Why are (most) casino dice red?

Is there a security reason? I say 'most' in the title because I have seen blue dice in use occasionally at the M when they first opened.

Dice come in lots of colors. I've seen red, blue, green, and purple in live casino use, and you can get many other colors in precision models. It's ideal if the dice are readily distinguishable from the felt so surveillance can see them, especially with older b&w cameras, but I've also seen blue dice on a blue layout so I guess anything goes. For example:

http://www.gpigaming.com/bud-jones-casino-dice.html

FYI, I just discovered GPI Gaming has just re-done their website. It looks to be more user-friendly now...

Possibly to lure Asians to the craps table?

Dark background, white spots ... for a game often played in darkened alley ways and dark gin joints. And the tradition was simply carried on once bank craps became established since the acceptance of banked craps affected the dice-buyers and dice-users but the manufacturer had no reason to change the product?

Why is one one Knave (Jack) depicted with armament?
No great current need to continue the tradition that has been with us for centuries but no great need to abandon it either.

Some casinos worry so much about their dice they grind up the retired dice under strict security escort and never give any die away as a souvenir. Procedures vary.

In New Mexico retired cards are sorted by dealers. In Nevada, its done by prison inmates. Have times changed for the better or for the worse?

Red is a lucky color in Asian culture.

Red is the color that indicates you're not in the black anymore. (i.e. you've parted ways with your bankroll) But I don't think that has anything to do with it ...probably.

Quote: DrEntropy

Is there a security reason? I say 'most' in the title because I have seen blue dice in use occasionally at the M when they first opened.

Before today's process of injection molding was used, dice were cut from sheets of cellulose, and hand-painted. This material was actually somewhat chemically unstable, and sometimes a sheet hanging to cure (dry) would explode. A chemical--I don't know what it was called--was injected into the cooling cellulite to stop this from happening, and as I recall, that chemical came in bulk, and was a deep red color--so red dye was primarily used to color the sheets, because other colors clashed with the red stabilizer, and made the dice look a kind of sickly green.

Of course, the current method of manufacture makes it easy to make the dice any color desired, but the above is why people "expect" casino dice to be red.

Quote: FleaStiff

Why is one one Knave (Jack) depicted with armament?

The answer is La Hire--see the first sentence of the second section of Here

Quote: FleaStiff

In New Mexico retired cards are sorted by dealers. In Nevada, its done by prison inmates. Have times changed for the better or for the worse?

Now, the new shufflemaster "lowrider" card dispensers have an option to sort cards. does it a minute a deck, and we use it on a table close down.

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