A few years back we posted DIY wooden puzzle cube plans, and then kind of forgot about making puzzle cubes for awhile as our kids got older. Recently we had several friends ask us for more wooden puzzle cube plan options so we decided to start a series on wooden puzzles.

Our original wooden puzzle cube was kind of small, only requiring 27 uniform cubes.  This one is much larger, needing 112 total cubes. This one also only has two different piece variations, as shown in the featured image of this post. One uses 7 cubes, the other uses 11 cubes. This wooden puzzle cube uses 12 total pieces. You will need to glue up 5 of the 7 cube pieces, and 7 of the 11 cube pieces.

Tools Required

• Table saw
• Planer or drum sander
• Sander
• Dado stacks (optional alternative method)

Materials Required

• 1 – 1×6 at 6′ or multiple smaller pieces
• wood glue

Precision does matter when making the cubes, the width and height all need to be exactly the same.  You can make them any size you wish, and I typically do 3/4″, but they need to need to be exactly the same.  When I make these, I typically make enough for more than one cube because the setup and preparation takes the majority of the time.

The first step is to decide on the dimensions, and find the piece of wood you want to use – which should be slightly thicker than the desired dimensions.  For example, I may start with a 1x6x6 board.  Then I plane the board down to 3/4″ – and I leave my planer set to that setting.  Next, I rip the 1×6 down into 7/8″ strips so I wind up with five 6′ strips, each 7/8″ wide.  Now, I turn those strips on their sides and run them through the planer as a group so that all five strips are each exactly 3/4″ x 3/4″ x 6′.

NOTE: You can also make this puzzle without making cubes and instead cutting the pieces from solid blocks of wood. If you choose this method, you will still need to ensure precision in measurements and cuts.

The last cutting step requires setting your table saw fence to exactly 3/4″ as well.   Now, take the first 6′ strip and put it on your table saw sled (if you have one), and nip off the end of the 6′ strip so that you can be certain the end is square to the rest of the strip.  Throw that piece away.  Now cut one more piece of the 6′ strip and use your calibers to ensure that all dimensions of the cube are exactly 3/4″.  You may have to micro-adjust your fence, if you do, make certain to repeat the setup and test until you have it 100% dialed in for perfect cubes.  Once you have your table saw dialed in, then it is just a matter of cutting as many cubes as you can (or want to) from the 6′ strips you’ve prepped.

So now you have a lot of perfect cubes.  Depending on the quality of your table saw blade, you may have to do some light sanding – but don’t over sand and change the dimensions or take them out of square.  Once you are satisfied with your cubes, the last step is to glue them into the two different piece shapes. Don’t feel like you need to glue up each piece in it’s entirety, I like to start by gluing pieces into groups of 2 or 3. Then I let them dry, and then glue thos pieces together as needed.

That’s it!  Once you have those 12 pieces glued up and ready, they fit together into a perfect cube. The images below provide assembly instructions. I hope you enjoy these wooden puzzle cube plans!

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