Brass ring

For the musical group, see The Brass Ring.

Catching the brass ring.
Brass Ring dispenser and target on Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk's Looff Carousel in Santa Cruz, California The dispenser is visible as an arm crossing to the upper left, where a rider is grabbing the ring

A brass ring is a small grabbable ring that a dispenser presents to a carousel rider during the course of a ride. Usually there are a large number of iron rings and one brass one, or just a few. It takes some dexterity to grab a ring from the dispenser as the carousel rotates. The iron rings can be tossed at a target as an amusement. Typically, getting the brass ring gets the rider some sort of prize when presented to the operator. The prize often is a free repeat ride.

The figurative phrase to grab the brass ring is derived from this device.