Like many people who spend long hours staring at the tiny print in books, I wear glasses. My current pair were bought on eBay. Made by an Australian designer Martin Wells in the early 70s, the frame model name is “Monte” and I got them from a retired optician in Ohio if I remember correctly; they were new-old-stock (meaning they had been sitting in a box for over 30 years, having never before been fitted with lenses) and I think I paid around $40 for them. If the style of your glasses is more important to you than brand name, I suggest checking eBay for your next pair. New-old-stock (sometimes abbreviated NOS on eBay) frames are abundant, prices are much lower than designer frames in the boutiques, most sellers list all frame dimensions so you can be sure they will fit your face, and you will get a set of frames and nobody else has. This is my second pair of eBay-bought new-old-stock frames and it won’t be my last. My only regret about buying them is that I didn’t buy the seller’s second pair of them; I love these glasses and if I had a second, reserve pair I could rest easy knowing that if anything happens to my glasses I could just pop the lenses out and put them into my other pair. Alas, I wavered at time of purchase and just have the one set.

Around the time I got my new frames and had them fitted with lenses, I also got my cat Dinky Mouse. He is a very chew-happy feline and was even more so as a kitten. I caught him numerous times chewing on my glasses as they lay on my nightstand and one day noticed that the left lens was becoming scratched. I never let him near the glasses again.

I decided I could live with the minimal scratches — or, more accurately, chips in the protective lens coating — and continued on with life. Recently, however, I noticed the chips getting worse. These chips weren’t very deep and some quick internet research revealed that my lenses were fine; it was the coating that was the problem. See, when I bought the glasses I allowed myself to be talked into this anti-reflective coating stuff that is meant to allow you to see better while driving and allow people looking at you to see your eyes better. Really, though, it’s just a ruse to milk an extra $100 out of you; it removes some of the glare the bespectacled endure during their living of life from behind plastic, but it’s really a negligible improvement. And now my coating was chipping away. The stuff is crap.

It was getting to point where it was difficult to see out of the left lens; the right lens, however, was perfectly fine. People noticed the chips. I had to do something. I had been told about a year ago by a friend who works in optics, that she could remove the coating for me if I wanted but I never ended up taking her up on the offer. I moved cities and that was that. My previously mentioned internet research also introduced me to the stories of others. Many said that when they approached their optician about the chips, they were told that the lenses were finished and that they should just buy new glasses. Nevermind that they liked the frames and their prescription hadn’t changed, no, it was time for new glasses. Remember, though, how the person telling you this makes their money. How much did you pay for your last set of frames? Molded plastic or thin metal really costs in excess of $300? And in my case, even though I bought the frames myself, they still got money from me by overcharging for the lenses; it appears that they offer a discount to people who buy their frames and lenses together. You provide your own frames, no discount.

Then I found an answer. A thread at the website ThriftyFun enlightened me. There is a glass etching product called Armour Etch, available at your local craft mart like JoAnn Fabrics or Michael’s, that can remove all the coating from your lenses. Now, this product is meant for glass and has a clouding effect on it. It does not harm plastic, though, and that is why it is perfect for glasses; most lenses these days are made from plastic rather than glass. If you happen to have lenses of real glass, do not use Armour Etch on them. If you have wire/metal frames you may want to pop the lenses out before using Armour Etch on them so as not to harm the frames. For those like me with plastic frames, you can just jump in. And just a warning, I know absolutely nothing about optometry; the only thing that I have going for me is that I’m handy and I’m willing to take risks to fix things that are broken. Mimic me at your own risk.

As you can see in the picture below, my lens was pretty well scratched up. Very sad and very noticeable. I take decent care of my glasses so having them end up like this was disheartening.

So I made the decision to try it and got the Armour Etch. I bought it from JoAnn Fabrics online; they had some special coupon online for 40% off and including shipping a 3oz. bottle cost me about $12. The 3oz. bottle is the smallest you can get and it is more than you will ever need.

This stuff is toxic; it’s a chemical and the bottle says it should only be used by people who are 18 or over. I think this is just to cover them from lawsuits. But really, this stuff is toxic and you might want to wear rubber gloves. I applied it to my lenses with cotton swabs. Before I went full tilt, I did a small tester area on the afflicted lens. After I waited 5 minutes I washed it off and, satisfied with the results, applied it to the entire lens.

You need to apply the Armour Etch to both sides of the lens as the coating is on both sides. It’s also important to wait at least 5 minutes before removing the chemical; it just takes that long to react with the coating. When applying, go slow and don’t paint it on. Armour Etch is pretty gritty and can actually scratch the lenses if you go nuts. Instead, dab it on and just go wild with the amount — not the force with which you apply it. If you don’t apply liberally, you’ll miss some areas and have to do a second coat.

As you can see above, I had to reapply to some spots on the left lens as I didn’t put on enough initially. My second time around, I made sure to put a ton on. Just don’t let it drip off. If you get it on your skin, wash it off immediately (make sure to read the instructions on the bottle). And if there’s even a remote possibility that you could let yourself get this stuff in your mouth or eyes, you should stop reading right now because playing with chemicals is not your forte. Be careful!

Again, let me state that it’s important to let it sit for 5 minutes before washing the Armour Etch off. Otherwise, it’ll look worse than when you started. Be patient. Also, when you remove it go slowly. I washed it off in my bathroom sink and tried to let the water remove as much of the chemical as possible. I used toilet paper to remove the rest and took my time.

Here they are cleaned off, all the coating removed, and no more pesky chips; I can see well again!

I do notice glare, however. But what would one expect? When you remove the anti-glare coating, life is going to look a little different. But honestly, it’s not an issue at all as these were the first lenses I ever had treated with the anti-glare coating and most certainly my last.

Upon further inspection, some scratches are noticeable and these scratches are in the actual plastic lenses. I don’t know if they’re caused by the Armour Etch (by my slathering the chemical on with the cotton swab too quickly) or if it’s just normal wear-and-tear that was not noticeable with the coating on. The scratching is so light, however, that I can’t notice it while I’m wearing my glasses and people looking at me can’t notice it either. It’s only when I hold the lenses under the light and really inspect that I can see the scratches.

Above is the lens pictured above that had the most problem. Now it’s perfectly fine.

But here you can see very minimal scratching. However, it looks very superficial and my (unprofessional) opinion is that over time these scratches will indeed buff out naturally from daily cleaning with a microfiber sham. If you happen to have the appropriate equipment, you could probably buff these out pretty quickly.

I’m very satisfied with my experiment and would absolutely do it again. I saved myself hundreds of dollars and did something for myself (which I love). If the coating on your lenses is so scratched up that you find it difficult to see out of them, you really don’t have anything to lose. Again, though, try this at your own risk, make sure you take your time, and don’t blame me if something unexpected happens. Good luck!

If you’ve enjoyed this entry, consider subscribing to our RSS feed!

Related posts:

1. Depressing Book Statistics On College Readers