troubleshooting tips

Short(ening) Story

Karlen McLean, ABOC, NCLC

Shortening temple tips manually helps customize frame fit. Skull temples are the most common; library or spatula temples are primarily popular on sunglasses and aren't bent; cable temples curl around the ear; and comfort cables are flexible metal cables.

We asked these lab experts, “What's the best way to shorten temple tips by hand?”

PLASTIC TEMPLES

Determine how much you need to shorten the temple.

1. Place the frame on the patient and mark the temple at the point where the temple touches the top of the patient's ear. From this point, add 1½". Any temple remaining beyond this point needs to be removed.

2. Heat the temple tip and straighten the bend at the ear as best you can.

3. Use a sharp, single-edged razor to cut into the temple about 1¾" to 2" from the end. Be extremely careful! It will take a few minutes to cut through the plastic and reach the metal support wire.

4. Using a little heat, remove the cut piece of plastic from the temple, exposing the metal reinforcement wire.

5. Using a sharp wire cutter, cut the exposed metal ¼" from the exposed end and file around the edge of the wire until it is smooth.

6. Cut the same amount, ¼", from the plastic tip. Cut this from the point that you made the original cut, the part of the plastic temple tip that will go onto the temple first.

7. Push the original plastic tip back onto the exposed metal wire; a little heat might make it slide on more easily.

8. Once the plastic tip is pushed as far as it can go, both parts should be touching. Apply acetone around this area to join and smooth these two pieces together.

— Steve Lantz, general manager, Eyear Optical TX, McAllen, Texas

METAL TEMPLES

While the patient is wearing the frames, use a PD ruler to measure how long the temples need to be. Next, heat the plastic temple tip and straighten the end of the temple; this makes it easier to remove the tip and prevents older tips from cracking in removal.

After you've eased off the plastic tips, cut the metal temple to the desired length with pliers. Replace the plastic tips and re-bend the temple ends for fit.

— Tracy Goodwin, lab manager, Dietz Optical Laboratories, Inc., Fort Worth, Texas EB

Cable TEMPLE POINTER

Most cable temples are difficult to shorten manually, but Hilco has a good conversion kit that works well. To do a conversion on a metal temple, first determine how long the temples need to be, then cut them with sharp cutting pliers. Choose the new cable temple tip that will best fit the diameter of the temples, then press the tip onto the ends of the temples. If you desire, you can carefully place a small drop of super glue on the end of the temples before putting on the new tips. This helps secure the tips on the temples.

— Tracy Goodwin, lab manager, Dietz Optical Laboratories, Inc., Fort Worth, Texas