Detecting Crooked Dice

Not only are the casinos taken advantage of by cheats with crooked dice, but many unsuspecting craps players loose thousands of dollars at unfair craps games. Because throwing dice yields such random results, it is difficult to notice the difference in a short period of time. Only after playing for hours and hours, and sometime even days, might something seem uncharacteristic about the results. Even then, however, you'd have to be on a constant lookout and study the numbers and combinations each and every time while the reason you're there is to enjoy the game.

Although the casino employees make sure that crooked dice are not part of the game, there are still many cheats that are able to slip them in without raising any suspicions at all. There are also many games played outside of the casinos that incorporate dice, many of which use false ones to gain a greater advantage. The following short and simple tests can help you detect crooked dice and put your mind at ease should you have any doubts.

Loaded Dice

The Pivot Test
A loaded die is one with hidden weights inside. Since the weights are usually spread around the edges of the die so as to conceal any obvious marks as much as possible, the pivot test is perfect to tell whether or not the die is crooked. To test the die, hold it loosely between your thumb and forefinger by two diagonally opposite corners, putting as little pressure as possible and trying different combinations. If the die is loaded and one of the weighted sides is on top, the die will pivot as the heavier side swings around to the bottom. The movement is unmistakeable.

The Sinking Test
This is one of the best tests you can perform on a loaded die. Hold the suspected die just above the surface and drop it gently into the water, with a different number up each time; watch whether or not the cube spins as its sinking to the bottom of the glass and observe what number is facing upwards when the die lands. If the die lands on only one of two or three numbers, the die is loaded.

Bevelled Dice

The Wobble Test
A bevelled die with one of more sides sandpapered so that they are more rounded rather than flat and are more likely to land on one of the flat sides more often than probability should allow. To check for bevelled dice, hold the two dice and rub their sides together, trying different sides and combinations. The dice will 'wobble' back and forth if they are bevelled instead of lying flat against each other.