Advice on dismantling an Airlock

**DreFagan** · 08-09-2011, 03:53 PM

Hi all!

I've only worked with Silhouette compression mounts & (back in the day) screw mounts and have yet to assemble or disassemble the new Marchon Airlock mounting (round, plastic single mounts) and would prefer to have some advice on how to do so instead of wrecking the frame & having to order a new one. Tips? Pointers? Tools of choice?
Thanks!
Dre

**pezfaerie** · 08-09-2011, 04:03 PM

To disassemble cut the bushing using a silhouette cutter not the fingernail clippers marchon provides, you'll get a much more even cut. Then wiggle the lens off gently. it really doesn't take any more than that. To assemble I always use an AR slip pad (usually blue and see through) to cover the holes on the front of the lenses (to protect the holes from the cutter scraping) then I poke hole through that so the bushing will fit through. Push the bushing through the backside of he lens until flush. Cut the left over from the front. Use the push pin they gave you (or one you have lying around) to "re-open" the bushing. Start by mounting the nasal first then the temporal. using your thumb and forefing pressure first to get the frame piece started then use the pliers they give you to press the frame in to the bushing the rest of the way. Good luck.

**chip anderson** · 08-09-2011, 05:55 PM

And always remember that when things go wrong it will be the most expensive lens with the most expensive coatings.

Chip

**DreFagan** · 08-10-2011, 08:55 AM

Thanks Pez!!

Chip.....SO, SO TRUE!

**skt** · 08-10-2011, 09:45 AM

+2 chip!!!!!!!

**anastacia81** · 09-13-2011, 03:48 PM

I tried a flat razor, the useless Marchon fingernail clippers, tried pushing it through with a tack and I could not dismount that chassis. (I had no problem at all with Silhouettes, but these Airlocks are a different animal entirely.) Of course it was poly bifocals with Avance, so I just sent the job back to my lab who apparently have customed designed equipment to hold the lenses in place while using machinary to dislodge the bushing from the chassis.

We don't carry Silhouettes, but that particular tool you are referring to to clip the bushing, does it have a specific name? I am hoping I can order it with Dynamic Labs. But does it work any better than the flat razor? Even after I clipped it, the chassis stubbornly held on to that bushing and I was afraid if I pulled anymore, I was going to break the prong.

Any advice? I found it time-consuming, stressful and aggrivating...

**pezfaerie** · 09-13-2011, 04:49 PM

When you are trying to dismount after cutting the easiest way I have found is wiggle or rock the chasis back and forth slowly then it should come out. Sometimes if you are very carefull you can grab the front of the chasis with a plier and again wiggle the lens away from the chasis. You just need a good pair of clippers that make a flush cut. The nice thing about the silhouette tool is that they are small and designed specifically for the task of cutting bushings.

**KStraker** · 09-16-2011, 02:54 PM

Then something is wrong, b/c these are easy to take apart. You must not have clipped the head all the way off of the insert. I use a grobet 46.711 to cut and a grobet 46.712 to dimantle if necessary. They usually come apart by hand. I also use the angled nail clippers that come with the set. I use a razor knife to cut the new bushings. Use a push pin to flare the hole and it should be easy to put back together.

I'm doing one of these now. After you cut the head off of the insert, hold the frame from the back side grabbing on to the temple screw. Push forward and the mount should come apart.

**Mactire** · 09-16-2011, 05:33 PM

I've worked with Airlock frames for quite some time. Never had any problem mounting the frame. One just has to be carefull and use the right tools.

The nailclipper from Marchon isn''t even good for clipping nails, so skip that. I have a Sillhouette plyer that cuts very strait and close to the lens. Do not (EVER) use the plyers for anything other than bushings! (You are allowed to slap anyone who uses them on anything else, and may slap them twice if they cut metal with it!)
This is what I do:
Dismounting
- Use plyers to cut back of bushing
- Gently remove the lens from the frame, shouldn't take much efford.
- Get rid of the bushing on the frame, (you can use the plyer if you're carefull not to touch the metal)

Mounting
- Put a bushing in the hole
- Clip the bushing with the plyers as close to the lens as possible. I've read people putting tape on the lens, which is a good idea to prevent damage.
- I use a pryer to make the bushing a bit wider at the entry point, makes it easier to mount the frame.
- Gently press the frame in the bushing by hand.
- Now I use a different plyer than Marchon, just a soft beaked plyer with straight beaks. I make sure the direction of pressure is as close to 90 degrees as possible. And then apply a little pressure and slowly press the frame in the bushing.

That's what I do. I haven't broken any Airlocks up to this date. I've heard a lot of negatives on the way of mounting, but it's not so bad I think. Better than some compression mounts I've seen.