This effectively means that you should look for prize pits that aren’t more than about halfway full. Be on the lookout for prize pits where all the stuffed animal prizes are facing outward and look very tightly packed. The prizes in those machines will probably be very hard to pick up. Also, a claw machine that isn’t full is a good sign, in that it means other people have been succeeding at winning prizes, indicating that the machine likely isn’t rigged.
4-pronged claws are great for grabbing around the chest area of a stuffed animal. When you use this type of claw on a stuffed animal, try to maneuver the claw so that the four prongs are positioned both above and below the arms with the central part of the claw close to the neck or high chest area.
For example, when the player ahead of you goes to pick up a prize, look to see how loose the grip on the claw is. If it’s a very loose grip and doesn’t hold on to prizes very well, you probably shouldn’t play that machine, since it’ll be very difficult to win. Another thing to pay attention to is how easy the crane is to move around. It will be useful to know ahead of time how jerky or smooth the crane moves around over the prize pit.
Note that rounder prizes, like baseballs and footballs, are usually more difficult to pick up than angular objects, like stuffed animals.
If you don’t have anyone around to help, judge the claw’s position by looking at the mirror inside the claw machine. The mirror can serve as your second person.
This is assuming you only have 15 seconds before the claw drops. If you have 30 seconds, spend about the first 20 seconds moving your claw into position. Be sure to look at the position of the claw from the side of the machine, as well, to be as accurate as possible in your positioning.
Be very careful making your adjustments in these last 5 seconds. Don’t move the claw so much that it’s completely out of position for picking up the prize.
Note that on some machines, the claw will automatically drop when time runs out, no matter where it is.
For example, if there’s another prize on top of the prize that you want, use the claw to bump the first prize out of the way to put the prize you want in a better position.
For best results, your budget should not exceed the actual value of the prize. If the prize you want costs $5, for example, don’t spend more than $5 trying to win it at the machine.
For example, steer clear of prize pits where the prizes are high-end pieces of technology, like smartphones, or have money wrapped around them.
Prizes near the drop box are ideal because if the claw drops your prize, there’s a better chance it will fall into the drop box. If a prize is very low, this also increases the likelihood that the claw will drop the prize as it’s picking it up.
