No Problem Puzzles, Update #5

No Problem Puzzles provided over 100 amazing puzzles designs for the community between November 2020 and April 2023 until the tragic passing of Symen Hovinga on 7 April 2023.  Theo Geerinck, the other half of the No Problem Puzzles duo, decided to graciously allow the puzzle designs to be made available to the puzzle community for anyone to print their own copy to keep the legacy alive.  Mr BurrTools himself, Andreas Röver, is currently in the process of verifying and publishing the stl model files over the next several months.  These are being made available on the Printables site under the No Problem Puzzles collection. 

This post continues the review of the No Problem Puzzles as the models are being released.  Since the last review (No Problem Puzzles, Update #4), another set of No Problem Puzzles has become available.  They consist of Push Pull, Hash^3, Trio, Pakze!, and T On Top.  For this batch of puzzles, the specified level of difficulty varied between 2 and 4 on a scale of 5.

Push-Pull

What a monster.  I had intended to include this one in the last update but I was unable to solve it over several days.  You have to respect these difficulty level 4 challenges. 

Push-Pull consists of 5 pieces that have to be packed in within a 3x3x3 box with double swinging doors on the top.  The doors are situated such that each carves out a 1x3 space within the box as they move.  And once they are open, you end up with a 1x3 opening that is roughly a quarter of a voxel in from the side.  Thus creating an opening of about 2.5 voxels wide in the center of the 3 voxel space.

While trying to solve this one, many things seemed obvious to me.  And what was obvious to me, obviously changed as I went along.  My assumptions concerning the last piece to place in the box, how they would move, impossible orientations for pieces, etc., etc., etc., were all called into question.

I kept trying the same things over and over to gain some insight on how to proceed.  I found a couple of assemblies where 1 piece would be able to be removed but the others would be stuck.  I had assemblies where it would have worked if one of the pieces were replaced with its mirror image.  I even had inspiring assemblies where pieces slid nicely back and forth but wouldn’t allow both doors to close.

Eventually, I ran myself dry and was clueless on how to proceed.  So I took a break to work on other puzzles.  Several breaks actually.  Many times, I would come back to one of the configurations that, like several other puzzles, just had the air of being The One.  But it just wouldn’t work.  Until it did!  With exact placement and a little nudge, I was able to close the doors on this one.  Whew!

Trio

Trio consists of 3 identical pieces with the objective to make 3 cubes simultaneously.  It immediately reminded me of the Impossible 3 Cube Triangle Puzzle by Andrey Ustjuzhanin although those pieces were all different.  It is not difficult to solve with a difficulty level of 2 but I did find that it took a bit more than negligible force to get the pieces together.  Once together, although they are very loose, they will not fall apart.  So loose in fact that it can be posed to look unsolved.

But wait, there’s more!  If you print another set of 3 pieces you can make 6 cubes simultaneously.  Yes yes, you could just make 2 sets of 3 cubes but the new challenge is to have all 6 pieces intertwined.  It’s not much more difficult than solving the 3 cube puzzle but does have the advantage of going together without any force.  Of course you can’t throw it around the room without it coming apart like the 3 piece version.

Pakze!

Pakze! is a ball packing puzzle with a difficulty level of 3.  There are 4 tri-ball pieces and 1 di-ball piece that have to be packed within a box through a large open slot in the middle of the top.  As with any of these types of packing puzzles, you need to start with determining what type of packing is required for the space provided.  Once that’s determined, it’s not to difficult to perform the packing.  However, I did have to backtrack to get the di-ball in the proper location.

T On Top

T On Top is a 3D packing puzzle with 4 pieces that have to be packed within a restricted opening box.  The box has openings on all sides except the bottom.  In the solved configuration, 3 pieces have to occupy the 3x3x3 space in center of the box while the long T piece has to block the short T opening on the top.  With a difficulty level of 4, I expected this one to be a challenge and I was not disappointed.  It always seemed like the box was forcing the pieces to be misaligned.  Although, I spent a lot of time trying to work out different morphing configurations, once the solution is known, it’s not that complex.  However, there are a couple of key rotations that have to be performed.  The only detractor is that it’s a bit fiddley when trying to move the pieces within the frame.

Hash^3

Hash^3 consists of 6 identical pieces that make a hash cube, i.e., a cube with each of the 6 sides showing a hash symbol.  Each pieces is constructed from 2 parts that need to be glued together.  I was feeling a bit Halloweeny when I printed them in 3 different colors.  I also decided to swap the parts of the pieces so that the pieces were bicolor.  Each piece is now different while still being exactly the same.  This allows for adding different challenges such as having each side a solid color, different colors, etc.  Even with these additional challenges, Hash^3 is not difficult to solve as it looks as it’s stated level of difficulty of 2 would suggest.

Unlike most of the other puzzles in this series, it does not have the name of the puzzle or the designers on it.  However, it does come with a stand with the No Problem Puzzles logo.  It is comprised of 3 identical pieces and relies on the thinness of the plates for the assembly.  And once together, it won’t fall apart.  Personally, I think the puzzle displays better without the stand.

This is the fifth blog post continuing the review of No Problem Puzzles as they are released on the Printables site under the No Problem Puzzles collection.  The prior posts and the puzzles that they cover are:

Preserving a Legacy – No Problem Puzzles
Sandbox
Swinging Lid Tray
3U Frame

No Problem Puzzles, Update #2
Turn Around
Unmatch Box
Quinta Cuboids
Dizygotic

No Problem Puzzles, Update #3
Boon
Sliding Doors
Pivot Window
Orange Perplex
Salmiak
Vixen’s Antlers

No Problem Puzzles, Update #4
Black Cat, White Cat
Pizza Panne
Donut Perplex Junior
Twist Them In


If you don’t have a 3D printer, you can obtain copies of these puzzles from Nothing Yet Designs based in the US or the PuzzleguyStore based in the EU.