Sandfield’s Dovetail Donut

When it comes to wooden dovetails, you cannot have better than the designs from the Sandfield brothers and crafted by Perry McDaniel. The quality is awsome, the mechanism clever, the wood wonderful, well you cannot go wrong!!

Don't they look delicious?

"Donut" dovetails are not common at all, and this may be the only one that exists. Usually you have the common shape: square or triangle. So this is nice to see a new shape :)

As usual with Perry's craftmanship, the quality is very good. The fit is perfect (which is very appreciated not to be spoiled!) and the wood is soft to touch. The fit being perfect, the dovetail joints are very sharp. So I cannot recommand more than you take a lot of care where you put your fingers when trying to solve and reassemble the puzzle....

Having said that, the mechanism is pretty unusual and completely new among the Sandfield's puzzles, but it works!

No wonder that you will like this donut, one bite and you're in paradise!!

Clive box

The clive box, aka one piece packing puzzle, was designed an crafted by Simon Nightingale for IPP 19 in London, pretty long time ago.

Easy to understand the name of "one piece packing puzzle" as the goal is to pack the cube inside the box. Given that you have only one piece to pack, you should not have to much difficulties to do so....but who knows...If you have already played with some Nightingale's, his puzzles always look pretty straight forward, until you play with them and notice some nice features :)

The difficulty is not high and it's changing: I mean you can solve it under 5 minutes with a bit of luck or spend many more minutes. This is a really nicely made little puzzle and it hides well its mechanism.

I wish I had the diagram of the internals because, it would be fun to see that.

On the way to be solved :-)

I love this puzzle, despite its not really high difficulty, I do think the mechanism is cool and pretty new.

This is definitely a must-have in your collection and it's highly collectible, don't miss the opportunity if you can grab one. In my opinion, this is the coolest packing puzzle that will entertain you without the usual frustration that comes with packing puzzles!

Time for some new foldings

Here are my latest foldings, hope you will like them, don't hesitate to leave a comment :)

As usual, I can consider selling them

Very nice look, and pretty difficult to assemble...

 So many steps to make this one....

 One piece of paper only. Clever locking system.

A very complex folding! This is like a spring. For sure, the more you play the fastest it will be damaged. After all, it's only paper, not metal spring :-)

Dot box

3D printed puzzles are being more and more common and available to puzzle collectors. Actually you can do things with 3D printers that would be either impossible or too difficult with normal techniques.

So here is a new kind of puzzle designed by James Dalgety and exchanged in London in 2014.
By new, I mean that he invented a new principle. And yes, I am sure you have no other puzzles in your collection that you can open in the same way.

Despite being made out by 3D printers, the quality is pretty fine and you should not have issues regarding fit for example, but remember that it's not metal and thus you have to manipulate the puzzle with care!

The goal of this puzzle is to open the small box on the right picture above.

You can open the puzzle with several method, but one (the official one) work always or more often than the other ones.
Once open you will see how simple the mechanism is but you will face another puzzle: how does it really work. Even the designer does not really have the explanation!
I think that if the puzzle was made out of plexi (or any other transparent material) and then the solving process recorded with high speed camera, you would have more hints to understand it.

Solved!

To reassemble the puzzle I used an external tool, because you cannot apply the same method as you should do when you solve the puzzle. And you will understand why you cannot when you hold the puzzle. So 2 possibilities: use external tools or some patience and dexterity (that I am sure it's not the expected reassembling process!)....It's up to you, needless to say which method I used :-)

To conclude, an intriguing puzzle that will keep you puzzling for some time. Good, isn't it?

CFF Jubilee Edition puzzle: disc & crown

With some special edition (like 50 or 100), the CFF booklet comes with some puzzle(s). You need to be member of NKC which entitles you to receive some booklets with puzzle news and analysis inside.

Several puzzles competed and a choice was made regarding the price of the puzzle, its shape (to be mailed easily), the design (which ideally would incorporate the words "CFF", "100", "2016").

The puzzle chosen was designed by Michel van Ipenburg and crafted by Robrech Louage out of trespa and is a n-ary puzzle, meaning that you have a sequence of repetitive moves to progress on your puzzle journey. Not being a professional of n-ary puzzles, I have not yet recognized the precise pattern. But don't worry, this is not a difficult puzzle and does not requires thousands of moves. So it's perfectly suitable for all puzzlers!
The goal is disassemble the 2 disks and then reassemble them so that you can see the 3 words written through the 3 holes.

I must admit than being new to this kind of puzzle I was also naive and it appeared that it was super easy to disassemble the puzzle because the maze looked like the same, so in very few moves it would be ok. But actually it is not the case! So when it seems that you can move a bit but not completely a pin, don't use force at all, it's normal and you will have to make some more moves to progress.

I must add something: this is a limited edition of 500 and no other will ever be made, so take care of it even if it won't be the most expensive puzzle in your collection :-)

As you can see, the 2 disks are attached with a small scotch tape which allows not to be spoiled, and it does not (actually for mine) leave any sticky marks.

There was another small surprise: another puzzle, very easy, but still nice designed by Roland Koch:

The goal is to let the puzzle how "CFF" and "100" on both sides by rotating the 3 disks. First you need to open the black button and rearrange the disks as mention in the instruction and next solve it.

I whish to have received all the puzzles that were compete with each other to be shipped with this special edition of the CFF booklet, but well, I also did not expect to receive any puzzles, so I was very pleased to received 2 puzzles!

Ring box

The title of this post is not really specific to this metal puzzle designed and crafted by Gary Foshee some time ago, because many puzzles are called "ring box" (like one small puzzle made out of corian designed and crafted by Frank Chambers, that I reviewed before).

Regarding the design: very nice and very well made like most (if not all) Gary's puzzles. The puzzle is like a small metal cylinder with a button that you can push on the top (and that does not make anything special?....) and something ratling inside, maybe the ring?

Oh yes, and the puzzle also comes with a small piece of paper attached to the black pouch with a paperclip, where it's written "solution" !!!

This is not the first time that I see a puzzle coming with the solution (?) and it reminds me some old Strijbos'. You have several possibilities: either the designer wanted to make fun of you by trying to mean that what you see is what's needed to solve the puzzle whereas it's not. Or the designer did provide you with all the tools needed. It's up to you to investigate and try things :)

If you consider that what you see is all the tools useful to solve the puzzle, then you have a piece of paper, a pouch and a paperclip, but what to do? And when? Because when looking at the puzzle it seems that you do not need all these things....No you cannot put the paperclip in the small hole on the bottom of the puzzle (I am sure you will try), no you cannot put the puzzle in the black pouch, shake it and like with a bit of magic the puzzle solved itself (I am sure you will not try that haha).

This puzzle has a simple mechanism, but a very very efficient one and for me solving this puzzle was pleasant because Gary implemented a new kind of mechanism/solving process. So it's not only a nice and collectible puzzle to have but also a one-of-a-kind mechanism.
But take care: you have to reassemble the puzzle in the way you solved it. I mean: don't try "stupid things" (like what I did...but I managed to sort it out and reassemble the puzzle!) because you could jammed the puzzle for good. The collectors who have this puzzle will understand how this puzzle can be jammed....(don't try that!).

I am sure now you wonder if it was a ring which was ratling inside the puzzle, here is the end of the suspense :)

Maybe the ring is involved in the solution process??

L-I-Vator 2

I did not have time to write a review last week, so I will publish my Thursday review a bit in advance.

I have already reviewed the puzzle L-I-Vator designed by Laszlo Molnar and crafted by Brian Menold. And this time I will review another puzzle in the series of the L-I-Vator puzzles (maybe there will be some more?....)

So what's the differences between L-I-Vator 1 & 2 ?

The size of the new puzzle is a bit bigger and you can also notice that the bottom of the box aligns perfectly to the box for the first version and not for the second version, but it's normal!
The woods are truly wonderful for both but I still prefer more the colors of the second version.

The pieces are not the same (but this is pretty obvious) and for the second version they are pretty weird, I like them!

Maybe you've guessed that you will need some rotations? No? Now you know :-)

All Lazslo's puzzles so far need rotations to be solved and that's what make them so special.

There are fewer possibilities than the first version to make a cube with the given pieces, but that does not make the puzzle easier, and Laszlo considers it as being more difficult. But it's still less difficult than the triagonal agony (his most difficult puzzle so far!).

With packing puzzles you try to put one piece and try to fit the remaining pieces, but with these puzzles you also need to consider rotations. So you can try to see which pieces can rotate, which cannot, that reduces some possibilities. Also if you manage to make a cube outside of the box (which is advised to have a better view), you can check if you could have taken one piece of the cube out of the cage (if the cube was in the cage). If you cannot take out any, then rotate the cube and do the same process again. That will allow you to eliminate the wrong possibilities but leave enough to puzzle you for some time! :-)

This is definitely a challenging puzzle but with nice sequences of steps and a satisfaying solution. Give it a try if you can!

To better appreciate this puzzle I would advise to begin with the first version, and to get used to these puzzles by starting with the easiest: No holes barred > L-I-Vator 1 > L-I-Vator 2 > Triagonal agony.

You can find Brian's puzzle HERE, but be quick because they are usually sold out fast!

And these puzzles are only made by Brian, another reason to throw some cash to Brian :-)

Stars that make your puzzle collection even nicer!

It's good to have a nice collection of puzzles, it's even better not to store them in big boxes and never play with them (the goal a puzzle is not to look at it, but to play with it!), and it's even better if you put your puzzles in a nice way so that it's not like a big mess in a cabinet :-)

But what makes your puzzle collection really nice is to add some thingy things: it can be spinning tops, it can be some posters about impossible things (for example Escher paintings, so wonderful!!!). And let me introduce you something that will make your puzzle collection shine a lot: folding stars made out of bronze by John Kostick.

Yes, you saw it right: they can be folded!!!! And thus, be stored really easily, look below how they will arrive at your place:

You just need to push and pull and the stars will be born :-)

I feel these stars are very aesthetic and can only highlight your collection. The ones I have put in pictures can be folded, but there are many more other stars that are bigger and with more work put on them that cannot be fold. All look very nice.

Jane and John make also wooden puzzles, just check out their beautiful website. And do not hesitate to ask them questions, they are very customer-friendly, that can only be appreciated.

HERE you can buy the stars, and why not beginning a star collection!

Enjoy!!

Alles Roger

The name means "all Roger", so we can think it includes all the trick seen in his puzzles...but well just having a look at the puzzle seem obvious that it will not be (and is not possible) the case. In fact, the puzzle looks like R2D2: metal and plexi for the materials and the same goal which is to make the small marble go through the bigger marbles.

There are 2 obstacles to go through: the first one should not be a problem because it's a little bit of (easy) dexterity. The real challenge is the second obstacles (the 2 big marbles), because dexterity will be useless....!!

The solution is not the same as for R2D2, but I would say that they have some common points: solving one can help to have ideas on solving the other. Whereas R2D2 has 2 different solutions, this one has only one, but a nice one, of course! I would say that it's moderately difficult and you will have to think outside the box to solve it :-)

Like the other puzzles from Roger D, the trick is hard to find and when found it's not so difficult to repeat it again and again. It makes it a very nice (and collectible) puzzle to own!!

A puzzle for you: why has Roger D chosen this name for the puzzle?...

 

If you wonder where to buy it, you should look at: ..... here !

Popplock T5

A massive lock (almost 1kg) made out of brass and stainless steel, this puzzle is a homage to the old bullring locks regarding the shape of the shackle. This is the only popplock that has a round shackle which rotates, making this puzzle one of a kind in the history of the popplocks!

Impressive, isn't it? :-)

Like many popplocks, this T5 has a key, and like all popplocks, the key is always useful!

As you can notice, there are 4 screws on the front cover of the puzzle, unscrewing them is absolutely safe and allows you to see the mechanism and how it really works.
Few popplocks can be opened (T2 can be, not sure about T4), so when you have in your hand a popplock that can be, well you cannot say no!

Regarding the quality, well like usually there is no debate: the quality is perfect! Fit is precise, finish is nice, solution is beautiful, puzzle is wonderful!!

Regarding the difficulty, this puzzle does not have a lot of steps and in my opinion this is the second easiest popplocks (the easiest being T7) in the series. It did not take me long time before figuring out how to solve it. Like all popplocks, you have to try many things and tricks are so well thought/hidden that you also have the famous "aha" moments. You just need the right ideas at the right time, at the righ place.

It was puzzling how to take this pictures!

So even if this is not a difficult puzzle, this is one of my favourite ones because of the shape of the puzzle and the nice steps to solve it. I am sure that the harcore puzzlers will be a bit disappointed because this is far from the diffiuclty of a T9 or a T10, but I know that everybody will appreciate it anyway.

One feature that no popplocks have is a "pop-up" shackle. I reall hope that it can be implemented for a future puzzle. It makes the puzzle looks like a more real lock and is definitely less boring than having to check all the time if you have a solved puzzle or not by pulling many times the shackle :-)

Which is your favourite popplock so far?

Spinning top

Yes, sorry, this is not about puzzles, but well I know many puzzle collectors love spinning tops, so this is for you Reader :-)

Sometimes there are interesting projects on kickstarter (like the Orb puzzle I reviewed some time ago -do not hesitate to buy one if you like it!) and I saw a nice project about some spinning tops. It had a lot of success, no wonder why.

What's interesting with these spinning tops is that (depite their very good quality and nice design) they are available is several metals. So if you're a serious collector, then you will be delightful! What you can do when you have several is to test which kind of spinning tops spin faster and longer regarding the material used, and which ones are easier to spin.

My assumption (because I have only one and thus I cannot verify) is: heavier tops are more stable and should spin longer. If any of you have tried, please correct me if I am wrong!

I really like the smoothness of the top: they are pleasant to handle and play with. They are not too big and can easily fit in your pocket to carry with you. The guys provide you with even a small bag to protect the top when you take it with you.

If you are wondering: yes, the tops is spinning on the box! It was not a piece of cake doing so and taking the picture because I did not manage to make the top spin longer...my time was counted to make a picture :-)


You can buy the spinning tops HERE.

Time to fold, again!

Some new models folded with sheets of colorful papers. No glue, no scotch tape, nothing else than paper is used!

Of course, if any interest in purchasing any model, drop me a message :)

Enjoy!

 

Imprisoned geometrical shapes

 
Image below: the strange shape on the top of the picture is actually like a windmil. Put both hands on opposite vertices and blow on the solid and it will rotate!

At the bottom, some thingy things made out of subway tickets. The cube is composed of 3 tickets!

Below: the folding on the left is very sturdy, the one on the right is pretty big.

An interesting construction

Note that I needed to rotate some pictures (like below) to be able to put 2 pictures side by side. Of course, the cube on the right does not hold like that and holds like a normal cube, so you cannot tip it up like below.

Below, on the left: a nice flower-like model. I put it on a window to be able to see the layers of the model, which makes it even more beautiful. On the right, a very sturdy geometrical shape.

 

Next week-end it's you mother's Day. They all like roses....I folded a rose shape (on a previous post), just saying... ;-)

Matchless puzzle

This nice little puzzle was designed by Ken Steven, crafted by Buttonius and exchanged during IPP in 2015 by Peter Hajek.

It's composed of acrylic and 2 matches that need to be freed. The green match is painful for your eyes on the red background, is it done on purpose? :)

The design is nice and the acrylic does not look cheap (whereas it's not known to be an expensive material, though) and the screws reinforce the feeling that you have a real puzzle in front of you, in case you doubted about that!

Your first feeling is it's a dexterity puzzles, but actually it's not!
And I immediately knew what not to do (using dexterity) because that's not the way the puzzle in intended to be solved, and I knew already the principle of this puzzle.

So you have 3 ways to solve the puzzle:

1. Dexterity: good luck!
2. The official method: it works, but can be a bit dangerous. Not advised for children
3. My method: same "spirit" as the official method, but less dangerous and of course it also works

In any case you can start using dexterity and when you're bored with that, then you can start thinking a more clever way to solve it.

I feel it's a good exchange puzzle, but best is not to make too many people trying it...

Time to fold

Many puzzle collectors have another hobby (than collecting puzzles): some collect other things, some like buying spinning tops, some also like crafting puzzles (and not only collecting them!).

About me: it's more origami, you know the Japanese art of folding paper, usually without using glue, scotch tape. So only sheets of paper that hold each other thanks to locking mechanisms.

Regarding origami you can find many kind of origami: animals foldings, tessellations...I am more into geometrical origami, and more precisely modular geometrical origami. The word "modular" means that you fold many times the same module that you assemble after to each other. A bit boring to fold the same module dozens and dozens of times (especially if this module requires a lot of steps to finish!).

Yes it's difficult!
First you need to understand the folding steps (and the diagrams that are not always clear enough...). Then you need to be super precise, because if you repeat the imprecision many times then the final object may be a bit less solid. But in any way, we are not machines, and thus the imprecision is not avoidable, the goal is to try to minimize it as much as possible.
Another difficulty comes from the choice of paper: a too thin paper is not suitable because the locking mechanism may not work properly, but a too thick paper will be impossible to fold if you need to make a lot of folds....
The last difficulty is to assemble the modules: you need to assemble them in a specific way, and to try (by using paper clips of other "devices" for example) to maintain the already assembled modules while assembling others...Not so easy...Plus the last piece is usually very hard to assemble because of the forces created by the already assembled pieces.

I put below some of my origami. Hope you will appreciated the shapes and the colors used.
I may sell some, drop me an email is you're interested!

The price will depend, of course, on the difficulty of the origami, on the time spent on it, on the choice of paper ("premium papers" are expensive!). But in any case the price will definitely be undercharged simply regarding the time spent (multiplying a chosen rate per hour by the hours spent on a model would definitely result in a very expensive price!...an origami does not take 1 minute to fold sorry to disappoint you ;-) ).


Some geometrical structures
Who can name them? ;-)
The one on the right is a bit loose (but still cannot fall apart) because more modules are used to make a hole.

With only one sheet of paper

With subway tickets (nothing is used to make the tickets hold!!)
Around 300-350 are used for each.

Transforming things
 

Other geometrical shapes and miscellaneous