The Clickspring Playing Card Press Is A Work Of Art

We have no idea what a playing card press is, nor do we care. All we know is that after watching [Chris] from Clickspring make his playing card press, we want it.

Digging a little deeper, [Chris] offered to make this card press for [Chris Ramsay], a magician who specializes in cardistry, or the art of illusions with cards. The feel of playing cards is crucial to performing with them, and a card press keeps a deck of cards in shape. Not a commonly available device, [Clickspring Chris] designed one in an elaborate style that brought in elements from [Chris Ramsay]’s logo.

Like all Clickspring videos, this one is a joy to watch, but in a departure, there’s no narration — just 30 minutes of precision machining and metal finishing. [Chris] has gotten into metal engraving in a big way, and used his skills to add details to everything from the stylized acorn at the top to the intricate press plate, all of which was done freehand. And those snakes! Made from brass rod and bent into shape by hand, they wrap around the side supports to form [Chris Ramsay]’s logo. All the brass ended up gold plated, while all the screws ended up with a heat-blued finish. Settle in and enjoy the video below.

It’s been a while since the Clickspring skeleton clock was finished, in which time [Chris] has been working on a reproduction of the Antikythera mechanism. His video output slowed considerably, though, when he made a new finding about the mechanism, an observation worthy of writing up as a scholarly paper. We can’t begrudge him the time needed to pursue that, and we’re glad he found time for this project too.

Thanks to [RandyKC] for the tip.

31 thoughts on “The Clickspring Playing Card Press Is A Work Of Art

  1. > His video output slowed considerably, though, when he made a new finding about the mechanism, an observation worthy of writing up as a scholarly paper.

    Which one was that? All his videos about antikythera mechanism are beautifully made and insightful, so i’ve probably missed something.

    1. I’m so happy that the long delay is due to a happy discovery, and not some tragedy. I check almost every day for the next Antikythera installment, and was beginning to worry that Chris had died or something.

  2. “We have no idea what a playing card press is, nor do we care”
    Ignorance is bliss?
    A card press is used to freshen and/or maintain a deck by removing shuffle induced warping from the cards.

    1. “I don’t care” as in “Despite what I said, I know exactly what it is and what it does, and even though I don’t need it, I want it because it’s beautiful and I appreciate the craftsmanship more than the utility.”

  3. What would be a fair price if this were a commissioned piece? I’m thinking something like $40-50,000.

    The idea that he made this for what seems to be a stranger on YouTube unsolicited is mind-bending.

    1. Ramsay made a video when he received the device, in which he mentions that Chris spent 200 hours working on it. Give a conservative rate of $100/hr that is about $20k. That said, it is not clear to me if this was actually a commissioned piece at all–possibly some sort of charity piece? it is not like Clickspring needs money, he has brought in about $250k on Patreon alone in the last year–and he hasn’t even released any 2019 Antikythera mechanism videos!

        1. I think he probably meant in the direction of “The guy is good in a craft that is rare, to the point where he probably has more projects than time”. However, 100$/hr seems excessive, that’s business consultant, not craftsman/engineer range, and consultants don’t necessarily have full 160h/month as billable hours.

          Of course, this counts as a work of art, so it’s fuzzy in the other direction. But just based on skilled craftsman working hours, i think it’s an overestimation.

    1. Looks like he is gold plating the parts. So it would be one bath for cleaning, one bath for a pre-coating (I think silver or copper in this case, to give a very bright luster) and then the final bath for the gold. (then 2 more baths for neutralizing and cleaning)

  4. I have to admit I didn’t watch the video but just from the picture, WOW, that is a thing of beauty which should be in use a century after the artist is in the ground. Just amazing craftsmanship!

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