Hidden Shoe Compartment

This instructable will show you how to build a hidden shoe compartment that you can hide almost anything small in.

Make measurements on the heel of an old shoe depending on the size of it. (2.5in by 1.5in, one inch high was ours), and cut the shoe open at the heel, fitting the dimensions measured, be sure to not cut off the sides of the heels, only the center part of it.

Go into SketchUp, or any other CAD program to create the compartment itself. Start by making a 3-wall box with a slot on the side that fit the dimensions measured in the previous step. Then design a lid to said box with the same dimensions.Then make a slightly smaller box that fits in the "slide box", with a small protrusion sticking out from the bottom corner. finally, make a tab that fits the slot from the first box, this will act as the "trigger" to release the box that houses the object. Take this into your slicing software, and set the model to 100% infill in order to support your weight for extended periods.

3d print the components that you designed in your CAD program, and lay out all your components. Start by gluing the lid and the outer box together. Then insert the actual compartment to make sure it fits, hot glue 2 springs to the inner back of the outer box, and glue them to the back of the compartment. Then apply the trigger to the box by gluing springs to the inner tabs, and securing those springs to the outside of the outer box. Cut a slot into the side of the heel of the shoe to allow room for the trigger. Glue the finished mechanism into place on the shoe, if done right, the box should be invisible except from the bottom of the shoe, and from the trigger on the side.

When the box holding the object is pushed in, the lip on the corner will snag onto the trigger, locking it into place, when the trigger is pulled out from the shoe, the springs force the box out of it's shell, making the object visible and removable. A few examples of it's use would be to store a spare house key, a few dollar bills, or some tasty snacks for when you're on the road (probably not the best idea, but still worth a shot).