What's on Your Bench
10 Important Tools for Working With Plastic Frames.
By Alex Yoho, ABOM

Sadler's Hinge Doctor Kit can be useful for the taming of a screw

Plastic frames are back in vogue and with them, all the potential repairs, profits, and good will. To some in our industry, plastic frames are a bit foreign, and there are many questions on how to work with them. Perhaps the most common question is "what equipment do I need to work with plastic frames?" Here are some things you might want have in your tool box.

1 Pan Warmers. Not all plastic frames need to be heated to glaze or to make adjustments, but when you need the heat you've got to have it quickly, efficiently, and in just the right spot. There are several methods of heating a frame, each with its own advantages.

First is the venerable salt pan (which can use salt or glass beads). These are simple, dependable units consisting of a heating element--similar to that in a crock pot--under a rectangular pan.

In theory, you could build a salt pan in your kitchen. Fortunately, many suppliers offer ready made and professional-looking, frame warmers like Western Optical Supply's HotBox (#2500). These units have thermo- static control for heat, which most offices will choose to keep safely at 300 to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Labs mounting all day long will generally want to run their bead pans as high as 400 degrees, but this is not for the faint of heart--it has the potential to turn most frames to soup in seconds.

2 Hot air warmers. Hot air warmers are easily a second favorite for heating plastic frames. Advantages include not pulling a salt-encrusted frame out of the pan or abrading delicate finishes.

Some less-expensive units are like glorified hair dryers with hot spots within the air stream that can blister the plastic. But, modern units such as Breitfeld & Schliekert's Optiforma Profi (#287201-110) have uniform, controllable heat and can be used freestanding or built into a dispensing table.

My favorite feature with air warmers is that most allow you to focus the hot air. This is especially good for making bridge modifications or pinpoint adjustments to avoid loosening hinges. The bottom line is you can get by with either a bead pan or an air warmer, but if you want to get serious, you should consider having both on hand.

Hilco's Hot Fingers II solves many plastic problems

3 Repair tools. One of my all-time favorite repair gizmos is the Hilco Hot Fingers II hidden hinge machine (#12/055/3000). One could make the point that a soldering iron and a pair of pliers could do most of the repairs that this machine would do, but a beginner with an hour's practice could run circles around an old pro using an iron. If you intend to do repairs, the time saved alone is worth the price.

The versatility of this device is amazing. You can replace broken hinges and tighten loose ones; you can add adjustable pads to nearly any plastic frame; and a frozen screw can be freed. The tweezer-like holder that passes electricity through the piece being held gives good control for positioning and, unlike the constant heat of the soldering iron, the foot switch allows control of the heat applied.

4 Cold bend pliers. Pliers may seem as though they should be foreign to working with plastic frames, but there are a number that are well suited to plastics. Pliers that come to mind are cold bend pliers, such as Grobet's (#46.045), which are available from nearly all tool manufacturers. These are the ones that have a big circle of nylon on one side and a flat jaw on the opposite side.

Though cold bend pliers were designed to bend temples without heating them, they have many more uses. For example, they can be used to create a nasal fill or cut by reshaping the nasal area of a plastic frame before its shape is traced. After tracing, the processed lenses will have the new shape, so the adjustment will be permanent.

	Western Optical's HotBox offers adjustable temperature control to fit your comfort level

Breitfeld & Schliekert have taken cold bend pliers a step further with the eLite Temple Adjusting Pliers (#154150). This model has a series of steps on the circular jaw, which allows for either a slight rounded bend or a medium to high radius corner bend. The new Western Optical plier (#2004) is similar. The smaller circles are perfect for bending smaller frames.

5 Double nylon jaw pliers. Breitfeld & Schliekert's eLite Temple Adjusting Pliers (#153050), as well as Grobet's (#46.5710) and Sadler's (#05-3460), are handy. These pliers have jaws that are slightly convex and concave and not as curved as the eyewire curving pliers used on metal frames.

This lends itself well to unrolling or reforming eyewires, and bending stiff temples. These pliers are also great for fitting a temple to an irregular mastoid area behind the ear.

6 Bridge stretching pliers. Although I always advocate using one's hands to narrow plastic bridges, since most attempts at bridge reducing pliers haven't been very successful, bridge stretching pliers such as Grobet's large bridge stretching pliers for zyl frames (#46.758M) come in handy when you have a stubborn bridge that you really need to widen.

My only caution with this type of plier is to not heat the frame where the pliers will come in contact with either the bridge or the eyewire above and below the bridge. This could cause dents in the frame and even a separation of the eyewire from the lens. Use that hot air warmer in this situation. I also advise leaving the lenses in the frame, but be careful not to heat the lenses themselves, since some will warp.

7 Groove deepeners. The next tool to look at is some sort of eyewire groove deepening device. These devices can take several forms. First, there are those used to scrape the groove out by hand. This can be done with the Breitfeld & Schliekert Adjustable Groove Scraper (#207310) or with a "V" shaped burr held in a pin vise. Or, use a motorized handpiece and bit, such as Breitfeld & Schliekert's Groove Miller (#224037) or some other "V" edged cutter.

Grobet's bridge stretching pliers can widen a stubborn bridge

Do keep in mind: If using a motor powered device, they can do a lot of damage quickly. But these tools can make quite a difference in lens retention on wrapped frames.

8 Spring hinge aids. Various types of this tool can be just as handy for plastic frames, so you might like to try one of these: Breitfeld & Schliekert's eLite spring hinge pliers (151450); Grobet's screw holding pliers (#46.5250, works best for taper tipped screws); Hilco's spring hinge alignment tool (#20/299/0000); Sadler's Hinge Doctor kit (#16-5500); and Western Optical's Premium Spring Hinge Plier Kit (#2018). Each is a little different, so you may want to try them at a trade show to see which is right for you.

9 Axis aligning pliers. These are pretty essential when glazing plastic frames, since you generally have little time to get the lenses in before the frame begins to cool. Everyone seems to have their favorite, and every tool manufacturer makes one or two different models. The one I have used for the past 30 years or so is a Grobet lens axis pliers (#46.767) of cast aluminum with rubber jaws. It's not that I won't try another one, I just can't wear this one out.

With these types of pliers, you should change the pads fairly often, and you might want to use some protective film stickers on expensive lenses, especially those with AR treatments. Axis aligning pliers can also be used to encourage that lens that's just a hair too big to pop in. The rubber pads won't mar the frame or lenses.

Dig deeper with Breitfeld & Schliekert's adjustable groove scraper

10 Files & buffers. You will definitely need special files for plastic frames. These files are more appropriately called rasps since they are much rougher than metal files. The Grobet double-ended 8" file for zyl (#31.383) has coarse and fine ends. If you are inexperienced at filing temple butts, I highly recommend using a file guard, such as Grobet's (#33.983), to protect the frame from accidental damage.

To add that extra something to your work, you may want to consider a buffer. This basically consists of a motor to which a layered muslin buffing wheel is attached and used with buffing compound to bring the frame to a brilliant luster. It really makes a difference to the patient when you have buffed that stain from the temples, since the frames look new again.

Of course, as with any motorized device, care must be taken to avoid personal injury or damage to the frame and lenses. Though the buffer is not an essential tool, it's nice to hear the patient exclaim, "Wow, these never looked so good!"

Questions or comments may be addressed to the author at ayoho@cox.net