How to Make Steampunk Goggles From Welding Goggles

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The reader who has bought a pair of costume goggles, and found them thin, will understand why so many prefer to build their own. The making is the cheapest route to a pair that looks as though it came from a workshop, and it is among the most forgiving of the projects in our guide to steampunk DIY. This page sets out two methods, synthesized from several makers’ tutorials and credited to each, together with the tools, the order of work, and the safety rules that attend them. What to buy ready-made, and how a pair ought to be worn, are treated in our guide to steampunk goggles.

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The Outfitters' Catalogue

Everything named in this guide, by budget

AllThriftyMid-range

Fig. 1Thrifty

Plastic welding goggles to customize

The customary foundation: cheap, light, and already shaped like a pair of goggles.

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Fig. 2Thrifty

Rub 'n Buff metallic wax

A wax finish in brass, copper or silver, applied by finger and buffed.

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Fig. 3Thrifty

Clip-on double loupe

Flip-out magnifiers for the inventor's pair.

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Fig. 4Thrifty

Assorted brass-look gears

A bag of small gears for the side knobs and cups.

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Fig. 5Thrifty

Safety glasses marked ANSI Z87.1

To be worn while cutting, sanding and spraying, instead of the pair under construction.

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Fig. 6Mid-range

Leather strap and buckle set

Real leather for the bridge and straps, if no thrift-store belt can be had.

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Fig. 7Mid-range

Metallic spray paint for plastic

A spray finish made for plastic, for those who prefer it to wax.

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Fig. 8Mid-range

Temperature-controlled soldering iron

Needed only for the optional light-up build.

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I.The Parts You Are Making

Every pair has the same anatomy: lenses, cups (or a plastic rim), a bridge between the cups, a strap, and side knobs where the strap is fastened. The welding-goggle method keeps the lenses and cups and replaces the bridge and strap; the coupler method makes all of it. The GeekDad author changed the plastic-covered chain bridge and the elastic strap for leather because the chain was “not very Victorian”. That is the whole of the transformation, and it explains why the finish matters more than the shape.

II.Method One: Welding Goggles, Finished With Wax

GeekDad’s method, in two parts, is the most fully described. We have condensed it, and the reader should consult the originals for the photographs.

You will need: cheap plastic welding goggles; Rub ‘n Buff metallic wax; disposable gloves; paper towels and cotton swabs; two-part epoxy or super glue; scrap leather; a bag of gears; and a fabric adhesive (the author names Fabri-Tac).

1. Take the goggles apart as far as they will go, and scuff the plastic lightly so that the finish has something to hold. The wax maker, Amaco, says the surface should be clean and lightly sanded, or primed, since wax may not stick to a surface with no texture.
2. Apply the first layer of wax with a gloved finger, swab or cloth, and buff it. Amaco recommends a generous first coat with a paper towel, a few seconds’ wait, then a second coat, buffed as it dries. GeekDad reckons the first stage at about two hours with drying.
3. Build texture with further layers on the cups and rim. Wax pushed heavily into every crevice spoils an aged look, so use it sparingly where metal would wear bright.
4. Glue gears to the side knobs with epoxy or super glue.
5. Cut the leather bridge: a thick rectangle of leather, notched and glued into a sideways “I” shape between the cups.
6. Cut the straps to the length and width of the old elastic, and thread them so that the buckles adjust on the inside.
7. Reassemble, then let the wax cure. The GeekDad author left the buffed parts about a week. Before wearing, rub off the excess so that the wax does not transfer to face or clothes.

Amaco adds three cautions worth remembering: the wax is not recommended for surfaces exposed to moisture or electricity, it should not be kept above 120 F, and outdoors it must be sealed with a water-based or acrylic sealer, tested first because sealers can change the sheen and color.

III.Method Two: Spray Paint and a Loupe

Susan Dennard’s 2011 version swaps the wax for spray paint. She starts with Hobart 770129 welding goggles, adds a clip-on double loupe, uses inexpensive silver and gold spray paint with painter’s tape over the lenses, and cuts a thrift-store belt into three pieces for the strap; she says the total comes in under $20 if one shops carefully.

Her warning is the one to heed: too much paint and the goggles stay sticky, and her first pair had not dried after five days. Spray in light coats. If a can is to be bought for the purpose, Krylon’s Fusion All-In-One Metallic is made for plastic without sanding or priming; the maker gives touch-dry in about 20 minutes, handling in about an hour, best results at 55 to 75 F and humidity below 60%, and lists copper, gold and oil-rubbed bronze among its colors. The finishing of every kind of metal effect is treated in faux brass, copper and bronze.

Dennard also found the loupe-fitted pair too wide for a small head; the reader with a narrow face may prefer the plain version.

IV.Method Three: Cups From a Plumbing Coupler

Jen Yates of Epbot builds the whole pair from scratch. Both cups are cut from one 1.5-inch plumbing coupler, about $6 at a hardware store; the lenses are Plexiglas; the cups and straps are leather or vinyl; she reckons the total at about $15, because many of her materials were scraps. Her notes bear on the work:

• Tape the Plexiglas while sawing it; she uses a scroll saw for the lenses and a cutoff disc for the pipe.
• Only the screw-on edge of the coupler shows, so paint that and leave the pipe.
• Shallow cups press the nose piece into the bridge of the nose; make the cups deep enough.
• Hand-stitch the straps, for glue alone may not hold.
• For colored lenses she suggests theatrical lighting gels, avoiding very saturated colors, and names iridescent cellophane her favorite.

These figures date from 2011 and are the authors’ own estimates; prices today will differ.

V.An Optional Light-Up Pair

Adafruit publishes two guides for the ambitious. The earlier takes any goggles with 50 mm lenses and adds two NeoPixel rings, a Flora board with a motion sensor, a battery pack and 22 AWG wire, with a soldering iron and hot glue. The newer uses a Gemma M0, two 16-LED rings and a small lithium battery, and asks for soldering, a small drilled hole for the wiring, and some CircuitPython. Neither page prints prices. This is a project for a reader who already solders, and the next section applies with double force.

VI.The Tools, at a Glance

VII.A Word on Safety

Let it be said at once: a pair of costume goggles is not eye protection, and a welding goggle that has been painted and had its lenses changed is no longer a welding goggle for any purpose. The American workplace rule, OSHA 1910.133, requires eye protection to meet the ANSI Z87.1 standard, and sets lens filter shades by task, from shade 2 for torch soldering to higher numbers for arc work. Whether any particular welding goggle is rated for a task is for its own labeling to say, and a painted lens is certainly not.

For the making itself:

• Wear safety glasses that carry the Z87.1 marking, not the pair under construction, when sawing Plexiglas, cutting a coupler, sanding or spraying.
• Paint: read the maker’s sheet. Krylon links a safety data sheet for each color from its product page, and the manufacturers’ temperature limits are not suggestions.
• Wax: Amaco’s label restricts Rub ‘n Buff from children under 13, and the wax is removed from hands with Simple Green or Lava soap.
• Soldering (light-up builds only): the Health and Safety Executive reports that rosin flux fume is a common cause of occupational asthma; keep the head out of the fume, ventilate the room, and use a temperature-controlled iron, since fume levels can triple between 250 and 400 C.

VIII.Fitting and Finishing

Try the pair on before the glue is quite set, so that the straps may be adjusted. The reader who wears spectacles should know that none of these tutorials solves the fitting of goggles over them, and that readers of the Epbot instructions asked the question repeatedly. On the hat band is the usual station for the finished pair; our page on steampunk hats shows how a hat carries them, and the aviator costume gives them a reason to be worn on the face at all.

IX.Frequently Asked Questions

How do you make steampunk goggles from welding goggles?

Scuff the plastic, finish it with Rub ‘n Buff or light coats of spray paint, glue gears to the side knobs, and replace the elastic with leather straps.

How much does it cost to make steampunk goggles?

The best-known tutorials put it under $20 for the welding-goggle version and about $15 for the coupler version. Both are 2011 estimates.

Can I use steampunk goggles as safety glasses?

No. Eye protection at work must meet ANSI Z87.1, and a painted costume pair does not. Wear proper safety glasses for cutting, sanding and spraying.

What can I use for goggle lenses?

Plexiglas, thick clear report cover, or clip-on loupes; theatrical lighting gels and iridescent cellophane add color.

How do you stop spray-painted goggles from staying sticky?

Spray in thin coats. One maker found that too much paint left her pair tacky after five days.

How long does Rub 'n Buff take to cure?

The GeekDad author left the buffed parts about a week before handling them freely. Amaco does not give a figure on its tip sheet.

Sources