3rd lock from Sashko

You may already be aware of Sashko's previous locks: Titan and Her Key to the Treasure. Now you will be able to enjoy another lock (it's been long time that Sashko has not relesad a new puzzle).

And it's not a small one....it's HEAVY !

This big lock is called "Monoblock" and it's a 1kg puzzle. Don't drop it on your feet....

The goal is easy to guess: open the lock !

 

I quickly made some discoveries that lead me on the right track and I made some progress smoothly. Actually it did not take me long time to solve, but I assume if you don't get the right ideas at the right moment, then it may take some more time. Especially one step that may be a bit tricky and I am not even sure that I did it in the intended way... Nevermind it worked :)

Also about the last step, I don't really fully understand at 100% how it works despite having managed to perform it several times...

Obviously this is a must-have if you like trick locks and metal puzzles !

Compared to Saskho's previous lock, it's definitely less challenging than his Titan puzzle. 

But after all, a break in terms of difficulty is never a bad ide, don't you think so?

I am in a hurry to see what Sashko will prepare for us in the (hopefull soon) future !!

You can buy the lock at Sashko's etsy shop

JP Lock Bronze

JP Lock Bronze is a trick lock designed and made by Jean-Claude Constantin made of plexi, wood (MDF probably) and metal pins.

The funny thing about this puzzle is that you clearly see what you're doing when solving it. There are very few puzzle locks that are transparent. This one and the "open lock" by Gary Foshee are the only 2 that I know. But maybe there are others?

It requires several steps to open, mainly sliding the pieces while trying to not be blocked by the ball bearings.

Honestly this is a way too easy puzzle. It took me few seconds to open and a non experienced puzzler should be able to solve it under a minute or so.  So it may be more suitable for children in my opinion.

Don't get me wrong: this puzzle is nicely crafted, great quality and is pleasant to solve!

But I expect a bit more difficulty. Of course, there are versions of it that are not transparent and I strongly advise not transparent versions for a better challenge, even if I am not super found of navigating blindly during a puzzle journey...

 

You can buy the puzzle on Puzzle Master webshop !

 

Her Key To The Treasure

A new lock by the genius Sashko, designer and maker of the Titan Lock.

This time, it's still a lock to open and a new story:

Recently Titan found his previous treasure, but unfortunately his wife is still unable to find the key to her treasure. The last thing she remembers is that she put the key in her purse

So basically you have to open her purse, which is actually the lock :)

Same as before: no force, be gentle and everything should all be ok.

The lock is a bit bigger than the previous puzzle lock and has a nice shape. It's also a sequencial discovery puzzle that will puzzling you!

Ok so what do you have? Only a key? Ok so the key, something you can insert it, fully or not, sometimes not....What's going on??

Turning does not do anything...

I had a good idea (which appears latter that it's part of the solution, but still there are several official solution to open, some are nicer than others), but I did not know it was a great idea hahaha....I just try things. When you're blocked and puzzled, that is just the only thing you can do !

After a bit of time I opened the lock and found the key to her treasure ! A nice little key...hope Titan won't break it :)

What I like with this lock is the nice story, the lock and the solution for sure and also the nice display. It has to be mentioned because this is so rare to have a diplay for puzzle. This one is a 3D printed stand that you have to assemble (only 2 parts).

I also like the original shape of the lock and of the parts like the shape of the keys and tools.

It did not take me as long as the Titan Lock to open this one, it was less painful for my mind and fingers haha.

To be truly honest I prefer the Titan puzzle but don't get me wrong you always have a favourite puzzle among your favourite ones, that does not make the others bad. And I don't consider my personal tastes as a universal truth :)

So, do I advise this lock? Definitely !!!

Buy one while Sashko still makes them and don't forget to add the Titan Lock as well, you do need both, after all they belong to the same story.

To buy the lock, you can go to the Etsy page of the designer HERE

You can also buy it on Puzzle Master

Titan's lock

Time for a lock puzzle review! Been a long time!!

Why the name of "Titan"? Easy: the brand is "Titan"....and maybe your challenge is huge?... :)

This nice lock is actually more a sequencial discovery trick lock as it requires several tools and steps to open. Your goal is to find the Titan's treasures (which is a white marble).

The Titan lock has been designed and crafted by Sashko, a Sweedish guy.

It comes with a small boocklet about the stroty of the Titan and your objectives with that lock. Also what you have is a broken key (one part is stuck on the booklet). Does it remind anyone of another lock?...but wait! This one is totally different!!

You will try what everyone try and see you're not going further....and maybe you find be trapped!
And trust me the trap is devilish. I knew what to do, but doins if way more difficult than saying. I am sure you feel with the pain :)
But what is a puzzle if it has no traps?....

Once you have mastered the trap you can continue your puzzle journey. But the journey is definitely not finished and you will have to use the tools in a clever way. Once you realize what you have to do, your "aha-ha" moment will come! It has stumped me for a while, this is not an easy task. Remember it's a Titan's task.

After many hours of puzzling I finally got the treasure. Ok so as I mentioned previously the treasure is a small marble. But in my opinion, it is too big and won't roll smoothly, and you may even have to ban a bit the lock to free it. Guess what I even broke it. I did not realize I had so much force. Not, I'm jocking. Basically what I did it that when reassembling the lock the shackle could not go as far as it should go because the marble did not go to the complete end of the hole and blocked the shackle. I had the great (finally not so great) idea to push the shackle firmly so that the marble could be pushed inside completely, but the result is that I applied too much force and of course the treasure want where it should have been but the shackle crushed it... :-(
What I did (and what you should do) is to find a smaller marble that can roll smoothly inside.

Reassembling the lock is not as difficult as solving it, but take care of the traps :)

Overall a very nice challenging lock that I am sure you will like.


You can find it on the designers' etsy shop: search " Titan's treasure puzzle lock" :)

Neat lock

This lock was an exchanged puzzle from IPP 23 by Peter Hajek.

It's supposed to be an old mechanism (so not something new), but old mechanism does not mean bad!

And this is so neat that Peter decided to exchange it. Let me tell you that turning the key again and again will result in...nothing special :)

The main difficulty is that you cannot see the mechanism. To be honest, I managed to solve it several times but I am still unsure about how it looks from the inside...

With a pretty unusual keyhole you have plenty space to try and turn the key inside. No banging is necessary.
Your only hint is a slight click sound. Maybe this is useful?....

Solved!!!

Haleslock #2

Why #2? Why obviously because another one was released before :)

I already published a review of the haleslock#1 here, so time to speak quickly about this one.

Shane Hales, designer and crafter of this haleslock series learnt about his mistakes and released more of this lock. Guess what: it was sold out super fast, and maybe even faster than what he thought.

What are the differences and common points between this puzzle and the other one.
First, both are not crafted from scratch but are modified locks that can be bought in the market.
Then, both require several steps to open even if this one require fewer steps though.
Both are very niceley designed and are quality locks that a serious metal collector and/or serious trick locks collector should have in his collection.

 Like the previous lock in the series, the keys (here 2 and not only one as for haleslock #1) are attached to the lock. However here the keys can be used directly inside the lock because the chain is long enough, which was not the case for the preceding lock.

In my opinion, this trick lock is closer to a trick lock (ie: more a trick than a sequence of moves to solve) than to a real sequencial discovery trick lock.
Indeed it does not have a lock of steps. The hardest being the first one and after that it's pretty straight forward. If you have ever played with haleslock #1 you will notice that the difficulty is less high. The price also is less high.

I wish the puzzle was a bit more difficult but I like the effort put in this lock and I think Shane Hales is definitely a genius. I hope some more in the series are in the mind of Shane.
If you have a look at his website, several puzzles include locks or keys, like his imitation locks and the puzzle called "turn the plug" which I hope he could craft some more.

Haleslock #1

A newscommer (well, not really new now!) in the beautiful world of puzzles came, and guess what: he crafts very nice puzzles!
His name: Shane Hales!

His puzzles are pretty rare because made in very small quantities, so don't expect to play with one! Just enjoy the nice looks, and that's it. Yes, I know it's frustrating and I am definitely the first person to be furstrated to see that I won't be able to own his beautiful wooden puzzles.

Pretty recently (some months ago) he released some sequencial discovery trick locks. Being good with locks, offering services related to protection and lock, he naturally made lock puzzles. Logical way :-)

If you see some comments on blogs about his puzzles, you notice that the guy does not show off and modestly says that he produces puzzles that are far from being perfect and won't be able to achieve as good quality as compared to other craftmen. Come one! This is false, totally false. Even if I cannot judge about his wooden puzzles, in my mind the Haleslock #1 is a very nice first steps into trick lock puzzles. Sure, this is not a popplock, but who cares?!

So what about the lock itself? This is a modified lock obviously with a stange thing on a side under Shanes' signature and a key attached with kind of a key ring.
Sure, the key will be useful, but how to free it? This will be the first step of your journey. I am sure, for those who played with this puzzle, they may have had some difficulties with this steps. But you will definitely smile with an "ah-ha" moment when you solve this first part of the puzzle.
Then you will have to perform several steps to solve the lock.

Solving the puzzle was not super hard but very pleasant and I can say that this is a nice lock for anyone who likes this kind of puzzles. In my mind Shane did a very great job and the feeling about this lock is shared among the puzzlers: a nice lock to have, to play with or both!

The puzzle had a lot of success and demand was way higher than offer. Hence, Shane, for his other lock design, chose to make more puzzles.....but again demand was higher than offer. I will talk a bit about his other lock in another post later.

Opened lock!

Sorry guys, the name can be disappointing, but the lock is not opened...but transparent, or almost!
Hence its name: transparent lock

Yes, you can see what's inside the lock and what you're doing. Easy then? Not complicated indeed, but we'll see.

First a picture!

So you notice pure quality, right? A lock that is firmy locked and a T-shaped tool.

This is a pretty big lock, but a pretty light (compared to its size) as well because most of the lock is just....empty space !!! :-)

I feel this is one of the most original trick locks because of its design. Regarding the puzzling aspect: this is definitely a nice one to solve, easy to repeat, but overall a not too difficult puzzle.

You should not have too many difficulties to find the steps needed (there are several) that are pleasant.
I was blocked on a step, the last one, that I managed to solve though. But it appeared to me a little bit fetched and I would have prefered a more elegant step!

It's not easy to put a picture of the lock solved without spoiling too much, but I am sure you imagine how it should look like once solved, like all trick locks: when the shackle is opened!!!

To conclude, definitely a puzzle to have in your collection or to have played with. However, a little bit more difficult would not have been bad :)

Revenge lock

No! It's not a puzzle made by Gary Foshee, even if it has some shares features: a lock with no key nor no keyholes, and a rod in the center of the lock that can be moved up or down and that is blocked sometimes.

Actually this is a puzzle made by Wil Strijbos long time ago (no idea when...) with a pretty funny name. One can try to think out why this name. I have some assumptions: maybe Wil could not solve the lunatic lock crafted by Gary Foshee and wanted to take his revenge on him by crafting an even more difficult trick lock? Or maybe Wil was challenged to craft a trick lock, but failed and took his revenge by releasing this puzzle...other assumptions in the audience??

When playing with this puzzle you will notice the common features with the lunatic lock and then you will try to repeat the same steps...Well, this is a more difficult puzzle and you will see a more complex mechanism once opened (yes, when it's opened, you can clearly see what's inside!).

No doubt, you will have a lot of fun solving this one and get your "ah-ha" moments and your "what's wrong with that" moments as well :-)

You are not really blind when solving with the puzzles as you can get some hints from it. First you will hear things ratling from the inside. Then, you will see something moving in the hole on a side of the lock. Sometimes it moves, sometimes not. Maybe it's related with the solution or maybe it's just a trap.

Being a fan of trick locks, I think this is a nice addition to any collection and it's highly collectible! Especially when you know that it was crafted by Wil Strijbos, who is not used at all to crafting trick locks.

Hope that Will will come sooner or latter with another trick lock!!

Popplock T2

T2 is nice, is secret, is difficult to open, and is definitely a collectible lock. Let's see why.

T2 was made in 2 different version: a limited version was made out of stainless steel and thus is rarer. The only difference with both version of the lock is the material used, the solution of the way they work remain the same, of course.

A nice feature that I like with this lock is that you can opened it by unscrewing the front pannel and see the mechanism. And if you like, you can even create a plexi cover to put instead of the metal cover so that you can admire the mechanism while solving the lock.
But well, it makes it a very easy lock them. The main difficulty is that you cannot see what you're doing while trying to solve it. And even if you have feedback from the lock, well, it's difficult to solve. And you always need to pull the shackle to see if you have solved the lock as, unfortunately, the shackle does not pop up :-(

Your tools: you have a key and something like a rod. The first version of the lock had only one tool which was the key with a small rod on it's top, which gave a clue: you could only use the key or the small rod, and not both together. Whereas, with the 2 tools you now have, you can use both at the same time. You follow?

You will hear some clicks while you turn the keys inside the keyhole, and sometimes you will be blocked....and at some point you may solve it without understanding what you did :-)
The interesting thing is to open the lock to see the mechanism.

I had difficulty to open the lock and I do feel it's not easy to repeat. But obviously it's highly collectible, it's a popplock after all! Plus it's still fun to play with it. Give it a try!

Popplock T7

One of (if not the) the biggest popplocks, the easiest one and the one that many did not like, let me introduce you the popplock T7 and explain some things about it.

You see, a big lock! Don't be afraid this is easy!!

You should solve it under 10 seconds which, regarding the price, does not seem to be worth the money spent. Notice that I say "seem" and I don't say "is not worth".

There is a clear close feature to the revomaze puzzles: this popplock has like a maze inside the core and you need to solve it to open the lock. So it's not something new because the revomaze puzzles already existed before the release of this puzzle. First disapointing thing. Now the revomazes are more difficult and will puzzle you for much longer time as one wrong move and you start from the beginning. For this puzzle you will not start from the beginning. I don't feel this is a bad point, but that may be a second disappointing thing for hardcore puzzlers :-)

So what's good with that puzzle?
Well, first you can modify the inside maze by putting pins here and there, so you can create you own maze and try to solve it. I love this feature, because it's not common that you can modify a puzzle (and thus its difficulty), let me know if you can have the same nice feature in other puzzle, because I don't have any example right now.
Now the second good thing is that there is like a "safety" mechanism that allows you to be able to solve the T7 (free the core) if you made either a too difficult maze or an impossible one!! I love this feature, this is not a new one because you can find in many Tom Lensch puzzles, for example, such mechanism that allows you to start again the puzzle.

A quick warning: as you will have to push and pull the core, take care with your fingers.
With some popplocks you need an extra care when playing with them as you could hurt yourself because of moving parts: T3, T5, T7.

So despite its easy difficulty (maybe Rainer should have put a more difficult maze when shipping the puzzle?...), this puzzle has some really nice features, and I am sure you will try to solve it several times. Well, and if you intend to collect all popplocks or if you're a trick lock lover, then no doubt you will try to get it :-)

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?

Lunatic lock: a quick comparison between the original and the mass-produced

Every puzzle collectors, whether they collect metal puzzles and/or trick locks or just puzzles, have already heard at least one about the famous Lunatic lock, a metal lock designed by Gary Foshee.

But most collectors have the Bits&Piece lunatic lock and not the original and thus cannot see the differences between both. My copy was my first trick lock.

Before pointing out the differences, a quick talk about what this puzzle is: a lock of course! But a lock without any hole to put a key and without any key, so a mysterious lock!

So how to open it? Well you can play with the small rod in the center: you can turn it, pull it more or less. You can hear also some pins or other ratling things when you move the lock. Then perhaps you've found out what is inside? If so, that's already a good point.
Even if you know how to solve it, you need good precision, and thus it can take a little bit of time.

Once solved you can see the mechanism: simple, precise and so efficient to make you be "lunatic" :-)

Here we are with the differences: on the left will be the original one and on the right a mass-produced version. The mechanism is exactly the same for both.


The design:
I do not have with me right now the mass-produced one, but it seems that the original lock is a bit bigger.
The main difference is that the name of the lock is written on the lock produced by Bits&Pieces. Honestly I think this is a nice thing and I would have liked to see the name written as well on the lunatic lock crafted by Gary Foshee.

The material used
It's stainless steel for the original lock and some kind of cheap aluminium for the mass-produced.
I always prefer to have the original puzzles because the quality has usually nothing to do with the mass-produced ones. However, I must admit that the material is pretty good for this copy. But I still prefer of course the smooth stainless steel of the original one.


Miscellaneous
For the original one, you will have a small addition, but I cannot say more, otherwise it's not a surprise!

To conclude, this puzzle is a must-have in any collection. If you cannot afford the original version, which is rare and expensive, then you can consider buying a mass-produced version for around 15 euros, which will still do well its "job".

Danlock A

What a nice trick lock made by Dan Feldman!
Especially when you know that it was made using an existing lock, which is far more impressive than creating a puzzle from scratch, because you have to modify with a lot of precision in such a way that the puzzle can still be opened, but with more moves!

The goal of this puzzle is to open the lock, not difficult to guess :-)

The original thing with this puzzle is that the lock is provided with a real key that is blocked and with another key broken (2 pieces).

How to use this broken key, you may wonder? Well just try things and don't be afraid: everything has been well thought. So you cannot loose anything nor damage the puzzle trying things. Not force however and not bangging!

To open the lock you cannot use the complete key, so you have to use your broken key!
To reassemble the puzzle you will not just do the same steps in another order, you will have to do other things.
Thus, the puzzle is not only opening it but also closing it, and I am sure you will have a lot of fun with it.

To conclude: a very nice puzzle, not difficult but with many tricks!

Do you prefer the A model or the B model?
If you had to choose 3 trick locks (from any designers) to bring on an island, what would they be? ;-)

Solution: not HERE (joke!)

Pirate's padlock

If you have (or have already seen) the Pirate's puzzlebox from Stickman, you will recognize this lock, and solving it is part of the Pirate's puzzlebox.

This is a nice wooden trick lock, well designed and well crafted. You can see the signature of the designer on the back of the lock.

I think this is an original trick lock because usually trick locks are made from metal and I have almost never seen any good wooden trick lock that is handmade. So here it is an exception :-)

As it's not as sturdy as metal, then you have to be gentle and not use force (it's not required though!) not to break the lock.

About the solving process, well it's not too difficult and pretty straight-forward but I am sure that you did the usual things at the beginning like me and it did not work :-)
But then you quickly find what you have to do by analyzing the whole lock. The good thing with this lock is that you will be able to see the inside of it: the mechanism is pretty simple but so well thought and designed that it required several steps to solve it.

I think that all these locks have been sold out already, but if you find one, I strongly advise you to buy it. But don't use it with your bike...just put it in your collection after having solved it (of course!!)

If you're lunatic, don't try this lock

This trick lock was designed by Gary Foshee and was sold by Eureka.

No keys are provided because no keys are needed ;-)

And usually the keys provided with trick locks are sot useful (or at least not useful for the beginning of the solving process). However, with almost trick locks, some keys are provided, here it is not the case. And thus, you can wonder how to open it, and it will definitely surprise your friends! The good thing of not having any keys is that you cannot lost them.

Any idea why it's called "Lunatic"??

Try to move the lock upside down, try to pull out the rod. You motice that sometimes the rod is blocked. Don't worry, you have not broken the puzzle, it's normal!

Once opened you can see how simple the mechanism is but it's really tricky and very smart: you need good precision to solve your lock.

Even knowing the solution by heart, it can take me a bit of time to open it, but you can repeatedly open this lock.

WARNING : the following link is a spoiler of how to solve it. It is very well explained.

http://home.comcast.net/~l-whiting/attbi/LunaticLock_solution.html

To conclude, this lock is very good, cheap enough, with a simple but tricky mechanism.

If you like trick locks, don't hesitate to buy one, it is a must-have in your collection and you can easily find it on the internet.

And even if you don't like so much trick locks, it is still worth the case buying and trying it!