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Thread: Where is Glass?

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    Where is Glass?

    Hello Optiboarders,

    Where is Glass?

    Are you guys selling any glass? Here in India there is the occasional one, either single vision or bifocal only. No progressive, options of coating too minimal.
    Not that I am a great fan of coatings, I think mineral glass in best in its original form. Thin and super scratch resistant.
    Before we use to have our own machines to process glass from blanks. Now its obsolete thanks to the near dead demand
    Are there any progressive mineral glass surfacing machines? Does anyone know the technique?
    Are you"ll selling any glass?
    Last edited by beejay; 08-29-2013 at 12:57 AM.

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    Every day, all day. But then again, I think I'm the only glass-only lab left in the US. I know a couple of our fellow optiboards run glass but not exclusively.

    No, there is no available process for backside free-form glass. However, my personal opinion is that it is only because the programmers did not take the material into account when designing the generating program. I believe that it is possible, as the precision glass industry generates aspheric surfaces all the time.

    There is some demand for glass in the general market, but mainly with older folk, who have worn glass all their lives.

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    Quote Originally Posted by MikeAurelius View Post
    Every day, all day. But then again, I think I'm the only glass-only lab left in the US. I know a couple of our fellow optiboards run glass but not exclusively.

    No, there is no available process for backside free-form glass. However, my personal opinion is that it is only because the programmers did not take the material into account when designing the generating program. I believe that it is possible, as the precision glass industry generates aspheric surfaces all the time.

    There is some demand for glass in the general market, but mainly with older folk, who have worn glass all their lives.
    Im sure the material was ignored on pupose when designing the program. of course, I hope glass makes a come back someday and my guess is it would be more expensive than materials available today. There are ideas that can generate demand for glass. Supply would be a concern then.

    Not only the older work, I often receive requests from my retail that there are customers still asking for glass, even the young ones. SIMPLE and very logic reason they say- Its clearer and more scratch resistant than CR. I agree with them 100 %.

    Opticians back out on selling glass, reasons being
    1. Profit Margin lesser.
    2. Availability.
    3. Less variants to choose from.
    4. Chips and breaks during mounting onto rimless and half frames.
    5. Lack of options for presbyops.
    Wish I were able to offer glass exclusive. Of course there are dime a dozen guys who sell now, however none organised and

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    One more reason, at least here in the US: fear of being sued. Although there are few, if any, known cases of a dispensing optician being sued for lens-breakage injury, the plastics manufacturers back in the 1980's hyped that fear to the point where a lot of dispensing opticians refused to sell glass, despite the fact that it was a bald-faced lie.

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    Quote Originally Posted by MikeAurelius View Post
    One more reason, at least here in the US: fear of being sued. Although there are few, if any, known cases of a dispensing optician being sued for lens-breakage injury, the plastics manufacturers back in the 1980's hyped that fear to the point where a lot of dispensing opticians refused to sell glass, despite the fact that it was a bald-faced lie.
    I agree that is a valid reason, the same was extensively used here in India too. However, the facts need to be verified and it is too cumbersome, like how many accidents were reported on account of this of the total spectacle wearers in a region. Its easy to go by hearsay numbers and facts which are often not verified.

    That is however a strong disadvantage of glass.

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    Except it's not really a valid reason. No one ever bothered to do research...and there is a saying here in the US: if you repeat a lie often enough, it becomes the truth, regardless of the facts.

    As I see it, the only disadvantage to glass is the weight.

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    Quote Originally Posted by MikeAurelius View Post
    Except it's not really a valid reason. No one ever bothered to do research...and there is a saying here in the US: if you repeat a lie often enough, it becomes the truth, regardless of the facts.

    As I see it, the only disadvantage to glass is the weight.
    Exactly my point. Weight is a disadvantage. However I am sure consumers wont mind that given the better vision.

    Its a gamble, some wont and some would.

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    Master OptiBoarder NCspecs's Avatar
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    I like glass. I was impressed that Costa del Mar will do glass Rx lenses unlike Maui which will only do glass in their Plano lenses.

    I only have one patient who uses glass and he has waivered on keeping it; I've suggested he does because I don't think he will ever be happy with any polymer of any sort. I like glass, I wish it wasn't so heavy and expensive.
    "Strictly speaking, there are no enlightened beings; only enlightened activity." -Shunryu Suzuki

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    Quote Originally Posted by NCspecs View Post
    I like glass. I was impressed that Costa del Mar will do glass Rx lenses unlike Maui which will only do glass in their Plano lenses.

    I only have one patient who uses glass and he has waivered on keeping it; I've suggested he does because I don't think he will ever be happy with any polymer of any sort. I like glass, I wish it wasn't so heavy and expensive.
    Do you guys know that glass is still cheaper in India than CR. Yet no one uses it. Its dying a slow death.

  10. #10
    Master OptiBoarder NCspecs's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by beejay View Post
    Do you guys know that glass is still cheaper in India than CR. Yet no one uses it. Its dying a slow death.
    I have no doubt. I had a man come in last year to my dispensary with a set of frames and some stock lenses that he bought at some Indian street bazaar; he wanted me to edge and mount the lenses for him in the frame. I wasn't going to do the work but my then assistant had already promised him over the phone that I would. He was shocked when I told him he would have to pay for labor. Thought he was a pretty smart guy I guess...
    "Strictly speaking, there are no enlightened beings; only enlightened activity." -Shunryu Suzuki

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    Quote Originally Posted by NCspecs View Post
    I have no doubt. I had a man come in last year to my dispensary with a set of frames and some stock lenses that he bought at some Indian street bazaar; he wanted me to edge and mount the lenses for him in the frame. I wasn't going to do the work but my then assistant had already promised him over the phone that I would. He was shocked when I told him he would have to pay for labor. Thought he was a pretty smart guy I guess...
    Yeah, most people traveling to India buy for value and the Indians traveling out of India buy for better standards.

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    Quote Originally Posted by beejay View Post
    Yeah, most people traveling to India buy for value and the Indians traveling out of India buy for better standards.
    And to add, even polymer breaks. So if a consumer ever reads this thread.

    Polymer is impact resistant, not shatterproof. I'm a happy now.

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    Curious... I have never had glass... but using cr-39 lenses, I can read 20-10 and some of the 20-8 line. How much better can it be? Even the edges are great too..

  14. #14
    Master OptiBoarder OptiBoard Silver Supporter Barry Santini's Avatar
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    Just sold a clear glass Exec bifocal this am, as a matter of fact...
    '
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    Compulsive Truthteller OptiBoard Gold Supporter Uncle Fester's Avatar
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    I seem to deal with it in waves.

    Nothing for the past year or so but then 5 or 6 in the last month.

    Go figure.

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    We see a steady flow of glass through our lab. Not hundreds of pairs mind you, but enough to have a completely separate area of the lab dedicated just to glass.

    I had a beautiful pair of Zeiss 1.90 Lantal lenses at one point, with GET A/R. -6.50 looked like a -1.00, and the weight difference to me was negligible, optics were great. A shame they are no longer easily available in the US.
    There are rules. Knowing those are easy. There are exceptions to the rules. Knowing those are easy. Knowing when to use them is slightly less easy. There are exceptions to the exceptions. Knowing those is a little more tricky, and know when to use those is even more so. Our industry is FULL of all of the above.

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    Independent Problem Optiholic edKENdance's Avatar
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    Sold 3 this month. That's more than usual.

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    We normally run 15 to 20 glass jobs per day.
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    Underemployed Genius Jacqui's Avatar
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    I'm wearing a pair of glass lenses right now

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    So its obvious glass is dying a slow death. And im pretty sure it would at least try to make a comeback someday, however that would be too late.

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    Well, there are still some things that only glass can do: block X-Ray radiation and filter sodium flare.

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    FYI, Smith Optics offers Glass Rx in some of their frames. Availability is spotty but it is nice for people who scratch the heck out of their sun lenses.

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    Quote Originally Posted by MikeAurelius View Post
    ...
    No, there is no available process for backside free-form glass. However, my personal opinion is that it is only because the programmers did not take the material into account when designing the generating program. I believe that it is possible, as the precision glass industry generates aspheric surfaces all the time.
    ...
    .
    Mike, there's at least one company (that i know of) in Germany producing backside free-form glass lenses (Rupp + Hubrach, with a BBGR design). They are using OptoTech machines. But of course these are not sold in quantities as it's far not as easy as in plastic and for that reason quite expensive.

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    I just made the mistake of selling a glass polar progressive in too big of frame...lab telling me the blank is 71mm and of course this man is a -7.00 with a 59 pd. He will not wear plastic.

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    Ouch!

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