Can't beat this yet, but wherever the solution hides, it's a beautiful construction! Well done.
EDIT: There it is! Wonderfully tricky little maneuver I was missing.
This is an amazing structure.
My first touch took quite some time and ended in 419 steps. I will keep looking. Really a great one!
EDIT: I later found a 370+, then a 339, then a 305 and now a 295.
Will keep looking.
EDIT 2: Got a 275, now. But can't find
shorter, atm. Will be back.
EDIT 3 (next morning): Today I found 253, almost right away. But now stuck again. Will be back!
Such an absurd, finely-tuned machanism, this is an incredible level all-around! Hard to complete, harder to optimize, all with individually simple bits of logic that work together to make an impressive whole.
Insights