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Hi all,
Does anyone have any experience using any of the cheaper online glasses companies. I was out yesterday in the pouring rain and whilst I don't normally need glasses for anything other than watching TV I did think it would have been much better if I had prescription riding glasses.
To be honest I can't afford the Oakley route but there does seem to be some manufacturers that do direct sales who are much cheaper. Probably not as nice I would guess as Oakleys.
Can anyone share their experience or recommendations, good bad or indifferent?
I think my Oakley frames are now 10.years old. I'm on my second set of lenses (photochromic/transition) and they get used for all my riding, hillwalking and paddling. Maybe expensive to buy initially but on a per year basis, not so much.
One thing to avoid imo are the sort that have little prescription inserts. I had some for a pair of Adidss Evil EyeS which were useless. They steamed up every time you put in the slightest effort and didn't even give very good vision.
They do seem to have gone out of fashion so definitely go for an actual prescription lens. You coild get a generic frame made very cheaply at a cheapo optician rather than go for an expensive specialist pair.
I got some varifocals made at Vision Express for about £140 , single vision would have been a lot cheaper
Ive got uvex ones, They're not pretty, but do the job
Good service here from goggles4u for varifocal sunglasses around £40 a pair IIRC (I got 2, one for the car). They are ok for cycling/reading in the garden but definitely not as good as my Boots varifocals in terms of lens quality. Maybe 90-95% as good so fine for an hour or two but I wouldn't wear them all day.. Massive price difference though.Once my prescription stabilises I'll get a better pair eg Oakley.
And actually I have those cut down (tiny) inserts on my big cycling sunglasses (non prescription) so I can read my garmin or phone if I need to. Very useful for that but only really to be used if I'm texted by the kids whilst out etc. Not something I'd use generally.
The more you want do-it-all the more expensive it will get. I ended up with prescription+transition+coated sports glasses to wear all year round including Spanish summers and night rides. Yup they're a bit odd off the bike/beach and if I'm going to be lounging around the pub looking cool I'll take my normal specs to change into but other than that I'll wear them in all conditions. I'm well pleased with them but they did cost a mint.
I bought some Endura Snappers and had lenses made by Ciliary Blue. I'm happy with them, but it wasn't totally plain sailing.
I should say that I've used CB for several sets of everyday glasses and have had great results every time. However, the Snappers have quite a pronounced shape to them and aren't a common frame, and I had some issues with lens fit.
When I first received the modified glasses the lenses (one in particular) didn't really engage with the frame along the top edge. Added to this, when wearing them the frame bends, so even when I clicked them into place a little better they'd just click back out when I put the glasses on. Back they went, and they came back sorted (I don't know whether they made new lenses, modified the existing ones, or just gave it more elbow.)
Some time later (but only a few rides) my frames split mid-ride. When I got back home I measured up the lenses and compared them to the originals, and sure enough the replacements were a little larger. Evidently the stress on the frames as a result was simply too great.
CB invited me to send them back to be assessed; as it happened, I found some ex-display Snappers cheap so bought those and sent those with everything else, asking for those to be used with new or modified lenses. They came back sorted and (touch wood) have been fine since, although of course I was still out of pocket to the tune of a new set of frames and two lots of postage, and while CB fixed it there was no "sorry for the inconvenience" let alone an offer to compensate for the breakage.
That said, £160 for Trivex prescription lenses with photochromic mirrors in a strongly curved frame seems pretty competitive, and they're good now they're sorted. (I added a pair of Hydrotac bifocals so I can read the GPS.) Certainly I'm loving photochromic lenses: on proper long rides where weather changes dramatically or night falls, I'd previously have carried multiple M-Frame lenses, and now I don't have to.
On balance I'd recommend them, but if you're going for a highly-curved frame that isn't one they often encounter (they have a blog where they like showing Oakleys and suchlike) then I'd perhaps be a little cautious. I think maybe the Snappers set them a bit too much of a challenge.
I got a pair of Oakley Half Jacket XLs reglazed by Ciliary Blue, the lenses are spot on and the price was competitive. My problem is that the geometry of the sunnies is so different to my usual glasses the ground appears so much further away that I don't feel stable!
My problem is that the geometry of the sunnies is so different to my usual glasses
Not an optician but surely the lens fitting into the selected frame should take into account the position and shape of the lens in relation to the eyeball???
Ciliary Blue here too, and a couple of other re glazing services, I've had some Fauxleys done in the past which were OK but the frames eventually gave up. For the last couple of years I've been riding with Bolle Spider safety specs reglazed by CB, in fact I recently bought a new pair as I broke the frame (£8) lenses popped out of the frame, and straight into the new one...
Cheap specs, with clear lenses under £30ish, I tend to ride in my Prescription Sunglasses (Wayfarers) when it's sunny on the road, for everything else it's the Bolles...
Curvature is the main thing to watch, too much sweep on the frame and the Lenses become a bit of bugger for them to make (from a standard blank)...
Not an optician but surely the lens fitting into the selected frame should take into account the position and shape of the lens in relation to the eyeball???
Pupillary distance (PD) on your prescription, there are some DIY methods for determining it too, but knowing how far apart your eyes are is pretty helpful... Basically your prescription should allow you to get some glasses made by just about any competent optician, I've used Specsavers in the past and they do seem prone to leaving some information off of the written prescription if not prompted, probably because they expect you to waltz out of the eye test and unquestioningly drop £100 on some new specs...
I've got a clear pair from Specsavers, Lenses are tough don't fog and I can't tell the difference from my normal everyday glasses. They aren't the best looking but they were £100, and don't look out of place to many other pairs, I'll. be back for more when they die or more likely I lose them.
I got some Zeal glasses (Incline?) with prescription lenses from RXSports.com in the Spring. Not cheap (€300?) but one of the best things I've done for my riding in a long time. I'd been having real hassles with contact lenses (after 25 problem-free years!) that were starting to spoil my enjoyment of riding. Prescription riding glasses have been brilliant for me.
I've got cheaper (transitions) glasses from Glasses Online which I can also ride in pretty happily, but the smaller coverage is sometimes a problem and they don't quite look the part (hey, I'm a guide, the image is important...).
I’ve got some Oakley minutes and some Oakley half jackets. I got both glazed by ciliary blue with clear polycarbonate lenses to suit my prescription. Both are doing well and give me much better visibility on the trails. I’d say the lenses in the minutes are a more secure fit as it’s a frame that completely surrounds the lenses but heybsit closer to my face so fog up more easily. The half jackets fog less but one lens pops out easier than the other. The good thing is I can take the polycarbonate lenses out and put original sunglasses lenses in - so I could wear them in the pool / by the pool on holiday. Half jackets wi h the lowest quality lenses are quite cheap and CB charged me £60 for polycarbonate. I think it would have been a lot cheaper to have normal lens material but I wanted them to be strong for hockey and mtb.
Having had Rudy projects with inserts and Oakleys with direct glazed lenses (ie no insert) I would never ever have another set of inserts.
Transitions lenses are great and I'm just thinking about getting my Oakley Jawbones/Racing Jackets reglazed. Not sure Cillary Blue come up that cheap compared to official Oakley lenses if you start adding on things like transitions.
£162 vs £240 hmmm
pretavoir did me some transition prescription oakley crosslinks for about £180.00
To balance the insert argument, I've used them in also sorts of conditions over nearly 20 years hand have had no more issues with the inserts than I've had with standard specs. Been using Rudy Project Rydons and Agon for the last few years and they never cause any issues.
I've been using Rudy Projects with inserts for years and they work really well; I got lightweight lenses for the inserts which helps.
For other sunglasses I get lenses fitted, I've had lots but opticians lenses aren't as good as well-made manufacturer's lenses for specific purposes such as skiing. B<span style="font-size: 0.8rem;">y the way, my favourites were Revo. </span>
I've got some rad8 glasses. They've been top notch so far. Incredibly good anti fog coating and well made transition coating too. Highly recommended.
I'm not sure about 'prescription' but I found I could not read my gps anymore a year ago.... got a pair of BBB photochromic glasses (so I can ride day and night and not have to carry a clear lens) with a +1.5 lens in the base of the glasses so I can glance down and read the gps again and use them for closeup bike servicing in the field and reading menus in food places..... the do stronger lenses too.
Just give a couple of pairs to my Canadian friends and they love them, first ride out!
Had a pair of Optilab glasses for the last 15 years and can’t fault them (Style wise I probably won’t be joining this years peloton though)