![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdBXRqlU0h2OX4gQaQWaSYtCxE46Z4Zx0c9edDQmk74RAT9m8_V8wbLEWdeQcsgTDuaNSKwfO5KykZLePK_8gNMoTCSOp5eia_DoKx1PaWyGsm8NS5dnE3cyneQFGMWJUgkD7cFElpxhM/s320/AW_Puzz_Cat-DSC_7531_edited-1.jpg)
Having spent a couple of year’s working on the ideas inside
this puzzle, Philipp recently decided it was ready to be unleashed on some
puzzlists – so he sent it across the channel to our good mate Shane – who looked
at the innards for a while and said to himself “Gosh, that looks quite complex”
– not a direct quote, he’s generally far more parsimonious with his words – chucked
something rattle-y inside it and sent it off to yours truly.
It duly arrived in the post and Gill promptly quarantined it
in the dining room (aka Quarantined Post Sorting Office) – for several days… I told you things were a bit strange! When
she deigned it safe, I was handed a rather pretty, if somewhat customised wooden
box. A large digital padlock hangs off the bottom corner, a couple of bulbous knobs
appear to be potentially helpful, there’s a large steel bolt screwed into the
corner and then a cute little brass handle in the opposite corner.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQCv_ek-F-aamwQuHp9wDqDT9JgY9T2ZdeNEdDfuDFSx9A7Kacihzpny8z9PwhBecQCpTbYXevi6KYKy0fWQa16gsX30JQWWczh_0NZG5SbnbP0jcH0_O5ibykzut2kShbjJpEoaVFF5c/s320/AW_Puzz_Cat-DSC_7532_edited-1.jpg)
I spent a while exploring things and noticed something obviously
clattering around inside… and some IM-ing later established this was Shane’s helpful
addition to make a subtle, elegant puzzle a little less so… it also made it a
lot harder to identify some of the potentially more helpful clues a solve might
provide – thanks dude!
Around this time Philipp merrily tells me it’s probably not
solvable now and sends me a pic of the innards… which terrify me a little – I’ve
deduced the main conceit, but this goes a long way beyond that… he’s developed
his ideas a long way from where I’d last heard them!
Over the course of the next couple of weeks I manage to have
a few more goes at it and find myself wondering once or twice if I’ve done
something silly and snookered myself… I hadn’t – and the design is solid so you
cannot back yourself into a corner that you can’t get out of – nice one!
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtbTEx4v8Yo4vhC3Iiv_Nqyrwb1VPdae059P8bN8g8ucPFTQjUN9CVYlCQ9N5guZAsJxhr2D6WVaK4AJHkrHAs2FKR69UJWnQqqAEWmLf3x8sW0ydVkAtP75J01wg5I0nat18sa_m39-o/s200/AW_Puzz_Cat-DSC_7534_edited-1.jpg)
The original main conceit has had several layers added to it
and they make this a rather nice puzzle. The start and the end are all quite
clever – one of the mechanisms is VERY CLEVER indeed…
So having had the joy of opening this little guy up, I feel
like the best thing to do with it is immediately ship it off to someone else
for them to enjoy it too… enjoy chaps!
I was never quite sure what to make of those conceited puzzles.
ReplyDelete...they are literally wurst!
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