Idea Conceived

Prototype finished

Revealed

Original concept

Core puzzle

Dimensions

15th June 1995

?

Tony Fisher

Rubik's Cube

3.6cm / 1.4 inch edge

This puzzle I made in 1995 was a stepping stone towards better things later. Because of the awkward shapes I was forced to experiment with new materials and techniques. If only I'd known about silicone rubber and polyurethane resin in those days. I'd previously used wax moulds but that was out of the question for this transformation and I think this is when I started using remeltable rubber (Gelflex). It's a truly awful stuff to work with. I used to heat it on a paraffin stove in an old sauce pan. It seemed to take ages to melt but once it did it could very easily burn. This would result in the liquid going brown and giving off loads of smoke and very unpleasant fumes. It was also sticky like treacle and would stick to and burn flesh if you got splashed by it.
The puzzle has reasonable rotational movement though is very heavy since it is solid polyester resin. I used standard Rubik's Cube style stickers though the blue is textured. I used six colours, doubling up on opposite side.
A factory made slightly different version is available below. This design was originally made by Andreas Nortmann.