Hexsticks, plans? angles?

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Pio2001
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Re: Hexsticks, plans? angles?

Post by Pio2001 » June 22nd, 2013, 12:01 am

I own the Hectix revisited, made with four woods grouped in the four directions of space, which is an additionnal help when you have to assemble this very difficult puzzle.
But even with the help of the colours, it is difficult to remember how to solve it, with its seven different kind of pieces. I must remember several clues, then use the colours to guide me, and then I can reassemble it.

I was able to do it without clues the first time (I got it disassembled), but it was hard. It is nonetheless very interesting, because you have to think in a four-axis lattice, where the notches face strange directions.
Without the help from any colour, it should be extremely difficult.

The two Hectix are more elegant. They are easier, and can be solved following symmetric patterns, without fully understanding the lattice. The version with two different kind of pieces (Coffin) has three solutions according to Stewart Coffin, four according to Bill Cutler. I don't own one, so I can't check. The internal holes makes it clumsy, in my opinion.
The version of Cutler, with three different kind of pieces has 2 solutions only.

On the disassembling side, you can assemble Cutler's version of Hectix in such a way that it is as difficult to disassemble as the Hectix revisited. This is the most complicated of the two solutions. I guess that it is also possible with Coffin's version, but I can't check.

In fact I'll be able to check next week-end, since I'll see Maurice, who made a copy of Cutler's version, and Jean-Baptiste, who owns a copy of Coffin's version.

So, Hectix or Hectix Revisited ?
If you prefer an elegant and simple design, that your friends may try to solve, go for Hectix.
If you prefer the most complicated and intricate one, and are ready for a long trip into the 4-axis geometry, choose Hectix Revisited.

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Pio2001
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Re: Hexsticks, plans? angles?

Post by Pio2001 » June 22nd, 2013, 12:23 am

PS : I've just read again the documentation that comes with Hectix Revisited. It mentions yet other designs. In fact, Bill did the same as with 6-piece crosses : He ran a software that found all of the 700,688 possible assemblies. Hectix Revisited is one of them.
He mentions some other interesting ones : for example one that is more difficult to disassemble, but has only 6 different kind of pieces instead of 7. One that can only come apart with a coordinate motion. One that has 156 different solutions...

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Re: pouring sauce over the confusion

Post by bluesign2k » June 22nd, 2013, 8:13 am

flawr wrote:I just did another bid of research:
  • According to John Rausch's site Hectix is just the plastic version of Hexsticks
  • In Steward Coffin's Patent there is a slightly different version of the Hexstics that consists only of two different kind of pieces (9 with 2 notches and 3 with 3 notches), which apparently has some additional internal holes beside the one big in the center
I hope this is correct and hope you can identify your exact puzzle=)
Unfortunately, some of the info is wrong. Firstly, the info about Hectix on John Rausch's site is incorrect. The copy if Hectix I have is the white plastic 3M version. Unlike the description on John's site, it has only 2 types of pieces. As such, the patent mentioned must be for Hectix, not Hexsticks.

I too had previously assumed that Hectix and Hexsticks were the same as the one redirected to the other on the wiki. My guess is that Oli did this based on the info on John's site.

I shall split and correct the Hectix & Hexsticks pages on the wiki when I get a chance the weekend.

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Pio2001
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Re: Hexsticks, plans? angles?

Post by Pio2001 » June 22nd, 2013, 12:42 pm

So where does the name Hexsticks come from ?
If I understand well, Hexsticks is the name given by Stewart Coffin, and Hectix the one given by 3M, both for the 2-piece version ?

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TheWaddler
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Re: Hexsticks, plans? angles?

Post by TheWaddler » June 29th, 2013, 8:00 pm

I'm guessing it comes from the fact that the "sticks" that make the puzzle are "hex"-agonal ..... ;)

flawr
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Re: Hexsticks, plans? angles?

Post by flawr » June 9th, 2014, 10:21 am

so now a year later I finally managed to finish my own version of the hectix revisited. Now for checking all the spacings and cuts I desperately tried to solve it in the last few days but made almost no progress. I found one assembly but it is invalid. So has anyone a solution or can anyone give me a hint? Up to now I assumed that you have to finish the puzzle with sliding in a 'triplet' in the direction of 3 parallel pieces, is that correct/ the only way to finish it?

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Re: Hexsticks, plans? angles?

Post by bluesign2k » June 9th, 2014, 10:53 am

I don't have a copy of this myself but I'm fairly certain that I have solved a copy once when I visited Allard's place. I think you're right about how the puzzle finishes... I think all of the variations of these puzzles finish in that way.
Do the photos on the Hectix Revisited page help at all since the pieces in Bill's version are different colours?

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Pio2001
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Re: Hexsticks, plans? angles?

Post by Pio2001 » June 9th, 2014, 5:29 pm

Hi Flawr,
Spoiler:
No, Bill Cutler wanted, among other things, to complicate the disassembling of the puzzle. The final group is a triplet locked to another piece that slides at the same time (the one with one notch near the end).
There are a total of 10 invalid assemblies, plus one solution.
I'm glad to have chosen a version with four colours grouped in a symmetric way !

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Re: Hexsticks, plans? angles?

Post by flawr » June 10th, 2014, 3:56 pm

Oh thank you very much, this helps alot, just today I thought that it could be possible to arrange a set of pieces this way - I'm gonna try it in the evening.

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