Origami five intersecting tetrahedra

This model is very complex to assemble even though the units are simple. It uses 30 units made from 1/3 rectangles. There are a couple of ways to divide a paper into thirds but for this model it's best to just use a ruler since the pieces should be precise to fit perfectly.

If you're using A4 paper the process is simple, since the dimensions are 210x297mm. When you make a square you get 21x21cm, which is 7cm by 21cm pieces when divided into thirds. Much easier to explain with pictures:


Here is a diagram for this model if you want to try, it takes quite a bit of patience though.
The model at the top is made from 7cmx21cm piece so next I'll try half of that by dividing each piece into quarters so 3.5cmx11.5cm. I'll try to make this a challenge by seeing how small I can make it before losing my mind 😄

One A4 page is 12 pieces (3x4) so I need 3 pages for 30 units with 6 left over.
This model doesn't necessarily require glue but it helps with making the model not fall apart after a lot of hard work.

I like folding pieces in phases like this since I have to think less about what I'm doing and can't keep track of my progress. Usually I do half the steps on all the 30 units and then the other half.

I finished all the pieces in 45min, now comes the fun part, here I make one tetrahedra and four open ones before combining them since it's easier that way.

This isn't part of the instructions but I find it helps later. I make one tetrahedron and half open ones like this since then I just have to slide them in and lock in place.

The first two tetrahedra are the toughest since they slip easily and can change the whole structure. It's nice to have a model to follow on the side.(for that you need to make one in the first place 😓)

After finishing the third tetrahedra the structure is almost completely stable and it's easy to keep adding pieces while following the pattern.




At the last three pieces you can even see where they should go and they fit very snug in the gaps. Looks and feels very satisfying.

There it is, took less time than I thought, only 40min to assemble the pieces 😁
Time for the next one, I'll just divide in quarters again, so these pieces are 1.75cmx5.75cm, getting pretty small 🤔
I don't think I could assemble anything smaller to be honest. Units are no problem but smaller pieces get proportionally thicker in comparison which makes it close to impossible to combine. Unless you're using paper that's very thin.
Look at the size difference between those two. The tiny paper on top is a whole edge.

I decide to make something in between first. I cut A4 in half and then made squares from that, divided into thirds those into quarters. That ends up being 2.5cmx7.5cm, some sweet spot in between these two.

Skipping a few steps I managed to make both the 2.5cm and 1.75 cm, here they are all in comparison:

The tiny one is adorable and it only uses one A4 pages, hard to imagine really. It's adorable, I'll probably apply some transparent acrylic paint to toughen up the models and keep their shape.

This project was a lot of fun, I started making an even smaller one but I'm all out of patience. 🤣
Hope you join me on my next cool project. Give it a try, the pyramids are actually easy to make on their own.

Have a nice day.