Jerry Slocum, the famous puzzle collector and author of many puzzle books classifies mechanical puzzles the following way.
| 1. | Put-Together Puzzles - Putting the object together is the puzzle | ||
| 1.1 | 2-Dimensional assembly puzzles (Tangrams, jigsaw, pentominoes, etc.) | ||
| 1.2 | 3-Dimensional assembly puzzles (Soma, box packing, pentacubes, etc.) | ||
| 1.3 | Miscellaneous put-together puzzles (Instant Insanity, magic squares, puzzle rings, etc.) | ||
| 1.4 | Matchstick puzzles | ||
| 2. | Take-Apart Puzzles - Taking the object apart or open is the puzzle | ||
| 2.1 | Trick or secret opening puzzles (Japanese trick boxes, puzzle boxes, etc.) | ||
| 2.2 | Secret compartment puzzles (Finding & opening the secret compartment, Kamei, etc.) | ||
| 2.3 | Trick locks & keys (Open the trick lock with hidden keyhole, etc.) | ||
| 2.4 | Trick matchboxes (Open the trick matchbox/matchsafe, etc.) | ||
| 2.5 | Trick knives (Open or close blade of the trick knife, etc.) | ||
| 3. | Interlocking Solid Puzzles - Disassembly & assembly to solve the puzzle | ||
| 3.1 | Figural (Animals, people, objects, vehicles, etc.) | ||
| 3.2 | Geometric objects (Cube, sphere, etc.) | ||
| 3.3 | 3-Dimensional jigsaw puzzles (Egg, furniture, sphere, block, animal, etc.) | ||
| 3.4 | Burr puzzles (6 piece burr, Altekruse, etc.) | ||
| 3.5 | Keychain (People, animals, vehicles, made of plastic with keychain, etc.) | ||
| 3.6 | Miscellaneous interlocking solid puzzles | ||
| 4. | Disentanglement Puzzles - Disentangle & re-entangle to solve the puzzle | ||
| 4.1 | Cast iron & sheet metal puzzles (Cast iron ABC, 3 snakes, Bootlegger & his flask, etc.) | ||
| 4.2 | Wire puzzles (Chinese rings, 3 horseshoes, folding cross, etc.) | ||
| 4.3 | String puzzles (Bar & 2 rings, buttonhole, Cherry cheat made of leather, etc.) | ||
| 4.4 | Miscellaneous disentanglement puzzles | ||
| 5. | Sequential Movement Puzzles - Moving parts of the puzzle to a goal is the puzzle | ||
| 5.1 | Solitaire puzzles (Remove pegs, counters, marbles, etc.) | ||
| 5.2 | Counter puzzles (rearange pegs, counters by jumping, etc.) | ||
| 5.3 | Sliding Piece Puzzles (2D & 3D, Dad's puzzle, 15-puzzle, etc. with empty spaces) | ||
| 5.4 | Rotating cube-type puzzles (Rubic's cube, Pyramix, etc. with no empty spaces) | ||
| 5.5 | Maze & route puzzles (16/1 maze, Oskar's Cube, Pike's Peak, etc.) | ||
| 5.6 | Misc. Sequential Movement Puzzles (Tower of Hanoi, etc.) | ||
| 5.7 | Mazes and Labyrinths for People | ||
| 6. | Dexterity Puzzles - Manual dexterity is primary to solve the puzzle | ||
| 6.1 | Throw & catch (Cup & Ball, Bilboquet, etc.) | ||
| 6.2 | Rolling Ball puzzles (R. Journet, Glass top dexterity, etc.) | ||
| 6.3 | Maze dexterity puzzles (Flat, cube, cylinder dexterity maze with 1 or more balls, etc.) | ||
| 6.4 | Miscellaneous dexterity puzzles | ||
| 7. | Puzzle Vessels - puzzle jugs & mugs, Cadogan teapots, Chinese wine pots etc. | ||
| 8. | Vanish Puzzles - Loyd's Get Off the Earth, Vanishing Leprechauns, etc. | ||
| 9. | Folding Puzzles - Flexagons, etc. | ||
| 10. | Impossible Objects - Arrow through Coke bottle, Harry Eng bottles, etc. | ||
| 11. | Other Mechanical Puzzles | ||
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Source: Directory of Puzzle Collectors by Jerry Slocum. 4th Edition May 2000. |
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