How to Make Custom Grips for Your Camera Using Sugru

Intro: How to Make Custom Grips for Your Camera Using Sugru

This guide will show you how to create custom grips for you camera using sugru.

sugru is a self-setting rubber that can be formed by hand. It moulds like play-dough, bonds to almost anything and turns into a strong, flexible silicone rubber overnight. It feels soft to touch when cured, but is also grippy. This makes it perfect for building non-slip custom grips for your precious tech.

For this project you will need:

• 2 minipacks of sugru - buy some sugru
• a camera (obviously!)
• and some soapy water

STEP 1: Understand How You Grip Your Camera

Grip and hold your camera as you usually would when using it, and work out where your fingers rest naturally. This is where you will want to build up the sugru grips.

STEP 2: Make the First Grip

Pinch and press a small sausage of sugru firmly onto the camera, ensuring a good bond. Don't worry about the finish just yet.

STEP 3: Mould the Sugru to Your Finger's Shape

Hold your camera and press your grip carefully into the sugru.

Try gently releasing and reapplying your grip to shape the sugru just right.

[Video Tip] How to shape sugru

STEP 4: Smoothen the Shape

Gently rub the surface with your finger.

TOP TIP: You can use a little soapy water on your finger to get a really smooth finish.

STEP 5: Make the Second Grip

Repeat the same process for the second part of your grip - once again press the sugru firmly onto the camera and carefully shape it around your grip.

STEP 6: Smoothen the Second Grip

Again gently rub the surface of the sugru to get a good surface finish.

TOP TIP: Use the inside of your little finger to get it really smooth.

STEP 7: Make the Third Grip

Create the last grip repeating the same steps as before.

Leave the sugru to cure overnight for at least 12 hours.

[Video Tip] How to leave sugru to cure

STEP 8: Ta-da! Your Very Own Customised Grippy Camera

There you go, now you have your very own camera grips, personalised to your hands. You can also add custom grips to the bottom of the camera, for taking photographs in portrait - like we have here.

Enjoy!

P.S. Once cured, sugru is removable, so if you ever fancy a change...

[Video Tip] How to remove sugru

Comments

[Smelter_uk]

Just the Instructable I've been looking for. The grip on my Olympus E10 has started to perish so this is the ideal solution to renew the rubberized grip. I want to keep the textured surface so I asked my "crafty" partner for a few ideas. The best one she came up with was to press coarse sandpaper into the surface, so it looks like I need to buy a 3-pack (thanks for the link) of black sugru, and have a play.

[thematthatter]

thats a big honking camera!

[quartermiler660]

That's because it's either the pro grade camera, or the "pro-sumer" grade, with the optional vertical grip.

[quicksilver81]

I can't help but feel this is an ad. :) [typing "buy sugru" in my browser].

[LaffyDuck187]

wow! Great job! the grips look so professional and smooth