Anyone ever use the Szyferblatt Edger??

[Dave Metzger]

Hello people, just spent the morning replacing the brass -pistons and plastic air hoses in my 23 year old edger. I changed the wheel 2 years ago so it CR 39 only. By turning off the water supply it does a great job on poly too.

A computer never came near my edger, and I'll shoot it if it does.

The beauty of this edger is that replacement parts are available somewhere. All of the brass fittings were available from a pneumatic supply house and the hoses from Home Depot.

The edger works better today than it did when it was new in 1979. BTW, the total repair bill came to less than $60 for 4 pistons and the hoses. What would you pay to the big boys to fly out and fix your $30K monument?

[haliopt]

Hmmmmm..... to early for April fools. I give up, is this a joke?
I don't get it. I'll play along.
Here' a tip.

Instead for always finding the correct former for a non
computer edger use one that is close and just cut the lens 4/10s larger, than crank the screw down until the eyewire forms to the new shape! Tell the customer that the gap at the barrels are to compensate for shinkage in the winter.

Yes I just purchased a $30,000.00 edger. I could have used that money to buy new transister tubes for the T.V. or a new carburator for the wifes car.


HaHaHa Lance

[mowmow]

Dave,

I've got a friend who worked for years with 2 of those edgers. Whenever I spoke to him it sounded like he was at Newark Airport, but apparently they were great workhorse machines.
Eventually they were replaced with a pattern Weco edger. He actually told me that Morris Szyferblatt suggested some new machines since he wasn't sure how much longer he was going keep doing repairs.

I totally agree with your sentiments about repairs. I've got a 25
year old Coburn generator that rocks. An occasional part from Grainger and back to work. I've also got a 25K briot that I'm
afraid to sneeze near.

The difference between you and Lance is not so much your machines as it is your skills, and motivation. The edger companies are taking a simple machining process and sophiscating it to a level to justify the inflated machines prices, period. Not to be out done, Marco now has a wavefront lensometer that's about 10K.
What's next a $5000 screwdriver complete with microprocessors
to control temple screw torque.

Optical people who cut their teeth on newer technology can't
even comprehend using the older edgers. Bye the way, they're also the first to panic if the pupilometer bulb dies.


Dr. B

:cheers:

[haliopt]

Dear Dr. B.



Would you sell your patternless edger and go back to a non-pattern edger? I thought so.

I worked with a pattern, manual, floating head weco for 8yrs and than upgarged to a pattern birot and a pattern maker that I used for 7yrs. My skill level was just as good, I think, as the next guy with 15yrs in.
I almost cried the 1st day I got a used topcon 3500 and made a pr of glasses in 8mins. I keet checking the glasses for fit and Rx never to find an error for the past 10yrs I have been using a patternless.I have to force my self to mark P.D.'s and check because it gets to be redundant when they are dead nuts bang on day after day, month after month, year after year. Every 3 to 5 years I will have the edger all tuned up. Can't even remember how much that cost so it could not have been that much. I guess you have to spend money on your car every so offend, why not on machines that put food on your table.
It takes skill and motivation to drive a car that has non-power brakes ,non-power steering and a manual gear shifter, but why bother.


I don't think my comments are snobbish, just a diff of opinion


Lance

[snotbagel]

Actually, I don't think he's around anymore..but I worked with Dr. Jack Dein, who brought Mo over from Germany after WWII. Mo saw the potential in this industry and went out and built this machine. I can tell you that does work ok, as I used one for many years. It does NOT edge as well as my Essilor Profil S, which itself is long in the tooth and still uses patterns..

BTW, I haven't used patternless edgers, but all the work I see coming out of labs sucks in comparison, so I'm not inclined to go there..

I'm sure that smaller shops using top edgers will get better results, but I can tell you that I also don't have ANY slippage problems with AR coatings, because I can still edge down in steps and releive pressure by hand if I need too!

[Framebender]

but am not fond of the computers that run them. I do miss the old days when you could field strip them with very simple tools. Often you could diagnose the mechanical problem before you every removed the cover. Now the tech comes in and hooks up his computer.

I guess that's progress!

[Szyferblatt Mach.]

As some of you may already know, my dad, Morris Szyferblatt (Szyferblatt Optical Machinery) passed away last year, after many years of manufacturing and servicing in the optical field. I have over a dozen used diamond wheels, and wondering if anyone knows of a market for these. I've been told that there are companies who buy grinding wheels back for the diamond value, but have not been able to track down a contact. If anyone has any suggestions or information, it would be much appreciated. Thanks.

[MikeAurelius]

Try CDP (Construction Diamond) in Michigan.

[Szyferblatt Mach.]

Thanks for the lead. I will surely look them up.

[Dave Metzger]

Morris was one of my favorite people. Sorry to hear he passed. He was always helpful. I used his edger In Jersey City and brought it to New Hampshire in 1995. I finally retired the edger in 2004 when I could not edge a high index w AR without crazing the coating.

[Szyferblatt Mach.]

Hi Dave, I actually recognized your name from when my dad had his business. Do I recall correctly that he once met you at an airport to service your machine? My father sadly passed away last May (2011), just a month before his 89th birthday. I am still going through his basement/home shop, and am finding brand new motors, diamond wheels, microswitches, etc, all from his machine. He was "Szyferblatt Optical Machinery" till the very end!

[Dave Metzger]

I met Morris off Rt 17 at a gas station in Goshen, then went to Grossinger's to play golf and met him again at the gas station to pick up the repaired edger.