From cube-lovers-errors@mc.lcs.mit.edu Tue Oct 26 14:00:55 1999 Return-Path: Received: from sun28.aic.nrl.navy.mil (sun28.aic.nrl.navy.mil [132.250.84.38]) by mc.lcs.mit.edu (8.9.1a/8.9.1-mod) with SMTP id OAA29942 for ; Tue, 26 Oct 1999 14:00:54 -0400 (EDT) Precedence: bulk Errors-To: cube-lovers-errors@mc.lcs.mit.edu Message-Id: Date: Sat, 16 Oct 1999 01:32:31 -0600 To: Cube-Lovers@ai.mit.edu From: slapdash@enteract.com (Russ Perry Jr) Subject: Re: Rubik-like puzzles I've never seen before... First off, thanks for all the replies! At 8:06 PM 10/14/99, Kevin Young wrote: >As far as the siamese cubes and the triplet cubes go that you see on ebay. >They are not professionally made. Oddzone does not make these cubes. And >furthermore, they are not "rare". That's kind of what I thought. The OddzOn cubes are represented by http://www.rubiks.com, right? Or is it just on Hasbro's site somewhere? >If you really want a quality cube, Meffert is selling assembly cubes that >use ABS plastic instead of stickers. Later on this year, he will have >available pieces for assembly cubes to make siamese, triplets, and more >cubes that can be joined together. Yep, I found Meffert's site. I hear he's also planning 4x4x4 & 5x5x5 (assembly?) cubes, which is pretty neat. At 8:27 PM 10/14/99, _pink wrote: >>1) The Gem/Diamond. >These are created by utilizing pieces from the Pyramorphix puzzle. One can >disassemble 2 Pyramorphixes and construct one "Gem" and one "Starburst" >puzzles as seen on ebay... So you get 2 "new" puzzles out of 2 Pyramorphix? Hmm, pure profit... At 7:30 PM 10/14/99, Noel Dillabough wrote: >> 2) ??. This is a 14-sided puzzle, with 8 triangles and 6 >> squares. >This one I modelled in Puzzler and it is quite nice. Yes it is a morphing >puzzle, although very simply in nature. I have been told by some of my >users that this puzzle was a prototype and never sold, but I can't confirm >this. Supposedly there are only a handful of these in existance. Someone postulated that it's a dual of the Skewb, and it strikes me that might be true. Opinion? >> 4) "Triple" Cube. This is similar to the Siamese Cube [...] >I guess you could keep going forever, however I don't see the advantage of a >triple cube. I haven't modelled this one. Well, it can be left in even more contorted shapes than the Siamese Cube... >I am constantly on the lookout for more puzzles to add to Puzzler, let me >know if you think of any, I'm already trying to get a bunch of doodles ready for Noel to add... :-) At 10:01 AM 10/15/99, Rob Hegge wrote: >>2) ??. This is a 14-sided puzzle, with 8 triangles and 6 squares. >I bought either this one or the 1) GEM/Diamond or both from Christoph >Bandelow [...] He can probably help you also with the other puzzles. >Hope this helps Sure! I'll send him a note and ask. Thanks for the pointer. At 11:03 AM 10/15/99, Ronald Fletterman wrote: >Hi Perry, I suggest, you contact Tony Fisher, who takes "standard" sliding >puzzles and redesigns them in wonderful variants. His address: Thanks for the address! Tony was mentioned to me by a couple other sources. Does anyone know if Tony has an email address or a URL? At 5:19 AM 10/15/99, Klodshans wrote: >the 14-sided thing sounds like a Cuboctahedron (3x3x3 mechanism) Pete Beck had suggested the same thing, but that's definitely not it. I've seen those before, and one characteristic is that the planes cute through the squares & triangles; on this one there are NO cuts through the faces. >mail me the item number and I will check for sure. It's not on any active auctions any more, but Noel put it in his Puzzler program, and it looks right. >Tony Fisher is also making Siamese Skewbs. Hmm, are there pix of these anywhere? Are the just twinned at the corners? > At www.rubiks.com, there was a thread in the Forum a while ago about how > to make these things. I assume you mean Siamese Cubes, but not Siamese Skewbs. If SS, I couldn't find the posts... At 11:37 PM 10/15/99, Wayne Johnson wrote: >Check out my site, I can show you how the Siamese cube is done: >http://www.zeta.org.au/~sausage/twistymegasite Yep, I found that via www.rubiks.com Forum... I'm not sure I have the talent to mold pieces, but I could mail you some notes about 2x2x3, 3x3x4 and triangular prism mechanisms... :-) At 10:14 PM 10/15/99, Uwe Meffert wrote: >Dear Russ Hello Uwe. I heard you hung out here; glad to make your e-acquaintance. >These are home or professional hand made for puzzle collectors. They will >all be available from our puzzle shop in the near future made from high >quality ABS with molded plastic tiles instead of labels. Glad to hear it. Tell me though, is there any chance we'll see some of the puzzles from the OLD Meffert catalogs -- like the triangular, hexagonal, pentagonal and the two circular, prisms? At 12:57 PM 10/15/99, Tim Browne wrote: >> 2) ??. This is a 14-sided puzzle, with 8 triangles and 6 squares. >This one's news to me. Do you have an eBay item number? It occurs to me that even though there isn't an auction running currently with that, you could search for it. Trouble is, the title was something lame like "blah blah Rubik blah blah EXTREMELY RARE", which will match other stuff too... On the other hand, it might have been auctioned by the same ssongas (sp?) guy who's auctioning off the Siamese/Triple/Gem puzles, so a search for him in completed auctions might find it. I can't get to the web right now to do it myself, but will try to look later. Actually, it might have said "14-sided" in the title, which would be easy to find... >> Are these homemade, prototypes, original puzzles by pirate manufacturers? >Well, I seriously doubt it would be "pirate manufacturers", as my company >officially makes such cubes... What company is that? >at least not yet. It's kind of hard to "pirate" something that doesn't >officially exist. :-) L8r. Well, I guess I meant like the Siamese cubes still requiring two cubes to make one Siamese, so the cubes to make it would be pirated, even if the SC itself wasn't. Same with the Pyramorphix going to the Gem & Starburst. But point taken. And in this case, obviously somebody with a good supply of OddzOn cubes and ?? Pyramorphix and some time & talent out to make a good buck or a hundred. Again, thanks all! //*================================================================++ || Russ Perry Jr 2175 S Tonne Dr #105 Arlington Hts IL 60005 || || 847-952-9729 slapdash@enteract.com VIDEOGAME COLLECTOR! || ++================================================================*//