optivisor

Some of us may recollect a (Panorama?) TV programme coverfing the 'rip-off' operations of Britain's spectacle industry before they became 'optometrists' It was a total racket!. The mark-ups on standard reading glasses were ridiculous and 'specials' were beyond belief. A specialist eye surgeon from Moorfields was asked where he bought his glasses - " Morocco (or similar) at £1.85" One pays one's money and makes one's choices. My only prescription glasses were produced after 3 attempts by an R.A.F. employed, Harley Street 'specialist', the final pair of 'half-eyes' being made up to a 'prescription', copied from my Hong Kong sourced similar, which cost £1.30. That was 35 years ago, so I suppose another visit might be worth considering.

If you are a driver and need glasses for it you may well be driving illegally. I hope they are just for reading.

regards Martin

Edited By Martin Kyte on 10/07/2020 13:13:52

I have "trained" my optometrists to carry out my annual inspection and to supply the prescription.

Then I used to go to a separate supplier who made up the glasses for a far smaller fee and also used my existing frames without trying to sell me a new one. Unfortunately he has now retired but I have found a local source who does the same procedure for me. Interestingly they have a "machine" which measures the frame aperture with moving probe and then proceeds to mill the lens to fit. Even a lesser price with a will not be undercut offering.

I think lenses must be made from the frame as I broke my metal frame and got the lenses dropped into a new frame, one is just a tiny bit loose so I assume there is a tolerance on the frame but the lenses are custom made to the frame aperture.

Mike

I've actually seen the lens part of specs being made to fit. In the small grinding machine there was three grade of emery wheels A pattern was selected from a box of plastic patterns to match the frame selected. A pair of sucker, very similar to valve grinding sucker were attached either ide of the lens, the assembly was dropped onto two bearing and an infra red light carried out an alignment. test to locate the lens centre. A stylus followed the pattern as the small assembly was being rotated, the rough wheel remove the bulk of the glass. The operator move the assy to the next stage and finally the third wheel almost polished the edges. Done in about 5 minutes, £8 including frames, free tea if you have to wait. I have been unable to find an optician here in UK who will fit new lenses to my workshop frames. John