Easy 1989


Designed by Minoru Abe circa 1989; this one purchased 2013.
(cardboard box and wood puzzle, 4.25" x 4.25" x 7/8")

The directions show 9 problems named A - C and 1 - 6 to remove the 2x1 keeper and rearrange the pieces to read 1 2 3 4 oriented properly, starting and ending with the blank piece in the turntable in its east position. Any permutation / orientation can be achieved by a combination of cycling positions (1,3), (1,4), (2,4), (3,4) while parking a piece in position (1,1), and exchanging pieces located in positions (1,1) and (1,3) by using the turntable slot in its north position, but finding a shortest sequence is harder. We consider three rules for counting moves:
Rule 1: A single move may pass through the turntable independent of initial orientation.
Rule 2: A single separate move is required to use the turntable.
Rule 3: Repositioning the turntable requires an additional move. For example, moving horizontally, then rotating, then moving vertically, is 3 rectilinear moves if the turntable is east before the move, or 4 rectilinear moves if it must first be rotated.
Although not the hardest, Problem 3 is arguably the most asthenic, and shown on the right above are 3 additional problems along those lines. Here are the rectilinear moves for solutions using each of Rules 1, 2, and 3 for the total of 12 problems:

Problem A
40, 56, 67
Problem B
46, 64, 76
Problem C
58, 78, 92
Problem 1
42, 56, 67
Problem 2
52, 71, 84
Problem 3
26, 37, 46
Problem 4
60, 83, 99
Problem 5
57, 75, 88
Problem 6
53, 71, 83
Problem 7
32, 40, 48
Problem 8
38, 55, 68
Problem 9
22, 30, 35

A Sample Rectilinear Solution - Problem 3
Here a 26 rectilinear moves solution using Rule 1. Solving using Rules 2 or 3 can work the same by inserting extra moves at the appropriate places to achieve 37 or 46 rectilinear moves: