Calvins Puzzle Evgeniy Curvy Dino

Calvins Puzzle Evgeniy Curvy Dino

Evgeniy Curvy Dino is a Dino Cube-type puzzle with wavy, curved cuts. It was designed by the Russian puzzle maker Evgeniy and is produced by Calvins Puzzle. On a classic Dino Cube the cuts run along straight lines. Here they are curved, which adds extra pieces to the faces and makes the scrambled puzzle look much harder than it really is. This version has a black body and stickers.

How this Dino cube works

Curvy Dino is a corner-turning puzzle, which means you turn it around the corners rather than around the faces like a 3x3 cube. Each move shifts pieces between adjacent faces. Reviewers say that if you can solve a regular Dino, the solving method will feel familiar and you can work out the rest intuitively. Other sources rate this puzzle as more demanding, so a lot depends on whether you already have experience with puzzles of this type.

Mechanism and turning

Inside there is an 8-arm Ball-Core, which Evgeniy developed together with Oskar van Deventer. The puzzle has a pillow shape, meaning slightly convex faces. According to user reviews, it turns smoothly out of the box. Once lubed, it gets noticeably better, and the turning can then handle even slight corner cutting. You can hear the springs working as you turn it. Curvy Dino is not a speedcubing puzzle. It is a puzzle for your collection and for solving just for fun, and in the hand it feels solid and fairly heavy.

Who is it for?

For those who have already solved a Dino Cube, a Skewb or other corner-turning puzzles and want something that looks impressive but doesn't require learning lots of new algorithms. It is also a great choice for collectors of Calvins Puzzle puzzles. If this is your first puzzle beyond NxN cubes, a classic Dino or a Skewb is a better choice.

Specifications

• Manufacturer: Calvins Puzzle
• Design: Evgeniy (Ball-Core in collaboration with Oskar van Deventer)
• Type: Curvy Dino, corner-turning puzzle
• Mechanism: 8-arm Ball-Core
• Shape: pillow (slightly convex faces)
• Size: 65.5 mm
• Body colour: black (Black), with stickers
• Magnets: none