#HTE

Puzzle Maker Tony Fisher Creates Gigantic, Workable Rubik’s Cube

Here’s a job description you don’t hear every day: Tony Fisher is a full-time professional puzzle maker. Britain-based Fisher has been at it since 1980, when he became fascinated—some might say obsessed—with the Rubik’s Cube and began DIY'ing his own variants.

Those variants eventually drew customers, and today Fisher runs Tony Fisher Puzzles, where he sells an insane variety of what he calls “Rubik’s-Cube-type twisty puzzles.” Here’s literally just a fraction of what he offers:

The thing about Fisher is, he’s spent decades dreaming up puzzle variants in his head and building them with his hands. But in recent years, folks jumping into the DIY puzzle pool have taken the CAD and digital fabrication route–an approach Fisher eschews. “When 3D printing started to improve around 2010, many amateur puzzle makers switched from hand made creations to CAD and paying companies like Shapeways to 3D print their puzzle parts,” he writes. “I had little interest in doing this and much prefer the satisfaction of creating something by myself.”

Perhaps that’s why he built this gigantic Rubik’s cube that’s 1.56 meters (a little over five feet) cubed. And amazingly, the thing is functional:

It’s quite the UI problem, no? Having to constantly tip it onto one face to turn the opposite face looks like one heck of a workout. But I can’t think of any other way he could manipulate a puzzle this size, short of putting a giant magnet in the center and having it levitate. 

Actually…that would be very cool! Fisher, are you reading this?

Via Gizmodo