EDGES DON’T MATCH ?!

EDGES DON’T MATCH ?!

The first mechanical puzzle of German „Burr Tool“ inventor Andreas Röver which entered an IPP competition was named EDGES DON’T MATCH ?! in 2006. This puzzle was also available as an exchange puzzle and a total of 122 were made by Peter Knoppers (2 for the competition and 120 for the exchange). As per Andreas’ homepage every piece was sold and again I was lucky enough that my puzzle friend Bernhard Schweitzer had a spare copy which changed hands for a bargain of 10 Euros!

EDGES DON’T MATCH ?! is a very clever packing puzzle with the usual goal of placing all 7 odd-shaped pieces flat into the tray. The puzzle arrived in a transport solution, means all pieces are already placed flat in the tray besides one piece is flipped over. Of course one shall put the pieces in the tray in a way that the side with the hexagon on it is on the top. I spent a bit more than a week on it with trying half an hour to an hour per day to find the correct solution. I found the transport solution (although it is printed on the back for convenience reasons) on my own for quite a few times and much more often I came into the situation that the last piece was simply not fitting in the space left over. The fiendish part of the puzzle is that you are unconsciously directed to a certain idea of solving it whilst the solution is ….different. I was trying out most of the pieces in a certain place because I excluded the others to be placed there and to my surprise I was totally wrong the majority of the time playing with it. Finally I got it done in about 8 – 10 hours of play and saw afterwards underneath a picture of this puzzle on a collector’s website that he/she rates it as “easy to medium difficulty” with a playing time of 15 – 30 minutes. I suddenly had the feeling that I am a bit jerky. Nevertheless my personal rating is a 9 out of 10 even though it might be easier for other puzzlers.

EDGES DON’T MATCH ?! is a “must have” for every serious puzzler in my humble opinion. It is a hard nut to crack but delivers a lot of fun and anger for almost no cost. However, the cost factor will most probably change since the puzzle is no longer available commercially and one has to be lucky to get their hands on a copy. Again, I think this is no puzzle for beginners or/and kids.