Xenomorphix (3x3x3 shape variant)

Justin · **Posted:** Tue Apr 07, 2009 7:02 pm

The same pattern appears on all sides in a rotated form.

I built up the geometry using spare pieces from old broken cubes I have lying around. I still ran out of bits and ended up using a spare DIY.
I then plated it with 1mm thick styrene sheet, filled the grid furrows caused by fillets on the inner surfaces, and finally stickered with hand-cut bright/fluorescent Cubesmith vinyl.

Slightly harder than a regular cube, as it requires supersolving the centres. As you can see, it makes some interesting and confusing shapes

I've been playing with it most of this afternoon and it's not so intimidating as it first looks, once you get used to relating the layers to a standard cube.

Video

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File comment: Didn't realise my hands were that hairy.

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File comment: Size comparison

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File comment: Checkerboard. Looks a bit like Paul's Square Pyramid

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File comment: Scrambled

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krazedkat · **Joined:** Sun Apr 05, 2009 2:35 pm

Insane! Good job too. Looks good quality.. Does it turn good?

theVDude · **Posted:** Tue Apr 07, 2009 7:05 pm

Excellent work. The last two pictures make me think of Mirror's Edge.

leonid · **Posted:** Tue Apr 07, 2009 7:09 pm

I like those very random shapes when the puzzle is scrambled.

Skarabajo · **Joined:** Wed Jan 21, 2009 12:58 pm

Very nice mod! I wonder how many other 3x3x3 shape variants exist. I saw a compiled list in an old post, but I'm pretty sure there has been at least a dozen new variants since.

Anyway, great job Justin. Keep up the good work!

Skarabajo.

Kapusta · **Posted:** Tue Apr 07, 2009 7:12 pm

Is that all out of a 3x3!?

That's awesome! I can't even see much of the 3x3 in it!

Great work!

Danny Devitt · **Posted:** Tue Apr 07, 2009 7:15 pm

Another great mod!

Skarabajo wrote:

I wonder how many other 3x3x3 shape variants exist.

Erm... infinitely many.

Fractangle · **Joined:** Wed Oct 08, 2008 11:41 am **Location:** Earth

Very beautiful puzzle! I love it!

David Calzone · **Posted:** Tue Apr 07, 2009 7:29 pm

WOW!! That is a GREAT puzzle!

Oogyboogawa · **Posted:** Tue Apr 07, 2009 7:37 pm

Great work, I love the way it looks mixed up too!

the.drizzle · **Joined:** Thu Apr 05, 2007 8:05 pm **Location:** Seed-nee

Yup, I do like this

Derek Tolley · **Joined:** Tue Feb 26, 2008 1:22 pm

BOOSH!!!

Looks excellent, you've got quite the skills my friend.

Jeffery Mewtamer · **Joined:** Sun Nov 23, 2008 2:18 am

Beautiful. This is quite possibly the most appealing tetrahedral puzzle I have ever seen.

If I am understanding correctly, it appears that:
Two Centers form the midpoint of the 3-piece edges
The remaining four Centers become part of altitude of each face, being the piece next to the Tetrahedral Corners.
Four Edges become the Tetrahedral Corners.
Four Edges become the midpoints of the 5-piece edges.
The remaining four Edges become part of the altitude of each face, being the second piece from the corners.
The Corners become the 2nd and 4th pieces of the 5-piece edges.
For a total of six unique pieces.

Have I correctly found the underlying 3*3*3?

Pierce J · **Posted:** Tue Apr 07, 2009 8:09 pm

How do you get your puzzles to look so good? I'm so jealous i could never have the skill to make one of those

trixter · **Posted:** Tue Apr 07, 2009 8:41 pm

I second that question! This puzzle is absolutely amazing! As soon as the pictures loaded I said out loud "WOOOOOWWWWWW" lol

TomZ · **Posted:** Tue Apr 07, 2009 11:47 pm

Congratulations! That is one of the best built and photographed mods I've ever seen.

Thomas · **Posted:** Wed Apr 08, 2009 12:20 am

Wow Justin. It's amazing that you always come up with mods that look so simple, so natural, yet so highly original.

Thomas

Bounb · **Joined:** Fri Oct 05, 2007 1:45 pm

Wow. Once again, flawless and beautiful.

Justin · **Posted:** Wed Apr 08, 2009 5:08 am

Jeffery Mewtamer wrote:

If I am understanding correctly, it appears that:
Two Centers form the midpoint of the 3-piece edges
The remaining four Centers become part of altitude of each face, being the piece next to the Tetrahedral Corners.
Four Edges become the Tetrahedral Corners.
Four Edges become the midpoints of the 5-piece edges.
The remaining four Edges become part of the altitude of each face, being the second piece from the corners.
The Corners become the 2nd and 4th pieces of the 5-piece edges.
For a total of six unique pieces.

Have I correctly found the underlying 3*3*3?

Pretty much the way it is. Hope the diagram helps.

Attachment:

diagram.jpg [ 58.31 KiB | Viewed 3438 times ]

2 types of centre, 4 types of edge (2 are a mirrored pair), 2 types of corner (mirrored pair)

= 8 unique pieces.

DragonCuber · **Joined:** Tue Jan 06, 2009 12:37 pm **Location:** UK

That is sick! I wouldn't know where to start :lol:

I got a serious headache from looking at it scrambled because there are way too many colours and wacky shapes

merlintocs · **Posted:** Wed Apr 08, 2009 7:25 am

Excellent job! I really like this one.

MarkSS · **Joined:** Sun Nov 25, 2007 7:29 am **Location:** UK

You're setting a high standard for invention and neatness.

How does that name translate? Strange shape?

Frank Tiex · **Posted:** Wed Apr 08, 2009 3:27 pm

This puzzle looks really fantastic.
A beautiful shape, perfectly built.
Is there a waiting list already :?:

Congratulations!!

juanan · **Posted:** Wed Apr 08, 2009 3:37 pm

NICE

...................like all your mods

Vadim · **Posted:** Wed Apr 08, 2009 4:05 pm

Unbelivable! :shock:

Absolutely awesome!
Vadim

GamerCuber101 · **Joined:** Sun Dec 07, 2008 6:42 pm

Amazing, =D

Sigurd · **Posted:** Wed Apr 08, 2009 9:09 pm

outstanding quality!
It looks like production puzzle!

original design!

Sjoerd · **Posted:** Thu Apr 09, 2009 3:49 am

The design, size, shape-changebility, choice of sticker colors, and picture quality are all very awesome. I like it when puzzles have these illogical patterns, but having them on each side, making it kind of logical, like the hexaminx.

Have you already tried to solve it?

SmaZ · **Posted:** Thu Apr 09, 2009 10:43 am

very nice, good idea, I love so much!!!

Justin · **Posted:** Thu Apr 09, 2009 4:34 pm

Thanks for the comments

krazedkat wrote:

Does it turn good?

Movement is good. I used a very well broken-in DIY A type cube as the base. The area of the inner surfaces is quite large, so that has slowed it a little.
Since so much of the inner surfaces are exposed when scrambled, I'm leaving them unlubed.

MarkSS wrote:

How does that name translate? Strange shape?

Yes. Xeno = 'stranger'. Not to be confused with Xena: Warrior Princess :wink:

Sjoerd wrote:

Have you already tried to solve it?

I've done a few solves on it. The last layer is a bit tricky to relate to a standard cube due to the strange shape of the modded corners.
I found my Sunes a bit difficult to translate

Tony Fisher · **Joined:** Sun Mar 27, 2005 7:37 pm

Quality stuff.

Synester · **Posted:** Mon Apr 13, 2009 1:59 pm

The quality of your builds is absolutely unbelievable Justin, Amazing work!

Kapusta · **Posted:** Thu Apr 23, 2009 7:47 am

Justin wrote:

Jeffery Mewtamer wrote:

If I am understanding correctly, it appears that:
Two Centers form the midpoint of the 3-piece edges
The remaining four Centers become part of altitude of each face, being the piece next to the Tetrahedral Corners.
Four Edges become the Tetrahedral Corners.
Four Edges become the midpoints of the 5-piece edges.
The remaining four Edges become part of the altitude of each face, being the second piece from the corners.
The Corners become the 2nd and 4th pieces of the 5-piece edges.
For a total of six unique pieces.

Have I correctly found the underlying 3*3*3?

Pretty much the way it is. Hope the diagram helps.

Attachment:

diagram.jpg

2 types of centre, 4 types of edge (2 are a mirrored pair), 2 types of corner (mirrored pair)

= 8 unique pieces.

So let me get this straight...

The corners became edges, the edges became corners, and some centers turned to edges?

:shock:

In a complicated, twisted way, it all makes sense...

Xenomorphix (3x3x3 shape variant)

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