Spiral puzzles

prusaprinters

<p>This is a collection of puzzles based on a common theme. Some are fine in a single color, some are better with a color switch part-way through printing, and some work much better with multicolor printing.</p> <p>There are three basic puzzles:</p> <ul> <li>A cube that sits on a base, assembled from four spiral parts and a base. I recommend printing two of these in different colors. By interchanging spirals you get two cubes with bases, each containing two spirals of each color. These can be assembled in two different ways; disassembling one and assembling it as the other is a good first step.</li> <li>A cube that sits on a base, in multiple colors. This is assembled basically the same as the above puzzle but requires attention to the diagnonal color stripes to align them.</li> <li>A pentagonal prism made from five spirals, with a pair of end caps that snap together using a triangular post. Although this puzzle is nicer with the end caps in one color and the spirals in another, and prettier if the hand pattern can be in another color, the challenge is assembling the spirals correctly so that the pentagonal prism aligns nicely.<br/> The hint I gave a group of theoretical astrophysicists was "think of the one-parameter subgroups of the symmetry group of Euclidean space".</li> </ul> <h3>Print instructions</h3><h3>Category: Puzzles Print Settings</h3> <p><strong>Printer Brand:</strong> Prusa</p> <p><strong>Printer:</strong> i3 MK3 MMU 2</p> <p><strong>Rafts:</strong> No</p> <p><strong>Supports:</strong> Yes</p> <p><strong>Resolution:</strong> 0.15 mm</p> <p><strong>Infill:</strong> default</p> <p><strong>Filament:</strong> any PLA any<br/> <strong>Notes:</strong></p> <p>There are many files. I believe there are 3mf files grouping all the pieces for the multicolor versions, or else the groups of similar names should indicate which are pieces of the same object. A few comments:</p> <ul> <li>The basic one-color square spirals do not need supports, bridging is good enough. They do benefit from a brim, though.</li> <li>The multicolor square spirals do need supports, as the color changes prevent some key bridges. A brim also helps, though unfortunately it tends to leave bits of the wrong color attached to the edges.</li> <li><p>The pentagonal spirals need supports only in certain regions, which I have created "support enforcer" models for. These should be included in a 3mf file or otherwise pretty clear.<br/> In the instances that aren't already multicolor, there are usually two versions of the base, one with a lightly indented handprint (to be printed with one color, or with a single color change), and one with a different-color inset handprint. This requires (well, benefits from) an automatic material changer but it is only a layer or two so most of the nuisances of color changing are minimized.</p> <p>Tolerances should be adequate for a comfortable fit, even with minor bumps where color changes occurred. Sanding is probably not essential but trimming of support and brim remnants might help.</p> </li> </ul>