Concealments
This book and its author Steve Santini were recently name the #1 author and the #1 must have book of 2002 by the Escape Artist Reference Library. As well Stephen Forrester, who has EVERY single book ever written on escapes (no kidding!), has proclaimed it the greatest and most original book on escapology methods that has ever been written.So I thought I'd do a review for those interested.
As entertainers we are told to think “outside the box.” With “Concealments” Steve Santini has moved a half-mile from “the box” then blown “the box” up with TNT.
Magicians before you exit, thinking this is for escape artists only, please read how you, yes YOU, could benefit from this book along with the escape community.
“Concealments: Hiding tools of the escape artist trade,” by Steve Santini is 99 pages, spiral bound. The book is broken down into 19 chapters, 16 chapters are on concealments the rest on “Micro keys and lock picks,” media coverage, supplies and resources.
Imagine if you will: being thoroughly searched from head to foot, then handcuffed with 5 pairs of police handcuffs the front cuff (closest to your wrists) being blue boxed (a resin box making the cuffs ridged and pick proof) the blue box is padlocked then a pair of thumbcuffs are applied to your thumbs. Yet you escape in a few minutes simply by sticking your hands in something as simple as a cardboard box or under a handkerchief.
Steve Santini makes this escape child’s play for the reader through his own years of trial and error. The best part of this book is that I sat down to try and make a lot of the stuff in Concealments before I wrote this review and 100% of the time I had a working item without buying special tools, drills, padlocks etc. or having an engineering background (I took cooking and skipped shop in high school, for most items I’ve made from other instructional books I have spent literally $50 + dollars to make 3 failures per effect and the fourth only works half the time before I gave up.)
Steve takes you through the process of what works best in certain situations exactly how to make what you need to get it done and the best part is he does a step by step professional pictorial of the “how’s.” This guy is a near genius when it comes to making restraints work for you rather than against you, and he shows you roughly how much you can conceal in an item at one time.
Worth the price alone is the “Mini Keys” chapter, which shows you how to make various items to conceal that will aid you in opening handcuffs; every picture is scaled with a ruler so you can’t screw up!!!
There are only a few concealment items that I would not use due to the amount of work and knowledge needed but the other 14 are worth double the price of the book and to that Steve shows you how to gimmick a few items to do strictly escape work, also worth more than the price is “The World’s Most Dangerous Pick” which you have to see to believe! Most of us spend $50 in hopes of getting one good effect from any given manuscript, all the information here is useable and the first book that is truly worth every cent.
Mention this review and you can get you own autographed copy for $62 USD (includes airmail shipping) to Titanic Concepts Inc. 142 7th St. N.W., Portage la Prairie. Manitoba, Canada R1N 2L1.
Or special order from Strictly Underground
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