Update 17: August Production Photos and Timeline Update
over 2 years ago – Sat, Sep 11, 2021 at 02:52:39 AM

Hello Puzzlers!

Fall is upon us! In this update, you will find:

• Puzzle box production photos
• Our Revised Timeline
• Our Plan Moving Forward

Fabrication Updates

• In August, we finished all of our builds for the Puzzle Chest in the Standard Edition of the game (320 boxes!), and are currently ¾ of the way through our Puzzle Chest production for the Deluxe and Collectors Editions (375 built, and 130 to finish in the next two weeks.) Wrapping up the build for the Puzzle Chest is a huge milestone, as this is one of the two most complex boxes in the game. As we predicted, building the Puzzle Chest for the Deluxe and Collector’s Editions has gone much faster, partly because we are in a solid rhythm on building this box, and partly because the laser does a better job when cutting though solid hardwoods, so we don’t end up spending too much time sanding pieces that are not fully cut through.
• While building the Puzzle Chest, we have also been continuously cutting the files for our next box, the Puzzle Safe. The Puzzle Safe is our favorite of the boxes, with multiple compartments and locks, and we are incredibly excited to start on this next phase.

Shipping Timeline Updates

In the last update, we talked about how the fabrication for the Puzzle Chest has taken longer than expected, and in the past month especially, we realized that we needed to reexamine our initial timeline. Our original plan was the finish the box fabrication by the end of September, print and pack all of the components in October, and ship everything at the end of October and early November.

In reevaluating, we believe we need:

• 2 weeks to finish fabrication on the Puzzle Chest (Finish in late September)
• 12 Weeks to fabricate the Puzzle Safe (At a pace of 70 per week, finish at the end of December)
• 12 Weeks to fabricate the remaining boxes in the game. The small boxes each only have one major mechanism, as opposed to Puzzle Box 1, the Puzzle Chest, and Safe, all of which have fairly intensive build processes that each require multiple jigs and fabrication phases. While we can only build around 20 Puzzle Chests in a day, the remaining small boxes are much quicker builds, and we are able to make 100-150 a day, for a faster overall pace.
• 4 Weeks to Pack all of the components and ship.
• New Estimated Shipping Date: March 25

The decision to extend our timeline is one that has not been easy for us. We weighed a few options to try to accelerate production, including taking out a compartment to simplify the design of the Puzzle Safe, in an effort to go a bit faster. Ultimately however, we decided that this kind of approach would not be acceptable, as we believe that everyone should experience the absolute best version of the puzzles, even if it means more time in production. We have so appreciated all of the messages and comments in these past months urging us to take our time to create the best possible experience, and we firmly believe that this is the right approach.

Did anything big happen that has caused the timeline adjustment? Firstly, we are very proud of the work that our team has done on the project, and especially proud of the fact that we are building the majority of the components ourselves. This also means, however, that the delays are also firmly on us, and we take full responsibility for them. We mentioned in our last update that we stretched the timeline for the building of the Puzzle Chest with small actions like spending extra time to test and sanding down all of the edges in pieces that weren’t fully cut through on the laser cutter. These delays on their own are not major, but in the aggregate, they slowed us down more than we anticipated in our original planning. While we hope to not actually need to take all of the time in our timeline push, we also feel strongly that it is better to expect more time now and try to plan for unforeseen issues as much as we can, rather than use an overly-optimistic timeline now only to realize we were not conservative enough later.

Our Plan Moving Forward:

We’ve been posting updates about every month and half, but from now on, we are going to switch to posting new updates every month. We want to make sure that we can keep everyone up to date on our final sprint.

If there are any questions that you have, feel free to message our team any time! We love talking about the puzzles, but more than that, we want to be accountable.

As always, thank you so much for all of your kind messages and support. We look forward to keeping you updated!

The EAG Team

Update #16: July Production Updates
over 2 years ago – Wed, Aug 04, 2021 at 08:43:24 AM

Hello Puzzlers!

It is hard to believe that it has already been a year since the end of the campaign. We hope that you are all doing well! It's been a busy summer, and we are excited to share everything that we have been working on. 

In this update you will find:

• Quality Testing on Puzzle Box #1
•  Box Fabrication Progress for the Puzzle Chest
• The Brass Knob Production Process for the Safe Box
•  Plans Looking Forward

Fabrication Updates:

Puzzle Box #1:

• In June, we wrapped the build of Puzzle Box #1 for the Standard, Deluxe, and Collector’s Editions. We’ve been going through a process of quality testing on this first box to make sure that they are working properly before sanding and staining them, with solid results. In addition to just making sure that the boxes open without too much resistance in the solved condition, we’ve also been periodically testing out opening the boxes when the weather hits different humidity levels. So far the mechanisms are functioning well, which is still a huge relief! Below is a photo of the first puzzle box for the Deluxe and Collector’s Edition, made from western red cedar.

The Puzzle Chest:

• Moving through June and into July, we continued cutting and assembling components for the Puzzle Chest. We had originally planned to wrap up the chest assembly in July, but a few areas of the process took longer than expected and we are currently finished with the assembly on the Standard Edition Puzzle Chests, and about halfway through the assembly for the Deluxe and Collector’s Edition boxes.
• Why is the Puzzle Chest taking longer than expected? The first reason is that we couldn’t help ourselves, and we added one more puzzle to the box than was in the original design. Using every little space in the puzzles is one of our favorite parts of the design process, and we always love the opportunity to add in something extra!
• The second reason is that a few of the pieces had edges where part of the board was not cut all the way through on the laser, so we took some extra time hand-sanding these parts down so that there won’t be any ragged edges on the boxes. This was really only an issue on a small sample of the pieces for boxes in the Standard Edition, but still took some time to correct. Thankfully, the Aspen Hardwood that we are using for the chests in the Deluxe and Collector’s Edition chests is a very hearty and uniform wood, so it cuts all the way through with a smooth edge practically 100% of the time, which has helped to make this part of the assembly a lot faster.

• After finishing the first series of one hundred boxes, we also reorganized the construction procedure to work in phases, which has helped to significantly speed up the process. (Prior to this point, we had been building each box in its entirety in one sitting.) Working in phases makes it easier to get into more of a rhythm during building, and especially helps on the Puzzle Chest, which is one of the two largest (and most complicated) boxes in the game.
• We’re hoping to make up for some lost time while building the Puzzle Safe, and will have a new post in early September if we need to update our timeline. We’re still fully committed to getting these puzzles into your hands as soon as possible, and will make sure to have consistent updates on our end for the new boxes.

Building The Dials for the Puzzle Safe: Stories from the Workshop

• Speaking of the Puzzle Safe, for the past several months, we’ve had our 3D Printers working around the clock on the knobs for the front of this unique puzzle box. The knobs are a relatively small component, but they are one of the pieces that spent the most time in development, and we would love to share more about the process of building them.

• Our original plan was to use cold-casting with silicone molds, but we decided to look for alternatives when we noticed that the casts were losing some of the details of the letters on the knobs. After a lot of testing, we developed a methodology for 3D printing with brass metal composite  filament, which is composed of around 80% Brass Powder and 20% PLA to bond it together during the printing. We had to modify our two printers with new hardened steel nozzles so that the brass does not wear them down, and print at a much higher temperature, but after lots of refinements we were finally able to establish a reliable workflow for using this new material with our printers.
• After the prints finish, we take the knobs and tumble them for 9 hours in an industrial rock tumbler with steel tumbling media, which polishes off the top layer of the PLA and exposes and shines the fused brass beneath. The whole process from printing to tumbling takes 12 hours for the largest knobs. We needed a ton of testing to refine all of the steps in the process, but we are really happy with the results, especially because the final result is a very sturdy series of dials that still preserve all of the detail for the lettering.

What’s Next:

• In July, we continued cutting the pieces for the Living Hinge Puzzle Box featured in the last update, as well as the pieces for the Puzzle Safe Box, so that we can begin assembling these boxes once we wrap up production on the Chest.
• We also received the sample of the Key Lock Box, from our supplier, and have sent off our design for customizing the front before making our final order. Below is a photo of the Key Lock Box sample that we received:

Thank you for all of your Support!

Finally, we'd like to say thank you so much for all of the incredibly kind messages and comments that we received during June and July! We cannot wait to keep building more puzzles, and are unbelievably excited to bring this project to you. We really appreciate the continued support, and we look forward to posting more updates soon.

Stay safe, and happy puzzling!

-The EAG Team

Update #15: Summer Production Progress
almost 3 years ago – Sat, Jun 05, 2021 at 03:44:30 AM

Hello Puzzlers! In this update, you will find:

• Puzzle Box Fabrication Progress
• New Puzzle Box Photos
• Pledge Manager Reminders

Fabrication Updates:

• In April and May, we were working on finishing the fabrication of Puzzle Box #1, the most complex small puzzle box in the game. We are really happy with the results of this first building stage, and are going to continue testing the boxes to make sure that all of the mechanisms are functioning as they should be, before wrapping them for packaging.

• Upcoming Puzzle Box Fabrication: this month we also started cutting and assembling pieces for the fourth major puzzle box in the game, the living hinge puzzle box. (A “living hinge” in wood is a special kind of cut that makes the material more flexible.) We had to do a bit of testing to make sure that the wooden hinge is flexible enough that it can bend freely when the box opens without breaking, while balancing the goal of giving it enough thickness so that the box top springs open in the solved configuration. It is a complex build, but we are excited to be able to include a working living hinge in a puzzle box design.

Pledge Manager Reminders

• As we mentioned in the previous updates, you can still log onto your BackerKit account using the original invitation link and change your address for your order if you need to. You can still change your address up until two months before we start shipping. (We are still aiming for the originally scheduled shipping date of October of 2021).
•  In the meantime, always feel free to reach out to us if you need help changing an address or information in BackerKit.

What’s Next:

• Moving into June, we are going to continue cutting and assembling the pieces for the Puzzle Chest (featured in the last update), with the goal of finishing assembly in the end of month, and then beginning to cut and assemble the Puzzle Safe in July.
• We are also in the process of finalizing our order for the Key Lock Box component of the game, which is the biggest part of the game that we are using an outside supplier for. We are hoping to receive our final sample in the next two weeks, and will include it in our next update.

As always, thank you so much for your continued support! It is going to be a busy summer, and we look forward to keeping you updated.

Stay Safe, and Happy Puzzling!

The EAG Team

Update #14: Production Updates, and Puzzle Progress!
about 3 years ago – Fri, Apr 02, 2021 at 08:27:31 PM

Hello Puzzlers! In this update you will find:

• Puzzle Box Fabrication Progress
• New Box Components
• A Few Pledge Manager Reminders

Fabrication Updates:

•  Box Components: We referenced in the last update that we were waiting on a set of hasps and combination locks for the Chest, and are happy to announce that we received them and that they are working well! We are including pictures of the new parts below:

•  Puzzle Boxes: In addition to continuing the assembly for Puzzle Box #1, we’ve been in the process of cutting the parts for the Puzzle Chest, which is one of the two large puzzle boxes in the game. The Puzzle Chest is one of the most complicated components, and we spent a lot of time over the past month refining all of the cut files and honing the assembly process. We are really excited by the results, and even found a way to include one extra compartment! We're looking forward to continuing to assemble the Puzzle Chests in the month ahead.

Pledge Manager Reminders:

• About 2% of Backers still have orders that have not been locked. If your card still has not been charged for your Kickstarter Order, (either because the initial payment method was declined, or you needed more time to fill out your survey), we will be sending out a new message through BackerKit to let you know that we plan on confirming and charging the payment methods for these orders. We also wanted to include a note about this here, just in case anyone misses the BackerKit message.
• As we mentioned in the last update, you can still log onto your BackerKit account using the original invitation link and change your address for your order if you need to. You can still change your address up until two months before we start shipping. (The shipping date is still scheduled for October of 2021).
• In the meantime, always feel free to reach out to us if you need help changing an address or information in BackerKit.

What’s Next:

• In our initial project timeline, we had planned to work on the Safe Box (the second large puzzle box in the game) after completing assembly on the Puzzle Chest. We received a set of sample locks this week that were just slightly too large to fit in our current design, and have requested a new, smaller sample for this piece. Our next step will be either modifying the design for the Safe to make the cavity for the lock larger, or (hopefully) receiving sample locks that are the correct size so that we can proceed with the original design.
• While we don’t anticipate that this will delay our fabrication timeline for the Safe, we can always switch our schedule to start cutting and assembling Puzzle Box #2 next.

As always, thank you so much for your continued support! We look forward to keeping you updated.

Stay Safe, and Happy Puzzling!

The EAG Team

Update #13: It’s Time to Build Some Puzzle Boxes!
about 3 years ago – Thu, Feb 11, 2021 at 12:47:45 AM

Hello Puzzlers! In this update you will find:

• Progress information on the new puzzles that we’re fabricating
•  Component Updates
• Pledge Manager and Address Information

Fabrication Updates:

•  Paper Puzzles: We’ve been in the process of printing the next round of paper puzzles! Eagle-eyed puzzlers will notice in the spoiler-free sneak peak below that some of the puzzles were part of the campaign photos, and one is new puzzle that we added in.

•  Puzzle Boxes: We have finally refined all of our laser settings for cutting hardwoods, just in time to start building the first round of puzzle boxes! Each material batch is slightly different, and the challenge is finding the settings that allow the laser to cut cleanly through the wood without scorching the surface of the material around the cut lines. It’s a tricky process, but it is very satisfying when the perfect settings are finally dialed in.

•  Box Components: We also received a new shipment of hinges, and they are much sturdier than the last batch. We are waiting on sample orders for hasps and a new set of combination locks for the larger boxes, and are looking forward to testing these out as well.

What’s Next?

• This month, we’re working on continuing to cut and assemble Puzzle Box #1 and printing the paper puzzles for this series.
• We’re currently in the final stages of refining the assembly process for the Puzzle Chest (one of the large black puzzle boxes from the campaign, with the Safe Box), so that we can start building this box in the next assembly phase.

Pledge Manager Address Information:

• As a reminder, you can still log onto your BackerKit account and change your address for your order if you need to. We had previously said that the “address lock date” in BackerKit would be in March, but you can change it after this point, up until two months before we start shipping. (The shipping date is still scheduled for October of 2021). 
• In the meantime, always feel free to reach out to us if you need help changing an address or information in BackerKit.

As always, thank you so much for your continued support! We are so excited to be at the point of building Puzzle Box #1, and look forward to keeping you updated.

Happy Puzzling!

The EAG Team