Doozy - A Cigar Box Retrofit into a Puzzle Box

It actually pains me to see used wood boxes go to scrap or the landfill just because there are no more cigars in it!  

Why not give them a forever life, like the fine folks that turn cigar boxes into electric 3 string guitars. It gives me great pleasure to modify this otherwise sound box into something that will be a fun challenge for a long time yet.

I think it was the finger joints on the corners that helped me to decide whether or not to keep this one in the line up.

A long time before I quit my day job I began collecting cool empty boxes just waiting for that chance to become something more.

This puzzle is called Doozy because the front dial is a real....

I can't show you too much of what is going inside, but I can say that the front dial has different limitations depending on the orientation of the box.  The two knob/dials on top are actually 'red herrings' and are there just to keep you looking elsewhere for clues to the solution.  Often building through a cigar box allows me to explore a new or different mechanical idea without the risk of screwing up a really nice existing project.   Its less heartbreaking to toss some ole cigar box that is for sure.

I felt it was time to make a simple jig that allowed me to cross-score the miter so that I might glue in a contrasting hardwood for good long term strength.

The two dials on the backside have similar functions as each other but work in a completely different way.

Whenever building a puzzle box that uses a prebuilt box and the hinges are none removable, there is always the risk that it might not re-open while in the testing stage, luckily that wasn't today's experience.

Maybe one day I will explore one of the other from the shelves, until then, back to work.  What encourages me most is that there are folks out there that collect this kind of kooky stuff, crazy, but I love them all.

Thanks for looking guys!