I just recieved my package of 6 decks last night.
Shipping: Wow! I can't believe the shipping! I ordered the cheapest shipping rate, 4-7 days and I got my order in three days. I was impressed.
9/10
Cardbox: The first thing I noticed after opening the cellophane wrapper was the card box. It felt a little different, that was because it is a matte finish.
I became a little worried because the decks I have seen that didn't have the glossy finish were typically the cheaper poor quality decks.
Cardbox artwork: Really cool! Chariots of anglels riding down from heaven.
It's probably the most artistic card box I have ever seen. The cardbox artwork beats the Tally Ho's s and Split Spades hands down and they ranked the highest in my opnion. 9 /10
Back design: Very nice, It's actually three colors, black, grey and white. It gives the deck a classy, professional look, again it reminds me of the Split Spades. 8/10
The back is also a one way design that is fairly easy to distinguish from a distance. I could find the flipped card from two feet away while quickly thumbing through the cards. The best one way back I have seen! 9/10
Plus, every card back was perfectly centered!
The only thing was the card backs were not as dark and rich as the cardbox.
The cardbox is black, the back design is lighter and and has more grey in it.
Faces: I noticed the deeper red on the pips right away. I really like it. Plus the blue on the court cards is also darker and richer and the yellow is replaced with a silver/grey color. I really like it alot! It is a very good complement to the back design. 8.5/10
Card handling: The first thing I noticed was the weight of the deck. It was noticably lighter than any of the E custom decks. Nothing special, just typical card stock. That coupled with the fact that the back is so detailed makes them feel delicate and breakable.
The sides were a little rough but after a few hours of handling that was not an issue.
I have been working with the same deck for about 6 hours now and the deck does not fan as well. It's starting to clump up and handle poorly.
I am not comparing them to E's custom decks. I have been putting them through the same conditions I would put a regular Bike through. Riffles, thumb fans, pressure fans, card springs, Faro shuffles and one-handed shuffles, Shape-Shifter.
Unfortunately the deck is about spent now, I have an old deck of Bikes that have been abused for hours longer and they handle better than my newly opened Guardians.
These cards are NOT suited for XCM or any special flourishes, don't expect them last if you do.
Handling= 6/10
Finish: It says Air-Cushion but they feel really slippery. I compared them to a newly opened Bike and the Bikes seem to work as a unit where as the Guardians seem to be a bit more all over the place. Wierd. 6/10
Bonus: Double backer! Great idea. Every deck of cards, that is dedicated for magic, should have a double backer and a blank card.
Overall the Guardians are what I expected. A nice design with below average handling. Overall rating= 5.5/10
Would I buy them again? Probably not, I would pay more for these cards if they made a better handling deck with thicker stock and better finish.
Shipping: Wow! I can't believe the shipping! I ordered the cheapest shipping rate, 4-7 days and I got my order in three days. I was impressed.
9/10Cardbox: The first thing I noticed after opening the cellophane wrapper was the card box. It felt a little different, that was because it is a matte finish.
I became a little worried because the decks I have seen that didn't have the glossy finish were typically the cheaper poor quality decks.
Cardbox artwork: Really cool! Chariots of anglels riding down from heaven.
It's probably the most artistic card box I have ever seen. The cardbox artwork beats the Tally Ho's s and Split Spades hands down and they ranked the highest in my opnion. 9 /10
Back design: Very nice, It's actually three colors, black, grey and white. It gives the deck a classy, professional look, again it reminds me of the Split Spades. 8/10
The back is also a one way design that is fairly easy to distinguish from a distance. I could find the flipped card from two feet away while quickly thumbing through the cards. The best one way back I have seen!
9/10Plus, every card back was perfectly centered!
The only thing was the card backs were not as dark and rich as the cardbox.
The cardbox is black, the back design is lighter and and has more grey in it.
Faces: I noticed the deeper red on the pips right away. I really like it. Plus the blue on the court cards is also darker and richer and the yellow is replaced with a silver/grey color. I really like it alot! It is a very good complement to the back design. 8.5/10
Card handling: The first thing I noticed was the weight of the deck. It was noticably lighter than any of the E custom decks. Nothing special, just typical card stock. That coupled with the fact that the back is so detailed makes them feel delicate and breakable.
The sides were a little rough but after a few hours of handling that was not an issue.
I have been working with the same deck for about 6 hours now and the deck does not fan as well. It's starting to clump up and handle poorly.
I am not comparing them to E's custom decks. I have been putting them through the same conditions I would put a regular Bike through. Riffles, thumb fans, pressure fans, card springs, Faro shuffles and one-handed shuffles, Shape-Shifter.
Unfortunately the deck is about spent now, I have an old deck of Bikes that have been abused for hours longer and they handle better than my newly opened Guardians.
These cards are NOT suited for XCM or any special flourishes, don't expect them last if you do.
Handling= 6/10
Finish: It says Air-Cushion but they feel really slippery. I compared them to a newly opened Bike and the Bikes seem to work as a unit where as the Guardians seem to be a bit more all over the place. Wierd. 6/10
Bonus: Double backer! Great idea. Every deck of cards, that is dedicated for magic, should have a double backer and a blank card.
Overall the Guardians are what I expected. A nice design with below average handling. Overall rating= 5.5/10
Would I buy them again? Probably not, I would pay more for these cards if they made a better handling deck with thicker stock and better finish.
