In this blog, we discuss the Newport Construction Cube. Newport designates this part by their nomenclature “CC-1″ Construction Cube, 1″x1”, 1/4-20. This is a machined cube made from aluminum which contains 1/4-20 tapped holes and a clearance hole. It is usually provided with a matte blackened surface.
The Newport CC-1 Construction Cube is made such that it presents six orthogonal faces, being a cube. Four of the faces have one 1/4-20 tapped hole in the center of each face. The remaining two faces of the cube have respectively one clearance hole for a quarter-20 screw and opposite that, one hole counterbored to accept the head of a quarter-20 cap screw. Thus, a 1/4-20 socket head cap screw can be inserted through the cube allowing the user to attach the cube to another external surface.
This design allows the user to attach this cube to another part with a quarter-20 socket head cap screw, where the head of the fastener fits inside the cavity of the cube, out of the way. Then you will have four 1/4-20 tapped holes (in four quadrants) available for other uses. The Construction Cube is simple but quite versatile.
It can be used by itself or attached to your own custom components to construct tooling. When attached with a single 1/4-20 socket head cap screw, it provides a sturdy, rigid component for mounting other parts. It’s especially useful when used with other parts from the Newport construction series.
One note about attaching this cube. With a standard quarter-20 socket head cap screw in the clearance hole, the head of the screw limits the length of screws you may attach to any of the four tapped holes. If instead, you use a low-profile-head type screw, and these are readily available from commercial sources, then a quarter-20 screw inserted into the side of the cube may be a bit longer.
Here are a few examples of really simple ways we used the Construction Cube at work:
1. We used the cube as a simple stop block.
2. We made a simplified adjustable stop block using a quarter-20 cup-point setscrew on one side and a nut to lock the setscrew in place after the desired stop position was set.
3. Two cubes were attached together with one screw to make a spacer for a tooling application.
4. We attached a cube to a construction rail to provide an offset attachment point for another component which we did not wish to attach directly to that rail.
5. Two rails were set parallel with one or 2 cubes used to provide a one inch separation between those rails.
6. Cubes were used to support a flat plate above a breadboard.
Obviously, there are many possible ways to use the cubes in the lab with applications limited only by your imagination. You may want to keep a bunch of these cubes in your assembly parts cabinet.
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Optics Lab Tips and Tricks 