| Sleight of Hand: The Mechanic's Grip
Much cheating occurs through the perfection of sleight of hand in manipulating cards in the deck. This is facilitated by a special manner of holding the deck to perform these cheating maneuvers. One such way of holding the deck is called the Mechanic's Grip.
To best understand this grip, pick up a deck of cards as though you were preparing to deal some cards out. It is likely that you are currently holding the deck in the palm of your hand with all four fingers on the long side of the deck, and your thumb on the top of the deck. When you deal, you use your thumb to push a single card onto the tips of your four fingers. The thumb holds the card in this place until the thumb and index finger of the other hand grabs it and deals it across the table.
If you have been playing cards for enough of your life, then it is also likely that you have never noticed that this is how you deal. With time, it becomes an acquired natural motor skill that requires no conscious thought.
Now, holding the deck in this manner, move your index finger and middle finger from the long side of the deck to the short side of the deck away from yourself. In a very general sense, this is the Mechanic's Grip. It is through this grip that such cheating as peeking, second dealing, and bottom dealing are facilitated. Note that more of the deck is now being concealed by your hand.
Another Mechanic's Grip is to hold the deck with the thumb on top of the deck, the index finger holding around the front edge, the two middle fingers beneath the deck, and the little finger around the rear edge. This manner also ensures that much of the deck is being covered by the dealer's hand.
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