Cabrio - Dr. Volker Latussek by Pelikan

I first had a copy of Hajime Katsumoto’s ‘Slide Packing’ that was wonderfully crafted by Tom Lensch, the smooth sliding lid on the box was what really struck me.

This newer design by Dr. Latussek is beautifully crafted by Pelikan and it also has a mesmerizing sliding motion to the box with sliding lid!

Dr. Volker Latussek wrote about it:

“SLIDE PACKING by Hajime Katsumoto is a style icon. The purist form of his puzzle is fantastic.

I set myself the task of developing a sophisticated packing puzzle using his sliding box. The puzzle should consist of five pieces that fill the sliding box as completely as possible.
The task sounds simple. Pelikan presents the result of my work in CABRIO. Many thanks for that. This puzzle required many development steps to learn precisely how the sliding box interacts with the pieces. I had a great time doing this, and maybe you will play with CABRIO and discover a new and exciting mechanism for this interaction? That’s what I wish for you and I, and especially Hajime Katsumoto, who gave us his beautiful SLIDE PACKING.”

Kevin Sadler wrote about it: 

“No Pelikan release is complete without a design from Dr Latussek! When opening the package, it looks very understated. All you can see is a very nicely crafted box made from American Walnut which Pelikan have failed to close properly. Pulling off the lid reveals some rather lovely Zebrano pieces inside forming an apparent 3x3x3 cube. No wonder the lid couldn’t close properly – it needs to be slid on from the side and the pieces are in the way.

The upshot of the sliding mechanism of the lid is that this is effectively a 7 piece puzzle with the pieces needing to interact with the base and the lid to get the cube inserted inside and the puzzle closed. It is very reminiscent of the fantastic Slide Packing puzzle by Hajime Katsumoto that won the Puzzlers award in 2016. This time instead of just 4 pieces to insert, there are 5 with 3 of them being non-planar shapes making the solution really quite counterintuitive.

I found quite a few 3x3x3 cube shapes that were possible but of course they all blocked the assembly of the lid and needed to start with a completely fresh way of thinking about this. Like many of Volker’s puzzles, you need to think about the last piece to be inserted and how you might get access to that and then try and work with the remaining pieces and the lid to make that final assembly possible. There are 2 obvious possibilities for the final piece but then you will realise that you also need a proper plan for the penultimate piece and it is not as straightforward as you might anticipate. I worked on this for several days before I had a glorious Aha! moment and managed to put the lid on properly. This is a work of genius, just like the predecessor by Hajime-san.”

Burrglar - Peter Hajek & William Strijbos by Pelikan

This is a very clever puzzle that I really enjoyed, I’m often struck by puzzles with only three pieces but can still be so much fun, it reminds me of Stewart Coffin’s ‘Three Piece Block’ puzzle that had stumped many puzzlers! 

I originally missed Pelikan’s drop of this cool puzzle but thankfully they released a few more and quickly snatched up my copy, special thanks go out to Pelikan.

Here’s Pelikan’s description:

“Peter Hajek’s exchange puzzle at IPP40. This is a 3-piece burr with simple notches. You are even shown its solved state shape. So far so simple. The problem is that this thing was designed by Peter Hajek and Wil Strijbos.”

Jeremy’s Boxcar by Henry Strout

I was fortunate to have acquired another of Henry’s ‘train car themed’ puzzles and this was Henry’s Exchange puzzle at IPP 40 in Jerusalem in 2023.

As I was researching all of Henry’s puzzles I finally was able to document pretty much the full list of his work and hope to feature them if/when I’m able to acquire others.

Cubit by Kelly Snache

This is the 3rd in Kelly’s ‘Yardstick’ themed puzzle box series and features 6 moves to open.  I’m continually amazed at Kel’s ingenuity and this cool puzzlebox just puts a huge grin on my face once solved!

The idea behind this series of very limited puzzle boxes was conceived by Kel with the first being ‘Pinch an Inch’ back in 2017.  

They are all to be custom made using old fashion ‘Yardstick’ rulers that are becoming increasingly hard to come by.

Kel has been crafting these as he accumulates enough yardsticks to complete one box and contacts me once complete.

You can read more about his previous editions in one of my blog post.

Slide Packing - Hajime Katsumoto by Tom Lensch

Tom’s superb craftsmanship is on full display with this gorgeous packing puzzle.  The Mahogany box has such a smooth sliding action that I spent a considerable amount of time simply admiring it, and then finally turned my attention to attempting to solve this very clever design.  Pieces are East Indian Rosewood with a Walnut Box.

For some reason this post was never uploaded, I just recently acquired a new version by Dr. Volker Latussek and that post will appear here soon.

Kevin Blogged about it, here’s an excerpt:

“It is a "simple" packing puzzle but was so clever that it won the Puzzler's award in the design competition. How could I possibly decline the opportunity to own and solve such a brilliant challenge. The cleverness in the design is that the 4 pieces consist of 3 C shapes and a single crooked S shape. They are to be fitted into a 3x3x3 space within that he box - the twist in the tale is that the lid of the box slides in place and would be blocked by anything more than 2 units high. There are several ways to make the pieces fit into a 3x3x3 cube but not starting with a shape that is only 2 units high!”

Camel - Theo Geerinck by Pelikan

 

I was thrilled to see that Jakub had mentioned on FB that they had made a prototype of this ‘Kumiki’ styled design by Theo.  I suppose it could be considered a follow up to Theo’s previous design crafted by Pelikan called ‘Rhino’.

Kevin Sadler wrote about it: 

“Yes!!!! I adore the animal-themed puzzles that Jakub and Jaroslav produce. I know they are often very difficult to design and manufacture but they are just so lovely and give me an excuse to keep another one on display in my living room. Mrs S was away when this batch came in and when I showed her the photo of the delivery even she admitted the camel was very cute and incredibly realistic. It has been crafted from American Cherry which gives it a rich brown “camel” colour. This is a collaboration with a master designer and craftsman, Theo Geerinck which means that the solution will be interesting as well as good looking.

When first playing with it, only 3 pieces move and I comically pushed and pulled them and then tried to rip the legs and head off the poor creature. Of course, that won’t work. I don’t think any self-respecting camel will let you tear a leg or head off without complaining vigorously at you. I was stumped at this point for a rather embarrassingly long time. The fun thing with these sorts of layered constructions is that you cannot tell by looking at them which parts are supposed to be mobile and which are glued together. This leaves you pushing and pulling pretty much everything that you can get a grip on. After a whole day of getting nowhere, I tried a new technique and there was a “click”. Aha! Then another click and another before I was able to remove a piece of camel anatomy. Having done human dissection as a medical student, this was a nice fun way to do it without any mess! Before long I had the poor animal in pieces on my table and was able to see the ingenious locking mechanism which included a couple of pieces that are hidden inside. I scrambled the pieces and left it for a couple of hours and attempted the reassembly. Whilst not impossibly difficult, even that was a fun challenge as I had lost my orientation of several pieces and had to spend quite a while working out how things should be oriented. This is wonderful and perfect to display as part of your puzzle menagerie.” 

Eleventh Hour - Goh Pit Khiam by Tom Lensch

I recently acquired this awesome puzzle that ‘Zenpuzzler’ recently wrote about after IPP 41 in Texas.  

It has 4 pieces that neatly come together in a 4x4 cube.  Tom also included a very nicely made box that the puzzle can be stored in once assembled.

Although it’s not an overly difficult take apart design it most definitely is a very difficult assembly design with some clever movements throughout!

I highly recommend you grab a copy should they become available.

Sphinks Cargo Car - Brian Young by Henry Strout

This puzzle was designed by Brian and features a train car theme.  This was Henry’s gift at the IPP 34 Exchange at London, England.  There are 6 pieces that need to be placed onto the box car with one lone block permanently attached.

As it turns out Henry has used this theme in his IPP Exchange puzzles as noted by puzzler Jerry at his blog.

Walnut Circle Maze Puzzle Box by Kagen Sound - 2018

I recently acquired this awesome creation by Kagen.  It features a circular maze with a corresponding pin that needs to be navigated in order to solve.  Kagen’s work is truly flawless and quite breathtaking.  There were four different versions in this series, each having a run of 250.  This particular puzzle box #230 was crafted using Walnut and is the easiest solve in the series, however the dead ends kept me guessing and retracing my steps until I ultimately reached the end and retrieved the ‘medallion’!

The ‘Medallion’ maze piece has a very nice heft and the overall feel of this puzzle box is superb!

I’ve only ever had one other puzzle box crafted by Kagen that I directly purchased from him which was his ‘Jewel Box’ from 2006.

Steve has an excellent blog review that covers the origins of this very unique puzzle box.  It is a must read!

Here’s Kagen’s description:

“This is the easiest of the four circle maze boxes. It features a rotating stainless steel maze in a Walnut box. A small pin must be navigated to the center of the maze to unlock the box.”

Chicken Puzzle - Olexandre Kaplan by Cubicdissection (2020)

I’m reposting this as I had traded my previous copy and recently acquired it again in an attempt to collect ‘animal shaped’ puzzles.

This puzzle has a really cool opening move that exemplifies Eric’s puzzling genius, it’s so sad that he left us at such a young age, rest in peace Eric.

Here’s Eric’s description:

“I'm glad to be revisiting this fun design! Originally released with limited availability in 2015, the Chicken Puzzle boasts an impressive level 10 solution and a hidden surprise. The 2020 version was upgraded with an improved chicken byproduct retention system. Yellowheart and Cherry offset each other for that pleasing chicken look without all the annoying chicken poop everywhere. Or do they...?

Construction techniques used in this puzzle are unique. The Yellowheart cage is made of only six pieces; each corner wrap around was milled from solid wood. Burr internals sit flush with the outer pieces and use notched joinery, showing only uninterrupted side grain. A lot of time and effort was spent making this puzzle not only strong but aesthetically pleasing. 

76 copies made for sale, each signed and dated. This puzzle is shipped assembled.

Puzzle Mad wrote a very good blog review of this interlocking puzzle”

I also added a Box using Aromatic Cedar with Peruvian Walnut Slipfeathers.

Dog Catcher by Alfons Eyckmans

Alfons originally released this insanely difficult burr puzzle in 2017, and this was the first burr that I had to sneak a peak at the burrtools file to disassemble it!  

It’s essentially a 12 piece burr, however there’s a frame that restricts movement and three ‘Dog’ pieces packed inside that further hinder your progress.

Alfons drilled holes in the bottom of the frame and included a wire rod that you need to use for pushing/prodding the ‘Dogs’.

It’s a very clever puzzle and I tip my hat to Alfons on a job well done!

Here’s a brief description from Alfons:

“16 piece puzzle "Dog Catcher"

Level: 34.2.8.5.2.1.1.1.2

The dog are difficult to catch, they move 10 times”