Springbok Die Cuts: Cut Variations

Springbok Die Cuts - Cut Variations
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Fused Cuts Refurbished Cuts Twilight Cuts

Introduction

There's nothing wrong with owning a puzzle with a "Cut Variation." In fact, some folks enjoy owning a puzzle with a scarce cut.

Provided the die is still sharp, the quality of the puzzle should be indistinguishable from puzzles cut when the die was new.

Fused Cuts

A "Fused Cut" occurs when a small piece of a die breaks.

This results in a "Fused Piece" (2 puzzle pieces "fused" into 1).

A "Fused" Cut
(DC502 vs DC502FP)

Another "Fused" Cut
(DC501B vs DC501BFP)

Sometimes, before fully breaking, a small piece of a die only partially breaks.

This results in a "Half Fused Piece" (2 partially cut puzzle pieces "fused" into 1).

Normal, "Half-Fused", and "Fused" Cuts
(Evolution of Die DR510A)

Refurbished Cuts

Two puzzles with the same cut sometimes have a small number of subtle piece variations.

This is because the die has been repaired.

A "Refurbished Cut" occurs when a die is repaired.

Sometimes the repair results in subtle piece differences.

Sometimes the repair results in obvious piece differences.

Here's an example of the full evolution of a portion of die DR510A. The "Refurbished" pieces are pictured at the far right. Note the subtle differences in the shape of the joint between the pieces.

Subtle "Refurbished" Cut (far right)
(Full Evolution of Die DR510A: Normal, "Half-Fused", "Fused", and "Refurbished" cuts)

Here's a "before and after" example of a portion of die DS360. An entire corner of the die was "Refurbished", resulting in an additional piece, and obvious differences in shapes.

Obvious "Refurbished" Cut (on right)
(Die DS360: Normal and "Refurbished" cuts)

Twilight Cuts

A "Twilight Cut" occurs when a die is at the end of its life cycle, and ready for retirement.

The die is plagued by multiple miscut or partially cut pieces.

The die is dull, resulting in raggedly cut pieces that are unpleasant to assemble.

"Twilight Cuts" are a rarity, but an occasional puzzle slipped by Quality Control.

Here's an example of a few pieces from a poorly cut puzzle. Note the pieces are cut only part way through. Note that if they were cut the whole way through, the misaligned cuts would each split a tab. Note the ragged piece edges due to a dull die.

"Twilight" Cut
(Photo courtesy of Dottie Fitzwater)

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