Glass Block LED Light Insert

We were recently at a craft show and my wife saw some decorative glass blocks that had designs etched into them. Since I have a mini-sandblaster box, I knew I could create the design on the blocks, but I wanted a nice way to light it up without having to insert fairy lights or Christmas lights. This is what I came up with.

The glass block has a rectangular hole in the bottom and a plastic insert for the hole. I designed a “lens” based on the insert that came with the glass block and another insert that goes into the “lens” that has the LED lights. 

The LED strip can be any size that fits. I used regular white LEDs. To power the LEDs I used an old USB cable, cut off the end, and soldered it to the LEDs. I put a little hot glue on the solder joint and cable as a strain relief. 

The glass block was purchased at Michaels. See the image of the label for more information.

The “lens” can be printed in whatever color you like and is easily swapped out. See images for a few different colors. The LED insert is friction fit so you can easily take it in and out. No snaps to wear out or break.

The rectangle hole in the glass box measures about 108mm x 28mm (see images)

I designed this in Fusion 360 and have uploaded the .stl files and the .step file. If there is another format you would like, let me know.

You will need supports for the lip around the “lens” if you print with the face of the “lens” on the build plate. If your printer does bridging well, you may be able to print with the lip on the build plate. You do not see the inside of the “lens” so it does not need to be pretty.

I have printed this in PLA and PETG. Both seem to work well. 

If there are any questions or suggestions, let me know.