I proudly present: my curved helicopter cube. Or just Curvy Copter.

It is a variation on Adam's Helicopter Cube (get one now!) which shows the internal center pieces and forces them to be oriented correctly. This makes the puzzle even more difficult.
I'm very pleased with how it came out. Turns smoothly, it's unpoppable, takes misalignments well, it's just perfect. Except for the natural stiffness of SLS, but I suspect it'll get even better with time.

So, without further ado:


It's the same size as a regular 3x3x3 cube and about the same weight. I'll take a video showing the turning tomorrow when the sun is out. It will be available from my Shapeways shop, but I'm not quite ready to put it on there let. I'll let you guys know.
The mechanism is a heavily modified V-Cube one.

VIDEO

Buy from Shapeways for just $185/€160!

This is beautiful!

It looks fantastic. It looks like there is a 4-leaf clover in the middle of each face (especially the green one).

Alex

That is cool. It reminds me of the Rashkey puzzles.

It's beautiful, like a stained glass window, and the curves and faces are so well proportioned. I'm speechless.

Very reminiscent of the Praxis cube- to me, at least. awesome job!

Absolutly wonderful!

Reminds me of drews 3x3 variation I think the praxis cube was its name.Great work tom,looks awesome.

What a wonderful design with natural movement!
Well done with the sexy curves.




Pantazis

gorgeous! and it still jumbles, which is awesome!
well done!

will you be selling it (on shapeways or other places?)

Awesome puzzle!

Excellent! A more difficult helicopter cube. It's beautiful. I wish I owned Shapeways...

I cannot add much: This is a masterpiece of art.
Does it turn as well as it looks?
Very, very nice!

Incredible! Very beautiful looking puzzles, and harder too! very Cool invention!

To answer some of the questions:

- Yes, it turns great. It never jams, pops, takes misalignments well but it is a bit stiff due to the material used.
- Yes, it will be on Shapeways. Just give me the weekend. I can't give you the exact price, but it will be under $200.
- It is reminiscent of Andrew's Praxis cube. Note that that one is based on (master) skewb geometry, not a 3x3x3. It's not quite the same thing, but...

Amazing, really amzing Although I wish this was the third silhouetted cube in the helicopter cube thread

FANTASTIC! Way to go, Tom. I can't believe how amazing your puzzle designing skills have come in such a short time. This is a beautiful puzzle. As Kelvin said, it looks like a stained glass window or a tiffany lamp when scrambled (but not jumbled). I am truly impressed.

I might have to make this my second purchase of 3-D Printed Art(and first 3-D printed Puzzle).

This is so beautiful, and well perfected, simply amazing. Will you be selling masters or the entire puzzle on shapeways?

Looks like im going to have to abstain from ebay for another month.
And MonkeyZ to answer your question.

That's not an answer at all, but for that price I'm guessing full puzzle.

Thank you for creating one of my top three favorite puzzles. I will buy this as soon as it is available on shapeways.

Love this puzzle, great job. Just like the rest of your work.

I don't know why but this got me thinking, has anybody thought about a higher order helicopter? Sorry if it has been made/proposed, I'm not as active on this forum as I used to be.

I was wondering when this would be built. This may sound weird, but this seems like something Oskar van Deventer would design. It reminds me of his geary cube.

I have spent countless hours trying to design this puzzle, and it still eludes me. I don't want to say it is impossible but I feel that it might be. The higher order helicopter cube is a puzzle i have been dreaming about for a long time, but I'm not sure if it will ever come to fruition.

That is one BEAUTIFUL puzzle. My goodness. It's just so nice to look at. Great job, this is amazing!

This is terrific! awesome

TomZ, this is a piece of beauty! Great design!

Same here - I've tried multiple approaches and find it next to impossible to design - So that means it must be possible and someone else will figure it out first! - ha!

great puzzle!

X marks the spot! lol

I'm sure someone here can. haha

Wonderful, Tom!
I can't wait to see thiscube on your Shapeways shop.

Famous last words...

I'll try to remember to quote that back at you when it comes out one day!

EDIT: Oh, and Tom, that is a beautiful puzzle! I wish I had the money to get full prints!

-pi (Eitan)

i love it, it has a very praxisy feeling about it

four leaf clover cube...

...and here it is scrambled:



I prefer the name Tiffany Cube, inspired by Flambore, but Curvy Copter sounds great.

BTW, it looks like you could turn a whole face. I guess this isn't the case here, but it should be possible based on an extended 2x2/3x3 mechanism with more internal cuts...

Gangsta!!!

Congratulations on your beautiful creation! I am just starting to look into building. I imagine the feeling when you get finished is amazing!

Thank you everyone for the compliments. I have now made the puzzle available on Shapeways, for just $185/€160! Click here to get yours.
As always, dyed, assembled and stickered puzzle are available from me for a small fee.

Tom, I ordered a black one (and paid of course).
Is it normal that there were no shipping costs?
I would like to have the puzzle assembled and stickered.
If there is a shipping fee, please send a money request covering everything.

George, you should cancel the order right now and ask for a refund. If you want an assembled puzzle you need to arrange that with me in private and should not order directly from Shapeways.
I'm sorry for the inconvenience.
For others, shipping to anywhere is included in the cost from Shapeways.


I've added a video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gq_oN7n_BG0

I have sent them an email and I hope they will cancel the order and refund the money.

Great Idea!!! Fantastic puzzle. I will save money for one of these.

Wow, this is a really beautiful puzzle. Excellent job!

Thomas

Beautiful puzzle. You have outdone yourself once again.

OMG really cool looking! Kepp on with the good work

Beautiful! I'm sold. This will be the first custom twisty on Shapeways I'll have sprung for.

I can't wait to be proven wrong!


Another amazing puzzle tomz, this is really a piece of art. I would really love to see masters up on shapeways, along with a full print. I'm sure you could make more money because im sure alot of people would love to cast this amazing puzzle(including myself)!

Seconded! (Though, depending on the price, I still might not buy them...)

-π (Eitan)

Sorry, no masters:
- The parts are designed for being printed, not for being cast. Putting masters up would require a complete redesign of the puzzle.
- I don't want the puzzle to go out of my control.
- It doesn't make sense economically.
I would be interested in collaborating with someone to make a limited edition cast version. But that person would have to have a good portfolio and be willing to make many copies of the puzzle. A bit like the Adam-Jason collaboration.