Cast Delta (Kyoo Wong - Hanayama)

You know what I haven't written about in a long time? A Hanayama puzzle! This puzzle isn't new to the market by any means, but it is certainly worth writing about as it is a very nice piece of puzzle design.

This is the Cast Delta, designed by Kyoo Wong and manufactured by Hanayama. In true Cast puzzle style it is made of cast metal, which gives it a great weight, and the antique colour of the finish is a very nice choice in my opinion.

At first glance the Delta reminded me of the first puzzle I ever wrote about, the Cast News. It has that same sort of enclosed container look about it, except where the News is an extremely rattly puzzle, the Delta feels much more solid in the hand.

After playing with the Delta for a few seconds you will get to catch a glimpse of the inner workings, and then promptly realise that it is not some kind of hidden compartment puzzle, and it falls more into the category of a take-apart puzzle.

Now from this position it is easy to close the puzzle fully, then re open to this point, then close it again....then semi-open it again etc. This is the point where it seems most puzzlers get a little bit stuck.

I had a feeling that coordinate motion would be the solution to this puzzle, but when I spun it nothing happened, and when I pulled them all against each other at the same time...nothing happened. There was clearly something that I was missing.

Then came the obligatory 'Ah ha!' moment, something clicked in my head and the Delta was in three identical pieces. The way that it came apart slightly reminded me of the Cast Rattle, and if you've solved that as well you'll probably know what I mean.

It's not a particularly difficult puzzle, with most people I have spoken to solving it within 5-6 minutes, but the elegant design makes it well worth owning. Plus it's a great one to hand over to non-puzzlers, since it has an obvious solution and they are likely to be very pleased with themselves when they solve it...plus it's practically invincible in case someone gets really fed up and throws it out of a window.

The Hanayama Cast Delta is currently available from Puzzle Master and all other good puzzle distributors.