So you bent your frame where it does not fit tight to your temple and you can’t get to an eyeglass repair place for several days? ….and you don’t have any more of those miniature rubber bands they put in the eye repair kits they sell at drugstores? ….you’re almost out of gas for a quick run to the store? Here’s something the author just did one night the other day in a pinch until he could get to a repair place like Wall Mart optical shop. Save money and read this article. Learn a cheap, easy and fast way to repair your temple frames in a short time. This article will tell you how to get the things you’ll need and how put them together for a successful project. You’ll be delighted the first time you slip on your temporarily repaired frames and they spring right to your temples where they are supposed to be! You may have to get rid of your personal vanity for a few days (because they now look hokey), but that should be ok if you are saving money by not rushing to the store for a new eyeglass repair kit but you use this emergency technique instead!
Instructions
Things You’ll Need:
A bent eyeglass temple frame
A thick, wide rubber band, about ¼” to 3/8″ wide
An awl punch or small hand hole punch
A Black Sharpie Pen
Piece of scrap wood
Instructions
YOU’LL NEED. Find a large, thick, wide rubber band, any color. It can be broken. The grocery store sometimes provides the thick rubber bands to hold broccelli bunches together- you may have one in your junk drawer in the kitchen! Find an Awl punch or a small hand punch that can punch a hole within the width of your wide rubber band. Find a permanent black Sharpie pen from another project. Locate some small needle nose pliers. Find a clear area on a table or workbench with good lighting to work. If you need one, locate a small magnifying glass to watch where you awl punch. Find a piece of scrap wood to punch on.
LOCATE A CLEAR WORKBENCH OR TABLE TO WORK ON. See, you should have made on like in the author’s eHow article on HTM Movable Workbench/Table. Once you find an area to work make sure you have good lighting to see the rubber band and the eyeglass frames. Lay all your things out with plenty of room to work. Put a piece of scrap wood down on the flat surface to punch with your awl unless you use a small hole punch (the typical small hole punch may be too wide for the rubber band you found, check size before starting, if it is, use Awl punch instead).
MAKE A SMALL BLACK SPOT IN THE CENTER OF A SECTION OF THE RUBBER BAND. You will cut to get the size you need later
USE AWL OR SMALL HOLE PUNCH TO PUNCH SMALL HOLE IN RUBBER BAND AT THE SPOT YOU MARKED. Make sure you punched all the way through the rubber band. Check by using your fingers and the needle nose pliers to stretch the band so you can see the newly punched hole. You can use the needle nose pliers to stretch the rubber band before you punch it with the awl or hole punch if hole punch is not too wide).
AFTER PUNCHING HOLE, USE SHARPIE MARKER PEN TO COLOR ALL AROUND THE RUBBER BAND ALL EDGES. Just mark all sides so the rubber band area is now black where the hole is.
CUT AND TRIM RUBBER BAND AROUND WHERE YOU MARKED AND THEN PUNCHED A HOLE AND COLORED BAND BLACK. You will want to have a piece of the rubber band with the new hole about ¼” wide or so. See Sketch of two pieces of rubber band- one before trimming and the other after trimming with scissors. Your trimming does not have to result in a perfect circle. It can be a hexagon or octagon in shape ….or a circle if you are that good at trimming!
LET YOUR BLACK SECTION WITH THE HOLE DRY BEFORE TRYING TO HANDLE. It only takes a few moments and you will avoid getting black marker ink on your hands and clothes.
WHEN COMPLETELY DRY, STRETCH RUBBER BAND SECTION WITH HOLE ONTO TEMPLE EARPIECE OF FRAME AND WORK UP TO HINGE AREA. Slide band onto open hinge using needle nose pliers. Make sure it is seated well. Do this for both sides of frames if needed. Pick up glasses and slip them on your nose and ears. Wow! Feel the slight pressure as the temple pieces move into place where they should be. This should solve your problem. First chance you get, you can go to the eyeglass place and have them repair your frames ….unless you are frugal …or cheap… like the author and will continue to wear his temporarily repaired frames as long as he can! Good luck!
Tips & Warnings
While you are marking, punching, coloring and trimming the rubberband, you may want to do sever pieces for other frame repair jobs that may come up on your eyeglasses or someone in your family ….your friends may not like the vanity slippage on your part so don’t worry about their glasses unless they see yours and place a special order!.
Make sure you use scrap wood to punch Awl through rubber band!.
Be very careful, awl is dangerously sharp pointed!.