25 DIY Puzzle Box Plans You Can Make

Puzzle boxes are very convenient, and they can be games for brains that you can play with your friends or kids. These boxes can be perfect jewelry placements or decorating furniture.

If you intend to DIY them, we have 25 creative puzzle box plans for your reference.

Before you start, we would have to claim that making this kind of box requires pretty advanced woodworking skills along with many tools. Make sure you prepare yourself!

1. Puzzler puzzle box

The puzzler box is inspired by the Chinese puzzle that often has antique wooden panels.

There are three 100x100x100 mm wooden pins with two other small magnets to keep one removable piece. Thus, it is hard to open the box.

To make it more worth solving, you can place a small piece of jewelry inside the box. The available spacing is up to 70x70x70 mm.

Project details: diypuzzles.wordpress.com

2. Ball Puzzle Box Plan

You need three parts to craft this puzzle box, including the upper lid on the top, the upper pocket in the middle, and the hidden pocket on the bottom.

Inside the box is a hidden ball, coin, or small item. It might be shifted from the middle to the top to block movements of the upper pocket.

Project details: craftsmanspace.com

3. Simple Nine-Dot Puzzle Box

This is a simple puzzle box for those who know little about such a type of woodworking project.

The box has only one locking side not coming from the box to prevent the layers of the lid from moving. To do so, you will have five layers glued to the rest of the box.

Project details: instructables.com

4. Wooden Puzzle Storage Box

This storage box plan stands out with two halves that fit snugly to each other.

It is ready to make with a table saw, tape, and glue. You just need to cut six accurate cuts which have square corners.

We would suggest using a sled and holding it down on the jig to make equal wood pieces.

Then you can fix the three together and use the saw to make the two three-layer pieces fit well together. The more carefully you plan the corners, the harder it is to separate the two parts.

Project details: manmadediy.com

5. DIY Puzzle Box – Instructables

Imagine this puzzle box as a series of draws. You will have to pull the lock key out and grab both adjacent corners to disassemble all parts.

It is crucial to ensure the drawers have a snug fit into the outer box. Thus, you will need to sand all dimensions to prevent interference. This process requires advanced wooding skills.

Project details: instructables.com

6. DIY Paint Stick Puzzle Box

It looks like the project above, and the DIY paint stick puzzle box is, indeed. They share the same mechanism. The only difference is we include magnets inside the side drawer so that it stays firmer and more secure.

You will need two packs of paint sticks and tools to cut those sticks into pieces of different sizes: 2 x 6-½ inches; 8 x 3.75 inches; 5 x 2-½ inches; 9 x 1-½ inches; 1 x 1-⅛ inches; 2 x 1 inch; 5 x 8-½ inches; 2 x 7 -½ inches; 1 x 5-½ inches and 1 x 3 inches

Next step, you will assemble them with locking pins. The pins need to be cut and sanded with extra care so they can connect pieces firmly.

7. Wooden Puzzle Coin Box

You will build this puzzle box out of six solid wooden pieces by using grooves.

The key is to cut dadoes at the ends of each piece and a coin slot of 1/8 x 2 inches in the middle of one piece.

By making a deeper dado and the in-between bevel cuts, the layers sit more closely together.

Project details: canadianwoodworking.com

8. DIY Mini Puzzle Box

Rather than challenging people to open it, this mini-puzzle box is mostly for decorating purposes or a lovely gift card.

You need a laser cutter machine, prepare more thin wood pieces, and cut them in more patterns so they will look like a maze. Openers will navigate through the side maze to the internal drawer to solve the puzzle.

Project details: indukudesign.com

9. Japanese Puzzle Box Plan By Woodsmith

Building the Japanese puzzle box involves three steps: grooving first, trimming tongues, and placing rabbet and chamfer.

An essential concern is to set up precious alignment. We would suggest using a router table fence to create equal joineries and dovetail bits to fit the beveled edges of the lock.

Project details: woodsmith.com

10. Trick Box By Fisher’s Shop

You should prepare hardwood flooring scapes and some tools to perform as the table saw, miter saw, wood planer, and more. This trick box looks very refined but you will have challenges to build it.

The project is a series of kerf-width cuts on all side pieces. Glue the lap joints to form a box.

If you cut the joints accurately, the sides will simply snap together. Add the bottom and the kerf tabletop; then, the box is ready to play.

11. Nail Puzzle Box

As the name suggests, all parts of the puzzle box are held together with nails.

Based on their sizes, you will need to drill the mounting holes accurately. The rule is to place three nails in non-countersunk holes of one block.

Openers will have to disassemble nails or know the sliding nail mechanism to move the parts and open them.

Project details: instructables.com

12. Wooden Puzzle Box Plan By Craftmanspace

At a glance, the box lid is glued to the sides with dowels, and the body has its springs and bullets installed in the retainer pins.

The groove in the dovetailed slider will connect with the key dowel. With such a construction, the bullets are kept in place.

It has a lot of complicated sides so this project is suitable for experienced woodworkers.

Project details: craftsmanspace.com

13. Easy Wooden Puzzle Box

14. Escape Room Puzzle Box

With the box, you are focusing on the decorating arts rather than assembling multiple parts. You just need to use a pre-formed box and screw the hasp and lock outside of the box.

Then, provide the openers a key that can fit inside the scarab to solve the puzzle box.

Project details: hourglassescapes.com

15. Dragon Puzzle Box

Although the box looks simple, it requires advanced skills to make a dragon ornament Chinese-styled version.

You will use mahogany and cherry to build this box. There are multiple intricate pieces inside one another. There are dados, side joints, nail locking parts installed together.

Moreover, you can download a free pdf in this guide with images, drawings, and plans details to follow exactly step by step.

Project details: diypuzzles.wordpress.com

16. Twin Lock Box

There are three main sections you will need to build this box, which are the box, box cover, and wooden sliding keys. Each key features two positions that can be moved until the box’s borders.

To make the puzzle more challenging, you will want to change the order of all keys.

Project details: instructables.com

17. DIY Puzzle Box By Tuan Djeems

This time, you will repurpose a small chest into a trick box. Buy two paint stir sticks and one small wooden box to get started.

Then, you must cut the box open and divide the sticks into 12 pieces having the same length as the box and another two shorter pieces. Some 3-cm pieces also need preparing.

Glue the stick pieces around the box and have the 3-cm pieces fixed on the top, middle, or bottom of the sides. This box is very simple to build and fewer costs around $5.

18. Wizard’s Puzzle Box

Looking at the lovely sky patterns, we can say for sure that this puzzle box will excite any kids.

You can follow the plan to make one for your little one. The key to open the box is to “pull the sun down, push the moon up, and lastly bring stars next to the center!”

Project details: stormthecastle.com

19. DIY Complex Puzzle Box

The box consists of 15 toggle switches that need flipping into the correct positions to get it opened.

The secret is the correct switches will complete the circuit of the 9V battery inside the box. Otherwise, you can insert two keys to power the box.

This colorful and tricky puzzle model is a nice gift for boys at Christmas.

Project details: hackster.io

20. Apprentice Maze Puzzle Box

The concept of this puzzle box is straightforward. The locking mechanism includes sliders that can fine-tune the wedges accordingly to open the box.

It is essential to create tight tolerances, so we recommend using the kerf width when you cut the box lid.

Project details: makerdesignlab.com

21. Build A Puzzle Box From Cardboard

22. The Unabox Puzzle Box

Just follow 13 steps in the guide you can easily finish this box.

The box lid is held in place with a pin partially way out of the surface.

You need to take it out to rotate the first piece back so that the second piece can slide out to expose the inside of the box where you will see the dowel-pinned locking mechanism. It helps secure the second piece in place until you rotate it.

Also, you can update to improve the design if you want, just follow steps 14 and 15.

Project details: instructables.com

23. Dovetail Puzzle Box Plan

There are three parts to build this box: the lid, the main box, and the lock. They fit well together using dovetail joints – to be exact, the end keyways and end keys.

These two parts need to fit snugly, but they can loosen and expose the box when you try to slide the keys out.

Project details: woodarchivist.com

24. Holiday Puzzle Box

This puzzle box is not relevant to woodworking but it’s quite fun as gifts for holidays. So we have included it in this list.

With this project, instead of placing the gift inside a normal box, you can spend some time making a puzzle box and watch the receiver try to unveil your present.

Make the two simple T-shape pieces and glue them on cardboard to cut the box’s sides. Drill two holes to stick the brads on one piece and line up the other piece above with tracks.

You must move and secure the brads onto the narrow part of the track. Finally, fold the two pieces to shape the box and glue it firmly.

Project details: kiwico.com

25. Puzzle Box By MRX Designs

We like the perfectly square side panels that sit firmly together thanks to their 45-degree beveled edges.

Inside, the locking mechanism is made out of tumblers and latch-armed layers. The arms hook onto the receivers and keep the box closed.

The principle is simple enough, but the result looks superb and neat.

Project details: mrxdesigns.blogspot.com

Wrapping Up

Puzzle box plans can be as simple as only some panels glued together, or they can be tricky with multiple dados, side joints, and locking parts.

You should choose one based on your wooding skills, available materials, tools, and the purposes of the boxes – Do you want to give it to your children or friends, a game fun and challenge, or a decorative box to store your item?

We hope this article will be fun and helpful for you!