Getting to be short sighted: Vision Magnification advice please

[NigeParticipant @nige81730]

Although I have varifocal glasses for normal wear I am having trouble reading and seeing small stuff like the scales on micrometers and verniers etc. Does anybody have any recommendations from personal experience of useable vision aids that are worn over glasses please.

Many thanks, Nige

[NigeParticipant @nige81730]

[IanTParticipant @iant]

Yes Nige – last year I purchased an OptiVisor – they cost a bit more than the cheaper Far Est imports but in my view are well worth the money. I routinely wear mine in the workshop these days and flip them up and down as required.

Whilst I only 'treated' myself last year, I should have acquired them a long time ago (I have some problems with my eyes) – and it's one of the best things I've ever purchased.

Regards,

IanT

[John HaineParticipant @johnhaine32865]

I believe that Varifocals have a focus range that is not necessarily right for some types of work. I once had a pair of "office" specs that were designed for a closer range – keyboard to big screen basically, no good at longer range. Also very often in the workshop I could do with upside down varifocals as I'm trying to see something very close that ends up at the top of my lens, so I can't focus without cricking my neck. So you may find that a dedicated pair of specs for closer range, probably not varifocals, may also help.

[egaParticipant @ega]

IanT

May I ask how you went about deciding what magnification to go for?

[Rik ShawParticipant @rikshaw]

I'll agree with Ian. I bought my OptiVisor only a little while ago – they are brilliant. A little expensive maybe but its like having new eyes again. Thoroughly recommended.

Rik

[Clive HartlandParticipant @clivehartland94829]

Be aware that each eye specifically will have a different Dioptre reading so best to go to the Optician determine what they are and describe what you want and let them create a pair of glasses for you.

For close up 2.5 Dioptre will be OK but bring in astigmatism and the fact that as you get older you may be starting Cateracts which affect your vision too. Avoid the ready made plastic rubbish from Poundland and the like, full of distortion and faults. Also easily scratched.

Clive

[Frances IoMParticipant @francesiom58905]

Clive: this subject has come up before – my brother is an optician – his comment was that he could not make the lenses used in the optivisor for anything like the price – they are not spectacle lenses – also the optivisor will fit over normal glasses so if you need astigmatic correction (as I do to a small extent) ones normal glasses would appear to provide it

[the artfull-codgerParticipant @theartfull-codger]

I must 2nd Ian &Rik, I was given a chinese cheapo set with 3 sets of plastic lenses & they were absolute rubbish, I bought an optivisor set & they're fantastic [the " yanks" still make good tools!!.]

[NigeParticipant @nige81730]

Thank you all for your input and ideas. Looks like the Optivisor is the business. I have quite a large astigmatic correction in my lenses so something that I can wear over the top of them is ideal, my glasses will take care of the astigmatism while the Optivisor should give me the xtra bit of magnification I need. Again, thank you everybody

Nige

[the artfull-codgerParticipant @theartfull-codger]

Nige, mine is 2.5 magnification, about 8" focal point you can get more powerfull lenses but the focal point is much closer & not so convenient, btw there was a company in the uk advertising them in me or mew a while back.

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

+ another vote in favour of the Optivisor.

Unless you can afford the telescopic loupes used by surgeons; it's as good as such things get.

MichaelG.

[speelwerkParticipant @speelwerk]

In warm/hot weather the headband of Optivisor becomes very uncomfortable for me, it makes me sweat a lot. Niko.

[duncan webster 1Participant @duncanwebster1]

I've got a Lactona on the recommendation of a dentist. It is excellent. However have you tried going to the local chemist and trying a pair of cheap reading glasses on top of your varifocals?

[Neil WyattModerator @neilwyatt]

I have a Litecraft one, and it works fine over my glasses, but…

Suggestion though, get your optician to give you a prescription for reading/close work – you can get an extra pair of specs made up for £20 at Tesco if you go for plain, uncoated lenses.

I have three pairs, normal and 'intermediate' – ideal for computer and workshop – posh frames with light lenses and full coatings, and a cheap as chips reading pair ideal for detail work.

Finally, i also have a bench light/magnifier which will be in the next Ed's Bench.

Neil

[steamdaveParticipant @steamdave]

Posted by duncan webster on 04/06/2017 20:24:58:

I've got a Lactona on the recommendation of a dentist. It is excellent. However have you tried going to the local chemist and trying a pair of cheap reading glasses on top of your varifocals?

Not over but Instead of.

I had cataracts removed about 18 months ago and the specialist suggested that cheapo reading glasses from Penneys at EU2.50 were just as good as very expensive ones from an optician. Problem with them is that they break easily, so now I go for the expensive ones (EU20) from the likes of Boots with a 2 year anti-breakage guarantee. I don't have any other optical problems since my operations.

For close up work in the workshop, I have a set of Bausch & Lomb headband magnifiers. Same idea as Optivisor.

Dave
The Emerald Isle

[NigeParticipant @nige81730]

Thanks again folks, more food for thought. I will have a word with my optician with regard to getting my prescription and getting Tesco to fulfil them

Nige

[Dinosaur EngineerParticipant @dinosaurengineer]

Short sighted people can see better at close distances than at long distances. Cataract replacement lenses are basically for long distances and don't enhance short distance vision. I've just had a cataract operation on one eye but am now awaiting the op for the other eye. In the meantime am using a 2.5 Dioptre hand lens .I do miss my shorted vision of yesterday year when I could see very clearly at close quarters. Marking out is now a pain ! Hopefully this will resolved after my 2nd cataract op and then can use reading glasses.

[steamdaveParticipant @steamdave]

Posted by Dinosaur Engineer on 04/06/2017 21:00:16:

Short sighted people can see better at close distances than at long distances. Cataract replacement lenses are basically for long distances and don't enhance short distance vision. I've just had a cataract operation on one eye but am now awaiting the op for the other eye. In the meantime am using a 2.5 Dioptre hand lens .I do miss my shorted vision of yesterday year when I could see very clearly at close quarters. Marking out is now a pain ! Hopefully this will resolved after my 2nd cataract op and then can use reading glasses.

All I know is that I never had to wear any form of glasses before I had my cataracts operated on. After the first op., I was told I would probably require reading glasses and was asked what strength I wanted for the second eye: whether to keep it the same as the first or to have a shorter focal length so that I would not need reading glasses. In order to preserve my binocular vision, I opted to have both eyes the same strength – good for distance vision and suffer the inconvenience of having to wear glasses for reading. Apparently a few folk do have different strength lenses implanted – one for long distance vision and one for close up work (reading); the brain learns to compensate for lack of binocular vision, or so it is said. Maybe.

Dave
The Emerald Isle

[JohnFParticipant @johnf59703]

Nice Pay the money and buy Optovisor, I wear Vari vocals and do a lot of closeup work, used Optivisor for many years and they are the best I have found.

John

[Mike PooleParticipant @mikepoole82104]

I now actually miss being short sighted, it is most useful for close work but crap for watching tv, used to get storming headaches at 12 years old. Now as age destroys my short vision I wish for my short sightedness. Varifocals are useful in some ways but some of the distortions are quite disconcerting. Spent hundreds on some for driving but while great for forward vision, looking to the right is a bit wild unless an exaggerated head movement is performed.

Mike

[Geoff TheasbyParticipant @geofftheasby]

In contrast to the above, I find the cheap ones quite acceptable (also see my item in Practical Wireless, July, out this week) My cataract operation in January made close-up vision very difficult, esp. for assembling electronic projects, so I went out mid-afternoon and bought a head-mounted magnifier from Boyes, marketed by Toolzone. Four sets of lenses, twin LED for illumination, £7. It's wonderful, and if you don't get on with the idea, you haven't spent a lot. I wouldn't be without mine.

Geoff

[IanTParticipant @iant]

Hallo EGA – seems to have been lots of other posts about this…

Well I was a bit confused about which one to choose too – but I sat down at my workbench and tried to find a distance that was comfortable/about right when I was holding something to examine. It turned out that this was about 8" – so that settled the choice of lens for me – a DA5 with x 2.5 magnification. This seems to work well and be a useful magnification for most of the work I do.

I also purchased an Opti-Loupe which screws on (in my case) over my 'better' eye and provides a further x 2.5 magnification. It can also be swung in and out, the focal distance (with loupe down) is about an inch or two.

I tend to put the visor on when I go into the workshop but with it swung up out the way most of the time. It gets flipped down when reading Mics or Vernier scales, or when needing to check anything close up. I use the 'loupe' mainly to check cutting tool edges, examine/compare very small parts and (I'm afraid) to get the odd splinter out.

I did initially find that I had to take them off after while but really don't notice them being there so much now. In fact my wife has had to remind me to remove them before having lunch. I still occasionally forget to put them on and then find myself trying to flip a non-existent visor down – which is a somewhat confusing sensation.

I know you can get cheaper options and I'm sure most of them would be OK too. But I decided that my eyesight needed all the help it can get and frankly the extra cost (at least in this case) wasn't my prime concern, so I purchased what I considered to be the best product. Donegan (a US company) has been around a long time, the lens are optical/prismatic glass and I know I can get spare or alternative lenses if required.

As I said, they are something I should have purchased a long time ago….

Regards,

IanT

[egaParticipant @ega]

IanT

Thanks for your very helpful comments (and to other posters).

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

There was a memorable advert by Bell Helmets:

.

The underlying logic applies to my eyes.

MichaelG.

.

P.S. … The reason that those 'telescope loupes' used by Surgeon & Dentists are so good is that they magnify at a long working distance [typically around 420mm, I believe]

[Author]

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