Yet Another Cycling Forum
General Category => The Knowledge => Health & Fitness => Topic started by: Jurek on 04 May, 2021, 04:09:35 pm
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Does anyone here wear Silhouette framed specs?
I ask because I've had 2 pairs of these since 2016.
I should point out that these aren't at the Poundland end of the spectacle frame spectrum1.
They are the glasses worn by dictators and tyrants.
They were the frames deployed on Colonel Gaddafi's reading specs of choice.
For your information, my frames are fashioned from some sort of alloy of titanium, which means that the side pieces don't require a mechanical hinge, relying instead on the ductility of the material for them to be flexed into a shape which allows them to be put in their case.
Now, this appealed to me. No moving parts. What could possibly go wrong?
However, the engineering bell which lives in my head was going ring-a-ding-ding!
Which roughly translates into 'Jurek, you know all about the paperclip test, don't you?
You can flex a paperclip twenty times on one occasion and it won't break.
At other times it'll break when you've flexed it twice.
No matter. I dug deeply into my pockets and invested in two pairs of the specs.
Up until last year, between the two pairs I had no fewer than 7 breakages of the metal frame. Each time they were replaced under warranty, until this time last year, when my optician advised me that that model of frame is no longer manufactured. (I couldn't help but wonder why that might be.)
So, when making the choice for a replacement pair I opted for ones with similar titanium alloy metalwork, but this time each side piece had a mechanical hinge wrought from Austria's finest plastic.
And for a while, all was well.
Until just recently. When I noticed that there is some movement/creak between the side piece metalwork and the plastic fantastic hinge.
Back to the optician they've gone. He has advised me that it'll only take 20 minutes to replace the side piece. However, he also advised that it could take anything from 6 days to 6 weeks to obtain the part.
I confided in him of my certainty that Brexit would swiftly chivvy-along any such process.
TL;DR
Are Silhouette specs overpriced shit, or am I Mr. Unlucky?
1 Bonus points for using 'spect' twice in the space of 3 words?
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My specs (well, the lenses) are bloody expensive. I have 3 pairs: pricy Zeiss varifocals, semi-pricy computing single vision (mid-range) and cheap single distance vision for cycling/paddling/sport.
I always buy specs with a 'fold back' hinge. Too many times I've had something clout the side of my head and deform or break the hinge.
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My lenses come through the till @ ~ £250.00 (Which I know isn't a huge amount when compared to some people's lens requirements.) The disappointment here is that of the hardware failing regularly and systematically on what is a premium priced product.
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I've had Silhouette frames & they've been fine. No problems. But that was quite a long time ago.
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I had a look and I'm still not sure what ou mean as Silhouette appears ot be a brand.
I wear superlites and have done for a while.
I've not yet broken a leg on them, or disconnected a leg from the frame, or had a bridge problem.
I am however overdue both an eye test and a lense cleaning.
Only one of them am I willing to sort out just now.
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I've had a pair of conventional design titanium framed glasses from Vision Express for around 10 years (updated with new lenses), and after examining them closely, there isn't a separate hinge screwed on, it's made as part of the metal arm.
So it's a bit naff for an expensive brand to skimp by using plastic.
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So Austria's finest injection moulded plastic has now showed signs of failing on two occasions.
I have just taken delivery of a pair of warranty replacement specs with an all metal, 2-part hinge.
Watch this space......