Shieblehre by Jean Claude Constantin

This a fun sliding tile puzzle, once you solve the puzzle by retrieving the ball bearing you can then easily reset it by sliding the tiles back to their original position and then popping the ball back into its spot top right.

I added the photo showing the starting point.

Go ahead and pick up a copy, it’s a great coffee table puzzle..

Here’s a description from Puzzlemaster:

“There are five sliding tiles in this puzzle, three of which have slots. The slots can accommodate a small ball-bearing. The ball-bearing can also slide around in the large square gap. The objective is to slide the tiles and the ball-bearing around to navigate the ball from the 'Start' position to the finish in the upper-left corner of the puzzle.

Made in laser-cut wood, acrylic, and stainless steel by Jean-Claude Constantin. Jean-Claude Constantin lives in Germany, where he designs and manufactures many different wood and metal puzzles, as well as magic tricks.”

4 PAC - Hajime Katsumoto by Tom Lensch

Tom recently sent me this awesome packing puzzle that initially looks rather easy until you try to fit them into the box.

It’s no wonder this design won a Jury Honorable Mention at the 2021 IPP Design Competition, as I’ve yet to solve it..

Balrog by Dan Fast

I have to admit I had to google meaning of the name of this puzzle so here’s Wikipedia’s definition:

“A Balrog (/ˈbælrɒɡ/) is a powerful fictional demonic monster in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth.”

Of course this is another high quality print by Dan and with a name that inspires fear you can only imagine how difficult a Burr this is.  It takes 21 moves to take out the first piece and then another 25 for the second piece..yikes!

Taco Cube - JinHoo Ahn by CubicDissection

I first spotted this puzzle before they were sold out but never got around to grabbing one, so I was thrilled when one came up in a trade.  I love cube puzzles and this one is beautifully crafted in Walnut and Padauk which is an awesome combination.

This design is very reminiscent of Hanayama designs and it’s cool to see the cube come together almost magically.

Don’t make my mistake by letting any of CubicDissection puzzles pass you by, here’s Eric’s description:

“We were surprised when JinHoo contacted us with his latest design, Taco Cube. JinHoo is a very successful puzzle designer with multiple creations manufactured by the esteemed Hanayama company. He honored us by choosing Cubicdissection to craft his latest puzzle from wood!

Taco Cube is a tricky and fun assembly. This interlocking puzzle is made from two identical frame parts combined with two sets of identical pieces. While not overly difficult, the solution is exciting and satisfying.”

Stealth - Alexander Magyarics by Wood Wonders

I grabbed this beauty along with Alexander’s other clever design ‘Line Up’ from Brian recently..as always Brian’s work is so gorgeous, the Lacewood literally has a glitter to it!

It might be a little while before Brian gets his new shop up and running but be sure to drop by Wood Wonders to keep an eye on his future offerings.

Here’s Brian’s description:

“This months entry into the "Cool Packing Puzzles by Alexander Maygarics category", is STEALTH A simple objective is to insert the 3 pieces into the box and fill all the openings, good luck. I do love Alex's packing puzzles.”

Moves: 11.2.2

Box is Leopardwood with Holly Slipfeathers

Line Up - Alexander Magyarics by Wood Wonders

 

I got this puzzle from Brian as he’s moving and he decided it was probably easier to sell as much of his current puzzles on hand to avoid unnecessary packing.

This particular puzzle is a gem of a design by Alexander and absolutely gorgeous work by Brian.  I spent quite a bit of time just shunting the pieces back and forth without ever really trying to solve it, it’s just so much fun and the fit is perfect!

As is often the case, I don’t solve my puzzles when I first receive them so after almost a year later, I did finally focus on complete disassembly.  It was surprisingly difficult as seemed to be getting stuck early on until I finally stumbled on the correct shift of pieces.  

Of course I then needed to get Alexander to send me the Burrtools file for reassembly and that’s when I really took note of my stumbling block.  This is a very clever design by Alexander and I highly recommend it, although it’s now sold out so you may have to keep an eye out at Puzzle Paradise or Cubicdissection Marketplace for a second hand copy.

It might be a little while before Brian gets his new shop up and running but be sure to drop by Wood Wonders to keep an eye on his future offerings.

Here’s Brian’s description:

“Line Up is tricky solve with 24 moves to remove the first piece! I think assembly of this puzzle may be a bit harder so if you want it shipped disassembled send me a note. No rotations allowed. Sometimes puzzles like this may allow a rotation and, of course, early in the assembly process rotations are possible, but not allowed.”

Moves: 24.3.4.2

Inelegant Set of Six - Haym Hirsh by Brian Menold at Wood Wonders

I was stoked to get this Inelegant Set from Brian recently as he was in the midst of a move and needed to part with some of his inventory to ease the transition to his new shop.

These are clever designs by Haym and they are of course beautifully crafted by Brian!

Here's what Brian said:  Please visit Wood Wonders to stay informed of his wonderful puzzles!

Inelegant Soma

From the "Man of a thousand Soma variations" comes this latest clever design. Similar looking to the previously released "Inelegant cube and Inelegant Box" this uses slightly modified Soma pieces to offer the challenge.

Inelegant Box

This follow up to Inelegant Cube is the Inelegant Box. So named because there is a small void in the center. I decided to add the stand. Also the two corners of the puzzle, which were holes, have been filled with a block. Like the "Cube", the "Box" is made up of 4x5x6 unit blocks, however, these have been glued up into 6 "L" shaped pieces consisting of 4 block each. The "Cube" had 9 pieces of 3 blocks each. Based solely on the number of pieces, I think this is an easier puzzle than the "Cube", but let's see if your up for the challenge anyway.

Inelegant Cube

Nine pieces make a complete cube in this version. I think this may be the toughest (at least for me) to solve.

Inelegant Snakes

Haym's at it again. Here is his latest "Inelegant" offering. Inelegant Snakes uses the offset L piece that was used in his Snake Pack design. Except this puzzle uses both a left and right hand piece and they are made from the same 3x4x5 unit cubes as the other Inelegant puzzles. There will be holes on two opposing corners and a void in the center of the solved cube but the outside edges should all be even.

Inelegant Fake

My favorite of this series and a simple 7 piece puzzle, but is it?

Inelegant So-Ma

Haym is at it again! Not only did he come up with another soma variation, he made it a second soma version in the Inelegant Series! As usual, these are quite challenging. The altered Soma pieces assemble into a cube . . . one way! They have some assorted holes in the sides created by the irregular pieces. Let me also add that Haym puts a lot of thought into the name of his designs!

Peanut - Stewart Coffin Design #67 by Mark McCallum

Mark recently finished up a run of 25 copies that he had been meticulously crafting from some of his exotic woods accumulated over many years.

If you were lucky enough to acquire one of these beautiful puzzles from Mark then you now have what I consider to be the finest puzzle ever crafted!

As many know I stumbled my way through some of Stewart’s designs over the years but none ever achieved the needed level of perfection that Mark is known for.  

The Peanut design is one of Stewart’s designs that requires incredible accuracy that unless the pieces are spot on you won’t be able to fit them into the large assortment of configurations.

Back in 2006 I made a small run of several of Stewart’s designs using 1/2” stock that I had on hand, here’s a pic of the one lone puzzle that I kept for my wife Barb.

Here’s an assortment of pics of Mark’s gorgeous Peanut puzzles:

Orion Box by Infinite Loop - Patrick Alpers

This is a very nicely made PuzzleBox, the fit and finish is as good as you’ll see from laser cut puzzles.

Here’s a description from Puzzlemaster:

“This originally designed sequential puzzle box is a great way to give friends and family a fun challenge. A hidden compartment in the final piece lets you place a special item as a reward for extra excitement. Perfect for beginner and experienced puzzle solvers. Requiring 24 steps to open, this puzzle box offers lots of entertainment for the solver and others watching. Sealed instructions are included so you can easily open the puzzle to hide an item, and to assist with reassembling the box once opened. This puzzle box is precisely assembled by hand from 82 separate laser cut wooden pieces in Michigan.”

 Flip Top Box by Jordi Gallen

This multi challenge puzzle is really cool and the print quality is absolutely perfect.

You’re able to quickly reconfigure the box to accommodate the four different lids as well as adding the required blocks.  I’ve never seen a reconfigurable packing puzzle before so when Jordi mentioned it I quickly asked him to send me a copy.

Now from a solving experience I can say that if the first ‘easier’ challenge is any indication, this will keep me busy for some time..

Here’s a YouTube video showing how the box can be quickly reconfigured.

Here’s a description from Jordi:

“I finished the design of the Flip Top Box Modular Series. This is a Soma based 3D packing puzzle. You can rearrange the box into 4 different puzzles. #1 and #2 are in the medium-easy side, #3 and #4 are deep in the dark side!

The goal is to fit all the seven Soma pieces under the hinged lids and inside the box.

Here there's a spoiler free video with instructions of how to rearrange the box and you can see how it looks like.”

Dino 2 - Alfons Eyckmans by Pelikan

This is another animal themed burr puzzle design by Alfons.  I recently got it directly from him along with a couple of other of his burr masterpieces.

This particular 15-piece burr puzzle was crafted by Pelikan and of course has a ‘Dino’ piece (Acacia) inside to give it the required solution level of 11.4.4.1.3.4 (PWBP).

As I write this there are still a few copies available at Pelikan

Here’s Kevin’s description from his blog:

“This particular beauty is an unusual 14 stick burr with a dinosaur inside. The woods chosen by Pelikan are a gorgeous vibrant Purpleheart, Padauk and Wenge with an Acacia dinosaur. Many of this type of puzzle can be impossibly difficult and consequently not so much fun unless you are a huge fan of ultra complex burrs. Jakub's skill here lies in choosing the versions that are just the right challenge and still a whole lot of fun to explore. The movements are beautifully smooth with the puzzle being just tight enough that pieces don't slide about without your control and there is a very nice logic to it. The solution level is 11.5.4.2.3.3 which for me is fun and challenging without becoming impossible (fun is what I am after and not horrendously difficult). Amazingly, once I had found the removal of the first two pieces, I thought the third (adjacent) piece would follow straight away but this was not the case. This had me stumped for a good 15 to 20 minutes as I desperately tried to free up a piece that was not going to be released until 2 others had come out first. After the first 5 pieces are out the puzzle is remarkably stable but now there is a LOT of possible movement and this is where most people will get stuck. I had tried everything possible - it was all moving all over the place but nothing was coming free (remarkably there was only one rotation at this point and it was not useful). I was getting anxious that I would be left with a tangled mess of sticks that I could not advance or go back when suddenly I had another Aha! moment and a critical pieces was removed (I had my dinosaur).”

Bomb Destroyer by BrunS Engineer

Well wouldn’t you know the brave Andriy Bruns managed to machine a run of these beautiful puzzles amidst bombs literally being dumped all over his homeland!

Special thanks to Tye for acquiring this puzzle for me from Nothing Yet Designs.

Here’s his description from his website:

“Two step Bomb Destroyer puzzle 

lvl. 3 in our gradation.

Reward - Skynet coin from future.

The project of this puzzle was started last year and from 24 Feb 2022  real russian bombs dropping on my town and my contry. But if your love to puzzle making is strong, you can do them even at war.

I wish peaceful skies to all of you, and I want that you can see war only in fantastic movies or virtual games.

Material: aluminium, bronze and steel.”

Insider by Dan Fast

When Dan first offered up this puzzle I was instantly drawn to the pastel colours, his printing is some of the nicest I’ve ever seen!  My attraction to the colours ended abruptly when I attempted to disassemble this beast, there was a crazy move midway through removing the first piece and even after having removed two more pieces it still fought me.  Finally after some time I had successfully disassemble this amazing design!  This particular design remained stable right to the end which is not typical of high move count burrs such as this one.

If you get a chance to acquire one of Dan’s prints I strongly recommend you snatch it up!

Memling by Alfons Eyckmans

Alfons recently gifted me this awesome 14 piece tray puzzle.  Alfons usually names his tray puzzles after famous painter/artists from the renaissance period, I find that so very cool!

This one is named after Painter Hans Memling, here’s Wikipedia’s post:

“Hans Memling was a painter active in Flanders, who worked in the tradition of Early Netherlandish painting. He was born in the Middle Rhine region and probably spent his childhood in Mainz. He moved to the Netherlands and spent time in the Brussels workshop of Rogier van der Weyden. Wikipedia

Born: 1430, Seligenstadt, Germany

Died: August 11, 1494, Bruges, Belgium

Period: Dutch and Flemish Renaissance painting”

Gear Box by Jean-Claude Constantin

 

Constantin does very cool gear mechanisms and this one features a whack of them!

Here’s a description from Puzzlemaster:

“A hefty-sized puzzle box made by Jean-Claude Constantin!  Three rows with 4 gears each that are all connected and turn in sync.  It has an acrylic top which acts as a place-holder that must lifted off in order to start rotating the gears, and can only be re-positioned when the gears are in the original starting position.  There are 4 acrylic sliders that can be moved when the slots on the gears are aligned correctely. 

The puzzle is a quarternary, which requires many sequential movements in order to open the box.  As you can see from the slotted grooves on the gears, there are many different combinations, and it is very difficult to find the right one.  Once you have opened the box, it is only considered solved once the box is closed, the gears reset and the lid replaced on top. 

Made in laser-cut wood and acrylic.”

Nail Box by Bill Sheckels

Bill’s work features superb craftsmanship that I’m always amazed, this box just exudes high quality!

Boxes and Booze has an excellent blog here on Bill’s Nail Box:

“Bill Sheckels has been crafting fine furniture for over fifty years. He has been fortunate to run a successful small business over the years in pursuit of his life’s passion. His beautiful craft is highlighted by Scandinavian and Shaker style sensibilities and the simplicity of form that follows function.

Bill also has a passion for puzzles and makes them in his spare time (which he has more of lately, certainly good news). His designs, like his furniture, are elegantly simple in appearance and offer the satisfying feel of a hand-crafted object. While his puzzle shop offers a wide range of interlocking and put-together type diversions, I am of course most fond of the puzzle boxes he has made. He recently thought up an idea for the classic “nail box”, an old puzzle box trope which uses a few nails to keep the lid secured, unless you know the clever trick. I cannot claim to know the exact origins of this puzzle mechanism, although Bill points to a design called the “Johnny Walker Trick Match Box” which was patented by Herbert Taylor in England, 1910. The reference is found in Slocum and Botermans “New Book of Puzzles”, 1992, and the puzzle can be found in the Lilly Library archives. The mechanism was incorporated in Nob Yoshigahara’s famous Cross Puzzle (Dualock) in 1981, and again in Akio Kamei’s innovative Top Box. Bill wanted to introduce a new spin on the old idea, and succeeded. Characteristically simple in appearance, with a nice color contrast of cherry and wenge woods, his nail box is very unassuming. You are compelled to perform the classic move, if only to confirm it will not do the trick here. Eventually, a thought may occur to you, which you might dismiss out of hand, thinking, well, that would be clever and fun, but it couldn’t possibly work like that, how could it? The truth is, Bill did not set out to make the box work in this way (I am being obscure on purpose, of course), yet succeeded nonetheless. It’s a brilliant new twist on the old design, and another milestone on the timeline of this classic.”