07-Mar-2025
The rain from yesterday has stopped, and the sunshine has returned today. However, the temperature remains low, so it still feels like winter.
At work, I spent a lot of time on the finishing process of a 3-sun cube puzzle box. This is the final and most important step. Fortunately, everything went smoothly this time as well, and I was able to reach the paint stage in a stable condition. Once the under-coating is applied, I can feel a bit more relieved.
This time, it was a 27-step mechanism, but I made several small improvements to the design of this box. I realized once again that even with the same 27-step mechanism, the design needs to be slightly adjusted depending on the shape of the box. One point of reflection this time is that the 3-sun cube has a length of about 8 cm which is relatively short (although all sides are the same length), I made the thickness of the sliding plates 6.5 mm, but it seems they were a bit too thin. While I don’t think there is a problem with the overall strength of the box, for a design where all four sides move, it would be better to make them slightly thicker. From the next time, I plan to increase the thickness to about 8 mm.
After that, I continued working on the hexagonal box from yesterday. I am currently at the assembly stage. The fixed panel has already been attached, and now I only need to attach the remaining five panels. I first made the five panels and then carefully re-leveled the box body to ensure a perfectly flat surface for attachment. The yosegi panels are cut into squares first, and then one side is processed at a 60-degree angle. All five panels will be attached at the same time. I have tried various methods for attaching them, but so far, this is the approach I am using. Since no other craftsmen are making this type of box, I am figuring out the best process through trial and error. Of course, attaching the panels one by one might be the most reliable method, but it would take too much time. I plan to continue this work when I have time in the coming days.
Today, in addition to my other tasks, I also prepared yosegi sheets. Using the materials I prepared the other day, I glued them together to create striped blocks. These blocks are then cut and carefully assembled to form patterns for the yosegi sheets. This time, I worked on the usual checkered pattern (ichimatsu) for 4-sun and similar-sized yosegi sheets. However, I also decided to create another type of yosegi sheet at the same time. This particular sheet is for a special box I plan to make in the future. I am considering reproducing a box I made a long time ago (about 15 years ago). It’s not a final decision yet, but I hope it works out well. This box requires more steps than a standard puzzle box and was originally created as part of my work with the “Karakuri Creation Group,” which I was previously a member of. If everything is decided, I will write about it here again.
Have a great weekend!😄
