Houdini's Torture Cell

[Olaf S]

Brian Young Houdini's Torture Cell

I like the original wooden version better
I would take a "non-magnetizable" screw
This complicates the solution significantly


https://youtu.be/RP6ktXPIa-4


https://youtu.be/910E56B8Bg8

IPP31 Puzzle Exchange – Germany, August 2011 - 282 made
https://www.mrpuzzle.com.au/houdinis-to ... rt-puzzle/

[PeterW]

Hi Olaf, I’m very good friends with Brian Young the designer of the Houdini’s Torture Cell puzzle. Brian designed the puzzle as a sequential discovery puzzle, meaning that as it’s solved parts are found that are then used as tools in its solution. Chris Ramsay’s “dexterity” solve is neither elegant nor as intended. When a puzzle is well designed, it’s solution will be elegant, take no force, and be an interesting solve. Chris’s random shaking is neither elegant or interesting.

I own two versions of this puzzle, the original wooden version and a newer brass version that Brian has had mass produced. If your interested the brass version is still for sale and reasonably priced here: https://www.mrpuzzle.com.au/product/houdini-puzzle/

As an interesting aside in 2012 both Brian and myself tied for a Jury First Prize award in The International Puzzle Design Competition Awards. He with Houdini’s Torture Cell and me with my Ferris’ Box Puzzle box. See here: https://johnrausch.com/DesignCompetitio ... esults.htm

[Olaf S]

Chris Ramsay’s “dexterity” solve is neither elegant nor as intended. When a puzzle is
well designed, it’s solution will be elegant, take no force, and be an interesting solve.

Peter, I understand your point of view but I find the C.R. solution not inelegant but rather more
challenging and I like it more than the actual solution. And if the screw can not be magnetized,
it can only be solved this way. I find the actual solution too simple.

I have seen a wooden cube very similar to yours. Is it the same principle ?

" Cube in Cube is a wooden puzzle that would form a cross without
the outer cube. But do you get the cross inside the outer cube ? "

[PeterW]

Hi Olaf, in the mechanical puzzle world, dexterity is a classification of puzzle style. There are dexterity puzzles ie. roll multiple ball bearings into multiple holes to complete the puzzle. Houdini’s torture cell was designed as a sequential discovery puzzle, where thought and creative thinking lead to a repeatable interesting solution. Chris’s solve adds trial and error. In fact many collectors in the puzzle world laughed at this video when it was first released, as Chris has come up with a solution that adds brute force trial and error. A simpler example I can give of this principle would be if there was an elaborate puzzle box that took many moves to solve correctly. Well someone could come along and solve that puzzle box with a hammer, both solutions eventually get the puzzle box open, but quite obviously the hammer solution is not as elegant.

In regards to my puzzle looks can be very deceiving, my cube is actually a box, a puzzle box. The goal is to find out how to open the box. The cube you have posted is a packing puzzle, where multiple pieces of wood interact with each other as they are packed into the wooden frame.

[Rob Rand]

Ha, I also own the original Houdini Torture Cell, a very nice puzzle with an interesting solution.

I also have his “A plugged well”,which I saw for sale at an auction, starting price £ 300

See
https://puzzleparadise.net/listing/a-pl ... ung/112448

The seller is called Rob, but it’s not me!

Wow I’m willing to sell it now

It is still in pristine condition.

B08608FB-4946-48BA-B1DF-BF45B3F5CEE5.jpeg

[PeterW]

Hi Rob, I also have Plugged Well in my puzzle collection also designed and crafted by Brian Young, it’s a great puzzle! Many rare and hard to find Mechanical puzzles are like Tenyo effects and I have seen countless puzzles sell at multiples of their original retail value. Puzzle collectors are always on the lookout for those rare puzzles to add to their collections and that drives some of the crazy auction sale prices.

[Rob Rand]

Hi Rob, I also have Plugged Well in my puzzle collection also designed and crafted by Brian Young, it’s a great puzzle! Many rare and hard to find Mechanical puzzles are like Tenyo effects and I have seen countless puzzles sell at multiples of their original retail value. Puzzle collectors are always on the lookout for those rare puzzles to add to their collections and that drives some of the crazy auction sale prices.

Yes Peter, I must admit that wooden brainteasers were my fascination in the first place, and not magic tricks.

My grandmother had a shop in Chinese stuff, including wooden puzzles. I sometimes got puzzles for my birthday and loved to solve them.

My first one was a wonderfully made Saturn shaped wooden puzzle to disassemble and assemble again… I was 8 years when I got that one and loved to discover how to solve it and to repeat it over and over again.

Since that time I started to buy many puzzles and never stopped.

My interest in magic started at the age of 35 and I always had some kind of a love/hate relationship with it.

I loved the workings but hated the secret performance moves

I couldn’t imagine that nobody would notice it when I would palm a ball or coin.

It got slightly better over the years but my soft spot is still brain teasers to be honest…

[PeterW]

Rob that’s cool to hear! I assume your Saturn puzzle looks something like the picture below. It’s known as a Kumiki puzzle, and is Japanese for “to join wood together”. Very cool to hear your interested in puzzles. There is a great Discord group dedicated to mechanical puzzles. If your interested I can send you an invite to it?

52B0DBF6-CE9F-4F80-ABCD-4A5026FB39C8.jpeg

[Rob Rand]

Rob that’s cool to hear! I assume your Saturn puzzle looks something like the picture below. It’s known as a Kumiki puzzle, and is Japanese for “to join wood together”. Very cool to hear your interested in puzzles. There is a great Discord group dedicated to mechanical puzzles. If your interested I can send you an invite to it?

52B0DBF6-CE9F-4F80-ABCD-4A5026FB39C8.jpeg

Peter, this is exactly the puzzle I had!
It was extremely well made, the pieces had some looseness which you don’t have with the wooden puzzles nowadays.

Unfortunately I don’t have it anymore, it is probably given away to one of my nieces…

First I had a display cabinet full of puzzles.

Now it’s full of magic tricks.

I have no space enough for exhibiting my puzzles.

I also have some very nice puzzle books written by the well known puzzle specialists Jerry Slocum and Jack Botermans.

Yes please invite me to this group!

You need my email for that?

I can send you a pm if you need that.

[PeterW]

Hi Rob,

I sent you a personal message with a link to the Discord group!

[ØyvindK]

Each Christmas I give my wife a puzzle to solve to get her present, and this year I designed my own version of the puzzle in this topic:

houdini1.jpg

houdini2.jpg

I only had a flat plate of acrylic, so I made it with windows. You can still see the insides well, but not as good as if the tube is all transparent, of course. I also made it a bit more sculpture-like, with the stand being a bit more artistic.

[PeterW]

That’s amazing Øyvind! Great job on the 3D print!

[Olaf S]

Each Christmas I give my wife a puzzle to solve to get her present,
and this year I designed my own version of the puzzle in this topic

I like the design does Houdine escape on top or does the bottom open ?

[ØyvindK]

Thanks for the nice comments!

Olaf, Houdini escapes at the top, but I printed that part in two colors. There is also a slot on the inside for a note, which told her what the next task was.

[Olaf S]

I could not resist and ordered the brass version
It is very well made and it looks in real very good

[PeterW]

I could not resist and ordered the brass version
It is very well made and it looks in real very good

Nice! Here’s a pic of the two from my collection.

C43058AB-3F55-4127-A493-08E6F0C47C2F.jpeg