HEXAGON Puzzle.

Boys and Girls.

 

This puzzle goes back to 2021 when I got sucked in by mtairymd’s Hexagon Puzzle (while indulging in jerky... or should it be on jerky LJ) and endorsed plagiarism as an integral part of my vocabulary. 

 

While this was posted on LJ as a "multi" project, I avoided migrating all that transcript (if I could have even found it, with my ban), as it was many times longer than my normal drivel here and it involved a number of different puzzles… 

that yazall can look forward to under a few separate installments in the near future..

 

The concept is simple, but the execution is no Simon. I didn’t have the resolve back then, and still wouldn’t for this one, to try “carving” out of solids on my BS or scroll-saw and stuck to my MDF laminations… though with 20-20  vinos  hindsight, I could have laminated out of solids.

 

This black version 

was made up for people that wanted that extra challenge of solving in the dark.

 

I based my measurements on 25.4mm wide stock and using this picture as a template,

realised I can make up the puzzle from a swag of repeats of this basic shape, laser cut and laminated,

 

While it can be cut on conventional tools, it could/would need a swag of sanding cleanup as fit is mandatory.
On hindsight, if you have the luxury of a laser, cut one out and use as a routing template (and chisel the inside corners).

 

Back to my druthers of laminated MDF, I resized the pieces to 24mm to be able to use 4 x 6mm MDF to scale.

The construction is critical as very few 6mm Chinese sourced alignment dowels are 6mm (nor are 6mm MDF, equally thick), rendering smooth interfaces a rough 6 o’clock shadow… that is why my models are sanded… not just to hide the laser burn marks.

After assembly and pondering solution, it's imperative the pieces are correctly orientated,

the "upside" is a different shape to the "downside".   

As I have never been into selling my puzzles, I downsized for ¼ sized freebies made out of 1 “layer” of 6mm MDF,

The 1 layer is quoted as each piece has to me made up of two pieces in the particular orientation.

 

I made up a few miniatures only to find that the simple two piece alignment per part was not another Simon.  Some of the new pieces just refused to mate precisely.

 

I made up this alignment jig,

that created a much more precise alignment… and the production line continued. As I was packaging, I felt compelled to test and found a variety in ease/difficulty in assembling.

In typical caste fashion I created 3 Categories of puzzles,

Category 3 puzzles were made before the jig and category 2 were hastily assembled with the jig. Category 1 were reserved for better friends with casks under the armpit.

 

Here is a video I extracted from another video about solving/assembling this puzzle and the issues with the smaller ones,

While there is a SketchUp version, it’d be easier to take dimensions/measurements of the above picture (here again to jog the memory),

and solution is just triangulation (watch the video) with separation just a spin away.

 

I create my laser jobs in CorelDraw, however, for anyone interested I can make the CorelDraw CDR file available… it can be read/processed by freebie Inkscape to create SVG files to be processed by laser programs like Lightburn.

 

For any 3D printer enthusiast, I could make the STL files available on request… just tell me how you’d like them presented.  

 

Anyone interested in my puzzles (or other authors’), you can see them all here in my “Puzzle Collection” .

If interested in any of mine (LBD), measurements can be made available on request for anyone not familiar with SketchUp… though a working knowledge of SketchUp’s navigation (as opposed to its design/use features) and access to 3DW could be of benefit.

All the solutions to my puzzles can be found at this link...
*** Measurements and further details can be provided on request. ***

If  no other time, when Christmas comes, puzzles make a great stocking stuffer... for all ages. 
Kids love ‘em and most of us are still kids.

 

 Don’t be crafty  Craftisians,... SHARE  your craft!

 

Christmas may be a while away, however, when it hits the market, puzzles make a great stocking stuffer... for all ages.