On Sun, 20 Jan 2008 04:17:52 -0800 (PST), Al Bundy
wrote:

On Jan 19, 9:21 pm, wrote:
I can reasonably solder electronics although I get an occasional cold
solder joint. I have this pair of glasses I didn't wear much which
cracked near the temple joint. (The temple cracked). The repair shops
ask too much, compared to what I paid for the glasses. I tried online
to find temples, to no luck. So I'm considering soldering it. My
uncle (a retired EE) told me it would never hold. Part of the problem
is it cracked very near the screw joint. and so would suffer a lot
more torque than if it was further back. Any tips?

I have successfully soldered many pair of frames using regular or
lead free solder. You can test to see if the solder sticks first.
Rough the area up a bit with sandpaper or a file or a Dremel with a
small wheel. You can buy stainless solder at the hardware store for
about $5 that has more aggressive flux. The lead free solder will be
stronger and take more heat to flow.
I got tired of replacing those pads on the temple of my running
glasses so I broke off the arms and ground off the burrs. Then I
soldered a center piece on from another pair that had solid plastic
inserts. They work great. You can buff the area afterwards with a
Dremel and a small wire wheel to remove much of the discoloration.

I have a pair of glasses for the computer that I periodically
re-solder. I couldn't get a successful join until I took an onld
barss track connector from an HO railroad set, and made it into a
sleeve, and soldered the ends into that. The same could be done with a
half inch of small brass hobby tubing. Looks like crap, but you
can't see me through my screen (yet).