I had new progressive lenses made, but the old ones are still fine and don’t have a scratch. They’re just a bit weak at near distance, but otherwise perfectly serviceable.
So I made new frames for them because I don’t like to throw away things that work.
All assembled, the frames weigh 3.5 grams, and 14 grams with the lenses mounted.
This was printed with a Prusa Mk4 and regular PLA at 0.15 mm layer height. The hinges use simple 10x1 pins - and I worked my magic to print the holes horizontally to the final dimension with interference fit, so no reaming or drilling is necessary. These glasses are straight out of the printer with zero rework.
I think they look pretty good as they are. If anybody notices they’re 3D-printed, I’ll say I’m gunning for that particular style 🙂
The front of the frames prints in 11 minutes and both temples in 12 minutes. I could break and make a new pair every day for the rest of my life and it would still be faster and cheaper than going to Specsavers only once.
When you smooth you do give up some dimensional accuracy.
These days, I more or less exclusively print ASA and PETG. I would call the ASA tougher than PETG, but PETG's ability to stick to itself when printing makes me prefer it for thin parts. In my experience, PETG also allows for more elastic (temporary/recoverable) deformation before the part undergoes plastic (permanent) deformation.
I have a wall mount for some a pretty hefty stepping stool and it’s been going strong for a few years.
PETG really does handle that well while similar things I’ve printer in PLA broke even with layer line orientation and a lot of walls.
Good stuff.
I've had similar experiences. PLA is very stiff, which also makes it brittle. I have quite a few functional PETG that have been going strong for years. Now that I can print ASA too, some of my newer functional prints are transitioning materials.
What about PCTG? Pretty much for anything that I’d need more strength than regular PETG I could go with PETG-CF or PCTG. The only thing that can force me to use ABS/ASA is the need for (more) temperature resistance.
I've never heard of PCTG before. A quick Google search and I'll probably be ordering a spool.