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Making My Own Glasses

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Re: Making My Own Glasses

#161

Post by boptom »

tremendo wrote: post #153
JoeAltmaier wrote: post #111

Earlier quoted context omitted.

...and can be measured at home using a ruler and a mirror, pretty simply. Close one eye, align the ruler at 0 under that pupil. Open the other eye, close the first, read off the distance to the 2nd pupil.

I have done this a few times, and got inconsistent results. Distance to mirror, or camera to face, positioning of the ruler, they all seem to induce variability. Once I got a reproducible result and went with that, ordered progressive glasses online and they were… off. On another occasion I got PD (and prescription) numbers from optometrist at Visionworks, then took numbers and ordered from Zenni, and they were… off…

Progressive lenses need much more accuracy to be fitted correctly. This means a mono-PD (separate PD for each eye, not just the distance PD halved) and also a height, usually from "datum" measured for each eye too. This measurement would be different depending on the frame and how it sits/adjusted to your face.

This means the frame must be chosen and fitted to you before any of these are measured.

It becomes a 2D measurement.

There is a lot more to it (vertex distance, pantoscopic tilt etc) but the above is the absolute minimum.

Re: Making My Own Glasses

#162

Post by dmix »

rconti wrote: post #150
com2kid wrote: post #129

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It is pretty easy to get non-Luxottica frames. Not too surprisingly, independent small batch production runs of frames end up costing a lot of money. There are also artisan frame makers who hand make the frames. If you are going to pay $300 for some frames, mine as well get an actual work of craftsmanship. At the end of the day, most Luxottica frames are actually far cheaper than the high end independent frames you c…

Yeah, I buy Bellinger Blac carbon-fiber frames. Hand-made in Denmark. Not cheap, but as a guy, it's about the only accessory I own.

My view is that if you're using it every day it's worth spending extra money on it for the best.

This is how I excuse spending $250 on a mech keyboard and using high-end smartphones/laptops.

Not buying super expensive new cars, or any cars, is probably the best place to not do this. Unless you commute daily.

Re: Making My Own Glasses

#163

Post by DesiLurker »

carbocation wrote: post #132
fitzroy wrote: post #109

Earlier quoted context omitted.

For anyone near a Warby Parker, they'll happily measure your PD in about 30 seconds. Measurements can vary slightly so you might want to do it a few times and average them.

You can also do it online with Warby Parker as long as you have a credit card (to hold under your face; not to pay with).

do they also need the picture of the backside and home zipcode?

if not, sounds like a startup idea.

Re: Making My Own Glasses

#164

Post by Johnny555 »

nsxwolf wrote: post #113
JoeAltmaier wrote: post #111

Earlier quoted context omitted.

...and can be measured at home using a ruler and a mirror, pretty simply. Close one eye, align the ruler at 0 under that pupil. Open the other eye, close the first, read off the distance to the 2nd pupil.

Did this for my wife recently. We measured multiple times very carefully, and got it very wrong.

I found that it's easier to do it yourself than have someone else do it -- my wife and I measured mine, hers was off from mine by 6mm (2mm on one side, 4mm on the other, I have no idea how she was nearly half a centimeter off, maybe my eye moved), I ended up going to an optician a few months later, and my measurement was exactly the same as what they measured with some device.

Re: Making My Own Glasses

#165

Post by Johnny555 »

wonderwonder wrote: post #22
emptybits wrote: post #5

Fascinating hacker story in an unexpected domain. Thank you! A side note about "getting your numbers"... The author remarks, "she’s not happy to share the measurements with me as she fears I’ll run off and get my glasses made online". This will obviously vary by jurisdiction but what the author describes may be illegal in some places. e.g. where I live, there is a law since 2010 requiring opticians and optometrists "…

This did strike me as strange. Imagine going to a doctor getting a blood test and being told your numbers are good or bad but the doctor refusing to give you the actual result. They are your results, you paid for them and are part of an overall need to understand your health.

I think a more apt analogy is that the doctor gave you your blood test results (just as they'll give you your prescription without the PD), but refused to characterize the color "A deep shade of crimson with a touch of scarlet", which is something that you can do yourself with a little knowledge.

So you're still getting the information that requires special training or licensing, and you can get the other information yourself if you really want it.

Re: Making My Own Glasses

#166

Post by war1025 »

bredren wrote: post #125
donjoe wrote: post #17

Everytime I read about glasses I have to think about the Luxottica-Monopoly which kind of controls most of the market and prices of glasses/lenses. https://www.latimes.com/business/lazarus/la-fi-lazarus-glass...

I remembered this as well. This bothers me, as I just had to get a new set and they are ridiculously expensive. I originally opened the article hoping that this was some kind of "I 3d printed my own frames" or something to that effect. I am hoping someone will figure out how to disrupt this industry.

Zenni Optical [1], EyeBuyDirect [2], VisionPros[3] among others let you buy online as long as you know the numbers.

[1] https://www.zennioptical.com/

[2] https://www.eyebuydirect.com/

[3] https://www.visionpros.com/

Re: Making My Own Glasses

#167

Post by m0zg »

And now consider that your _other_ doctors are also mostly just guessing, often poorly, at the expense of your health. This is why medical error is the third leading cause of death in the US: https://www.cnbc.com/2018/02/22/medical-errors-third-leading.... The stats are likely to be even worse in less developed countries or ones where doctor is not as prestigious a profession.

Re: Making My Own Glasses

#168

Post by ksaj »

emptybits wrote: post #5

Fascinating hacker story in an unexpected domain. Thank you! A side note about "getting your numbers"... The author remarks, "she’s not happy to share the measurements with me as she fears I’ll run off and get my glasses made online". This will obviously vary by jurisdiction but what the author describes may be illegal in some places. e.g. where I live, there is a law since 2010 requiring opticians and optometrists "…

I was going to pipe in and say the same thing. I'm a few provinces east of you.

I've heard the same thing about hearing aid prescriptions, CT (and similar) scans, and blood test results. In Canada they'll happily give you the results for your own records, but apparently some other countries don't provide it as a general right, leaving businesses to decide whether they want their competitors to be able to pick up work they initiated.

I think the difference is whether medical is private or public.

Re: Making My Own Glasses

#169

Post by twothamendment »

JoeAltmaier wrote: post #111
astura wrote: post #110

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's cause PD is measured by the optician separately when you're ordering your glasses, not by the optometrist or opthalmologist who writes the prescription. In other words, it's not part of the prescription, it's instead part of the glasses fitting process. A non-eye related example would be if your doctor prescribed you a brace and the person at the medical supply store measured you to find out which size you nee…

...and can be measured at home using a ruler and a mirror, pretty simply. Close one eye, align the ruler at 0 under that pupil. Open the other eye, close the first, read off the distance to the 2nd pupil.

Another way is to look through binoculars, get them adjusted just right and then measure them. Don't try to measure center to center. Assuming the eye cups are the same measure from one side to the other (left edge of one to left edge of the other).

Re: Making My Own Glasses

#170

Post by DoctorOetker »

>I needed an “optician kit” consisting of:

>Trial lenses: A large number of lenses with varying corrections

>Trial frame: A pair of glasses without lenses into which you can insert the trial lenses

>Turns out, you can order these kits online from very trustworthy Chinese resellers for around 190€.

Seems like it would be nice to have these available for rent. I would rent that for 20 euros a week, and after 10 rent-outs it has payed itself back

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