Crush

This has to be the first time I've ever seen a magic trick where the "impromptu and ungimmicked" version of the effect is more powerful than the gimmicked version. Don't get me wrong, both will play big to the right audience in the right environment, but the gimmick itself is a little hard to manage. This could work very well in a casual restaurant magic environment though, especially if they sell bottled water so you can adapt your gimmick to the standard bottle.

The impromptu version though is so much better. Yes, there is a little setup involved, but honestly it's nothing difficult and can be done in literally seconds. Then you can walk up to the spectator with your bottled water and talk for a few minutes before launching into the trick. Can they figure out how it's done? Yes, some of them will...but many will not--especially if you've been holding the bottle for a while and appearing casual throughout. You put the bottle in their hands and it crushes...that plays big.

The key to the impromptu version is knowing which type of bottled water is going to be the most impressive. Deer Park water has a very thin plastic, and when it crushes it seems to really implode and is very visual. Dasani, on the other hand, barely dents. It's something you'll play around with and figure out for yourself.

The price for this is all right, I suppose, though I doubt very many people will use the gimmick often (unless you perform in a jacket).