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3D printed vive accessories


Take VR to the Next Level With These 3D Printable Accessories

Immersion is the key to the best virtual reality experiences, so anything you can add that edges it closer to realism will make your experience exponentially better. I've talked before about using VR to take your Elite Dangerous experience to the next level, but today I wanted to take a look specifically at 3D printables. While we're at it, we're also going to see which accessories can help you store and organise all those VR bits and bobs, since you've already spent ludicrous amounts of money on the headset itself.

Note: I've used an original Prusa i3 MK2 (which we declared the best 3D printer) to print items where indicated.

Gun Stocks

One of the things I find most fascinating about VR is that most games require actual, physical skills. No longer do you flick the joystick and auto-lock to a target: if you can't hold a gun straight in VR, you just aren't going to be as good. If your reaction time to physically duck behind cover is too slow, you'll be exposed. Gaming controllers were the great leveler -- making every player just as bad as each other until they'd mastered the delicate skills of button mashing and finger flicking. VR takes it all back to the real world where reaction times and physical motion dominate.

Fortunately, you can cheat... sort of. By using a realistic gun stock, you'll be able to hold your aim steadier. This can give you a huge performance boost in games like Onward.

HTC Vive Stocks

You'll need a reasonably big printer, but the V36 for the Vive by SGU7 can be printed in three batches on a Prusa i3. The stock is removable, so you can either lock your rifle to your shoulder, or attach a second controller to the end in games that support steadying with a second hand (or both, for extremely steady sniping). You'll need some small M3 bolts to screw it all together though, and one of your controllers remains locked in position until you unscrew it.

Somewhat less functional, but still cool looking and giving a slight edge is the Vive pistol grip, designed by Tsuboku Labs, a Japanese mixed media artist. They even provide a version with the system button covered for those who do regular demos, though you'll need a commercial licence to use this in your own VR arcade. Unfortunately, the bridge between the bottom of the controller and the top is quite thin, and mine snapped in half after a drop (you can just about see the tape I used to fix it, in front of the grip buttons). It's still functional, but I'd suggest printing this on its side rather than upright as I did, and you'll need supports either way.

Bear in mind that the gun to controller angle mapping can vary significantly between games, so check comments on your chosen design before wasting plastic, or check if you can adjust the angle in-game. You may find another design more suited to specific games, like this Sniper rifle for The Nest by Alien_Identity.

Oculus Rift Stocks

There are far fewer options out there for Rift owners who want a realistic shooting experience: the only printable one I could find was this one by Gurgelx. Here's a video of it in action though, and it looks rather good:

It's a (Space) Pirate's Life for Me

Once you've played Elite Dangerous in VR, you can never go back to a monitor. However, not all of us can afford fancy metal sim chairs, so this useful Saitek X52 HOTAS office chair adapter by Vendeta44 will ensure you don't need to buy new furniture. The files include templates for the MDF and where to cut for the mounting bolts, so it's useful even if you plan to build your special sim chair and don't want the chair adapter!

Photo by Thingiverse user Vendeta44

Controller Stands

Oculus Touch

The Touch controllers are a pretty awkward shape, but there are some great minimalist cradle designs that fit around the sensor rings. I used this one from ClassicGOD (printed at 10 percent infill and no supports) to mount my controllers away to the side of my DIY sim chair when not in use.

A single screw attaches to the wooden frame. Remember to duplicate and mirror the design for your other controller. If you need to mount to a wall or flat panel instead, the wall mounted version by randommagic is better suited.

For a tidy desktop, these simple "coaster-type" stands work well too.

Oculus Touch coaster stands by Thingiverse user ballanux

Vive Wands

I must admit, I don't care for an elaborate storage solution for the Vive controllers -- they just feel a lot more rugged, and sit happily on a shelf or in a drawer. However, if I did feel the need to mount them to a wall, I'd probably go with this ghastly looking object from abombdesigns, available in both single and dual plate design -- purely because they're sure to be noticed for unmentionable reasons.

If that's a little too... unusual for you, this simpler wall mountby SG-O is currently the most popular design.

Headset Storage

In my video on setting up the perfect VR room, I mentioned the importance of having somewhere to store your headset. It's critical that you and anyone who uses the VR system learns to put the headset back in the correct place after use. If they leave it lying around in a room with a window, it's very easy for a direct sunlight to hit the lenses and cause permanent damage.

Oculus Rift Stand

I printed this very simple hanger by booopidoo for my Oculus sim setup.

It looks like it wouldn't be substantial enough to actually hold a headset, but I promise it works, and is keeping my Rift safe from sun!

HTC Vive Stand

My custom rack-mount flight case has a nice shelf that I use for my Vive, but this wall-mounted hanger by oneaday would be my first choice otherwise. As well as providing a solid place to hang your headset, it should stop dust getting onto the lenses.

Don't actually print in the orientation shown in the photo below however, or it's likely to break at the layer joins. Print flat and it should be perfectly rigid.

Prefer lightweight and minimalist designs? Quintesse made this HTC Vive wall-mounted rack if you want something more understated.

PSVR users: This stand looks like a work of art and matches the PSVR headset nicely.

Save Money

You'll find a lot of useful little bits and bobs to 3D print that would otherwise be unreasonably costly for what's essentially just a small bit of plastic. Here's some we think are just too useful not to mention, even if they aren't particularly exciting.

  • Vive headstrap buckle -- A straight up buckle replacement. Twist into place then thread your head strap through this instead.
  • Vive Base Station tripod mounts -- The Base Stations actually have a standard tripod screw thread, but you need to buy a moveable ball head to position them correctly, which can cost around $5 to $10 each. Instead, you can print a pair of these tripod mounts, and save a little money by using the standard wall fixing plates that came with your Vive.
  • If you're demoing your VR system regularly, and don't quite trust visitors not to break the controllers, try these: from Kf52t comes a Vive controller protector -- A ring of plastic that acts as a buffer. This minimalist design shouldn't get in the way of the sensor tracking, but might just save you $100 for a replacement controller!
  • Wall mount for the Oculus cameras by MikeVR -- Oculus continues to supply all their sensors mounted on a small stand, suitable for use on a desktop. But anyone who wants a room-scale or 360 experience knows that the ideal sensor location is similar to the Vive's Base Stations: mounted high on the wall, in the corners, angled toward the center. Thankfully the Oculus sensors also have a screw thread for attachment to standard camera kit, but you can save yourself a little by printing these wall mounts instead.

Now You're Just Being Silly

We've covered some useful additions and immersive accessories, now let's indulge in some moments of "Huh, that's weird."

Scvette made this fantastic looking portal gun from Rick and Morty in preparation for the Virtual Rickality game. He probably should have waited until after the game was released though, because at no point in the game do you actually get to use a portal gun. Still, it looks awesome!

Dwooder made this golf club adapter for his Vive controllers. It's so realistic that you'll need to cut off the functional part of a real golf club to use it. We're not keep on the idea of swinging your Vive controller around like a madman, which is why probably he recommends keeping a hold of the safety wristband anyway.

On the other hand, this Vive sword by FredMF is something we can totally get behind. It's a work in progress, and it looks like he's the only person to have made one so far, but we commend the effort to make hack and slash VR roleplay games that much more immersive. In fact, in my One Year Later: Vive vs. Rift comparison, I noted how much I prefer the Vive controllers precisely because they're heavier and bigger than the Oculus Touch, which just feels better for guns and swords.

The VR market is so small right now that being able to 3D print your own niche but useful accessories really does make sense. Here's hoping the marketers don't catch on and treat the controllers like a WiiMote.

Have you printed any accessories for your VR system? Have you designed your own parts that you just can't buy? Let us know what you printed in the comments below!

Image Credits: YAKOBCHUK VIACHESLAV/Shutterstock, VitaminCo/Shutterstock

3D Printing Accessories for VR Headset Organization | by Liv Erickson | The Matrix is my Office

One of my goals for 2017 is to stay more organized — and part of that has been figuring out a good system for all of my VR headsets and associated gear. When I first got my HTC Vive, I played around with the Makerbot in the office and printed out a controller mount for the wall to great success. When I got my hands on my Oculus Touch controllers (pun 100% intended there) I knew I would do the same for those controllers as well, and what has resulted was a lot of trial, error, and experimentation with 3D printing accessories for my VR headsets.

I’ve tried to design some of these myself (and failed miserably, if I’m being completely honest) so I took to Thingiverse and found some great solutions from designers who created their own components for their VR systems. In today’s post, I wanted to share which designs that I’ve used and how I’m liking them, and some new things that are being printed as I type!

Vive Controller Wall Mount by SG-O

[caption id=”attachment_7221" align=”aligncenter” width=”488"]

My first 3D print for VR — the Vive Controller Wall Mounts[/caption]

These were the first stands that I printed and I’ve loved having them. The print files came with a double or single controller design, and I opted to print the two together. The screw holes at the top allow you to hang your Vive controllers through the empty circle in the middle of the wand, and having this on the wall in the play space makes it really easy to put on the headset and immediately know where your hands are. Since they’re always hanging in the same spot, I know where to go even if they’re not turned on, which is a nice bonus. On top of that, I have this mounted over a power outlet so I’m able to keep them charging all the time when not in use.

Oculus Touch Wall Mount by RandomMagic

[caption id=”attachment_10651" align=”aligncenter” width=”640"]

Touch (Left) & Vive (Right) Controllers on their mounts[/caption]

When I got some amazing pink Makerbot filament recently, I knew that I wanted to continue my pink-silver-black color trend of my desk by going with pink Touch controller stands. I actually worked on my own design for these using 3D Builder, but failed miserably when it came time to print and none of the attempts I had turned out. C’est la vie — thankfully, a few days after the holidays, the set of designs from RandomMagic appeared on Thingiverse and I grabbed the wall mounts that are based on the curvature on the Touch controllers. I absolutely love how these turned out! To me, they look like happy smiles. The controllers balance really nicely in the mounts, which printed with just a couple of minor cosmetic bumps.

In Progress Print: Vive Breakout Box Mount by Cozmo

The next step of my VR accessory lineup is getting cables and the smaller bits and pieces of the hardware tidied up, so I’m currently in the process of printing out a Vive Breakout Box Mount (also in pink!) that I plan to mount on the wall below the Touch controllers to keep the Vive box organized. I’ve never really had any issues with the breakout box getting pulled out of the computer or anything, but it does tend to move quite a bit, so as I’m typing this, I’m waiting for the results of the box that I’ve linked above to see how it prints out. I ended up rotating it from the original file and adding in the supports so that the screw holes would print cleanly, so it’s going to take a few hours to see how it turns out — but when I get it finished, I’ll update with the results here!

**Update** The breakout box seems to be an early success! I did screw in one of the holes a bit too tightly, and it broke a small piece of the print, but other than that, it seems to be a great way to keep my breakout box from moving too much when I’m using my Vive. We’ll see how much it can handle with SPT or AudioShield! I will note that someone on Twitter mentioned making sure the cables were secure so that the pins don’t break, so I’m going to spend some time testing to see how they come out and that it won’t damage the cables during usual play.

Lastly, I’m planning to print out a few other simple, generic cable management pieces that will hopefully let me tidy up the remaining work space. My FOVE headset should (hopefully!) be shipping soon, so there will be another headset in the loop soon, which I’m super excited about.

How are your organizing your cables and headset accessories? Is 3D printing making your life better in little ways? Leave me a comment and show off your own battle stations!

Take VR to the next level with these 3D Printable Accessories

Immersion is the key to the best VR experience, so anything you can add to bring it closer to realism will greatly enhance your experience. I've already talked about using VR to take your Elite Dangerous experience to the next level. bring the elite dangerous to the next level. but today I would like to pay special attention to 3D printed. In the meantime, we'll also see what accessories will help you store and organize all those VR bits and bobs since you've already spent ridiculous amounts of money on the headset itself.

Note: I used the original Prusa i3 MK2 (which we declared to be the best 3D printer .

Stockpiles of weapons

skills.You no longer flick the joystick and automatically lock the target: if you can't hold a gun right in VR, you just won't be that good.If your reaction to the physical duck behind cover is too slow, you will be exposed.Game controllers were a great leader "They made every player as bad as every other until they mastered the subtle skills of mashing and finger tapping. VR takes it all back to the real world, where reaction time and physical movement dominate.

Fortunately, you can cheat... sort of. By using a realistic stock of weapons, you will be able to keep your crosshair more stable. This can give you a huge performance boost in games like Onward.

HTC Vive Stocks

You will need a fairly large printer, but the V36 for Vive by SGU7 can be printed in three batches on the Prusa i3. The stock is removable, so you can either attach the rifle to your shoulder or attach a second controller to the end in games that support balancing with a second hand (or both, for a very stable sniper). You will need small M3 bolts to screw it all together and one of your controllers will remain locked until you unscrew it.

Somewhat less functional, but still cool looking and slightly shaping, is the Vive pistol grip designed by Tsuboku Labs, a Japanese multimedia artist. They even provide a system button version meant for those who do regular demos, though you'll need a commercial license to use it in your own virtual machine gallery. Unfortunately the bridge between the bottom of the controller and the top is quite thin and mine fell in half after being dropped (you can see the tape I used to secure it in front of the knob buttons). It's still functional, but I would suggest printing it on its side rather than upright like I did, and you'll need support anyway.

Be aware that displaying the angle of the weapon to the controller can vary significantly between games, so check the comments on your chosen design before spending plastic, or see if you can adjust the angle in-game. You can find other designs more suitable for specific games, such as the sniper rifle for The Nest by Alien_Identity.

Oculus Rift Stocks

There are far fewer options for Rift owners who want a realistic shooting experience: the only one I could find for print is Gurgelx. Here is a video of it in action and it looks pretty good:0003

This (Space) pirate life is for me

When you play Elite Dangerous in VR, you can never go back to the monitor. However, not all of us can afford fancy metal sim chairs, so this useful Saitek X52 HOTAS office chair adapter from Vendeta44 ensures you don't have to buy new furniture. The files contain templates for the MDF and places to cut mounting bolts, so it's useful even if you're planning to build your own custom sim chair and don't want a chair adapter!

Image Credit: Vendeta44 via Thingiverse

Controller Stands

Oculus Touch

The Touch controllers are pretty awkwardly shaped, but there are some great minimalist designs that fit the sensor rings. I used this one from ClassicGOD (printed at 10% infill and no supports) to set my controllers away from my sim chair when not in use.

One screw attached to the wooden frame. Don't forget to duplicate and reflect design of your other controller. If you need to mount to a wall or flat panel instead, randommagic's wall mount version is a better choice.

For a neat desktop, these simple coasters work well too.

Image Credit: ballanux via Thingiverse

Vive Wands

I have to admit, I don't care about the complicated storage solution for Vive controllers - they just feel more secure and sit happily on a shelf or in a drawer. However, if I felt the need to mount them on the wall, I would probably go with this awful looking piece from abombdesigns, available in both single and double versions - purely because they are sure to be noticed for innumerable reasons.

If that's too…unusual for you, the simpler SG-O wall mount is currently the most popular design.

Headset storage

In my video on setting up the ideal room ideal room ideal room, I mentioned the importance of having a place to store your headset. It is very important that you and anyone using the VR system learn how to return the headset to the right place after use. If they leave it lying in a room with a window, direct sunlight can easily hit the lenses and cause permanent damage .

Oculus Rift Stand

I printed out this very simple hanger from booopidoo for my Oculus Sim setup.

It looks like it wouldn't really be secure enough to hold the headset, but I promise it works and protects my Rift from the sun!

HTC Vive Stand

My custom case has a nice shelf that I use for my Vive, but this one day wall hanger would have been my first choice otherwise. In addition to providing a secure place to hang your headset, it should prevent dust from getting on the lenses.

However, do not actually print in the orientation shown in the photo below, otherwise it may break when the layers are joined. The print is flat and it should be perfectly rigid.

Prefer a light and minimalist design? Quintesse made this HTC Vive wall stand if you want something more discreet.

PSVR Users: This stand looks like a work of art and matches perfectly with the PSVR headset.

Save Money

You'll find many useful little 3D printing pieces that would otherwise be prohibitively expensive for what is essentially just a small piece of plastic. Here are a few that we find too useful not to mention, even if they aren't particularly interesting.

  • Vive Headstrap is a direct buckle replacement. Rotate it into place, then thread the strap through it.
  • Vive Base Station Tripod Mounts - The base stations actually have standard tripod screw threads, but you need to buy a movable ball head to position them properly, which can cost anywhere from $5 to $10 each. Instead, you can print out a couple of these tripods and save some money by using the standard wall mounts that come with the Vive.
  • If you regularly test your VR system and don't trust visitors not to break controllers, try this: from Kf52t comes a Vive controller protector - a plastic ring that acts as a buffer. This minimalist design shouldn't get in the way of sensor tracking, or it might just save you $100 on a controller replacement!

  • MikeVR Wall Mount for Oculus Cameras - Oculus continues to ship all of its sensors mounted on a small stand suitable for desktop use. But anyone who wants to have room scale or a 360 experience knows that the ideal sensor placement is similar to Vive base stations: mounted high on the wall, in the corners, at an angle to the center. Luckily, Oculus sensors are also threaded to mount to a standard camera kit, but you can save some money by printing these wall mounts instead.

Now You're Just Stupid

We've looked at some useful extras and exciting accessories, now let's indulge in some "Yeah, that's weird" moments.

Scvette made this fantastic looking portal weapon from Rick and Morty in preparation for Virtual Rickality. He probably should have waited until the game came out because at no point in the game can you use portal weapons. However, it looks amazing!

Dwoder made this golf club adapter for his Vive controllers. It's so realistic you'll have to cut off a functional part of a real golf club to use it. We're not going to swing your Vive controller around like crazy, which is probably why he recommends holding on to a security bracelet anyway.

On the other hand, this Vive sword from FredMF is something we can completely leave behind. It's a work in progress and it looks like he's the only one who created it, but we appreciate the effort to make hack and slash RPGs that much more exciting. In fact, in my One Year Later: Vive vs. Rift comparison, I noted how much I prefer the Vive controllers precisely because they are heavier and larger than the Oculus Touch, which is better suited to weapons and swords.

The virtual reality market is so small that the possibility of 3D printing is its own niche, but useful accessories really make sense. We hope marketers don't accept and treat controllers like WiiMote.

Have you printed any accessories for your VR system? Have you developed your own parts that you simply cannot buy? Let us know what you typed in the comments below!

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