Roulette Wheel Magnets 101 — Everything You Need to Know

When you enter a hazy land-based casino, there are thousands of people looking for a moment of thrill. Roulette attracts a variety of players — physicists, professionals, the addicted, beginners, and entertainment-hungry visitors. In the center of it all is the roulette table, under the watchful eye of the croupier, the pit boss, and the casino manager. Roulette wheel magnets are one of the obsessions of the players keen on uncovering the secret to winning at roulette. Numerous theories attempted to find the weaknesses of the mighty wheel of fortune.

There is something about betting that propels people to cheat in casino games. Roulette is one of the most popular casino games to cheat at. The compulsion to beat it is the ultimate prize apart from the large sum of money, of course.

Ever since roulette was first introduced in establishments in France, it has been creating a whirlwind of thrill, excitement, and expectations. The game is often under surveillance, but the players keep abusing the lack of focus of the casino employees. Roulette magnets have been used ever since the brilliant invention of Blaise Pascal, a French physicist and inventor.

Pascal’s perpetual motion machine was a rudimentary form of the roulette wheel we know today. Later on, Pascal’s invention took several different forms.

Roulette Wheel Concept and Components

The “Devil’s wheel” is the nickname of the roulette wheel, rightfully earned by the secret it holds. All the numbers on it sum up to the infamous total of 666. The devil’s number is the same for both European and American layout. The only difference between the two is the order of numbers. What they have in common are the components.

The roulette wheel consists of:

• Rotor (the rotating part of the wheel where all the number pockets are)
• Stator (the stationary part of the wheel with a spindle)
• Apron (the slanted part where all deflectors are placed)
• Deflectors (the vertical and horizontal obstacles on the apron which lead to rotor)
• Frets (the dividers between each numbered pocket)
• Wheel Track (the slightly sloped static part of the wheel, where the ball keeps spinning)

The basic construction of the wheel has specific requirements. Those which do not comply with these conditions are considered biased or flawed.

• The weight is distributed evenly
• The roulette ball and wheel are manufactured from non-magnetic materials to prevent interference with magnetic properties
• The numbered pockets are the same size, and the ball lands smoothly in them
• The cylinder rotates freely, while all other parts are firmly static

The construction and materials of the wheel often create suspicious movements of the ball, and both players and pit bosses often confuse it with a rigged game. The main reason why the ball is rolling around the wheel is the material that it is made of. The roulette ball used to be made of porcelain, but today, it is made of Teflon, Ivorine, or both. The usual reasons why the ball changes its behavior are its mechanical properties, rotor speed, or simple chance.

When the croupier releases the ball, the distance from its starting place to where it stops spinning should be the same every time. However, there are several typical occurrences until the ball comes to a stop. Occasionally, it bounces against the frets and even goes backward, which makes it seem as if the game was rigged. Another common example is when the ball rolls at a high speed. At some point, it gets stuck rolling on the edge before falling into a pocket.

The Concept of Magnets in a Rigged Roulette Wheel

In the past, many operators without a license used old roulette wheels which were easily rigged. By modifying the wheel with elements not belonging there, they gained an advantage in the game. Nonetheless, there are still casinos today using fraud to earn money. Some of the fraudulent wheels are affordable and easily ordered from China.

Magnetic Ball

The idea is to place a magnet in the ball’s core and influence it with another below the table. The tactics worked since the early ’70s all through the ’80s for both the casinos and the players.

Magnetic Pockets

The simplest way of cheating the game is placing the electromagnet beneath the surface of the number slots. That way, the ball is magnetized with the north side of the magnet facing outward. A simple click of the button could stop the ball from landing on the winning number. Rogue casinos often used this strategy to prevent high rollers from winning.

Casinos’ Roulette Wheel Magnets — Can the Operators Cheat in Roulette?

Reputable casinos avoid meddling with the games because not only do they risk losing clients but also a multimillion-dollar business. Majority of casinos are licensed and regulated within jurisdictions where gambling is a common form of entertainment. Las Vegas and Macau governments have strict regulations and laws regarding the issue of fraudulent games.

It cannot be said with certainty if a casino uses magnets. Many of them have pit bosses, who check the wheels and balls before the croupiers start working at the roulette tables. By no means is it impossible for casino employees to purposefully influence the table and change the outcome of the game — one of the reasons why players seldom visit the aisles with electronic roulette, which is entirely automated.

For instance, pocket separators can be loosened to produce a biased wheel. What it means is that certain numbers will be called out more than others. The croupiers are strictly prohibited from changing the wheel or altering it in any way. In addition, there is no reason for them to cheat players deliberately.

Can Players Cheat at Roulette With Magnets?

In the past, cheating with magnets was common in gambling houses. Enthusiastic players would employ entire teams to assist them in scamming the casinos and not getting caught. Many of them became advocates of casino security, while others ended up in prison cells.

A few years ago, a gang of Germans entered an Austrian casino winning over $300,000. According to the casino security, the group used a magnetic device hidden in a wristwatch. One of them influenced the ball to land in three pockets, while others used a distraction. By placing a magnet inside the ball, the players could easily alter the odds of winning against the house.

Conclusion

Wheels in land-based casinos can be altered to achieve a fraudulent result. Nowadays, only few casinos would risk their license for an additional few dollars of profit. When it comes to online roulette, it is operated in a different way. The only rigging possible is that the software provider alters the software if the company has a deal with one or more online casinos. Again, losing an entire business for a couple of dollars is not worth it.