Sunglasses

[bottleinamessage]

I'm looking for recommendations on good quality, affordable (I know, not in the same sentence) sun glasses. UVA and UVB and all that stuff, and good reflectives.

What do you use and recommend??

[Pblais]

If you require a prescription then a custom set of lenses is most appropriate. You can pay a lot for designer frames. Frames can go up to $400 or more. Designer styles are where the big money is. If you see a designer label you know you are paying a lot for style. Most of the designer frames are handcrafted though some components are mass produced. The frames is where most of the money is. Most good quality eyeglass frames are more than $200.

You can find non prescription sun glasses with the highest UV protection possible in all price ranges and some quite cheap. Frames can vary a lot on cost but functionality would be mostly on weight to strength. The quality of the lens is in the transparency and distortion not the reflectiveness.

If you don't require a persecution I would get a half dozen pairs that fit well. Sunglasses that you don't wear all the time get smashed easily and fall over board as well other forms of disappearance. Plastic frames break easily. Titanium frames are the lightest and don't bend as much and retain shape better.

I use a prescription pair of Raybans. Weight is everything as far as I'm concerned. I have a thick prescription so it tends to get the price up there. Plastic lenses should only be cleaned with a proper solution and lens wipes to reduce scratches. On the water you want good UV protection. Without protection aft a full day of sun on the water your eyes tend to burn and become quite uncomfortable at night.

Wrap around styles will block more UV since light does enter from the top and sides of the frames. If you wear contacts you still should use sunglasses too. You see lots of the little old lady and little old men with the goofy looking plastic glasses that provide full coverage. They would be the best protection. Lenses that are neutral gray, amber, brown or green provide the least color distortion. I prefer the gray.

[GordMay]

Originally Posted by Pblais

... You can find non prescription sun glasses with the highest UV protection possible in all price ranges and some quite cheap...
... If you don't require a persecution I would get a half dozen pairs that fit well...

Your (Freudian) slip is showing, Paul.

[Pblais]

Your (Freudian) slip is showing, Paul.

Ever since I needed a spell chucker it's been helping more than hurting but not 100%.

[bottleinamessage]

All these (supposed) sailors and only Paul & I wear sunglasses??

Geesh!

[Pelagic]

I am curious as well. Which modern make or type of non prescription lens is best for seeing thru glare on the water.


I still use an old pair of Varnes but the coating is getting pretty worn

[Ex-Calif]

We buy polarized glasses here by the box and they work out to about US$4 per pair. Losing them is no big deal and the optics and polarization are fine.

I actually don't like to wear sunglasses while sailing or any outdoor sports for that matter. Under certain (into the sun) conditions I will wear them.

I vote for cheap and disposable.

[Pblais]

I am curious as well. Which modern make or type of non prescription lens is best for seeing thru glare on the water.

Polarizing materials reduce the most glare easily. You need UV filtering on top of that for the perfect sunglasses.

I see no problem with a box of cheap disposable glasses. If you add a hat you have most of the serious problem solved. The extra sun that sneaks over the top and and around the sides does make a difference. The hat helps that part.

You can always sail at night.

[Efraim]

A friend of mine loves these Fitovers Eyewear.

[ssullivan]

I really enjoy my polarized Oakleys. Only trouble is that I have to wear them with contacts.

I am looking into getting a pair of polarized Oakleys with prescription *transition* lenses so I can forget having to carry multiple pairs of glasses.

I may look like a real jack %ss while ashore at a grocery store with clear lenses on a set of Oakley frames, but I figure having one pair that can go from cockpit to engine room without missing a beat is nearly a "must have" if you are spending a significant amount of time on the water.

Also, I see this as a cheap way out (buying very expensive glasses). Why?

No need for prescriptions, contacts, or overly frequent (yearly) visits to the eye doctor.

So, in summary, I like Oakleys, but that's just because I'm a Gen Xer.

People older than me will like Ray Bans and those younger like those very large circular ones...

[in my best "old man voice"]: whatever it is the kids these days wear!

[gonesail]

i can recommend ocean waves sunglasses based here in north florida.

[onremlop]

My thoughts on sunglasses: After years of wearing cheap sunglasses,I finally broke down and bought some serious sunglasses - Serengetis and boy, what a difference they made! Problem is they got scratched immediately due to my negligence. They are really great shades compared to cheap ones, but I could have purchases about 20 pairs of decent cheap ones at Wal-Mart for the price of the Serengetis. One of my sailing buddies was really proud of his Maui Jims and then lost them. My neighbor's kid has a really nice pair of Oakleys that are about $200. I asked where she got them and said, "Dad found them on the side of the road."

Expensive sunglasses are much better as long as you take care of them. I'm no opthamologist, but I would think that the expensive ones are better for your eyes than cheap ones. If you are like me, go for decent cheap ones, or find a nice pair on the side of the road.

There are 2 ways sunglasses die - you sit on them or lose them.

[cabo_sailor]

I wear a pair of Costa del Mar - amber polarized for better visibility in shallow water and green metallic coating for cutting down glare. I've gone the cheap route and find that I break/lose them more often than if I have a pair of good quality. Fit is important, mine leave very little space for light leakage around the edges.

[Wanderlust]

Wrap around with polarised lenses are my essential requirements.

I used to buy basic Polaroid brand, but now find I benefit from a mild prescription lens. So I purchased my first pair of Raybans and had polarised prescriptions made.

I don't understand why, but they just seem a lot more comfortable than the polaroids, even though they are heavier with real lenses.

[hellosailor]

So bottle, did I miss it or did you not mention whether you need an Rx or can buy your glasses from wider sources?

Wanderlust, there's a reason that Rx glasses fitted by an optician or other "eye doctor" store should fit you better. Inside the frame there will be tiny numbers imprinted on the temple and the nose piece. "Real" glasses are fitted by the length of the temple (side bar) and the width of the nose and the width of the front frame, three measurements. While most folks tolerate a lot of variation in the length of the temples, the fit on the nose usually feels "great" over a 1-2mm. range, and they are measured in milllimeters. The overall front width also is measured in millimeters, a 4-5mm variation really changes how they feel.

And if you need an Rx, centering the lenses to match your pupils isn't always done properly--since time is money. I joke with my optician that one day I'll get my ears fixed with plastic surgery so he won't have to align the frames to fit them properly. Most people have slight differences in their ears, requiring some "frame adjustment" to make them sit straight. Some folks do this themselves, others just don't notice the world is a bit crooked.

Rx sunglasses give you way less choice than the plano (no Rx) ones but I've accumulated a variety of both over the years. Some nice gold-flashed glacier glasses with eye cups, that totally eliminate glare. Somehow you get used to the color (the gold totally blocks infrared, the glass blocks UV) and the world looks odd when you take them off. A less technical pair with thicker glass, gold flashed from Nikon. I like glass lenses because they just don't scratch like plastic does.

Got a pair of "pinkish" Serengettis as well, great driving glasses, great extra contrast for scanning distant things, but plastic (I'm afraid the salt will chew into them eventually) and not as dark. I'm more likely to use them in spinrg/fall when the sun isn't as harsh at midday.

Among the others are some vintage "Cool Ray Polaroid" made by Polaroid back in the day. They're not as dark, they're way cheaper (and flimsier) but the polaroid lense certainly do cut glare better. Great for fisherman...but glare off the water doesn't bother me in general, if the lenses are dark enough to cut the sundogs down to size.

I find that glasses dark enough to really cut glaring noonday sun, are too dark early/late in the day. But if I wear really dark lenses for most of the day, it makes a huge difference in my night vision.

And then there's the pair of inexpensive dual-gradient mirrored glass ones I found on the boat one day. (Mirrored heavier top and bottom, not in the middle.) Never have figured out who they belong to, so they are there for "guest" use.<G>