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In this Instructable I'll show how I made my cryptex.
There is already an Instructable on making a cryptex published lately, but I wasn't satisfied by that one. That cryptex was held together on the outside, like this. I prefer my cryptex held together from the inside, like this. That is by the way the 'real' cryptex, like it is used in the film. Those are harder to make.
INFORMATION ABOUT CRYPTEXES
A cryptex is a kind of lock with a password, that holds a roll of paper. Author Dan Brown said in his "Da Vinci Code", a book from some years ago, that Leonardo da Vinci invented it, to let messengers carry secret papyrus rolls that the messengers themselves may not read; only the sender and the recipient know the password. If the messenger would smash the cryptex to read the message, a vial containing vinegar which was rolled inside of the papyrus roll would also break even earlier than the cryptex itself, the vinegar would spread over the message, disolve the ink, making it unreadable.
The term 'cryptex' is actually made up by Dan Brown. I don't even know for sure that it's true that Da Vinci invented it, he never actually made one, he would have made a blueprint in his diary, but I never found that page of his diary(so I made my own blueprint, see the next step). What I do know, is that the vinegar thing doesn't work. It doesn't disolve the ink so much that it gets unreadable, it becomes only a little more vague. I tested it with Black Indian ink, several kinds of pen inks, marker pens, ecoline, pencils, and some more; it never worked, just like Wikipedia says.
In the Da Vinci Code, the cryptexes were used different than how they were meant by Da Vinci, in the story they use it as a part of a big puzzle, the answer to a riddle is the password of a cryptex, which contains another riddle that leads to another cryptex, etc. To my opinion the use of cryptexes in such a way is a bit ridiculous, the characters in the book could've just put the cryptex in the freezer so that the vinegar gets frozen, then they could saw it open without danger. But they didn't think of that easy solution in the book.
edit:
In the comments below, 'cavingboy92' came up with this genious way to make use of the vinegar vial: on the paper around the vial, don't write with ink, but also with vinegar. If you want to read the message, pour a PH indicator on it(like red cabbage juice), and you can see the text. Or you can just hold it under a low heat source like a light bulb, then you can see it too, because the acid will oxidate.
If the vial breaks, the piece of paper gets all drenched in vinegar, so it's absolutely sure that it's unreadable!
Here is the proof that it works, tested by cavingboy92.
You could also just put the same inkin the vial as the ink where you wrote with on the paper, that would also destroy the message.
If you want more ways on how you could use a vial-break-delfdestroy mechanism, read throught the comments below, there are a lot of people giving suggestions for it, and also on improving the cryptex.
Finally, if you disolve a lot of salt in the vinegar, I think you can lower the freezing point of it so much that it can't get frozen in a normal kitchen freezer, then the freeze method also won't work so easily, you would have to find a special freezer in a lab or something.
There is already an Instructable on making a cryptex published lately, but I wasn't satisfied by that one. That cryptex was held together on the outside, like this. I prefer my cryptex held together from the inside, like this. That is by the way the 'real' cryptex, like it is used in the film. Those are harder to make.
A cryptex is a kind of lock with a password, that holds a roll of paper. Author Dan Brown said in his "Da Vinci Code", a book from some years ago, that Leonardo da Vinci invented it, to let messengers carry secret papyrus rolls that the messengers themselves may not read; only the sender and the recipient know the password. If the messenger would smash the cryptex to read the message, a vial containing vinegar which was rolled inside of the papyrus roll would also break even earlier than the cryptex itself, the vinegar would spread over the message, disolve the ink, making it unreadable.
The term 'cryptex' is actually made up by Dan Brown. I don't even know for sure that it's true that Da Vinci invented it, he never actually made one, he would have made a blueprint in his diary, but I never found that page of his diary(so I made my own blueprint, see the next step). What I do know, is that the vinegar thing doesn't work. It doesn't disolve the ink so much that it gets unreadable, it becomes only a little more vague. I tested it with Black Indian ink, several kinds of pen inks, marker pens, ecoline, pencils, and some more; it never worked, just like Wikipedia says.
In the Da Vinci Code, the cryptexes were used different than how they were meant by Da Vinci, in the story they use it as a part of a big puzzle, the answer to a riddle is the password of a cryptex, which contains another riddle that leads to another cryptex, etc. To my opinion the use of cryptexes in such a way is a bit ridiculous, the characters in the book could've just put the cryptex in the freezer so that the vinegar gets frozen, then they could saw it open without danger. But they didn't think of that easy solution in the book.
edit:
In the comments below, 'cavingboy92' came up with this genious way to make use of the vinegar vial: on the paper around the vial, don't write with ink, but also with vinegar. If you want to read the message, pour a PH indicator on it(like red cabbage juice), and you can see the text. Or you can just hold it under a low heat source like a light bulb, then you can see it too, because the acid will oxidate.
If the vial breaks, the piece of paper gets all drenched in vinegar, so it's absolutely sure that it's unreadable!
Here is the proof that it works, tested by cavingboy92.
You could also just put the same inkin the vial as the ink where you wrote with on the paper, that would also destroy the message.
If you want more ways on how you could use a vial-break-delfdestroy mechanism, read throught the comments below, there are a lot of people giving suggestions for it, and also on improving the cryptex.
Finally, if you disolve a lot of salt in the vinegar, I think you can lower the freezing point of it so much that it can't get frozen in a normal kitchen freezer, then the freeze method also won't work so easily, you would have to find a special freezer in a lab or something.
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Signing UpStep 1The Blueprint
Here is a blueprint for the cryptex, see the image below. A bigger version is found here. Try to understand it; when you are building this, you should really know what's going on. If you don't understand it, read through all steps before you start to build. I recommend to read through it anyway.
edit:
I got a question about the dimensions I used, these are my measurements:
the whole cryptex
length(from point to point): 14.5 cm / 5.7 in
diameter: 4 cm / 1.6 in
tubes(the diameter is including the thickness)
4th tube(largest): diameter 4 cm / 1.6 in, thickness 0.4 cm / 0.15 in PVC
3th tube: diameter 3.2 cm / 1.25 in, thickness 0,4 cm / 0,15 in PVC
2th tube: diameter 2.5 cm / 1 in, thickness 0.13 cm / 0.05 in ALUMINUM
1th tube: diameter 2.2 cm / 0.85 in, thickness 0.2 cm / 0.07 in STEEL
dials
the dials are made from the 4th tube and the 3th tube, on the outer side, to the 4th tube, they are 1.5 cm / 0.6 in wide, the inner part, made from the 3th tube, is a little smaller, just that a nail fits between.
You don't need to use these dimensions, there are just some requirements for the dimensions of the tubes, see that in the text at the next step.
edit:
I got a question about the dimensions I used, these are my measurements:
the whole cryptex
length(from point to point): 14.5 cm / 5.7 in
diameter: 4 cm / 1.6 in
tubes(the diameter is including the thickness)
4th tube(largest): diameter 4 cm / 1.6 in, thickness 0.4 cm / 0.15 in PVC
3th tube: diameter 3.2 cm / 1.25 in, thickness 0,4 cm / 0,15 in PVC
2th tube: diameter 2.5 cm / 1 in, thickness 0.13 cm / 0.05 in ALUMINUM
1th tube: diameter 2.2 cm / 0.85 in, thickness 0.2 cm / 0.07 in STEEL
dials
the dials are made from the 4th tube and the 3th tube, on the outer side, to the 4th tube, they are 1.5 cm / 0.6 in wide, the inner part, made from the 3th tube, is a little smaller, just that a nail fits between.
You don't need to use these dimensions, there are just some requirements for the dimensions of the tubes, see that in the text at the next step.
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Thank You
Also, what he said " v ".
Just reading through your instructable, I cant find any reference for your tube lengths? I am assuming they are about 10cm long. Can you confirm this?
Thanks
that will dissolve the ink making it unreadable
in the video (step 1) you mentioned you've changed the code.
I'm really curious about how you did that, since the scales are glued on the 'locking rings'
In your case I would do it like this, maybe you already thought of this but I will tell anyway, see image:
make the alphabet strip like an extra ring with some pins on the inside that fit into 26 optionably chooseable notches on the real ring underneath. So when the cryptex is locked these rings interlock and form 1 ring, if you unlock the cryptex you could take the rings off the inner tube and then you can get the 2 parts of each ring apart and then rearrange.
This would also need the border of the inner tube holding the rings together to be removed, but ONLY if the code is inserted. I do have an idea for it, but I think that's very hard to make, especially in brass. the inner tube would have at least one cut at the beginning of the tube (I drew two), the ring holder tube needs a hole with a skew cut on one side, and the holder ring needs pressable buttons in the shape I drew. Then when the buttons are in the cut, the holder ring isn't movable, but if it's pressed in by the part of the inner tube where there is no cut (so the tube has moved and the code is broken) then the button gets pressed in far enough to be able to when given side pressure, slide through also the hole in the 2nd tube, and then get out.
nice project btw, in brass! good luck!
thanks