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Thread: The Petty Things We Judge Optical Companies For

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    Master OptiBoarder AngeHamm's Avatar
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    The Petty Things We Judge Optical Companies For

    It occurred to me yesterday as I was scrubbing a Marchon frame temple with Goo-Gone after soaking it in water to soften the paper residue just how much I HATE some of my frame companies' price stickers. I know if it's a Safilo frame, the price tag is coming right off, no fuss no muss, but God forbid a Luxottica frame has been on my board for a few months, because I'm gonna need an industrial solvent to get the adhesive off.

    Let's get petty. What are some of the silly, impractical annoyances that we judge our vendors for? The less it has to do with the actual quality of their product the better.
    I'm Andrew Hamm and I approve this message.

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    Rising Star
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    Reconciling statements this morning I had to get a magnifier on top of wearing my glasses because the LUX invoices are those tiny pages with print that no one can read!

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    Very petty but new change is the amount of emails I've been getting from Clearvision. Annoying.

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    OptiWizard
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    Quote Originally Posted by AngeHamm View Post
    It occurred to me yesterday as I was scrubbing a Marchon frame temple with Goo-Gone after soaking it in water to soften the paper residue just how much I HATE some of my frame companies' price stickers. I know if it's a Safilo frame, the price tag is coming right off, no fuss no muss, but God forbid a Luxottica frame has been on my board for a few months, because I'm gonna need an industrial solvent to get the adhesive off.

    Let's get petty. What are some of the silly, impractical annoyances that we judge our vendors for? The less it has to do with the actual quality of their product the better.
    We have switched to having someone with good hand writing to writing the price on the demo.

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    Master OptiBoarder AngeHamm's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Sledzinator View Post
    We have switched to having someone with good hand writing to writing the price on the demo.
    I used to be That Guy for a doctor who didn't like having price tags on frames. She made me write the price on one lens and the UPC code on the other. Holy hand cramps, Batman!
    I'm Andrew Hamm and I approve this message.

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    When the damned frame manufacturers put different head screws in the hinge, eyewire, nose pads.... flat heads on one phillips heads on the other. Maddening!

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    Quote Originally Posted by AngeHamm View Post
    I used to be That Guy for a doctor who didn't like having price tags on frames. She made me write the price on one lens and the UPC code on the other. Holy hand cramps, Batman!
    Handwriting a UPC code. Man, that is just evil.

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    Master OptiBoarder DanLiv's Avatar
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    Eyewires painted shut.
    Stainless steel screws that are frozen in the barrel.
    Crooked logos on demo lenses.
    My safilo invoices are sometimes on yellow paper, sometimes on white. Why does that make me mad?

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    Master OptiBoarder AngeHamm's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by DanLiv View Post
    My safilo invoices are sometimes on yellow paper, sometimes on white. Why does that make me mad?
    That's exactly the kind of petty nonsense I'm looking for. Let the hate flow through you!
    I'm Andrew Hamm and I approve this message.

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    Master OptiBoarder AngeHamm's Avatar
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    I get unnaturally excited when a small Safilo box comes in because it's a good box for shipping things out. Adhesive comes off clean, cardboard is strong for re-use.
    I'm Andrew Hamm and I approve this message.

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    Quote Originally Posted by AngeHamm View Post
    I get unnaturally excited when a small Safilo box comes in because it's a good box for shipping things out. Adhesive comes off clean, cardboard is strong for re-use.
    Yes! That's crazy and I am they same way. I like MJ boxes for the same reasons.

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    Compulsive Truthteller OptiBoard Gold Supporter Uncle Fester's Avatar
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    Itsy bitsy teenie weenie nose pads!

    On heavy frames!!!

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    Master OptiBoarder AngeHamm's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Uncle Fester View Post
    Itsy bitsy teenie weenie nose pads!

    On heavy frames!!!
    Madness.
    I'm Andrew Hamm and I approve this message.

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    Master OptiBoarder OptiBoard Silver Supporter ak47's Avatar
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    Can't believe no one yet mentioned the infamous "Luxottica dust" that all of their frames arrive inundated with! Or how 9 out of 10 frames arrive from MOST manufacturers terribly out of standard alignment??????????

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    Quote Originally Posted by AngeHamm View Post
    I get unnaturally excited when a small Safilo box comes in because it's a good box for shipping things out. Adhesive comes off clean, cardboard is strong for re-use.
    Decent cardboard for shipping seems to be getting more and more rare. It seems like most "shipping" grade cardboard has been downgraded to what used to be considered "packaging" grade cardboard, which was never meant for shipping purposes, and "packaging" grade cardboard is nothing more than nice looking single ply paper. I actually went on a tear once after getting yet another damaged box delivered about the differences between grades of cardboard and their intended purposes. I think at that point people felt I had truly lost it for good.

    (The only reason I know anything about cardboard is that I had a good friend who was a packaging engineer and like most people he enjoyed talking shop every so often. Surprisingly, the information imparted has come in handy more than once, but it has also made me a cardboard snob.)

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    Master OptiBoarder AngeHamm's Avatar
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    I love a good cardboard box. Even more, I love when a box comes in that's a good size for me to put other collapsed boxes in to take home to recycle.
    I'm Andrew Hamm and I approve this message.

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    If anything pisses me off beyond belief it's the amount of plastic coverings are on the frames we receive from Lux/Safilo/Kering. I understand they want to protect the arms during shipping but unpacking a Gucci pair of sunglasses is like undressing a small rat. And I'm talking winter clothes.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Beeped View Post
    If anything pisses me off beyond belief it's the amount of plastic coverings are on the frames we receive from Lux/Safilo/Kering. I understand they want to protect the arms during shipping but unpacking a Gucci pair of sunglasses is like undressing a small rat. And I'm talking winter clothes.
    ... Do you often undress rats? Which raises ever more questions. Why are the rats wearing clothing? Are they your rats or just random rats? etc...

  19. #19
    Ghost in the OptiMachine Quince's Avatar
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    Nasty demos... can't stand it when I have to pop demos out because they are warped or marred. It's right up there with the frame being wonky on arrival but I have to eat the cost to make a new demo instead of just being able to fix it. Heaven forbid it is the demo with the logo on it!! Now people will never recognise the brand.

    I also hate the excessive amount of packing material. If you want it to arrive undamaged, make it out of higher quality material. If rattling around in a box scuffs the temples, well that's the least of your worries.

    I also HATE when 'nice' frames don't come with a decent case... you know who I'm talking about. *clears throat in a very non-infected way* Oakley needs to employ someone to punch anyone in the face who decides they want to try a new nosepad style. Remember the flex saddlebridge that would fall off if you looked at it? Yeah, punch the guy who thought that up.
    Have I told you today how much I hate poly?

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    Quote Originally Posted by Lelarep View Post
    ... Do you often undress rats? Which raises ever more questions. Why are the rats wearing clothing? Are they your rats or just random rats? etc...

    Uhh..pass?

    Besides the frames being bent out of shape, a close relation is when the hinges are either completely tightened up or they spring hinges won't spring back. How hard is it to tight/untighten a screw.

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    Demo lenses that are cut too big so you have to heat up the frame to get them out, it seems like Article one is the biggest culprit of this.

    Glass lens demos that feel almost impossible to get out, the original wayfarer, some Maui Jim's with ST glass too.

    Lux seems to have more painted in screws than other manufacturers, at least their digital warranty process is easy to use.

  22. #22
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    Quote Originally Posted by Quince View Post
    ...I also HATE when 'nice' frames don't come with a decent case...
    This is a huge one with me. People that are getting a 'nice' frame want a 'nice' case to go with it. What is so hard to understand about that?

  23. #23
    OptiBoardaholic OptiBoard Bronze Supporter
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    The new 1/4 sheet of paper lux invoices are ridiculous. And the DUST! Whats up with all the fuzzy dust covering their frames? I hope whoever is working that factory/warehouse wears a dust mask.

    SD Eyes puts some bad adhesive stickers on their frames but they get a pass because they have great customer service and someone in the shipping dept likes to throw in little candies and treats in their packages.

    One thing I absolutely hate is when frame companies like i-deal optics have terrible shipping policies like any orders over 3 frames or $50, must ship using UPS and the postage starts at $50. Why any company would prefer to lose business just to adhere to an arbitrarily costly shipping policy makes absolutely no sense to me...priority mail often arrives just as quick to Hawaii as UPS ground for a fraction of the cost.

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    Master OptiBoarder AngeHamm's Avatar
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    I think the Lux dust is actually coming from the inside of the cases.

    Proprietary nose pad designs drive me up the wall. I don't want to have to stock or special order nose pads beyond standard snap or screw. Even having to stock B&L style pads for Ray-Bans burns me up.
    I'm Andrew Hamm and I approve this message.

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    OptiBoardaholic OptiBoard Bronze Supporter
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    I'd like to present one of the worst spring hinge temple designs ever by ray ban. There are so many things wrong with this. First it screws in from the bottom, making the screws fall out if they become loose. Second, they use a weird screw diameter like a 1.2. Third, they decided to cover the exiting side with a piece of plastic so you cannot trim the excess or use a snap-it screw. Whoever designed this has clearly never worked in an optical.

    Click image for larger version. 

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