Old Shackles - Tavern Puzzle

Paid $28 for this, compared to $17 for the POS I thought would be decent. Night and day quality gap. The $17 puzzle was flimsy and hype with its stupid boxing and elaborate presentation. This however, not trying to pretend to be something historical, is straight forward and extremely well made. I don’t leave many reviews but this surpassed my expectations. If the crap hits the fan, it can be used as a fire striker.

Really well made. I remember seeing these in bars as a kid. Handling this brought me way back. It feels just as heavy and durable, though the ones I remember were made of actual horseshoes and chain links. I've solved Sneaky Pete, Freedom's Ring, Dirty Dog and Patience, but I bought this one just because the puzzle is so elegantly simple, and the solution is simple but illusive. The puzzle itself is an icon. Awesome classic puzzle. Good one for social situations. Don't drop it on your toe, I guess.

These are the REAL DEAL! They are solidly made and well-crafted by an actual blacksmith. While you can get knock-offs for less money, these are so much nicer and sturdier. And they're made in America! While they don't come with the solution, you can request it if you get desperate, but the fun is in not knowing! This is the most basic level of Tavern Puzzle - level 1 of 8 levels of complexity. It's easy enough to not be frustrating, but tricky enough to be fun - most people can't just pick it up and solve it instantly. This is a replacement for one I had as a teen (a favorite birthday gift) but have since lost. I was pleasantly surprised to find this one made by the same people who made my original - and it's the same high quality I remember. Buy several kinds of these - they are fun to set around at parties or for any group gathering. Anyone from around age 8 on up will enjoy this particular one! And did I mention - they're made in America!

I loved this puzzle as a kid. It is just as satisfying as an adult. The quality of this product is on par (or better) than the one I learned on. I gifted this to my son for Christmas and he had the same amazement on his face as I did the first time I solved it. I ditched the bag it came in -- for gifting -- but that is personal choice.

There are two kinds of puzzles in the world - those which have solutions and those which don't. Like most people, I always believed that I could tell the difference - or at least that I could trust myself if my reason told me there was definitely no solution. This little puzzle shattered that conviction, practically all on its own. It's been a long time since I've been able to reliably "solve" this puzzle, but even now, even watching myself do it, it still sometimes seems like magic.I've been playing with blacksmith puzzles for a long time, and it goes without saying that this one has always been my favorite. Most others tend to have some simple trick and/or complicated sequence, but this one is different.As for this specific product, it's sturdy, simple, well made, and arrived promptly. It's hard how something like this could possibly arrive broken.

Cool puzzle! I had tried this as a kid and wanted to add to my collection! It’s sturdy and looks great on my stand! It’s relatively easy to solve but fun to give to guests to try it out! Not all puzzles have to be a struggle to solve, some are just fun and very satisfying, like this one! It’s a fair price and trust me, this one will last forever!

I've been a fan of the iron tavern puzzles for a long, long time. They're incredibly well made, and they'll last for generations. The Old Shackles puzzle is one of the easier tavern puzzles, and the goal is to remove the ring from the horse shoes. I gave this to my almost-9-year-old nephew for Christmas, and it seemed like a good fit. I probably wouldn't give it to a younger child. And this one is challenging enough to give to an adult as a first tavern puzzle. If the adult is already into puzzles, I would choose a more difficult one. But this one is a challenge to many adults, so it's a good place to start.It comes in a little cloth storage bag.The only tavern puzzle I know of that's even easier than this one is the Iron Heart puzzle.

I had originally seen this puzzle in my dentist's office when I was a child. When I was working in a child care program I purchased this to use with some of my older students. I found it was a great way to build confidence and get students working together toward a common goal. Solving these puzzles does not require reading or math skills, which some students may struggle with, but it still builds important skills that students will use in school such as spacial reasoning and logic. Some of the more advanced puzzles also require sequencing of events in order to solve them.