Time to address everyone's favourite puzzle: A Really Big Lock.
I have gotten a lot of curiosity about this puzzle over the years. I got it a while back when I asked my local Lee Valley location about puzzles on a whim, and they happened to have a handful of puzzle locks. This has been out of stock at the Lee Valley website for a while, but I recently checked it out and they have it back in stock for $80.
Physical description: this puzzle is very heavy, and could easily be used as a weapon under the right circumstances. One to put in the checked baggage, for sure. It comes with six less substantial keys, of which three are needed to solve the puzzle (there are three duplicates). There are no seams visible on the outside of the puzzle - good craftsmanship, because there are actually several (spoilers!).
Most people that have played with the puzzle either get it right away, or stand there baffled for several minutes until they get a hint (or I get impatient with them - sometimes happens). I personally got the first step right away, and then once the first step is done, the rest follow pretty easily. Once you've found the keyhole, though, there's still a step to go that most will miss.
I quite like this puzzle. The internal movements are nice and smooth, and everything feels solid. My only complaint is that one of the keys is supposed to have a sneaky little trick to it, but that trick can be bypassed. I don't want to say too much more, but each part of the key should be used only once (according to the solution), but there's a part where you can use the same part of one key twice and one part of a key no times whatsoever.
Sadly, the hasp of the lock is way too big to be of any use in normal applications, but I would really like to find a place where it would be practical to use this lock in public. Just for the giggles.
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