On Mon, 21 Jul 2003 10:01:15 -0400, "Chris Harris"
wrote:


Nobody uses glass in specs these days do they? It's fragile, heavy and
expensive. Plastic lens' need not be thick, they can be made with thin edges
(at extra cost). My right eye is -6 and the plastic lens is neither thick or
heavy.

I do. Whenever I buy new specs I always have to insist that 'yes' I
really do want glass lenses. At -8 every little helps to make the
lenses a little thinner.

One thing I find incredible is the rip off prices that the high street
opticians charge. I have found that Costco (yes not the first place
that you might think about buying specs) charge only about 1/3 to 1/2
the price of the high street shops for high specification lenses. The
quality of their workmanship is also superb compared to the high
street shops.

PM

PS: If you want to know why the high street opticians charge so much,
next time you are looking, ask how much the VAT is on your new specs
(it won't be 7/47ths of the total). You may be intrigued by how much
of the cost of the specs relates to the exempt supply of 'fitting'
(not the sight test) rather than the standard rated supply of the
specs themselves. Funnily enough they won't sell you the specs without
the assistant 'fitting' them.