Expanded Shells & Inserts

Expanded Shell Sets use an expanded shell along with ungaffed inner coins which are hand-picked for an exact size-match as well as for overall appearance matching. With expanded shells, it is possible (with some searching) to find other ungaffed, matching fits. An expanded shell might also fit your other normal-sized gaffs, like your flipper coin.

When it comes to precision-crafted shell sets, you have a choice! Expanded vs Unexpanded. Some magicians swear by one, some swear by the other, and some use each in a different context. Each has its own strengths and its own limitations.

ATTENTION! – PLEASE READ
When purchasing Expanded Shells, please understand that they may or may not fit random coins or other Gaffs that you have previously purchased such as a Flipper coin, Copper/Silver coin etc. In Most cases, they will not fit.

Therefore I highly recommend investing in a complete shell set or a shell and as many coins as you would like to fit that shell at the same time.

To better understand the reason for this, please read further…..

All coins of the same denomination are not exactly the same. This applies to New uncirculated coins as well as old and worn coins. They are slightly oval and vary in diameter. To the human eye they all may look the same but I can assure you they are not. Older worn coins are more out of round and vary more in diameter because of the amount of years they have been in circulation and that contributes to uneven wear.

Silver (90%) coins wear more than nickel and copper because it’s a softer material.

Secondly, when you buy as a set, all the coins will match closely in appearance as well…in regards to the amount of wear (softness), Patina (colour) etc. This all depends on the specific preferences you make when ordering.

So when I make each set, I true up each coin in the set so they are identical in size. That way, when I make the Expanded shell, it will ensure that each coin fits properly.

Although the shell has been expanded, it is only expanded enough to properly fit the coins that have been resized to be true and identical within the set.

If you choose to only buy a shell (although strongly not recommended), I will purposely make the shell a bit bigger so that it does fit some random coins but once again, please understand that it does not mean that it will fit any other coin correctly.

Improper fitting coins can and will likely be either 1) Too loose which will cause it to have play inside the shell and be noisier. And will be harder to flash from the backside without spectator seeing a gap between the shell rim and the edge of the fitted coin. Or 2) Too tight resulting in the coin getting stuck inside the shell. This can result in severe and unrepairable damage to the shell. A stuck coin is not usually easy to remove without damaging the shell.