December 2020 Update Preview

Update is Wednesday, December 16th at 3pm EST (UTC -5)


 

Final Editions

While we do not limit releases, there exist no current plans to re-release or further produce Blah BoxWhere's My Hammer, or Daedalus (links will become functional after the update goes live)

 

Pricing and Growth

This month's incremental price hike reflects our ongoing attempt to balance production capacity and demand. Increased revenue from the last increase has already allowed for better materials and replacement of aging equipment. It's keeping us in business despite rising costs in a challenging business environment, and enabling us to build Cubicdissection for long term viability. Continued growth and increased production ability will over time stabilize prices. Meanwhile, we appreciate your patience as we navigate this process. 

 

Change to Day of Future Updates

We continually improve our systems to serve our clients better. Moving forward, we will post updates on Monday to prevent weekend delays of order fulfillment. Accordingly, our next update is scheduled for Monday, January 25th, 2021. We are further increasing the amount of time between our production cutoff and release date to allow more time to verify and prepare.

 

Metal Puzzle Care

We now include a metal Cleansing cloth with all metal puzzles sold on CD. The cloth contains safe, non-staining chemical agents to remove tarnish and discoloration without scratching. We also now sell a Metal Puzzle Polishing Kit for $5, which includes a larger Cleansing cloth and a CD orange Microfiber towel. 

 

DDD Burr Piece Expanded Selection Available

Our friend Bryan at GraveRaven has expanded piece availability for the DDD burr set. Customers may order individual custom pieces to create any burr they choose. All pieces have the same fit as the DDD set. We further expect another release of the DDD Burr Set in Brass and a limited edition in Stainless with an Ebony box early next year.

 

November Giveaway Winner

Congratulations to Lukas Zintl of Waldeck, Germany won for winning our December 2020 raffle! Lukas scored a free copy of the new Kepler packing puzzle by Felix Ure. 

Every month we choose a random member of our newsletter to receive a free puzzle. If you'd like to join, just drop your email address in the box on the lower right of any page on the site.

 

November Sticker

Mike McDonald designed this month's sticker. Mike is a fantastic local artist who loves photographing old buildings and creating mixed media art. We're proud he chose to work with us!

 

 

Important Note - Care, Storage and Display

Our work is handcrafted to very precise tolerances and must be kept within the range of 40-60% relative humidity at all times. Failure to do so may cause inoperability or permanent damage.

Please read the Caring for Wood Puzzles guide to ensure proper fit and operation. We recommend an occasional polishing with Renaissance Wax to keep wood puzzles in top condition.

 

Now, on to the Puzzles....


 TV Puzzle

DESIGNER: Jakub Dvorak
MATERIAL: Sapele, Ash, Chechen
RELEASE DATE: 12.16.2020
PRICE: $129
SIZE: 3" x 2.1" x 2.9"

This long-discontinued Pelikan release was the subject of particular obsession on the Mechanical Puzzle Discord. I somehow got roped into making it; I'm still not sure how. Those guys are persuasive.

TV Puzzle is an interesting hybrid packing and take-apart puzzle. My interpretation stayed true to Jakub's original design with a couple of changes - we fully lacquered and changed grain direction for all pieces to make the solution more difficult. The result is trickier than I expected and a lot of fun!

60 copies are available. Each puzzle is signed and dated. This puzzle is shipped assembled.

 

 

 


Blah Box Sequential Discovery Puzzle Box (Final Release)

DESIGNER: Eric Fuller
MATERIAL: Black Limba/Maple, Iroko/Holly, Zebrawood/Maple
RELEASE DATE: 12.16.2020
PRICE: $299
SIZE: 2.875" x 2.875" x 4.25"

This is the second and final release of Blah Box for the foreseeable future. Pursuant to our demand balancing efforts, a 7% price increase was applied over the first release.

Blah Box is the result of the accumulation of ideas I had while trying to design a simple mechanism for the box containing the DDD Burr Puzzle. I wanted to make a simple trick opening mechanism for DDD, but in the end, discarded the idea because it would overly increase the price of the puzzle. I came out of the design session with some solid ideas, which, when combined, turned into a rather interesting box on their own. I was feeling rather "Blah" about my failure with DDD and decided to name this new box after that feeling.

No external tools are allowed. No bumping, spinning, or force is necessary or allowed.

34 copies available for this release, each signed and dated. 15 copies in Black Limba and Maple, 12 copies in Zebrawood and Maple, 8 copies in Iroko and Holly.

 

Black Limba / Maple

Iroko / Holly

Zebrawood/Maple
 


Topless Puzzle Box

DESIGNER: Eric Fuller
MATERIAL: Striped Quartersawn Sapele, Birdseye Maple, Padauk
RELEASE DATE: 12.13.2020
PRICE: $229
SIZE: 3"

I have many other designs on the drawing board, so this will be the last batch for a while. As Topless Box was historically underpriced relative to manufacturing cost, a 35% increase makes this release viable.

Topless Box was my contribution to the legendary Apothecary Box. Topless is an unusual challenge; with two lids and no top, how can it be opened? The solution is tricky and will surprise you. Initially released in 2012, we found strong demand with our re-release last year and decided to make one more batch for newer collectors who have been unable to find a copy.

This batch was constructed from a nice striped Sapele plank, which shows a lot of shimmer via chatoyance in the grain structure. A slight modification to this release should result in more dimensional stability by using the same Birdseye Maple on the inside and outside of the lid panels.

Reviews: Neil's Blog and VideoPuzzle Pusher, Puzzle Paradox, Jerry's Collection

50 copies will be available with our December 16th release and the remainder in January.

  

Daedalus (Final Release)

DESIGNER: Gregory Benedetti
MATERIAL: Jatoba / Chechen / Dark Chechen / Rosewood
RELEASE DATE: 12.16.2020
PRICE: $249
SIZE: 3"

The increased price of this final release is an accurate reflection of our costs. We have no plans to re-release this puzzle in the future.

Daedalus by Gregory Benedetti is an utterly unique masterpiece of design. Brilliantly creative and brutally tricky, Daedalus hides its secrets well. The beautiful exterior gives no clue to the sheer pandemonium hiding inside. What appears to be a simple cube is an interlocking maze that continually changes its state with rotations, dead ends, and deception. Simple disassembly is a challenge; reassembly is genuinely an accomplishment.

Daedalus is difficult to make. Each puzzle contains pieces from a single plank organized by grain and color and tracked throughout the crafting process, a substantial handling and organization challenge. Select frame cubes are milled 0.003" oversized in only one dimension, an imperceptible value followed throughout the production process. The 27 unique cubes receive 324 bevels, 33 stopped notches, and 18 flat-bottomed holes pressed with pins. All operations are done by hand within 0.003" accuracy.

87 total copies available in this final release. 29 copies in Jatoba, 27 copies in Chechen, 19 copies in Rosewood, and 13 copies in Dark Chechen.  Each puzzle is signed and dated. This puzzle is shipped assembled.

 

Jatoba

  

Chechen

Dark Chechen

Rosewood

 


Kepler

DESIGNER: Felix Ure
MATERIAL: Solid Aluminum and Brass
RELEASE DATE: 12.16.2020
PRICE: $99
SIZE: 2.16" x 1.22" x 1.3" (55mm x 31mm x 33mm)

Kepler is Felix Ure's third design and his first packing puzzle. Typical of Felix's work, the solution is elegant and surprising. Felix describes Kepler as:

"The aim is to put all 11 balls inside the enclosure, then insert the lid. A pocket-sized packing puzzle that seems very simple, until it isn't."

The puzzle is not solved until all eleven balls are in the container with the lid flush against the opening.

Precision machined from solid aluminum and brass, Kepler weighs 155g (.34 lbs) and measures 55mm x 31mm x 33mm, in the solved state. The brass is left unfinished, leaving it to slowly patinate and darken with use. Felix rates the difficulty as 6/10.

Handling Metal Puzzles
While all metals tarnish over time, residual oil and salt from handling speeds up the process and leaves fingerprints. We include a metal Cleansing cloth with all metal puzzles sold on Cubicdissection. Metal Puzzle Polishing Kits which contain a larger cleansing cloth and microfiber polishing towel are also available.

 

 

 

 


Where's My Hammer

DESIGNER: Dee Dixon
MATERIAL: Black Walnut box; Sapele, Cherry, Zebrawood, Leopardwood, Wenge, Genuine Mahogany, Bocote and Morado tiles
RELEASE DATE: 12.16.2020
PRICE: $319
SIZE: 6" x 4.25" x 3.25"

This is the final release of Where's My Hammer for the foreseeable future. Pursuant to our demand balancing efforts, a 14% price increase was applied over the prior release.

Dee's widely acclaimed "Where's My Hammer?" Sequential Discovery Puzzle Box was his first offering on Cubicdissection. WMH is incredibly well crafted and packs a ton of puzzling value into a unique and attractive package. Multiple discoveries, unique mechanisms, and very unusual construction make this a must-have for serious collectors.

While demand for WMH remains strong, Dee has since released his excellent Space Case box and is moving on to further designs. This will be his last release of Where's My Hammer for the foreseeable future. 

This has a Black Walnut box with tiles made from Sapele, Cherry, Zebrawood, Leopardwood, Wenge, Genuine Mahogany, Bocote, and Morado. 44 copies available, each signed and dated. Ships assembled.

Reviews: Boxes and Booze description, PuzzleMad blog review, FiveSinatras review (space case and WMH).



 

Metal Puzzle Polishing Kit

Priced at $5, our Polishing Kit will keep your metal puzzles in top display condition! Each kit contains one Cleansing cloth and one Polishing cloth.

The Polishing cloth is a 12" x 12" microfiber towel in Cubidissection Orange. The Cleansing cloth measures 3.75" x 5" and contains safe, non-staining chemical agents to remove tarnish and discoloration without scratching. To use, simply rub with medium pressure. Cloths are reusable until completely darkened.

The cleansing cloth is made in Japan. Product safety data is available here.

 

 

December 2020 Update Preview