I became fascinated when I saw this cube at some point in my distant past and I spent a lot of time that day wondering how to get the inner cube out.

It took a little research to find the best way to make this, but the time was worth it when I watch my friends try to get the cube out.

Step 1: Materials and Tools

One 2 x 2 piece of scrap wood
A bandsaw
A drill press
Marking and measuring tools
File
And the key to the whole project: a 1 inch Forstner bit

The Forstner drillbit is flat on the bottom allowing you to drill the holes in the large cube in such a way that the small cube is revealed.

Step 2: Preparation

I cut a cube off of the 2x2 using a bandsaw. This meant that I ended up with a 1 3/4" cube as seen in the photo.

Using a straight edge that was aligned corner to corner, mark the centre on each face of the cube (the X that you see in the photo).

Step 3: Revealing the Cube

Place the cube on the drill press and lower the Forstner bit to centre it on the cube exactly over the X you made in the previous step.

At this point you may choose to use a clamp to hold your cube but I chose to simply hold it in place with my hand.

Drill approximately three eighths of an inch into each face, this doesn't have to be too precise. It is best to drill at a moderate speed to avoid burning the wood.

Now that you have the initial cuts into each face, you will go back over them with the drillpress and shave a little more from each face until your inner cube is revealed. Take a look at photo 2, at the top edge you can see the beginning of the inner cube separating from the outer.

If you did this properly, you should eventually reveal your inner cube (photo 3).