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Hi All
Does anyone have any recommendations for bifocal riding glasses - the type that have a small section in the bottom of the lens so chaps of a certain age like myself can read a garmin (or more importantly, see what cakes are on the menu at the cafe!)
Doing some searching, it seems that the options are:
Rudy Project Rydon (~£150)
BZ Optics (~£90-£120 depending on lens, but there's options for photochromic)
Tifosi - (~£80 for photochromic)
Various Amazon specials from £15 to about £60 with wildly varying reviews...
Any others I should consider, or feedback from those of you that use them already?
Cheers!
Watching with interest having had an extortionate quote from my optician for similar. If you can live with the slight delay most of the stuff on Amazon is cheaper aliexpress.
I have been riding with the BZ Optics photochromatic ones for a while now, my wife also has a pair. We find them great for riding in, and it means I can easily read the Garmin (and cake menu's) whilst they don't affect my vision riding the rest of the time.
Ive had rad8 cycling glasses with varifocal lenses fit the last 3 years fit the same reasons as the OP. The optical part is done by Optilabs and I've no complaints. You can go direct to Optilabs as they do their own range too iirc
Goggles4U varifocals for about £40 here. I have a clear pair and some sunnies, they're perfect for riding in.
If you're just talking a bifocal insert into a clear non prescription lens, then £15 Amazon specials are fine for this application as far as seeing goes, but they're basic in terms of fit. Badly fitting riding glasses are really irritating, to the point of being hazardous if you're frequently having to touch them when you should be controlling the bike.
Worth a go - perhaps your swede will be a perfect match. But it's the fit and comfort of the frame that is the important thing.
Always interested to read others experiences on this but for the last couple of years I've been using the tifosi ones from here:
On my second pair now as I did manage to drive over my first pair... actually was very impressed as i managed to bend that back into a usable state. They had however some evidence of delamination i think as, when looked at closer, you could see pin-prick size dots all over the lenses. No real complaints aside this so I'd replace with the same unless I think it's worth trying an alternative
I have varifocals from Rad8 and suggest a quick chat with them as @rOcKeTdOg mentions. They replaced some much more expensive Oakleys and I have found the glasses as good, but even more impressive has been the customer service, which I have had to call on twice when crashing in said glasses and they have been brilliant and nice people too!
My mate used bifocal lab safety specs of Amazon. They look amazing for £15
I don't have a distance prescription so I simply wear one contact lens. This allows me to to see my computer and doesn’t blur my distance vision either. I can wear whatever riding glasses I like then.
I’d go with Tifosi - great for reading and comfortable, plus they look good. BZ Optics I’ve found to be uncomfortable & dig into your nose. They also look a bit industrial to me!
Thanks all. I've ordered a set of the BZ Optics glasses. If they aren't comfortable I'll send them back and try the Tifosi ones!
I don't have a distance prescription so I simply wear one contact lens. This allows me to to see my computer and doesn’t blur my distance vision either. I can wear whatever riding glasses I like then.
How long did it take you to get used to it? I heard you could do this but I tried it by poking one of the lenses out of my readers and it felt like I had a tumour or something
I got these from Amazon 2 years ago and they have been genuinely life changing. I can now follow routes on my phone.
voltX 'CONSTRUCTOR' BIFOCAL Reading Safety Glasses (CLEAR +1.5 Dioptre) UKCA & CE EN166F certified/Cycling Sports Glasses include's safety cord + UV400 anti-fog coated lens https://amzn.eu/d/gxI69Jz
I'm very short sighted , about -8 in both eyes, but also of a certain age so need bifocals.
I use both monthly and daily disposable contact lenses. The monthly ones are bifocals amazingly.
The dailies aren't because I need stigmatism correction as well. But the solution here is for one lens biased towards a shorter reading distance. This works remarkably well.
Why Monthly and dailies. I use the dailies for bike packing trips, so no big bottle of juice
I buy the voltX bi-focals from Amazon and reshape the lenses to fit into my Tifosi frames. 😆
Quick update to this - I didn't really like the BZ Optics glasses. "Industrial" was a good description, they didn't really look like cycling glasses, more like safety specs. The bifocal part also seemed very high up in my field of vision which I think would be disconcerting when riding. They are going to be returned...
I also bought a set of Tifosi Crit - they seem much more along the lines of what I was expecting - like 'normal' cycling glasses, and the bifocal bit is much lower down my vision compared to the BZ.
I got a pair of these last year as a kind of proof of concept, they’re actually pretty good for 20 quid (at the time)
but only really work on bright days, got quoted 150quid for photochromic lens for my rad8s not pulled the trigger on those yet.
https://eyekeeper.com/products/tr90-sport-bifocal-reading-sunglasses-for-men-th6145
good to hear other positive experiences with rad8 too