Tuesday 16 September 2014

Naked Secret Box "RED"

The Naked Secret Box "RED" is Meiko Kimura's IPP34 Exchange Puzzle. Meiko is the owner of Japanese online puzzle retailer Torito.



One look at the puzzle and you can probably guess why its called what it is. There is also a "BLUE" version (somewhat physically similar to the "RED") which was her puzzle design competition entry.

The puzzle was designed by Akio Yamamoto and made entirely out of acrylic. Object is to remove the lid and take apart the box entirely into the 6 pieces. Imagine it a 6 piece board burr interlocked, with very widely spaced apart pieces. Build and construction is excellent and pieces are all precisely laser cut.



Solving is not difficult but there is a sequence of movements to follow. The pieces also must be in the correct orientation for it to fit together properly.

From the practical standpoint, you could put some keepsakes inside. Non-puzzlers would probably take quite some time to get it open without resorting to brute force or breaking the box.

The "BLUE" version is available from Torito for around US$27/-. Not expensive considering the high quality, but unfortunately Torito does not ship internationally any more. Anyone wanting a copy would have to get someone they know in Japan to buy it for them, or perhaps use a commercial drop shipping service.

2 comments:

  1. Hello~, Jerry
    I read your description about Naked Secret Box "RED".
    Your writing is polite & clear, I think.
    Akio Yamamoto, designer of this puzzle, have impressed by this article, and said to me " The explanation should be written like you, and It was of some help."
    I think he is really a great puzzle designer. He have designed many, and my favorite ones are VORTEX, RADIX, and BAROQUE of Hanayama CAST Puzzle.
    I believe Only he can design this kind of puzzle.
    --Koshi

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    Replies
    1. Hello Koshi-san, thanks very much for your comments. I was not aware that Akio Yamamoto designed the Cast Puzzles you mentioned, now I know!

      But I like Naked Secret Box very much. I hope he will design more boxes like this that use acrylic for construction.

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