By Vurdlak on April 26, 2006, with 122 Comments
Optical Illusions, Puzzles or Magic Tricks? Can’t tell for sure, but you better check it yourself! Image below represents just one of the puzzles you can find inside this magic post! Don’t ask me! You’ll puzzle yourself for sure… After you’ve jumped inside this article and solved more of these real life impossible creations, check ” Impossible Objects in Real Life 1, 2, 3, 4 ” and “Cube Toy”.
Both the nail and the wood are whole, yet neither of the two has been cut. Can you guess how it was consturcted?
All of the holes inside this transaprent cube (except the center one) are curved. They are drilled holes, that I know for sure! How is this possible?
I have no idea how these two constructions could be done. Other than gluing the ring/arrow together, could there be some other solution?
The ball-bearing is quite a bit larger in diameter than any of the six openings in the cage. There are no breaks in the cage where is could have been separated. First thing that bumoped my mind is soaking the cube in water, making it larger, then inserting the little steel ball, and after the cube shrinks back – voila! What do you think?
There is no way this baseball could have been forced into the jar! How did they manage to do this?!
Some other “Strange” creations:
(32 votes)
All the wood ones are done in a similar fashion… The wood is soaked in hot water, and then is compressed in some way. When the wood dries out, it returns to it’s original shape.
For instance with the nail through the block of wood. The wood is cut as shown in the photo, and then soaked in hot water. When the wood has become saturated, the first “tooth” at the end of the wood block is compressed in a vice and allowed to dry out. The block retains the compressed shape, allowing the nail to be pounded in beginning with the second “tooth”. Once the nail is through all the other “teeth”, the block is then soaked again in hot water, and returns to it’s original shape and dries out.
The plexi-glass one is done the same way… the plexi-glass is heated and compressed. Then the holes are drilled. The plexi is re-heated and returns to it’s original uncompressed shape, which creates curves in the drilled holes.
Arrow through coin: soaked wood, compressed arrowhead, put through coin, and then re-expanded… not so sure about the ring through the coin.
The ring opens up like on of the rings magicians use. Simple if you only think, I say.
one of*
for the curved holes you just need a curved drill.
heres my solution to the colorless plastic cube: it was a heated plastic mass, the holes were drilled while it was warm and then place on a circular object that was smaller than the plastic mass –> the plastic bent downward, on the side, which leads to the curved drill holes. then the mass was cut into a cube.
the metal box in the wood cube: simple. freeze the metal ball–> its volume decreases.
OH MY GOD PEOPLE !! ARE YA ALL 12?!?
PHOTO…..SHOP!
i made on of these in the 9th grade its made of a special plastic that has a memeory you cut it into cubes….heta the plastic until its very soft then press it in a vice and squash it then drill the holes and then reheat in an oven and the plastic returns to its former shape the middle hole stays straight because it was squashed straight but the others bend back inwards when it goes back into a cube resulting in bent holes
the nail could be a part of the wood.
FOR THE COIN TRICK
You to pass the tree branch through the coin hole. Wait for the branch to grow. Cut and carve the arrow or whatever. You culd also make a graft if there weren’t enough irrigation.
Ok. Stupid. your growing tree branch would split the flippin coin before ye carved it!Look at the size of the arrow head and feathers numb nuts!
to the person who said “you are computer geeks, how do u have time to comment on this stuff, get a life, ect.” y were YOU on here is the question if u think its sooo dumb. hmm?
the ball in a wooden cage ? cool the ball so it shrinks , then soak the cage in water ??
the mole creek wood puzzle – i have made one recently. some people have the right idea, but try your ideas and you will find out that they are not quite right. remember the instructions tell you what the wood hasnt had done to it, so ask yourself what has been?
ok i kno the last pics r illusions but i wanna kno how on earth did they fit the items in the first few
To the second anonymous: If you think we’re computer geeks, why r u posting? Idiot
The curved holes in the plasticis not an illusion. I have one of these on my desk that I made in 8th grade shop class. You heat a plastic cube and then squish it in a vise. Cool it and drill the holes. The reheat it and it will go back to its original shape. The holes will curve as they stretch.
The wooden block with the nail in it is made by soaking one end of the block in hot water and then clamping it down,drilling your holes,and putting the nail in then allow to dry. It will expand to it’s original shape trapping the nail inside. I know this because i saw the guy on the woodwright shop make this. And the wooden arrow through the hole was made the same way.
Last of two figures could be made in real. The trick is point of view. For most figures of this type could be found at least one position where from you watch real object like on the picture. Just cut it as require and you got it.
Like Gordon, I made one of those plastic cubes in middle school shop class. Mine didn’t come out quite that pretty, but I wasn’t a gifted driller. Now I work with plastics every day at work, and most people are shocked at the things we can do with them. With the right kind of plastic and the right technique, you can make *anything*. (We regularly replicate bird feathers that you can’t tell aren’t real by touch or sight.)
ok ivan…. time to come out of your vodka drunken stuper!
That’s amazing and i was also wondering the same that how could they manage to do it but i am sure that the last two pictures are more like illusion than some great piece of work…..
The wooden solid block puzzle is easy.
The screw is inserted afterwards, in three pieces, the center one first, then the left, and then the right (head).
The last object is straight out of an M.C.Escher portfolio. Similar to a piece of his work titled “Tower”.
all of that wood is boiled to make it soft
the glass cube it filled with water making the holes look bent from certain angles. i know cuz i observed an aquarium of fish with the same effect. (and the occasional duplicate objects which are actually one.) the wood cube actually has holes larger than the ball and the coin with the hole and arrow actually has a smaller hole than the arrow (both made “impossible” by viewing from certain angles) the ring has a slit (hidden by the coin)and the nail is actually a screw (not one…but 2 to 3. it won’t it the gap if it were one large screw.)
and by “it the gap” i mean “FIT the gap”
oh. and btw…they really did force the baseball there. i tried that once with a ball of the same size and a (SMALLER) hole. the only thing that’s impossible is actually forcing the thing out without touching the jar.
i hate to say it lol but you are wrong on almost all accounts =]
i hate this website and i never want to go to this website ever again
The first one’s holes are big enough to get the head of the nail through, so the nail has been put in backwards
it’s just from one big piece of wood, carved into two pieces.
The interconnected rings are carved in situ from a single block of wood. the base ball is done by softening the ball and forming a vacuum within the jar – sucks it right in.
I’ve done the baseball in the jar, only with an egg. heat some water in a salsa jar to get it steaming (the jar will expand some) and “cork” the jar with the baseball. As the steam in the jar cools it creates a vacuum and sucks the ball in. It is less likely to deform with a vacuum than when pushing it in.
The optical illusions are cool. They are actually objects that were painted with the optical illusion much like the 3d sidewalk chalk artists do.
Steel ball in the cube — i agree, cool the ball, you would be amazed how much you can shrink it.