While surfing through Instagram, I came across a profile with a lot of cartoonish figures all over the feed, especially characters from the cartoon “SpongeBob SquarePants”. Looking at those figures and characters, I was reminded of my childhood when I used to come back home running after school just to watch the cartoon. While going through the profile, I came across the latest post that showcased how the man behind the profile created a speaker that looks like SpongeBob’s pet, Gary the snail.
Upon reaching out to the profile’s owner, he turned out to be South Korean content creator and 3D pen artist Momandeum. The coolest and happiest one to talk to, he told me that when he was young, he loved the cartoon SpongeBob SquarePants. So he decided to bring Gary to life in the form of a speaker.
“Since I was young, I have loved the animation SpongeBob SquarePants, so I still have those impressive scenes in my head, every episode. Thanks to this, I was able to come up with pleasant ideas by using characters or props from SpongeBob when I came up with the work. We created a Bluetooth speaker and wireless charger inspired by the scene of struggling to bathe SpongeBob’s pet snail, Gary.”
Instead of simply placing a speaker inside a decorated snail body, he decided to create the speaker from scratch. Momandeum reorganized an alarm clock and its electronics to match them to little Gary’s looks. The snail’s shell houses the speaker, while the turntable base is what holds the circuit board while also integrating a wireless charging pad for smartphones.
How the Gary Speaker Came to Life
It all started by taking down a low-cost alarm clock completely to pieces. Momandeum carefully measured every little wire and circuit board to build a precise 3D model on the computer. From there, he designed Gary’s shell, body, iconic googly eyes, and a sturdy base.
Next, the 3D printer weaved its magic. Once the plastic pieces popped out, the real manual labor began:
- Cleaning: Snapping off support struts and trimming extra bits
- Smoothing: Sanding every surface until it’s buttery-smooth
- Painting: Slapping on layers of primer and bright paint
The goal? Recreate those bold outlines and flat, vibrant cartoon colors so Gary looks like he crawled right out of Bikini Bottom.
Assembly is where the real trick happened. Instead of ugly screws or permanent glue, hidden magnets snap the pieces together. This keeps the sculpture looking totally seamless while making it super easy to pop open if the electronics inside ever need a tweak. The base neatly hides all the messy stuff: the charging coil, tangled wires, and the original clock board.
When it is all done, you get a 3-in-1 masterpiece gadget which is a cool character statue, a wireless phone charger, and a Bluetooth speaker. Since no SpongeBob tribute is complete without proper attention to detail, the very first sound was tested on Gary’s brand-new shell. A classic series of “meows”, of course. Alright now, I am off to see what’s new on Momandeum’s Instagram handle.
