MOONBASE CENTRAL: Sinister Dexterity

Sunday, 22 April 2012

Sinister Dexterity

I love puzzles, especially dexterity ones that you need to take apart and put back together. Im hopeless at Sudoku etc, but great with stull that needs a little laterality. When I was a kid, my sister had a neat rocket keyring puzzle, in see through plastic, each part in a different shade. She let me look at it now and again, but would never letme disassemble it! Ive got quite a few dexterity puzzles such as the classic Merit Metal Puzzles and the infamous plastic cube that you have to fit back into its box in sections. Just recently, I scored ths lovely rocket puzzle in the states. The vendor kindly taped it all up in transit for me as he didn't recommend taking it apart and trying to fit it together without the instructions! Being the brave soul that I am, as soon as I got the tape off, I took it apart.

The whole thing is about 6 inches high when assembled and to my relief, was only comprised of 12 pieces, so making it up again was easy!

15 comments:

philotoadia said...: I may have had the same rocket keyring that your sister owned. Either that, or something very similar. Except ... mine wasn't transparent. Gosh, it was so long ago, but I think it was made up of pink pieces and green pieces.

And although the actual outward design was different from your 6-inch model, the interrelationship of the puzzle pieces in your photo strikes a chord. This is a guess, but I think the puzzle you bought and my keyring are essentially the same puzzle ... just sized differently and with a slightly different overall shape. But the same puzzle underneath.

Have you compared your puzzle with what you can recall of your sister's transparent rocket?; Sunday, 22 April 2012 17:14:00 BST
WOTAN said...: yep - i have seen keyring sized versions of this rocket, but my sisters one was a lot more 'rocket' shaped, with a thinner fuselage and a needle on the nose. dont know why she would have a rocket, but she also had a cherilea dalek!; Sunday, 22 April 2012 22:16:00 BST
Ed "ICE" Berg said...: We used to call these types of things 'Chinese Puzzles' - don't know why, that's just the way it was. I still have a wooden cube, and a translucent plastic star made in the same vein from my childhood; Sunday, 22 April 2012 22:40:00 BST
WOTAN said...: i know what you mean ed, they were often bagged with a header card describing them as just that. My gran had a cool wooded chinese puzzle box that was an absolute bitch to open, she used to hide cigarettes inside it ! Would be worth a fortune today!; Sunday, 22 April 2012 22:46:00 BST
WOTAN said...: and of course the classic dexterity puzzle is the Rubiks Cube. I could never get any more than 2 sides complete!; Sunday, 22 April 2012 22:47:00 BST
philotoadia said...: That's what I meant about mine being a different overall design. Your description (thinner and with needle) is very like what I had.; Monday, 23 April 2012 00:32:00 BST
philotoadia said...: I had a wooden cube too. And a sphere and a barrel. All from Woolworths, I think.; Monday, 23 April 2012 00:32:00 BST
philotoadia said...: To be honest, I'm not sure any if these are "dexterity" puzzles. They require thought to put them together. Or to solve, in the case of the Rubic's Cube.

Aren't dexterity puzzles those things where you have to tip and wiggle them in order to get ball beatings into little depressions cut into a picture?; Monday, 23 April 2012 00:36:00 BST
philotoadia said...: Sigh" That was supposed to read "bearings" not "beatings". Whose idea was it to put the letter R key right next to the letter T key?; Monday, 23 April 2012 00:38:00 BST
Ed "ICE" Berg said...: Mine came from a festivity held in Milwaukee called the 'Folk Fair' - a 3 day affair which encompassed the Arena/Auditorium complex. The Arena I believe was set aside for folk dancing from the various ethnic groups, one area was for the food - oh Lord don't get me started THE FOOD!!
:-) and a third area was a combination ethnic crafts demonstration venue and souvenir fair.; Monday, 23 April 2012 01:21:00 BST
Ed "ICE" Berg said...: Wotan, I don't have the packaging for the wooden cube, but I still have the box for the star! The star came from Denmark I think. Aw heck, I still have my Boy Scout knife and childhood toy trunk - I started life a hoarder LOL; Monday, 23 April 2012 01:24:00 BST
Ed "ICE" Berg said...: I wasn't very good with those either. :-); Monday, 23 April 2012 01:25:00 BST
Ed "ICE" Berg said...: LMAO - I always tell people "Why can't the keyboard just type what I'm thinking?" Or worse, I'll be typing up a storm (and I HAVE to look at the keys) and this stoopid wireles keyboard loses it's link and doesn't enter anything!!!! arrrrrgh; Monday, 23 April 2012 01:30:00 BST
philotoadia said...: Exactly, Ed. (smiles)

I just tell people I am fluent in Typo-nese.; Monday, 23 April 2012 09:46:00 BST
WOTAN said...: I may have got the wrong term for this type of puzzle, but then im all thumbs anyway with anything like this! But the keychain puzzles are visible on this cool site:

http://home.comcast.net/~stegmann/whatsnew-201103-200808.htm

The rocket isnt quite the one I recall, but is nice either way!; Monday, 23 April 2012 10:01:00 BST