Hello, so I have read multiple topics talking about Standard vs Traditional cut decks, and info for faroing etc, but none of those answer my inquiries. I know there are multiple ways of faroing: front to back, back to front, with the top pack above or below etc. I know that if you faro perfectly the normal ways 8 consecutive times, you will end up with the deck in the exact same order as below. But I have also heard that there is a way, without sleights, to faro the cards, but when pushing both faroed parts together, having them still in the same order. I heard it has something to do with faroing in vs. out. Can anyone clear me up on this? Thx.
Simple. There is no way to do it without using either a gimmick (which I've never heard of) or some sleight of hand. The sleight of hand method is actually very simple. Go to T11 and download Homer Liwag's "Filipino False Faro" video; it has excellent instruction both in standard faro shuffling and in making a convincing-looking faro or weave shuffle into a false shuffle. (Weave shuffles are "imperfect faro" shuffles, where some of the card are clumped together and weren't weaved apart during the shuffle.)
What you referred to above as the "normal" way to faro is a little incorrect. There are two ways to faro, both being "normal" - an in-faro and an out-faro. The difference between them is that out-faro shuffling leaves the top and bottom cards unchanged when the shuffle is completed. An in-faro makes them one card away from the top and bottom, respectively.
Eight out-faro shuffles will restore a deck to its original order.
26 in-faro shuffles will bring a deck into perfect REVERSE order.
52 in-faro shuffles, therefore, will restore the deck to its original order as well.
But who has time for all that extra shuffling, right? Most people simply use the out-faro and call it a day. But some performers take advantage of the fixed mathematics of how faro shuffles alter the order of the deck in predictable ways and use it to set up the deck into an order that helps them facilitate a particular trick. Ever see the storytelling tricks where the magician flips over the cards and each becomes an element of the story just before the card is flipped over? "Jack lived on 357 King Street, upstairs from the club" - and he flips over a Jack, 3, 5, 7, King and a club-suited card (probably the Ace) in that order, etc. Reverse-engineering faro shuffles to order the cards exactly as needed, when needed, is one way to get that trick done.
What is arguably the most difficult piece of sleight of hand in all of card magic (and perhaps ALL magic in general) is one of Ricky Jay's specialties - a tabled faro shuffle that looks exactly like a legitimate table riffle shuffle.
Another video you might find of interest in learning about faro shuffles would be the recently-released "Anti-Faro" - I know Dan and Dave are selling it and I think Theory11 is as well. It would allow you to faro a deck in one shuffle, "un-faro" it in the next shuffle and there you have it, back to the original order.
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