Take Apart Boxes

The Oriental Toothpick Safe

Puzzle Design Competition 2001

IPP 21 Exchange / Tokyo

NEWTON'S EGG

IPP 30 Exchange / Osaka + Hakone

Woo Tuck Shuet!

IPP 28 Exchange / Prague

designed by Chinnomotto

made by Stephen Chin

The Drunken Dancing Fraulein

Puzzle Design Competition 2011

IPP 31 Exchange / Berlin

Jean Claude Constantin

Jean Claude's trick boxes are ideally for beginners, as they are not that difficult to solve.

But the quality of the puzzle boxes is not very high, as they are produced for the mass market.

Celtic Knot Box

quality: poor

designed by Jean Claude Constantin

made by BITS & PIECES

Beziehungskiste

Opening Mechanism: Magnet

very simple to open

Oval Trick Box

designed by Jean Claude Constantin

made by BITS & PIECES

designed by Jean Claude Constantin

Bee Box

designed by Jean Claude Constantin

Ambidextrous Hexduos

Puzzle Design Competition 2010

IPP 30 Exchange / Osaka + Hakone

designed by Matthew Dawson

made by Robert Yarger

Improved Pagoda Puzzle Box

needs 16 moves to open the box

Limited Edition of 40

designed by Matthew Dawson & Yasutoshi Makishi

made by Yasutoshi Makishi

Pagoda #3

designed by Matthew Dawson

made by Yasutoshi Makishi

JUGGLER JOKER PUZZLE

Playing Time: < 15 minutes

Opening Mechanism: Disguise

Very simple to open. Only to realize how the box can be opened.

designed by Douglas A. Engel

made by Douglas A. Engel

Solution

Secrets Of The Heart

very simple to solve

Playing Time: < 5 minutes

designed by Douglas A. Engel

made by BITS & PIECES

Mini Secret Box

Difficulty: easy

Playing Time: < 5 minutes

Opening Mechanism: Disguise

designed by Douglas A. Engel

made by BITS & PIECES

Solution

Claus Fohlmeister

Claus Fohlmeister is a puzzle designer from Hamburg/Germany

who designed several puzzles in the 1980s.

His most famous puzzle is safe, a trick box.

Tresor

Difficulty: easy

Playing Time: < 15 minutes

Opening Mechanism: Pin

Tresor

Opening Mechanism: Pin

a copied version of the original design

Irmo Puzzle Box

Puzzle Design Competition 2008 (First Prize)

Shut Case Secret Box / Cam Box

made by BITS & PIECES

Havana's Box #1

designed by Eric Fuller

made by Eric Fuller

Havana's Box #2

designed by Eric Fuller

made by Eric Fuller

Box of ZN

Limited Edition of 50

Puzzle Design Competition 2005

Keepers Key Safe Deluxe

Limited Edition of 35

Bin Laden

binary puzzle

IPP 26 Exchange / Boston

The Diabolical Psycho Coin Box

designed by Rik Van Grol

made by Rik Van Grol

BB

designed by Kyoko Hoshino

made by Kyoko Hoshino

Hiroshi Iwahara

Iwahara is one of the most important and known contemporary artists for trick boxes from Japan.

His works include take a part boxes, sequential movement boxes and how to puzzle boxes,

with the majority of his boxes being take a part boxes.

It is striking that most of his trick boxes have depictions of food.

Especially cakes and sweets are often used as motives.

But he produces also very quite simple boxes.

Thus, many of his boxes have a cuboid or a cubic shape like the traditional japanese boxes.

Contrary to other puzzle boxes you cannot deduct from the outer shape on the opening mechanism.

But on some boxes is a little ornament which gives a hint for opening.

His boxes have two or more compartments on the inside.

His Inkan/Hanko stamp is also always inside the box and is not visible from outside.

His most famous boxes are the Super-Cubi Puzzle, the Secret Base and the Byway Secret Series.

Byway Secret 2

2 compartments

Confetto Box

two compartments

Puzzle Design Competition 2009 (Honorable Mention)

similar puzzles: Half-finished box

Acorn Box

Difficulty: easy

Playing Time: < 15 minutes

Opening Mechanism: Disguise

In my eyes this is not a puzzle box,

but it also took me several minutes to solve

Ichigo Shortcake

Difficulty: easy

Playing Time: < 20 minutes

Opening Mechanism: Inner Maze

similar puzzles: My BUTTER

Box with a tree

Puzzle Design Competition 2006 (Honorable Mention)

4 Direction Drawer

Puzzle Design Competition 2010 (First Prize)

Secret Base

2 compartments

Puzzle Design Competition 2008 (First Prize)

Byway Secret 4

2 compartments

IPP 30 Exchange / Osaka + Hakone

House with trees

Puzzle Design Competition 2011

Firewood

designed by Hiroshi Iwahara

made by Hiroshi Iwahara

Secret Base 2

designed by Hiroshi Iwahara

made by Hiroshi Iwahara

Wave Box

Difficulty: easy

Playing Time: < 5 minutes

In my eyes this is not a puzzle box

designed by Hiroshi Iwahara

made by Hiroshi Iwahara

Sliding 3 Drawer Chest

designed by Hiroshi Iwahara

made by Hiroshi Iwahara

Half-finished box

two compartments

Difficulty: easy

Playing Time: < 60 minutes

similar puzzles: Confetto Box

Yoko Kakuda

Kakuda's boxes resemble movable sculptures, whereby an animal is depicted in most cases.

Her boxes are not especially difficult to solve.

Rice Bird

Difficulty: easy

Playing Time: < 5 minutes

It is not really a puzzle box

Goodnight

Difficulty: easy

Playing Time: < 5 minutes

It is not really a puzzle box

My BUTTER

Difficulty: easy - medium

Playing Time: < 30 minutes

Opening Mechanism: Inner Maze

similar puzzles: Ichigo Shortcake

Anteater

Puzzle Design Competition 2010

KOUME

designed by Yoko Kakuda

made by Yoko Kakuda

Akio Kamei

Akio Kamei is a japanese Trick Box, Trick Furniture und Trick Door designer,

and is one of the most important artists in the Take a Part area.

His many box designs (more than 100)

influenced enourmously the Take a part designs of others.

His designs are characterized through a huge variety.

He uses unusual mechanisms in some of his boxes.

For example his Pneumatic Box is opened through air suction.

In other boxes he mimics the typical movements which occur when an object is handled.

Famous mimic examples are the Egg and Coffee Cup puzzle.

His most famous boxes are Dice, Cassiopeia, Coffee Cup and Egg.

Egg

Difficulty: easy

Playing Time: < 30 minutes

Opening Mechanism: Magnet

similar puzzles: Schloss, Alcatraz, Boulon

New Secret Box II-2

Puzzle Design Competition 2010 (Jury Grand Prize)

needs 30 moves to open the box

Treasure Chest

made by BITS & PIECES

Top Box 3

made by BITS & PIECES

Gift Box / Letter Box D

2 compartments

Opening the two compartments is quite easy.

Closing the compartments is quite more difficult.

Difficulty: easy

Playing Time: < 30 minutes

Opening Mechanism: Inner Maze

made by BITS & PIECES

Octagon Box

made by BITS & PIECES

Ribbon Box

Difficulty: easy

Playing Time: < 15 minutes

made by BITS & PIECES

Rotary Box

designed by Akio Kamei

made by Akio Kamei

Coffee Cup

Difficulty: easy

Playing Time: < 5 minutes

designed by Akio Kamei

made by Akio Kamei

Love Box

designed by Akio Kamei

made by Akio Kamei

Cassiopeia

Puzzle Design Competition 2001 (Grand Prize)

designed by Akio Kamei

made by Akio Kamei

Expansion V (Binary 35)

binary puzzle

designed by Akio Kamei

made by Akio Kamei

Coin Box 2010

IPP 30 Exchange / Osaka + Hakone

designed by Atsushi Katagiri

made by Hideto Satou

Cube 2013

IPP 33 Exchange / Narita, Japan

designed by designed by Atsushi Katagiri

made by Hideto Satou

Regular octahedron secret box

Snake Cube

Puzzle Design Competition 2011

M-Box

designed by Hideaki Kawashima

made by Hideaki Kawashima

Twin

designed by Hideaki Kawashima

made by Hideaki Kawashima

TWIN 2

two drawers

6 moves to open both drawers

Difficulty: easy

Playing Time: < 10 minutes

Missyobako

Puzzle Design Competition 2008

designed by Kohno Ichiro

made by Kohno Ichiro

Ninja's Tool Box

Puzzle Design Competition 2010

designed by Kohno Ichiro

made by Kohno Ichiro

Excalibar

needs 9 moves to open the box

quality: poor

Knight's Tomb

needs 16 moves to open the box

Ark of the Covenant

needs 25 moves to open the box

Limited Edition of 40

quality: poor

Ron's puzzle comes with lots of perks,

But I don't know yet how it works.

I am sure I'll understand,

When I hold it in my hand.

I carved the angels for his box,

They move around as it unlocks.

Robert Yarger

The Ark of the Covenant holds many secrets, 24 in all,

solving this puzzle you will have a ball.

2394, a clue to opening up the door,

move wisely and you need move no more.

When you solve the mystery of the 10,

You will be rewarded from a spirit within.

Ron Locke

Tatiana & Vladimir Matveev

Vicious Circle

IPP 22 Exchange / Antwerp

designed by Tatiana & Vladimir Matveev

made by Tatiana & Vladimir Matveev

Tamara

IPP 28 Exchange / Prague

designed by Tatiana & Vladimir Matveev

made by Tatiana & Vladimir Matveev

Reach Open Space

IPP 31 Exchange / Berlin

Strawberry Very Short Cake

Marbled Walnut Sheet Cake

IPP 26 Exchange / Boston

Pineapple Down Side Over Cake

Hobbit Cake

Limited Edition of 200

Difficulty: simple

Playing Time: 5 minutes

similar puzzles: traditional japanese puzzle boxes,

new secret boxes

designed by Perry Mc Daniel

made by Perry Mc Daniel

Tatuo Miyamoto

His most famous boxes are A Chance Meeting and Walk of Ladybug.

A Chance Meeting

Puzzle Design Competition 2006 (Second Prize)

Difficulty: easy

Playing Time: < 10 minutes

Very simpe to solve, but the idea is great

Latch

Difficulty: easy - medium

Playing Time: < 1 hour

Kuru Kuru Heart

Playing Time: < 1 minute

Pump

designed by Tatuo Miyamoto

made by Tatuo Miyamoto

3 brothers

Puzzle Design Competition 2002

Hakone mountain palanquin burr

Irregular type 5 move Secret Box

Irregular open 4 times secret box

Maze5+2steps Japanese puzzle box

Japanese Puzzle Box Maze7steps

designed by Hiroyuki Oka

made by Hiroyuki Oka

Mouse Kingdom

designed by Kanae Saito

made by Kanae Saito

Sheep?

designed by Kanae Saito

made by Kanae Saito

(Norman and Robert) Sandfield's

SANDFIELD'S Locked Drawer Puzzle

IPP 30 Exchange / Osaka + Hakone

designed by Robert Sandfield and Kathleen Malcolmson

made by Kathleen Malcolmson

Norman Sandfield's Salt Shaker

Puzzle Design Competition 2003

IPP 22 Exchange / Antwerp

designed by Norman Sandfield, Robert Sandfield

and Perry McDaniel

made by Perry McDaniel

Robert Sandfield's Pepper Shaker

Puzzle Design Competition 2003

IPP 22 Exchange / Antwerp

designed by Norman Sandfield, Robert Sandfield

and Perry McDaniel

made by Perry McDaniel

Fat & Thin

Triple Dovetail Puzzle

IPP 18 Exchange / Tokyo

Sandfield's Unlocked Drawer

IPP 27 Exchange / Australia

Hideto Satou

His most famous puzzle is Openable Box, a howto puzzle box.

Kananbare (Japanese Doll)

Openable Box

Puzzle Design Competition 2001

Difficulty: easy

Playing Time: < 5 minutes

Shiro Tajima

His most famous boxes are the Hermit Crab Box, the W-Z and the W-O.

the Hermit Crab Box

Difficulty: easy

Playing Time: < 15 minutes

Flemin'

Puzzle Design Competition 2011

designed by Shiro Tajima

made by Shiro Tajima

Dragon wing

designed by Shiro Tajima

made by Shiro Tajima

String Box 2011

designed by Humio Tsuburai

made by Humio Tsuburai

Telephone Box

Puzzle Design Competition 2007

Gold Coast Parking Meter

Puzzle Design Competition 2008

IPP 27 Exchange / Australia

Karakuri Creation Group

a.) Karakuri Small Boxes

Karakuri Cake 1 / Cheese Cake

Karakuri Cake 2 / Fruit Cake

Karakuri Cake 3 / Chocolate Cake

Karakuri Cake 4 / Marble Cake

New Secret Box I

Difficulty: easy

Playing Time: < 5 minutes

similar puzzles: traditional japanese puzzle boxes,

Hobbit Cake

needs 6 moves to open the box

New Secret Box II

Difficulty: easy

Playing Time: < 7 minutes

similar puzzles: traditional japanese puzzle boxes,

Hobbit Cake

needs 12 moves to open the box

Little Tree

Difficulty: easy

Playing Time: < 5 minutes

Opening Mechanism: Disguise

Very simple to open.

Mother Tree

Playing Time: < 5 minutes

Difficulty: easy

Opening Mechanism: Disguise

Very simple to open.

f.) Karakuri Puzzle Idea Contest 1 (2009)

After the rain

designed by Ayako Kunishima

made by Akio Kamei

Tako-Yaki

designed by Katsuhiko Handa

made by Hiroshi Iwahara

g.) Karakuri Puzzle Idea Contest 2 (2010)

Birdhouse

designed by Gou Kasai

made by Tatsuo Miyamoto

Vaulting Horse

designed by Yuki Nishida

made by Hideaki Kawashima

New Year

designed by Yoko Miyamoto

made by Tatsuo Miyamoto

h.) Karakuri Puzzle Idea Contest 3 (2011)

Flashlight

designed by Shokan Handa

made by Hiroshi Iwahara

i.) Karakuri Puzzle Idea Contest 4 (2012)

Miniature bulb

designed by Kouetsu Handa

made by Hiroshi Iwahara

j.) Karakuri Puzzle Idea Contest 5 (2013)

Crane box

designed by Kyoko Sueda

made by Akio Kamei

Disguise Boxes

The aim of disguised boxes is not to unlock a box by clever manipulation, but to find the opening mechanism.

The opening mechanism is not obvious, it has to be recognized as such.

Many puzzle boxes from the Victorian time period are based on the following principle.

Difficulty: easy

Playing Time: < 5 minutes

Opening Mechanism: Disguise

a typical trickbox from Sri Lanka

Treasure Box

Playing Time: > 1 hour

Opening Mechanism: Disguise

Solution

Sri Lanka Box

IPP 33 Exchange / Narita, Japan

Difficulty: easy

Playing Time: < 5 minutes

Opening Mechanism: Disguise

designed by Roland Koch

made by Roland Koch

Flower Box

Difficulty: easy

Playing Time: < 5 minutes

Opening Mechanism: Magnet

designed by Allan Boardman

made by BITS & PIECES

sesame

Difficulty: easy

Playing Time: < 5 minutes

Only the centrifugal force is required.

similar puzzle: Großmaul

made by TROIKA

Hidden Wealth

IPP 20 Exchange / Los Angeles

designed by Adolf Ledesma

A-MAZING DRAWER

IPP 22 Exchange / Antwerp

designed by Simon Nightingale

made by Simon Nightingale

The AMAZING CHEWDINI

made by ThinkFun (BINARY ARTS)

Coin Box from India

Difficulty: easy

Playing Time: < 15 minutes

Opening Mechanism: Screw

Treasure Box

designed by Rocky Chiaro

made by BITS & PIECES

Mongolian Puzzle Box DRAGON

Boxed In

Limited Edition of 8

quality: poor

designed by Random Netzley

made by Random Netzley

Theo's Trickbox

IPP 22 Exchange / Antwerp

designed by Theo Geerinck

made by Theo Geerinck

Sorrento box Isola Bella

Difficulty: easy - medium

Playing Time: < 1 hour

Playing Time: < 15 minutes

no copyrights

The Always Empty Box

Limited Edition of 30

designed by Phil Tomlinson

made by WolfAngel Studios

Tea Box Puzzle

quality: poor

designed by Kelly Snache & Robert Yarger

made by Kelly Snache & Robert Yarger

First Box

designed by W.G.H. Strijbos

made by STREETWISE

Opening Mechanism

Many easy take a part boxes can be classified according to their opening mechanism.

Literature

Karakuri Creation Group KARAKURI - World of Karakuri Box that evolves

Karakuri Creation Group We are the Karakuri Creation Group!

Karakuri Creation Group Karakuri Catalog

David M. Freedman Box-Making Basics