Wooden Rubik's Cube Bluetooth Headphones

Ever wonder about making your own pair of custom headphones? How about a pair of custom Bluetooth headphones? Well, it’s time to cut the cords and roam about your room while you rock these awesome headphones!

In this Instructable, you’ll learn how to make a set of wooden Rubik’s cube Bluetooth headphones using only a few tools and materials. By the way, because of the way we’re building these headphones, they can also be plugged into your device should you decide not to use the Bluetooth feature.

Please watch the video to see the detail that went into making this Instructable and to give you a visual aid for when you decide to make your own! :-)

Materials

• Western Safety ear muffs $5.99 (Harbor Freight) http://www.harborfreight.com/ear-muffs-94334.html

• 808 Thump Bluetooth Portable Speaker $19.50 [paid $15] (Wal-Mart) http://www.walmart.com/ip/808-Thump-Portable-Blue...

• Mini Portable Stereo Speakers $1 (Dollar Tree) http://www.dollartree.com/household/electronics/M...

• Craft Smart Acrylic Paint $6.99 (Michaels) http://www.michaels.com/craft-smart-acrylic-paint... (Had to buy this last minute because the finger paint containers shown in the video is actually finger paint from the Dollar Tree, but the paint was practically see-through even after a couple of coats.)

• 3/16”x2’x2’ Plywood $3.48 (Lowe’s) http://www.lowes.com/pd_6177-99899-1507102_0__?pr...

• 15/32”x2’x2’ Plywood $5.97 (Lowe’s) http://www.lowes.com/pd_35500-432-P1222T25N_0__?p...

• Minwax 11.5 oz Polyurethane Spray $7.77 (Lowe’s) http://www.lowes.com/pd_45873-24-33055000_0__?pro...

• Old headphone cables

Tools

• Miter Saw

• Pencil
• Measuring Tape
• F-clamps
• Drill & Drill Bits
• Jigsaw
• Phillips and Flat Head Screwdrivers
• Wood Glue
• Utility Knife
• Soldering Iron & Solder
• Metal File
• Masking
• Tape
• Lighter

NOTE: You may not need all the tools listed or even the exact ones. You can still get the same results using similar tools.

Ear Muffs
Snap off the ear muff hinges with a flat head screwdriver by wedging it in between the ear muff and hinge, and then twisting it. Lift the cushion to the side and remove the screws. There are two screws per ear muff. Pull off the cushion from the plastic bracket. With a knife cut off the screw guide from the cushion bracket.

Mini Speakers

Use a screwdriver to unscrew the screws and separate the speaker housing. Pull out the speakers and desolder the wires using a soldering iron.

NOTE: You may want to write on the speakers with a marker a + and - to keep track when soldering the wires back.

808 Bluetooth Speaker

Peel of the soft cushion from the bottom to expose the screws. Unscrew the three screws and remove the bottom cover. Save the two buttons attached to the cover. Unscrew the two screws holding the Bluetooth module and the battery. Desolder the wires. I reused the screw mounts/stems that are on the speaker housing. To remove them, I heated a knife with a lighter and sliced a far down as I could. *Save these for later.

Separate the left from the right cable. Cut one cable in half (about 12 inches each) and cut a 6 inch piece from the other cable. Strip the ends.

I cut six 3-inch (76 mm) squares out of each of the 3/16 and 15/32 pieces of plywood. The housing will be assembled in this manner: thin-thick-thin-thick-thin.

NOTE: I cut all the pieces in duplicate in order to maintain the weight and symmetry of the speaker housings.

Thin 1 (Left and Right Housing)
On one of the thin squares, place a speaker in the middle and trace around it with a pencil. Get a straight edge and draw vertical lines evenly spaced in the circle, then do the same with horizontal lines.

NOTE: I tried spacing the lines about the width of a #2 pencil.

Draw an X down one line where the lines cross, skipping every other cross. Once you finish one line, go to the adjacent line, but start one cross below to create a staggered effect.

Use a small drill bit drill a hole wherever you drew an X.

Note: Feel free to go outside the circle to create a more symmetric look.

Use some sandpaper to remove some of the splinters and roughness left after drilling.

Thick 2 (Left and Right Housing)

As with the previous thin square, place a speaker in the middle and trace around it with a pencil. Using a Spade or Twist bit, drill a hole in the center to make space for the jigsaw. Use a jigsaw to cut out the remainder of the hole. You'll want to use a metal file or sandpaper to smooth out the hole or make it a little bigger should it be too tight when inserting the speaker.

Choose an edge and drill a hole as centered as possible. This will be used to feed the wire that will be soldered to the speaker.

Thin 3 (Left Housing)

No modifications.

Thin 3 (Right Housing)

Drill a hole near or around the center, but away from the edges because you’ll be using this space for glue later.

Thick 4 (Left Housing)

No modifications.

Thick 4 (Right Housing)

*See Thin (Right Housing) first.

Now place the cutout of Thin 5 (Right Housing) and only trace the outer shape. After making the first cut, place the Bluetooth module along the round edge and trace around the module. I used a jigsaw to cut around the tracing.

NOTE: Don’t trace too close to the module. You’ll need wiggle room for the wires and for any minor adjustments later.

Thin 5 (Left Housing)

No modifications.

Thin 5 (Right Housing)

Take the bottom cover of the 808 Thump speaker and trace it on the board.

NOTE: Make sure the charge and AUX ports are pointing towards a flat side (preferably the middle of the flat side).

While the bottom cover is still on the piece, take a long skinny object such as a paper clip and insert it through the three screw holes so you can make a dent on the board and know where to drill the holes for the screws. Flip the cover over and trace the two holes where the buttons will go.

Draw two tangent lines from the circle out to the edges of the square. You’ll cut along these lines and not around the whole circle. Cut out the shape and drill the holes.

For the three small holes use a twist bit the same diameter as the screws, but smaller than the screw head.

From what will be the outside surface, use a another bit of at least the same diameter as the screw head and make the three holes a little bigger without going all the way through. This will allow the screw to go in further and prevent it from protruding from the surface.

For the two button holes, use a twist bit the same with as the buttons. Because the buttons are oval shape, make the hole larger by moving the bit from side to side. Similarly to the three screws, but from what will be the inside surface, use another bit of at least the same width as the bottom of the button and make the holes a little bigger without going all the way through. This will allow the buttons to fit properly and sit flush along the surface.

Take the cutout and trace it on an extra piece of thin and thick wood. Trace the round end near one of the edges. Cut out the shape and try to match it to the Thin (Right Housing) you just used to trace. Sand it to allow the two pieces to fit together as close as possible. The thick piece will be used as support for the thin piece when they’re glued to the outer bottom face. These pieces will be referred to as Thick 4B and Thin 5B.

Glue Thin 1 to Thick 2.
Solder the 12-inch wire to the speaker and use hot glue to keep the wires in place.

Tie two knots near speaker and feed the cable through the hole of Thick 2. Use hot glue to fix the speaker to the housing.

Glue the remaining pieces: Thin 3, Thick 4, and Thin 5.

Sand the sides to make them as smooth and as even as possible.

Measure the depth of housing (thickness from outside of Thin 1 to outside of Thick 5).

Cut four strips of thin wood the same width as these but at least 5 inches long.(Roughly a 3”x5” rectangle. Cut one of the ends for each at 45 degrees. For the top face, align the 45-degree end to the edge of the housing and mark where the wire is located. Drill a hole to feed the wire.

Cut the remaining pieces to match the remaining lengths of the housing. Glue the faces to the housing and use clamps to hold them in place.

Glue Thin 1 to Thick 2.
Solder the 12-inch wire to the speaker and use hot glue to keep the wires in place. Tie two knots near speaker and feed the cable through the hole of Thick 2. Use hot glue to fix the speaker to the housing.

Solder the 6-inch wire to the speaker. Feed the 6-inch wire through Thin 3.

Glue Thin 3 to Thick 2. Glue Thick 4 to Thin 3. Attach Bluetooth module by using the original housing screws and the screw mounts/stems to Thin 5.Solder the other end of 6-inch wire to the Bluetooth module.

Glue Thin 5 to Thick 4. Just like with the Left Earphone, measure, cut and glue the side outside faces for the sides and top of the housing.

NOTE: Don’t glue the bottom face.

Glue Thick 4B and Thin 5B together and then glue both to the inside part of the bottom face.

I used a spade bit to carve two circles and glued Velcro pieces to the bottom edge of the housing and to the inside of the bottom face.

Bring the housings together to make a box. Measure the dimensions and use these measurements to draw the groove lines evenly spaced to create 9 squares on each side.

Using a dremel, carving tool, or a miter saw cut out the grooves. I sanded the faces and sprayed a thin layer of polyurethane.

Cut thin pieces of masking tape and cover the grooves and the outer edges of the housing so these parts don’t get painted.
If you own a Rubik’s cube, follow the color pattern. If not, you can find the colors online. I used two coats of paint. I took off the tape and then sprayed it again with polyurethane.

Place the brackets on the speaker side of the housing and use a pencil to mark the holes. Drill the holes. Put the padding back onto the bracket and screw them to the housing using small screws. Align the hinges where they will be screwed and mark where the holes will be drilled with a pencil. I recommend using small screws for this too.

Remove the headband padding and feed the cable through the hole near the end of the headband, but leave enough slack so the wire doesn’t rip if the housing rotates too far. Use black electrical tape to tape the wire along the top of the headband. Put the headband padding back on and attach the other hinge and housing. Feed the other wire through the headband hole leaving enough slack. Connect the two wire ends by twisting them together, adding solder, and then some hot glue for stability. Wrap with a piece of electrical tape. Fold the excess wire back onto the headband and use tape again to hold it in place. Adjust the headband padding so it covers the wires.

You’re all set!
Power on the headphones, pair it with your device, and rock on!

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