Tips

by Bruce "Charlie" Johnson, Reprinted with permission from Laugh-Makers Variety Arts Magazine

 

You can modify your own juggling clubs for comedy purposes. The altered clubs can't be used for difficult tricks, but work well to fill specific entertainment needs. If you keep your props in a stand or table, it is easy to switch a normal club for a gimmicked one.

 

You need a one-piece molded club for most modifications described here. These are available from several manufacturers, and are usually the least expensive made.

 

Decoration of the club is important both in terms of your image and for hiding gimmicks. Mylar, adhesive-backed vinyl, plastic tape and enamel paints for plastic models can all be used for decoration. Use match­ing decoration on your normal and gim­micked clubs.

 

BOTTLE

If the handle of the club ends in a knob, pull it off and drill a hole in the end of the handle. Fill the club with liquid and replace the knob. If your club does not have a detachable knob, drill a hole in the handle and plug it with a cork. Place the bottle club upright in your juggling stand. Upon finishing a club sequence, drop the clubs into your stand, wipe your brow, then pull out the bottle club and a glass. Pour yourself a drink.

 

BENT HANDLE

Saw through the handle. Insert a PVC irrigation pipe elbow the same diameter as the handle into the cut section of the club. With mine, I put a piece of dowel rod into the handle using screws to hold everything together. Tape over the handle and pipe elbow so that it all looks the same.

 

While juggling, "accidentally" drop a club into your stand and then pull out the bent­handled one. Begin juggling before you notice the damage. W.C. Fields advocated bending instead of breaking props because a broken prop is gone, but a bent one is still there for the audience to see and laugh at. A bent club is harder to juggle, but worth practicing a few tricks with.

 

BREAK-AWAY CLUB

This is the most complicated of the comedy clubs to construct, but it's well worth the effort. Its construction is based on the break-away wand. You will be adding wooden plugs with a hole through the center to guide a cord. Using a slotted gimmick to keep the cord taut holds the segments together. Removing the gimmick allows the segments to separate. (See illustration.)

 

Cut off the end of the club. If your club has an end pad, make the cut between the pad and club body.

Attach a dowel rod to the center of the end. Screw an eye into the end of the dowel for attaching the cord.

 

Cut through the belly of the club corresponding to the edge of a decorative band. This section (B) does not have a plug.

 

Make the next cut where the handle meets the belly. Cut a circle of hardwood which matches the widest interior diameter of the section. Taper it so that it fits into segment (C). Glue and screw the wood plug in place. Round off the exposed portion of the club so that when section (B) is pushed down onto it, it aligns with section (C), but when released it tips easily. Drill a hole through the center of the plug.

 

Cut a small section off the handle. Cut a dowel a little longer than the section and taper it so it fits into the handle. Round off the exposed portion as before. The other end should be flat. Drill a hole through the center of the plug.

 

Cut off a 1-1/2 inch section of the handle and discard. Cut a 1-1/2 inch piece of dowel rod with the same diameter as the handle. With a saw, cut a groove a little more than halfway through the dowel. Drill a hole near the end on the side opposite the groove (see cross section.)

 

Make another cut between the handle and tip. Make two wooden plugs to fit flush with the ends of this section. Drill a hole, the same diameter as a drinking straw, through each plug. Glue a drinking straw between the plugs to form a conduit for the cord.

 

Replace the portion of handle the tip snaps onto with a short section of dowel rod with a hole drilled through its center. The dowel rod must be short enough to leave some room inside the tip.  Choose a strong cord, such as used for macramé. Tie it onto the screw eye and thread it through a the sections in order, moving up the club, omitting the gimmick. After passing it through the last dowel, thread a nut or washer onto it. Tie the cord onto the nut, force the gimmick into place, and test the tension. If the club sags, shorten the cord. If you can't insert the gimmick, loosen the knot. Tie fishing line through the hole in section (E) and attach the other end to the dowel. Snap the tip onto the dowel, but don't fasten it permanently because the tension on the cord will change with use, requiring adjustment.

 

With the gimmick in place, you can han­dle the club normally and juggle with it. Knock the gimmick out and the club will seem to break in mid-air. You can continue juggling with it flip-flopping if you catch it by section (C). Because the gimmick is tethered to the end of the handle, you can ignore it.