I enjoy using my 3D printer to create things that are small quality of life improvements. One of my ambitions is to no longer have a full-on junk drawer and where everything has a place and a place for everything.
One such issue that has been a constant irritant has been that of where the glasses and sunglasses end up in the house. They seem to get lost and I am not blaming my kids as I am just as likely to lose my sunglasses as they are. The solution was to design a sunglasses holder that could also be used in my shop (CubicleLabs) for my safety glasses. There was a design out on Thingiverse that just didn’t quite work for me so I set off to make a design quite similar to that one but worked for the variety of frames that I have.
Using OnShape, which is a free to use web based CAD system that works great on Linux with Firefox, I designed a very, very simple thing that I can screw or doubleside sticky tape to a surface.
I wanted something that would be easy to print, no supports required and had long enough of a hook for the bridge part of the glasses. My second round of changes has made for the best design for my purposes.
One important design consideration was the countersink feature for the screw head. I wanted to be able to use common drywall or construction screws to mount the thing on whatever surface I wanted whilst also keeping the mounting surface large enough to use command strips or double sided sticky tape on for surfaces I didn’t want to punch a hole into.
To print just one of these takes 51 minutes at draft speeds. They don’t have to be perfect, just good enough to do the job effectively. I also happen to like the color beige because, well… Commodore 64.
The part of my house where the shoes belong is now the place where sunglasses and safety glasses now belong. Not so much prescription but if I find them just laying about, i will likely just put them on here. I think eight spots is good for now, maybe I need two more… not sure. I DO know that I can just print up another if necessary.
I am quite happy with this design and it can be downloaded on Thingiverse, Printables and maybe even Cults3D if the sync is working properly.
Final Thoughts
Today’s age of accessibility to CAD software and 3D printing really does offer the capability of creating and implementing solutions with minimal effort. In another day and age, I would be whittling this out of wood, today, I can let the machine make it while I do some other task. Truly, 3D printers are a freeing appliance!
References
OnShape
Glasses Holder on Thingiverse
Glasses Holder on Printables
Glasses Holder at Cults3D
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