Types of frame materials

Thursday 13th June 2024

A DO's desk

Cellulose Acetate (pictured) is commonly used material and is produced as a sheet material. Most of these frames are manufactured in high volumes and using very efficient production systems such as routing.
The other plastic materials are: Acrylic or Perspex, SPX, Cellulose Propionate, Nylon, Optyl, Carbon fibre, and Polycarbonate.
The common metal frame materials are Monel which is most common, Gunmetal, Nickel, Aluminium, and some memory metals such as TR90. Some less common and more pricy materials include Rolled gold, gold plated frames, and titanium which is also lightweight and hypo-allergenic.
In addition to these, there are frames that are made of Wood, Buffalo-Horn, Turtle-shell which is less common these days.
Every Spectacle frame is unique and needs to fit well. It is very important for the Optical professional to know what type of material they are handling to follow the right adjustment procedures.
Nowadays, there are many more modern materials that mostly do not require excessive heating.