Oskars Cube
Hai friends,in this instructable I will explain how I made this simple looking but engaging puzzle called Oskars maze cube.maze cube is a puzzle developed by famous puzzle maker Oskar Van Deventer.the challenge is to move the stick from top to bottom by going through the maze but instead of one maze you need to do this for six maze's simultaneously.I saw a picture of the puzzle online and decided to make one of my own.there was nothing but some pictures of the cube so it was hard to make a totally new one.but if you understand how this puzzle works you can also design a new one.I used corrugated plastic cardboard(coroplast) for making this.but if you are planning making one then try using wood or metal.i am using plastic cardboard because there was a lot of leftover coroplast after making some sign board and all I did was find some suitable sized one from the leftover pile.
Supplies
Corrugated plastic cardboard(coroplast)
Superglue
Carbon paper
Cutting tool
Paper
Paint
Design
Making a design was the most time consuming process in this project.it took me almost a day to figure out. how the puzzle works design a new model and cutting.i will explain how I designed this puzzle later in this instructable but for now I will go through how I made this one.after drawing the design I cut twelve pieces of 7cm×7cm squares out of plastic cardboard.my carboplast was 2mm thick and a single layer was not strong enough to hold its shape so i ended up using two pieces glued together for one face of the cube.cut the drawn design and stick it in a carbon paper(tracing paper) then Glu this on the coroplast square when gluing carbon paper place the design exactly in the middle. we will be removing this so don't apply too much glu(see pictures).the model is 6cm×6cm and squares are 7×7 so there will be a .5cm clearance in all edges do the same for all pieces.copy the design to the coroplast by drawing over the glued design with a pen or pencil.after drawing all lines remove the carbon paper the design will be perfectly copied to the coroplast.since i am using carboplast it was very easy to cut all pieces.
Cutting
For cutting the tracks I used a thin nail attached to the soldering iron.Nail is attached to the heating end with some copper wire so heat can easily be transferred from iron to nail once the nail is hot enough simply pass the nail through the lines it will cut easily there was no smoke while cutting but I recommend doing this in a well ventilated room or outside.take your time here because any mistakes made in this step will ruin the cube but even after cutting the cuted part will be attached to the main piece so remove it carefully.the tracks were not perfect there were some bumps here and there so I did some additional cutting and smoothing using the hot nail.
Gluing
This is when I noticed some problems with the design some measurements were not perfect and some piece won't fit in place.most of the problems were because of the carboplast it tend to bend easily and a little heat can damage it.I was just trying if it was possible to make one so I was ok with the results its doing what it was suppose to do and that's enough.now its time to Glu three pieces.front piece top piece and left piece glue these as its faces of the cube.after gluing 3 sides its time to place the middle stick inside,to make the stick you need three thin wood or metal piece length of these stick's are 15 cm each connect two stick's perpendicular to each other in the middle like x and y axis and the third piece in z axis which is perpendicular to x and y. initially i used super glu to stick them then used thin cotton thread to tie them together tight.after tying put two three drops of super glu on the thread this will make the joint rock solid and we need a tight joint so this is important.these sticks should not be bigger than the tracks but not too thin also.then I painted it white.place this piece inside the cube it will be tricky to do so take your time and dont damage the cube move the stick to the bottom corner.after inserting we can finish the cube by sticking the remaining three sides.
Final Touch and Solution...
The cube was not looking perfect there were lots of marks on it so I added a layer of paper over it this hided all the marking and also give a sharp cut look,i was really satisfied with the look after adding paper since my hot nail cutting was definitely messy.As a final touch I painted the whole thing white and highlighted start and end points with some blue paint.Now the maze puzzle is ready the game is to move the stick from its top left starting point to the end location which is at bottom right back corner.solution is given in the PDF file below.
Downloads
How to Make a New Design
First step in designing is to draw three square there are six face's for a cube but in this case we only need to design three because remaining three will be mirror image of these three.then divide the square into twelve rows and columns(see the pictures).In this three one is front,one top and one left.Then start drawing in the front piece start from the top left side whenever you draw one or two steps in front piece you need to draw the step in other two pieces.but there are somethings to take care of. If you start from the top left corner of the front piece then for the top piece it will begin from bottom left and for the left piece from right top corner.(imagine a finished cube with stick inside it to understand)
When a line is drawn in the right direction then the top piece will have the same movement but there won't be a track in the left piece.any movement in the x(left right movement) direction won't make a track in left piece a movement in y(up down movement) direction won't make a track in top piece and in z direction(push and pull movement) in front piece also.look at the pictures given above and try to replicate the same.first start with simple and work your way to complicated ones.
Numbering your step will avoid any confusion and when marking a movement without a track draw a circle to denote it.
Draw two steps in front face and draw the corresponding lines in other pieces but for the next tracks don't draw it on front face instead draw it on top or left one and draw the resulting trak on others.by doing so you can make the puzzle hard and confusing while playing.do this after every two or three steps.
Right down each of your steps in order and with its number so you can have the solution before solving it
Leave some place at edges for gluing and consider the thickness of the pieces when you're designing a new one
After designing three faces make two copies of it while gluing Glu the same pieces in opposite faces.
I know it's confusing to read but once you start to build it will make more sense so try making one.
Thankyou.