27-Jan-2025
Today, I worked on attaching the final panels (Kannuki panels) for the 2-sun cube puzzle boxes and the 4-sun 18-step puzzle boxes, which I have been making since last week. Each box requires two panels to be attached on separate days. The method for attaching them is almost the same, but the 2-sun cube requires more precision because it has smaller gluing surfaces. The size of the “Bocchi (small wood parts)” installed inside is also different, with the cube box using 6mm ones and the 4-sun box using 7mm ones, which makes the latter slightly easier to handle.
After attaching the final panels, I need to let them sit overnight, so I moved on to preparing for the next project. I decided to work on producing the 4.2-sun 21-step puzzle box as I wanted to add one of my original designs to my inventory at this stage. Unlike the standard 4-sun puzzle box, the 4.2-sun size is slightly larger and is my original creation.
The 4-sun puzzle boxes widely produced as Hakone market souvenirs have become increasingly unstable as boxes due to manufacturing methods aimed at reducing costs to the limit. To address this issue, I began creating a more durable version of the 4-sun size. By slightly increasing the dimensions, the vertical length also ended up at 4.2-sun!😅
Today, I prepared the materials and started working on the frame panels, which are now mostly complete. This is actually my first time making a 21-step mechanism for the 4.2-sun size. Until now, I’ve only made 14-step and 27-step mechanisms in this size. I decided to add the 21-step mechanism because it’s easier to produce compared to the 27-step version.
The 21-step mechanism can be made using the same materials as the 18-step mechanism I’m currently working on. Of course, since it’s for the 4.2-sun size, slightly larger materials than those used for the standard 4-sun size are required. Essentially, the 21-step mechanism is just an 18-step one with an additional half-rotation mechanism added, which increases the steps by three.
I might continue working on this process tomorrow, but before that, I plan to work on the finishing steps for the 2-sun cube and the 4-sun 18-step puzzle boxes I’m currently making. As a result, the new project might be put on hold for a bit.
