New Puzzles!
The wait is over! Well, mostly! Today my package arrived from China, missing my LanLan 2×2, but containing a new Super Floppy Cube (3x3x1), a black Fisher Cube and a replacement white Windmill Cube. One of my students was enamored with the Windmill Cube and asked for me to purchase her one. Of course, it took more than three weeks for these puzzles to arrive so I gave her my Windmill Cube. The new one’s green and white stickers are a bit different and I need to tension it a bit to make it flow better but otherwise it is identical to the one
I purchased in March. It’s been a few weeks since I solved one and I forgot one algorithm. Tsk Tsk! I love this puzzle, it’s fun and looks crazy. Like the Megaminx, the puzzle looks more impressive than it is.
Next up is the Fisher Cube. I was always intrigued by the design but found it didn’t look nearly as cool as the Windmill Cube (WC). I sat down with this and mixed it up and it was one of the very few puzzles I could solve without any assistance at all. Of course, it functions very similarly to the WC, so a solve was not far away. I got hung up on a few sections, but all my algorithms work for each cube. Kinda nice. The cube itself is a bit sturdier than the Windmill, still much looser than a standard 3×3 or its derivatives, and its sticker quality also superior. It helps that I prefer black cubes over white, and the WC’s white stickers on white. Overall the cube is fun but virtually identical to the WC. They both make a cool addition to the ever-growing collection.
Finally, the Super Floppy Cube from QJ rounds out the new additions. Like the 3x3x2 before it, this is really just novelty. I’m so glad I waited for a Super Floppy as the shape-shifting is really the only cool draw. Had this functioned like a regular Floppy Cube, it would be pretty weak. However, making it change shapes is a pretty cool draw and quite enjoyable to tinker with. After I stopped messing around with my new puzzles, I went back later to the Super Floppy Cube and solving it was a breeze. So, the different nature of it is the coolest part and justifies my purchase. As I write this, my daughter is messing around with it, intrigued at its turning and getting a little stumped.
And that concludes my purchase. As someone stole my original LanLan 2×2, I had to get another to complete the collection. I opted to grab this in black, leaving only my Windmill Cube and my A1 3×3 in white. OK, time to update the To-Buy List!
Oh, I also posted my cube collection to the blog as well. Updated with my new purchases, of course!!!
I find both the Megaminx and Gigaminx to be fun puzzles to solve but I always get stuck on the last layer. The last two steps get me every time. Then, I take a little break from the puzzles and forget the algorithms again the next time! In fact, my Gigaminx has sat unsolved (last-layer corner orientation and permutation) for well over a week. The puzzle is quite impressive when solved. With the last layers unsolved…not so much. SO, let’s do it!