Hello all,

I'd like to present my latest puzzle design, which is a pyraminx:

I decided to design this because the pyraminx design is one that can be significantly improved, but that has had few changes to its mechanism since it was originally released. It's a WCA puzzle, so I felt it was worth making a version that is better designed for speedsolving.


The puzzle uses a mechanism that is based on the some of the concepts of the GuHong 3x3, in that it has relatively deep conical cuts, as well as chamfered edges to allow reverse corner cutting. Unlike the mass produced pyraminx, there is no "clicking" mechanism, so the turns are smooth. I experimented with different screw and spring combinations, and from the types that I have, it seems that Type A screws and springs work the best, but stiffer springs might improve performance even further.

There isn't much else to say about the puzzle, but I do a more detailed comparison to a mass produced pyraminx in the Youtube video.

This puzzle can be purchased from my Shapeways Shop for $70 in WSF.

-Will

Great work Will, I for one would love to buy one. Do you have any plans on presenting this to a manufacturer? I could imagine Meffert's or Calvin's Puzzles being enthusiastic by this puzzle.

Well done.

Great job! I am excited to try this out at Harvard and/or MIT and/or the thing we talked about yesterday in IRC.
You said this is based off of a GuHong- do you have plans for a series based off of other cubes (Zhanchi, LunHui, etc)?

-Doug

I think he said its based off the GuHong as that was the first of that series that had completely redesigned pieces in terms of structure. The later zhanchi, lunhui are all variations/ improvements on the GuHong.

Great puzzle by the way, looks great and an ideal candidate for mass production!

Not at the moment, but I'd love to see this get mass produced if any manufacturers are interested.


Well, I really meant that it's based on the series as a whole with the chamfered edges and conical cuts. Torpedo pieces like those an the ZhanChi wouldn't make a difference here, since this puzzle doesn't have pieces that are equivalent to 3x3 corners.

I don't really solve pyraminx but I'm sure I would a lot more if I had one of these.
Any chance of getting pictures of the pieces?

Pyraminx is my favorite WCA puzzle (yes, I like it better than 3x3) and, you are right; it hasn't seen much improvement. I would, however, like to say that the Meffert's pyraminx for speedcubing has spherical cuts, and it can cut corners forwards and backwards very easily.

I also would like to know several other things about this puzzle. How well do the tips turn? Do they have a click? In my experience, if a tip doesn't click very strongly you will get a lot of +2s. If this goes into mass-production I think that a click mechanism should be added to the entire puzzle. (But that's just me.)

Now that I am done being critical, I would like to say THANK YOU FOR PUTTING SOME EFFORT INTO MAKING A GOOD PYRAMINX! This has been needed for a long time.

Oh yeah, I second the motion for mech pictures.

I haven't had the opportunity to try the newer Mefferts pyraminx design, but I don't see how its reverse corner cutting could compare to this puzzle when the parts are hardly filleted or chamfered at all at the center of the faces.

Also, the tips do not click, but that isn't to say that a clicking mechanism couldn't be implemented

The reverse corner cutting on the speed-pyraminx is not as good as it is on your puzzle, but it is better than the standard mass-produced pyraminx. It cuts maybe 4 to 5 degrees. Not amazing, but enough to reduce lockups.

Seriously though, your design needs to be produced. As it is, I'll consider buying it from Shapeways.

Well done, I hope your version gets mass produced

Great puzzle! Is there any chance that it gets mass produced? Do you have some pictures of the mechanism?

Much improvement!
When will you start to sell it?
Any chance to see a mechanism picture?

The puzzle is now for sale on my Shapeways shop for $70 in WSF. The current version on Shapeways has thicker shells than the original for a few reasons. The original puzzle design had the pieces feeling a little too flexible, and the puzzle was still very light for speedsolving puzzle. Additionally, because of the way the Shapeways density discount works, it's actually cheaper to have the design shelled out much thicker.

Finally, since a lot of people asked, here are some pictures showing the mechanism.

One of each piece:


Edge piece:


Center piece:


The corner pieces have small tabs that allow the tips to snap into place, so no glue is needed to hold them in place:

It looks very similar to the new Meffert's design... It makes me wonder whether you could just get a similar effect by sanding down the MSP's click bumps and inner corners.

Here is a video review of it that I found on YouTube, and which my comment is based on (I don't own the MSP).

From what I can see, the new Meffert's design doesn't have the conical cut that makes the mechanism a few mm deeper, but I haven't seen any detailed pictures of its mechanism. Would anyone be able to post a comparison?

Speed pyraminx pics (with a thick coat of Lubix.) Very similar, but not conical.

Maybe I'm just old-school, but I'm gonna put my two cents in and say that I actually prefer the "clicky" original design. That said, I'm not a speedsolver. I also prefer a solid-feeling well broken in old-style Rubik's type 4x4x4 or 5x5x5 mech (no rails) to a flimsy Eastsheen.