Rounding the Edges of the Mame Box
Today was another day of cloudy skies with occasional rain. Compared with last summer, we have had many more cooler days this year. Since it is the Obon holiday period, there are plenty of cars heading toward the tourist areas, but the town itself has been quiet. I am taking a break from international shipping until August 16, but I had a package to send within Japan, so I went to the post office this morning. Since it was being sent to southern Japan, one of the staff members told me that delivery might be delayed slightly because of the approaching typhoon. The post office, banks, and local government offices remain open during the Obon holiday period.
The photo shows the finishing process for the 18-step Mame puzzle boxes. The finishing process is the stage before painting, where the box is completed except for the finish itself. After the outer panels have been attached, the corners are still square, and the panels extend slightly beyond the body of the box. During this step, I trim away the excess and round the corners. The same process is used for larger puzzle boxes, although the size of the rounded corners varies. The Mame puzzle box has the smallest corner radius of all. Most of this work is done with a machine, but it cannot remove all of the small overhang, so I finish the job by hand with sandpaper to make everything smooth.
One challenge that is unique to the Mame puzzle box is that the panels can move while I am rounding the corners. As I mentioned, the corners are rounded with a machine. The box is pressed against a high-speed rotating cutter to shape the corners. During this process, the box receives quite a strong impact. The cutter is very sharp, so it is not difficult to hold the box by hand, but the impact is still enough to make the mechanism's panels move. If one of the panels moves while the box is being shaped and the cutter touches it, the box is effectively ruined. At that point, the only options are to take it apart and attach the panels again, or discard it completely. That is why this process requires a great deal of care. On puzzle boxes with sliding keys, the sliding keys act as stoppers to keep the panels from moving. However, on boxes that use only sliding panels, such as the Mame puzzle box, or on 4-step puzzle boxes that do not have sliding keys, I have to make sure the panels are fully returned to their original positions before continuing the work. One thing I have to watch for is that even after I return a panel to its correct position, the impact from rounding a different corner of the box can cause it to move again. Because of this, while rounding the corners of a single box, I have to check the position of the moving panels over and over again.
Have a great weekend!
The photo shows the finishing process for the 18-step Mame puzzle boxes. The finishing process is the stage before painting, where the box is completed except for the finish itself. After the outer panels have been attached, the corners are still square, and the panels extend slightly beyond the body of the box. During this step, I trim away the excess and round the corners. The same process is used for larger puzzle boxes, although the size of the rounded corners varies. The Mame puzzle box has the smallest corner radius of all. Most of this work is done with a machine, but it cannot remove all of the small overhang, so I finish the job by hand with sandpaper to make everything smooth.
One challenge that is unique to the Mame puzzle box is that the panels can move while I am rounding the corners. As I mentioned, the corners are rounded with a machine. The box is pressed against a high-speed rotating cutter to shape the corners. During this process, the box receives quite a strong impact. The cutter is very sharp, so it is not difficult to hold the box by hand, but the impact is still enough to make the mechanism's panels move. If one of the panels moves while the box is being shaped and the cutter touches it, the box is effectively ruined. At that point, the only options are to take it apart and attach the panels again, or discard it completely. That is why this process requires a great deal of care. On puzzle boxes with sliding keys, the sliding keys act as stoppers to keep the panels from moving. However, on boxes that use only sliding panels, such as the Mame puzzle box, or on 4-step puzzle boxes that do not have sliding keys, I have to make sure the panels are fully returned to their original positions before continuing the work. One thing I have to watch for is that even after I return a panel to its correct position, the impact from rounding a different corner of the box can cause it to move again. Because of this, while rounding the corners of a single box, I have to check the position of the moving panels over and over again.
Have a great weekend!