Infinity Cube Table

Project: Infinity Cube Table

Materials:

• (26’) 1.5” x 1.5” x 1/16” square tubing
• (4) furniture leveling feet
• (1) flap disc
• (1) glass top

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Design: I have created a detailed plan, including 3D CAD (SketchUp) model and diagrams which you can purchase for a quite modest amount in my Shop.

This project is one of the main reasons I decided to start this site. I couldn’t find plans or dimensions anywhere and had piece together Reddit comments to get what I needed. The end result is a really cool piece with lots to learn about miters and heat distortion.

Disclaimer: My original idea for the design did indeed come from Reddit and this thread.

I decided to modify this for a slightly smaller, more compact end product.

The Design

The first step is to figure out the dimensions you’d like. My finished steel frame sits ~19.5” tall and has a top ~17.5” x 17.5” with the intention of being an end table.

I decided to use 1.5″ square tubing for this. It provides ~3/4″ gap which gives the design a nice compact look around the edges. You may want to leave more space between the parallel runs if you prefer a more open look. That will just mean the top/sides will be a little bit smaller for a given height.

I used 1/16” wall thickness which is more than enough for a small end table. I’d would go thicker if I were to make a larger kitchen table, chair, or something required to bear more of a load with this design.

Calculators

I created a couple of calculators to help you figure out your Infinity Cube cut list. The first you input the desired cube height and width as well as tubing size.

Note #1: Table Height must be at least Table Width + Tubing Size used (this gives 0 gap). The Table Width is top square outer width, where I have placed the glass top. The Table Height is distance from the floor to the very top of the middle square.

Note #2: The calculators dimensions can be in, cm, mm or whatever you choose. Just make sure you maintain the same unit in all of the input fields.

The second is basically a reverse of the first. You can use input the piece lengths into this one. Remember, the long piece must be at least the short piece + the tube thickness.

Infinity Cube Cut List

There are 2 different lengths of pieces and a total of 3 different orientations. Every cut is a 45 degree miter. Quantities, cut list and my measurements are in the table below.

You can use the below formulas to determine the various dimensions:

• Table height = 2*Length(#1) – Length(piece #2)
• Table top = Length(#1) x Length(#1)
• Gap between pieces = Length(#1 – #2) – TubingWidth

Assembly

OK. so you’ve got your 18 pieces cut, prepped and ready for welding. What’s the best approach? TACK IT UP!

This is by far the better approach than welding them piece by piece. I just placed 2 tacks on each joint to hold it in place until I got it fully assembled.

Heat distortion will warp it if you do not take care securely clamping and running small beads at a time. Even a small amount of movement can misalign the the edges.

I highly recommend you pick up some of these welding magnets. Make sure to get the large size. The small ones (<2″) are fairly week and don’t do a good job of holding any reasonably sized piece straight. I used these and a homemade corner jig continuously throughout this project.

Final Touches

For the legs I purchased some furniture leveling feet and drilled holes in the bottom big enough for the threads to fit through. I welded the correct threaded nuts to the bottom. The feet can then screw up and into the piece if desired.

I decided on flat black. It gives it a modern look which goes with basically any decor.

I usually finish my tables with some sort of wood top. However, in this case a wood top would block the eyes from the beauty of the design.

My local glass places wanted ~$60 for a cut and polished piece, so instead I went to Kijiji. I was able to find an old end table for $10 and used the glass top from it. It’s a couple of inches smaller than I wanted, but can’t argue with the price.

Reader Infinity Cubes

Here are some of the great examples others of sent to me.

This is an Infinity Cube I built, and was finished by Julia Muench. She did amazing work with custom designed glass Mosaic inserts on each of the faces. Julia calls this piece Moxius and you can find it, and some of her other art work, right here.

Jonathan Katz-Moses did an amazing job building one of these out of Walnut. Building it out of wood has it’s own challenges, which it looks like Jonathan has mastered! You can check out his YouTube channel and his build for this table here.

This is a larger one created by Osama from Egypt. He decided to keep the gaps larger, which gives it a more open look.

This is a smaller version done by Brad. He basically took my original dimensions and cut everything down by a third. The cube ends up being approximately 6.5″ in each direction.

Here’s a nice example done by Brett which is a hair larger than the original one I did.

Here’s one almost finished up by Laurence. The brushed finished gives it a nice look.

This is a nice clean one completed by Olanrewaju.

I love it when people but their own spin on things. This is a great idea by Cole, who put an expoxied wood cookie in the center. You’ll notice the round bar on the 4 sides hold it in.