Aug 22, 2025
It has been extremely hot again in my area today. They say this weekend will be especially hot… I really hope this heat wave will end soon.
Today, I continued working on the 3-sun puzzle box. I made and attached the Kannuki (slide key) panels for the Aruki side, which is the final part of the assembly. Since this attaching process takes two days, I will continue tomorrow as well.
As you can see in the photo, I am making two types this time. One is a made-to-order version with solid wood, and the other is a type where I will later add some kind of design to the top panel. My first idea is to use a design with kanji characters, as I often do. I am also thinking about creating something more unique, but I am still deciding 😅
Today, I also started making new Mame (tiny 1-sun) puzzle boxes. Actually, I still had some unfinished parts from a previous batch, so I decided to complete those first. There are only about 24 pieces of those, so I also decided to add a few more using solid wood for the side panels.
It would be possible to make the traditional type with Yosegi sheets, but if I attach new sheets, they need to be dried again, which takes more time. So this time, I chose to use well-dried HO wood (magnolia) for the side panels. As usual, the top and bottom panels will be made with traditional Yosegi. For this series, I decided to make them with a 14-step mechanism. Perhaps the 14-step version is the standard for Mame puzzle boxes…
When I first started making Mame puzzle boxes, the samples I had were a 4-step with a drawer, a 14-step, and an 18-step version. I heard that these three types were made by other craftsmen in the past. Only the samples were left. Later, I added a 10-step, a 22-step, and a 6-step with a drawer. The Mame puzzle box requires extremely precise mechanisms with steps as small as 0.1 mm, so I always need to make detailed design drawings. Of course, all puzzle boxes have fixed measurements for their mechanisms, but none require accuracy down to 0.1 mm as much as the Mame series. That’s how delicate their movement is.
Today, I first worked on the frame parts. In total, I plan to make around 50 of these puzzle boxes.
I wish you a good weekend! 😄
