The magician enlists the assistance of a volunteer from the audience. The magician ties the volunteer’s thumbs together with a pipe cleaner to show how difficult or even impossible it is for the volunteer to easily escape.
 
The volunteer’s thumbs are untied and then the volunteer securely ties the magician’s thumbs together with another pipe cleaner. Despite such bondage, the performer can catch rings tossed to him and they penetrate onto the magician’s arm! The magician can move his tied hands through a microphone stand or even through one of the volunteer’s arms!
 
There are many different variations on how to do the Thumb Tie. Our experience is that the use of pipe cleaners is the easiest and perhaps the most effective version of the effect. This simple manuscript download describes the working of this dynamic magical effect, and includes performance tips and ideas to embellish this great mystery. 001CBMTHUMBTIE