Eyeglass & Sunglass Repair in Sabae, Japan — Any Brand Welcome
We repair eyewear — including frames you did not buy from us
METRONOME Tokyo Online repairs eyeglass and sunglass frames through our workshop in Sabae, Fukui — the town that makes most of Japan's eyewear. Metal, acetate, celluloid, solid gold and tortoiseshell. Frames from any brand are welcome. You do not need to have bought anything from us.
We regularly take on work other shops turn away: snapped bridges, cracked rims, seized screws, hinges torn out of acetate, spring hinges that have gone dead, and frames that have simply lost their shape.
The price does not change with the brand of your frame.
What we repair, and how long it takes
Turnaround below is workshop time in Japan, counted from the day your frame reaches Sabae to the day it leaves again. Add international postage in both directions — usually one to three weeks each way, depending on the service you choose.
Metal frames
| Repair | In the workshop |
|---|---|
| Soldering / laser welding | 2–3 days |
| Laser welding + coloured cling pads | 3–5 days |
| Laser welding + colour matching | 3–5 days |
| Cloisonné enamel | 4–6 days |
| Re-plating, single tone | 6–8 days |
| Re-plating, two tone | 8–10 days |
| Re-plating + enamel | 7–12 days |
| Welding + re-plating | 7–14 days |
| Changing the lens shape (re-forming the rim) | quoted individually |
Acetate and celluloid frames
| Repair | In the workshop |
|---|---|
| Broken bridge / cracked rim (celluloid and acetate only) | 14–21 days |
| Re-embedding a hinge that has pulled out | 5–7 days |
| Building up nose pads | 5–7 days |
| Fitting adjustable nose pad arms | 5–7 days |
| Broken temple hinge barrel | 14–21 days |
| Polishing and refinishing | 5–7 days |
Solid gold, tortoiseshell and specialist work
| Repair | In the workshop |
|---|---|
| Reshaping a bent frame | 2–3 days |
| Removing a seized screw | 2–3 days |
| Spring hinge repair | 5–7 days |
| Solid gold polishing | 2–3 days |
| Solid gold, repaired by laser welding | 2–3 days |
| Tortoiseshell polishing and repair | 10–14 days |
| Tortoiseshell coating | 21–30 days |
| Setting Swarovski crystals | 4–6 days |
| Celluloid wrapping (maki-cell) over metal temples | 7–14 days |
Lens mounting (if you send your own lenses)
| Work | In the workshop |
|---|---|
| Full rim | 2–3 days |
| Nylor (semi-rimless) | 2–3 days |
| Two-point (rimless) | 3–5 days |
This list is not exhaustive. If your frame is not covered above, ask us anyway.
What it costs
Every overseas repair is quoted individually in Japanese yen, by email, before you send us anything. If you decide not to go ahead after seeing the quote, there is no charge.
Rather than give you a vague answer, here is what recent overseas customers actually paid:
| Frame repair for a customer in the United Kingdom | ¥16,480 |
| Repair for a customer in the United Kingdom | ¥15,500 |
| Repair for a customer in the United States | ¥10,660 |
Most overseas repairs are quoted between ¥5,000 and ¥30,000, depending on the work. Postage is quoted separately.
Replacing a temple (arm)
This one depends entirely on whether the part still exists. If we can source it, we replace it; if we cannot, we usually repair or re-form the original instead. We cannot publish a fixed price for it — send us a photo and we will tell you which route your frame needs.
How it works — from outside Japan
- Email us photos. Front, side, and a close-up of the damage, to info@phase-design.jp. Tell us the brand and the material if you know them.
- We reply with a quote in yen, the expected turnaround, and the address to send the frame to.
- You post the frame to Japan, prepaid. We cannot accept freight-collect shipments from overseas.
- We repair it and send it back. Return shipping is quoted together with the estimate.
If extra work turns out to be needed once we have the frame in hand, we tell you before we start and you can decline.
Six-month warranty
If the same point fails again within six months of the repair, we will put it right at no charge.
Not sure it can be saved?
Send us a photo and ask. We would rather tell you honestly that a frame is beyond repair than have you throw away one that is not.