. The differences just add to the amount of detail Paul puts into these cards. To the untrained eye, one will not notice a thing but if you are really paying attention to the detail you will be pleasantly surprised by this differences Paul decided to add.

With that, since this deck is inspired by Venetian royalty it would have been exciting to see some of the Venetian masks incorporated in with the court cards. Imagine a King of Spades designed to look like a Medico della peste or Plague doctor!

It should be noted that the court cards have somewhat of a wax-like or foggy look to them when compared to other standard court cards. It could be the line work + the matte like appearance due to the finish/stock + the color combos + the grayish background. At any rate, this is not a bad thing but it does not add to the design. It just exists on the cards. With that, the cards are not wax-like by touch or handling.

The number cards were given all new custom pips as seen in the image below:

The borders on the pips utilize the same type of line work found on the background on each and every card. This takes the pips from being somewhat standard recolored pips to pips with depth and character. These pips may even make you want to hold onto a 2-7 off suit starting hand in Texas Hold 'Em.  Actually, it may be exaggerated to say these cards will mess up your poker game (that is on you) but it proves the point that these cards are something to be admired. Just make sure you do it when you don't have money on the line.

Here is a close up image of the continuous line work found on the background of each and every card:

The Jokers feature two different colored Venetian Jokers that you may find at the Carnival of Venice. This is the biggest tie in to the theme of the deck given that not only do you see the line work but you will also see the elaborate masks that have been famous since the Renaissance.  A very nice touch and a great deck to use if you plan to use the Jokers.

The cards handle much like a standard Bee Deck of playing cards. These cards are great for playing poker and various card games as they stood the test of time after many shuffles, dealing and handling. They seemed a bit stiff at first but after a few passes at handling they become more comfortable but they never lost form.

Notes on Encarded's Aurum Playing Cards:

• Aurum is the latin term for gold. 


• The Carnival of Venice was actually banned in the late 1700's by the King of Austria. [source]


•  This is Paul Carpenter's second deck with Encarded. The first deck was the Tendril deck, inspired by the rain forests of Costa Rica.

Final Assessment: Encarded's Aurum is hands down a beautifully crafted deck with subtle elements for the designer type or for anyone that appreciates great design and detail. In other words, this deck holds more than what the average eye can point out. It is simple, yet detailed and elaborate. It is historical, yet in style. Designers should get this deck for inspiration, poker players should bring this out to spice a game up and collectors will want this deck for not only it's limited releases but for it's total beauty. Encarded is hot right now and they are only getting hotter.  Aurum is the deck to have and without it, your collection is incomplete.

Final Score: 9.7

Designers: Traction Explains Process Behind Upcoming Bicycle Sideshow Freaks Deck

In order to provide the very best for our readers, Tuckcase.com approached Traction, a Cincinnati based design firm, a few weeks ago with a request for a guest post about their work with The United States Playing Card Company. Traction agreed and we mapped out possible post ideas. Since USPCC is releasing the Sideshow Freaks Deck on July 1st, both of us agreed that a process piece explaining the design would be a good post to feature. Katherine Monasterio, a writer at Traction, wrote the following post with direct quotes from the Traction designers regarding their thoughts behind the design of the Sideshow Freaks Deck. We hope you enjoy this glimpse into the design process of an actual deck designed exclusively for USPCC!

Traction is but one member of the legion of design firms behind the quality work you see from the United States Playing Card Company. You've already seen Tuckcase.com cover our Speakeasy Deck, but today we wanted to show off another of our recent designs: the Sideshow Freaks Deck.

Picture it: Peanuts and popcorn. Bold yellow and red stripes everywhere you look. String lights guiding you through grass-carpeted avenues between tents. We wanted to recreate the feel of an old carnival full of classic characters like fire eaters, the bearded lady, sword swallowers, and more, so that's exactly what we did with the Sideshow Freaks deck. What does this process look like? We'll walk you through it.

Step One: Figure out who's on the face cards. With our theme in mind and card back ideas already flowing, we wanted to secure our cast of characters for the face cards. "I knew right away I wanted to keep the classic card illustration style," says Emily Webb, who designed and illustrated most of the face cards. "So that meant taking the Standard Deck faces and poses, and combining them with freakshow characters. It was like a puzzle, trying to figure out how they'd all symmetrically fit. That was definitely the hardest part."

Pictured here are a few candidates for jokers and card back characters:


Final Joker and face cards:



Close-up of the Queen of Diamonds aka The Bearded Lady:


Step Two: Hammer out the back design. Ronny Young, illustrator and videographer, designed and executed the card back based on Emily's face cards. He wanted to include some of the prominent characters, but also add a few surprises. “There are loads of hidden elements in the card back,” says Ronny. “At the top and bottom, the fangs and mouths of the snakes create an elephant shape. At the sides, the snakes—and the eyeball shape of the strongman in the middle of the deck—create an ‘808’ motif.” The placement of the characters, the tension of the tall man crushed into the space, and the fang-like sides of the circus tent all combine for a slightly creepy look into the world of these sideshow characters.

Pictured here is an early concept for the card back design:


Final back design:


Step Three: Finally, design the tuck. The tuck design fluctuated between the current two-headed lady, a ringmaster, and a fire-eater. Ronny, who also designed the tuck, weighed in on the final product. "The two-headed lady alludes to the classic two-headed sideshow character,” Ronny says. “But it also references the Greek muses Thalia and Melpomene, who you see on the happy-sad masks in theater. We even put the two-headed lady in front of curtains, inviting people to come in and experience the uneasy tension between delight and tragedy that exists in the world of sideshow freaks."

We choose a character for the final art on the tuck. The “Carnie Deck” was the working title of Sideshow Freaks.


Final Tuck Case:


After that, the only thing left was to carefully vectorize each of the illustrations to make them smooth and perfect for the final printing. We think the deck turned out marvelously. Do you?

Post Author: Katherine Monasterio

About Traction: Traction is a design firm located in Cincinnati, OH. They specialize in high end branding and creative projects for a multitude of clients such as The United States Playing Card Company, NBA, Mindbody, Prilosec OTC and many more including local and national brands.

Traction is also behind the Bicycle Speakeasy Deck, Club 808 and others. Check out other ways Traction worked with USPCC at Traction's portfolio!

Visit Traction on the web at TeamTraction.com!

Be sure to check out the Bicycle Sideshow Freaks deck when it is released next Monday on July 1st.