Bit of an update for anyone interested. My aluminium one has been returned from the engravers and looks great. I`m well chuffed with it and I just hope my Dad will be. As was always my original intention, the engraving forms part of the puzzle. Without it the puzzle is actually just luck and trial and error even if you know how it works. By putting the engravings in a relation to the hole and semi-circle slot, you can discover how to align them to open the puzzle. The engravings have to be 180deg apart to open the hole and allow the balls to escape.
I`m also really really chuffed as I`ve just finished my second MK2 modified puzzle and can confirm that it makes the puzzle near impossible without some way of understanding how it opens. Infact, it is more or less a lock!!
So the base piece was done last week and I posted pictures of that earlier. Here are the rest, showing the other couple of pieces:
So I turned down another block of brass so that it fit into the bore of the base piece :
And then started making the grooves and such like last time:
This time, when I started drilling for the bore, I drilled right through 6mm, but then decided it wasn`t wide enough and moved from the plans, changing it to 10mm through the lid:
Then I started making the "extra" shielding piece:
Bored it right up, about .5mm away from the top where it will reduce down to the lid diameter:
Drilled the escape hole and then cut the thumb notch in the top:
So before polishing BUT just incase I couldn`t get them apart again, thought I`d take a pic of all the bits:
REMOVED
This is how the extra thumb screw looks in the lid, the spring allows it to be depressed by about 5mm and of course turned.
And here it is:
I`m really chuffed with it, it is very hard to open as the inner shield has to be perfectly aligned to allow the balls through even if the other bits are in line! I must admit however, that I`ve made a small error and took the inner groove 1mm too high towards the top so this allows it to open about 1.5mm, which is a bit more than I`d like. I think it`ll take some 8mm bearings rather than the 7.5mm currently in it so for £2 I`ll order some and see if they fit (without any more modification) and if they do, it`ll reduce the gap a bit. Anyway, that is being critical, it works a treat and doesn`t lift too much that it spoils anything!
I hope you like this second edition, certainly a fun upgrade if you find anyone who can open the first puzzle! Just need to polish up the brass and it`ll be a winner.
