Adam Savage's One Day Builds: Repairing Vintage Aviators!

Hang out with Adam in the cave as he embarks on a One Day Repair of his favorite vintage Ray-Ban aviator sunglasses! The repair requires precision soldering of minuscule parts, and many of Adam's favorite shop tools make an appearance in the process. It's a project that gets derailed at every turn--count the number of times things go wrong!

Shot by Adam Savage and edited by Norman Chan

Tested is:

Intro bumper by Abe Dieckman

Thanks for watching!

#adamsavage #onedaybuilds

[ryanzorgdrager]

Hi Adam,
I don’t think ray ban actually made those sunglasses as you mentioned. The original NASA and US military contract went out to a company called American Optical. The sunglasses you mention as replicas sold at Luna Replicas are not actually replicas. They are the real deal still made 60 years later by the same company, American Optical! I’m reading your book and you mention how you find yourself doing a deep dive researching a specific item and these sunglasses have been one of mine. As an airline pilot I love how they slip on and off without taking my headset off. They were originally designed for fighter pilots to slip on and off without taking their helmets off. Hopes this sheds a bit of light on the history of these. Take care!

[patternsofthree]

Adam! I'm a jeweler, and this is the first time I've tried to mentally project information at you through space and time! Couple of things:

You need more types of solder! I recommend easy, medium, and hard jeweler's solder, depending on the job. The neat thing about those is that you can cut off the sliver of solder, and basically "glue" it in place with the flux and gentle heat from the torch. Handy flux is my favorite, but a simple borax and water mix will work too.

For a resist to keep your solder from flowing into nooks and/or crannies you can use yellow ochre or graphite to coat the area you want to protect.

I also SUPER recommend a foredom flex shaft - it would have been perfect for all your drilling. The neat thing about them is they have the motor in a hanging bit, the cord comes down, and the hand piece is SO much less bulky and difficult to position than a dremel. They've got a *great* foot pedal and SO many different hand pieces available - and any bit you can use with a dremel can be used with a foredom. Check out the jeweler's supply house Rio Grande for videos or any of the material I mentioned.

Right, off to buy knife files!

[JC_RMEOW]

I tip my hat to anyone who has hands steady enough to work with parts that small and *not* be irretrievably insane afterwards.

[orandilu]

"Join me, won't you?" was very reminiscent of Mr. Rogers and made me exceedingly happy. Thank you very much Adam for making these videos, and thank you for being you.

[tiexgrr]

As an optician I can appreciate the sheer amount of effort that goes into this, and the reward you get at the end. Soldering, and eyeglass repair in general, is a dying art. Thank you for sharing with the rest of us :D

[cadoobk]

One of the few good parts about this pandemic is getting to watch Adam doing do many diverse things on a near daily basis. I love this!

[aka-chi_hurron]

I love how the confidence he has in the beginning slowly turns to probable ptsd for adam by the end, double and tripple checking that whatever he does doesnt crack the solder joint. I also appreciate how by the end he definitly has a newfound respect for the work the company he bought them from did in restoring them originally or anyone who works in small and precise projects (like watchmakers as his example is). Its these types of projects that we learn the second most we can (the most being just experimenting with techniques for the heck of it and following where that leads) about a project and the most we can in diagnostics by messing up over and over, asking ourselves "well why did it fail this time" and "how do i prevent this now" You can see the frustration at every failure then the turning of gears in his mind as he ponders those very things

[miketarle]

It has been great content over the quarantine Adam! Buy yourself a laser welder, you deserve it. Also in jewellery we would use yellow ochre as a solder resist for those tough spots you don’t want solder to flow.

[discopants]

I laughed so hard at the end when he puts them on and they’re crooked as hell. 🤣

[FFNiteblade]

I love how Adam has so many ideas and things he wants to do and show us that he gets so excited he forgets to show us. Keep being you, Adam.

[arinyu]

Adam: Let's put these back together.
Me: Looks at the time line, half the video's left.
Me: Somethings about to go wrong. 😂

[sebeller]

this whole video had me on edge...waiting for Adam to knock over that cup with the tiny screws, watching him somewhat roughly file/brush the original "fix, " anticipating him "popping" the lenses back in, knowing (based on my limited experience working with small/delicate things) that the original and each of the subsequent "fixes" was going to fail at any moment (especially as it looked like the frame metal was deteriorating with every try). Glad to know that even experts like Adam experience the same kinds of frustrations that I'm humbled by in so many of my own build/repair endeavors. At the same time, it's great to see him deal with failures/setbacks so gracefully - a great example for all of us (and our kids too!). Thanks for all these great "stuck at home" videos, Adam!

[brianmosher]

There is nothing better than watching this madman tell stories and build or repair amazing pieces!! Thanks Mr. Savage!! As always.

[TobiasRobertson]

One of my favourite aspects of the ASCU (Adam Savage Cinematic Universe) is the return of previous one day builds to used in the construction of new one day builds.

[williamstaples]

I love the transitioning of scenes in this one, so close where it seems like we are in an Adam Savage multiverse.

[Mendertainer]

so cool that by fixing, objects actually gain so much additional value! Also, when fixed well they might even be stronger/more lasting than the original - I really like to do these hardcore repairs when i bolt everything together that is not supposed to be disattached  . then they last forever

[sprman]

Strangely this has got to be one of my favorite videos. This is how every repair I attempt plays out. Nothing goes as planned, I have to improvise, then hours later I finish and marvel at my craftsmanship...then my wife walks in and says, "Oh your finally done? Thought you said it would only take 20 minutes."🤬

[ola_bandola]

And thank you for not using a bunch of distracting background music. I love the sounds of the shop and tools!

[burntartic]

The one thing I love about adam is that he shows the failings. As a repair tech myself I have discovered that the first attempt doesn't always turn out correct. Thank you <3

[greybruce]

I really do enjoy watching you do stuff like I try to do sometimes (and usually fail or settle for something that is less than required or even good).
I had a similar glasses problem with my good readers. I ended up finding a local guy that did this for a living. He used some kind of laser welding device. $40 but with a lifetime guarantee. It was hard to tell they had been repaired. I think I got it back the same day.
I admire your patience Adam as it surpasses mine considerably!
Keep up the excellent work/entertainment as it is excellent therapy for the covid19 blues. I find it much more enjoyable than the news!
Thanks,
Bruce from St. Charles Missouri