Curtain Ring tops + follow ups

[ortwin]

Used this 8-sided flywheel in my original batch of suspension tops...

Spins for ~60 s.

So are you going to change the colors and call it STOP TOP ?


Edit: never mind. I just realized that I made the STOP TOP already. Curtain ring top Nr. 1 is called "period".
Another word for that would be "full stop". So, there you have it.

Some time ago, I was involved in the design of the STOP CUBE
http://www.randelshofer.ch/rubik/virtual_cubes/rubik/picture_cubes/stop_cube_big.html

[Jeremy McCreary]

Maybe so, but you've been making hardware store modular top construction work pretty well so far.

[ta0]

Some time ago, I was involved in the design of the STOP CUBE
http://www.randelshofer.ch/rubik/virtual_cubes/rubik/picture_cubes/stop_cube_big.html

Nice! At first glance I thought it was a trivial cube, but then I realized each little cube is unique and the difficulty is the same that for the original cube (actually more difficult as colors are easier to follow). Are you into cubing?

[ortwin]

... Are you into cubing?

Yes I would say so. But definitely not speed cubing. Sometimes solving, sometimes collecting, at other times modding (like the Stop Cube), sometimes thinking about some theoretical aspects. I hang out in the http://twistypuzzles.com/forum and admire what people come up with.

[Jeremy McCreary]

So are you going to change the colors and call it STOP TOP ?

Some time ago, I was involved in the design of the STOP CUBE
http://www.randelshofer.ch/rubik/virtual_cubes/rubik/picture_cubes/stop_cube_big.html

I like gag tops, and your "stop top" idea is a good one.

Problem is, red solutions exist, but all come with other design departures I'm at best ambivalent about at the moment. So I'll keep red in mind as a future color scheme.

Very cool stop cube. Had to quit when my brain turned to jelly. Nicely stoplights spotlights your sadistic side, though.

[ortwin]

... At first glance I thought it was a trivial cube, but then I realized each little cube is unique and the difficulty is the same that for the original cube (actually more difficult as colors are easier to follow)....

Ah, sorry, can't let that go by like this. It is not completely wrong what you observed, but NOT "each little cube is unique" . The centers are all the same. In the original cube you have six different centers. Looking only at that point it would mean that the STOP CUBE has 24 times less positions then the original one.
BUT in the STOP cube the orientation of the centers is visible, four orientation for every center can be distinguished. In the original cube the center orientation is not visible. If you put marks on the centers so you can distinguish their orientation the number of possible permutations increases by a factor of 1024 if I recall correctly. (Edit:it is 2048; (4^6)/2 )
If you weigh these factors correctly against each other you end up with more possibilities on the Stop Cube than on the original one. I forget by which factor exactly, but If somebody is really interested, I could redo the calculation.

[ta0]

Ah, sorry, can't let that go by like this.

Au contraire. I love it.
I forgot about the centers. It's an interesting complication.
I know that you cannot rotate a single cube in the normal Rubik without also rotating at least one (or two) more. I wonder if that's true for the center cubes or not.

EDIT: I noticed that there are actually two different types of center cubes, 3 with the wording parallel to the side of the cube and 3 at 45 degrees.

[ortwin]

EDIT: I noticed that there are actually two different types of center cubes, 3 with the wording parallel to the side of the cube and 3 at 45 degrees.

Now you are the one who is right! Yes, there are some details like the one you mention I forgot about, I just typed what I thought I remember. That with the two types of centers works towards the Stop Cube regarding the number of permutations. With the centers you can rotate a single one, but if you want to rotate a single one without changing anything else, it has to be a 180 degree rotation. But the proof for that fact is a bit longer than two lines I think. That leads to the factor 2048 ((4^6)/2 ) for the so called "supercube" in comparison to the normal cube.


Here is the link to where I presented the Stop Cube amongst others.
http://twistypuzzles.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=33350&p=379854&hilit=Stop#p379854
Here are some ways I found to make supercubes from normal cubes. Other people found different ways long before me.

[Jeremy McCreary]

So when are we going to see a twisty puzzle top?

[ortwin]

So when are we going to see a twisty puzzle top?

I have one of these:

video

I could convert it to a wind up top similar to the one I showed before.But that would not be all the way: I like magnets, spinning tops and twisty puzzles (and of course some other things).But what is a good way to put all three together? Magnets are often used these days in twisty puzzles, so that is trivial. The fidget spinner cube I can turn into a spinning top, easy. Levitrons are magnetic tops, old. But how to put all three together that makes some sense? Of course it is possible to put some magnets in a Fidget Cube Top, but not really useful or really funny. I wait a bit longer until inspiration hits me.

[the Earl of Whirl]

That looks like lots of fun. I know some people who would go crazy over this!!!

[ta0]

Well, this is a fidget spinner I might be interesting in getting. But perhaps a tip and stem mod is in order . . .

[ortwin]

Well, this is a fidget spinner I might be interesting in getting. But perhaps a tip and stem mod is in order . . .

Only if you include the wind up starter and show a video of it here!

[ortwin]

Easy Listening on bottle cap with recessed tip.

https://www.youtu.be/8BmOLwAvf3c

With this I got a spin time of 15:08

"Edit: Update, 04.04.2021 - Spin time 19:05 - some basic centering and balancing did much. This is my best time I reached with any top so far."

The tip is not perfectly centered yet, I did not find a good way how to do it. So I didn't even bather to balance it, because the reflecting surface for the laser method is also a bit poor.
On a large concave mirror (tip not recessed in that case) I had it spinning for 8:51, but then I tried to make improvements centering the tip and tensioning the spokes - the a nylon spoke broke, I could not get it back to that time with protruding tip. So I moved to this recessed tip for now.

Still want to find a better rigging method and a material suited better for spokes. Might take a trip to the fishing supply store next week - if it is not closed to to a Corona lock down.

Looked at that video again: almost by chance, it resembles the von Braun space station parking close to the orbit of Saturn ..........

[Jeremy McCreary]

Excellent! I'd say you're well on your way to your stated goal. And with the epitome of a suspension top, no less!

Q: Any idea how far the contact is below the top's overall CM (including core) when on the bottle cap?

Careful, the cops on Saturn love to give out parking tickets.