3D Printed Arms for Sunglasses

My Aviators never quite fit properly behind my ears, so of course with a 3D printer in the house it was time to design and 3D print my own! This is another fun, quick little project that you can easily make yourself as I have provided the files for free to download from Thingiverse. Just click here to get them 🙂

All you need to make your own are some wireframe glasses or sunnies (best for wire arms with a diameter of 1.5mm, although you could scale the print or simply drill the holes out to fit your frames). The only other important thing is to trim the arms off as in the middle image above, leaving 15mm that can fit into the corresponding holes of the 3D printed arms. This creates a secure fit when glued with Araldite. I printed my arms one-at-a-time to fit the small print plate of the ‘Up! Plus 2‘ 3D printer, but if you have a larger printer you should have no problems printing both arms at once. Each arm took 32minutes to print using the 0.15mm layer setting.

I also recommend trying on the glasses before gluing – this allows you to angle the arms to fit securely behind the back of your ear as you can see in the above photos. I estimate mine are angled 20 degrees off vertical.

Would love to hear your feedback or photos if you make these, please share them here or through Thingiverse and let me know how you go.

– Posted by James Novak