[Closed] pricy sunglasses - worth the outlay?

I have a pair of Oakleys but end up using my using my work safety glasses - Ox wrap around light tint with a mirror finish for everything now

They cost £3.50. Have full UV protection and anti shatter etc....

I'll never buy expensive sunglasses for sport again

Are the high end lenses worth the high price tag?

I'd be amazed if you could tell the difference in a double blind test.

I'm thinking more about visual accuity, and how I may need sharper clarity as my eyes age - I'm finding I get headaches from wearing my contacts & cheapo sunnies for a long time.

Yes.

Yes.

I'm just looking for a pair of prescription ones myself. The only ones I can find that fit my head seem to be Oakley Carbon Blades which are bit / a lot more than I really want to spend. The arms on anything else ended up being about 15 to 20mm too short with a similar width deficit.

Anyone recommend anything slightly cheaper that will fit a larger headed chap?

Ja

That's it, I had a set of Oakleys yrs ago but I couldn't tell you now if they were 'that' much better, but that was over 15yrs ago & technology has moved on.

I lose or break too many to even contemplate buying expensive ones. No matter what they cost it's a bike like bikes, shoes etc they have to fit, for that reason I'm unlikely to own any expensive Oakley. Bloc are my go to choice.

Yes.

£250. My best glasses with polarised lenses I wear for driving, most of the cost is in the frames
£100. My medium ones for general use but not for sports
£10-50 for skiing, sailing and biking as they get lost / broken

Dunno if they are actually worth the money, but once you get out of the cheapies they are definitely better. You probably hit peak performance at 50-60 quid. Anything more than that you are paying for style/vanity/brand or some specific "thing" you need. Like prescription lenses, warranty (Oakleys is fantastic), polarisation, anti glare or anti fog and so on.

for skiing

Skiing = Goggles.

Skiing in sunglasses? Yes. I am judging you. No. It's not going well for you.

most sunglasses and all safety glasses are made from polycarbonate the lens part is formed from sheet material heated and then placed over a former,a simple idea, why pay 100 quids plus when your ordianry safety glasses from screwfix work just as well, polarising fishing glasses work better than shop bought polarizing sunglases.

Skiing in sunglasses? Yes. I am judging you. No. It's not going well for you.

Erm I use prescription Maui Jims to ski, optics are pretty much better than ANY ski goggle on the market, same sunnies have done over 50mph on road bike with no isues of wind interference to eye, why would I wear goggles?

And to the OP's question there are a few brands where the optics are significantly better than cheaper sunnies, are they worth it? to some people yes, to some no....depends on how well you treat them and how important the increases are to you. None will change your world, its abit like bike parts there is a base price and for each small improvement there is a cost LX,XT,XTR....

Always ski in sunnies, top strength mountain lenses as my (very blue) eyes are sensitive / damaged. Googles for poor viz only. I am not aware of any googles at a remotely sensible price with max high mountain eye protection

I was actually rather interested in some of the Smith Optic models but I know nowt about the brand or whether they are worth the expense.

Smiths as a company I dont really know their product, but a few basics......ignore any manufacturer bullshit about strength and UV protection when/if looking at polycarb lenses they are ALL 100% UV it has nothing to do with the manufacturer its an inherent property of the material, similarly any strength difference will be down to thickness of lens for the same reason.

The optical differences are down to the tints/polarisations and coatings that are then applied to the lens.

Take there into account and within the industry Maui Jim are recognised to be second to none with Serengeti a close second, a few of the others including adidas and Nike also get good reviews. their lead over other brands......pretty small percentages per pounnd tbh. Saying all this I have 2 pairs of Oakley,2 addida 1 nike, 3 maui and a couple of pairs of bolle oh and one of police.........for me the Maui's win every time

[quote=the hustler ]And to the OP's question there are a few brands where the optics are significantly better than cheaper sunnies

Would those brands include Bolle? I note they used to sell cycling glasses at the same price as lots of other high end brands...

There are cheap sunglasses and safety glasses.

Someone recommended Bloc on here to me a few years back and I swear by them now. Superb VFM. I'll never bother with Oakleys again.

Would those brands include Bolle? I note they used to sell cycling glasses at the same price as lots of other high end brands...

As said above the difference is in the coatings, the bolle safety glass is made from the same polycarb as the sunny, however the sunny has better coatings etc so the optics will be better, whether the price difference is worth it for the coatings........thats personal opinion.

To help taking tints out of it the best coating around is supposed to let about 15% more light thru, the more light thru the more picked up by the optic nerve, the better the image the brain can define from the light. this coating costs ALOT........worth it for a 15% improvement that by the time tints etc come into play is more like 3-4%........hard to say

Skiing = Goggles.

Skiing in sunglasses? Yes. I am judging you. No. It's not going well for you.

Goggles only look good with helmets (yuk) and when it's bad weather.

Skiing = headband/bandana and sunglasses. Nothing else needed.

Retires quickly to dig out Killy racing pants and other old-fashioned ideeas 😉

[url= http://singletrackmag.com/forum/topic/expensive-sunglasses-worth-the-money ]Gosh,was it only two weeks ago[/url] 😉

Bloc are decent and not at all expensive

THM on his hols:

[img] [/img]

Cant believe people ski/board not wearing a helmet...

no.

http://singletrackmag.com/forum/topic/expensive-sunglasses-worth-the-money

Anyone remember when the DX jokeleys (jawbones?) were doing the rounds?
One of our own went and tested the lenses, and found them to be just/very nearly as good as the genuine oakleys.
I managed to pick up some adidas fancy riding glasses for about 1/2 RRP and I do love them so, they are far better than any of the oakleys or nikes I have used previously and don't fog.
Casual, just normal oakleys. You can generally get them on sale for about £60.

I have a couple of pairs of Oakley Radars, a pair of Rudy Projects and a couple of other £80+ models and I can't tell any difference between them in terms of optical clarity and I suspect I couldn't with some of the cheap safety specs out there. If I were target shooting at the Olympics it would probably be a noticeable difference but cycling? Nope.

Anyone remember when the DX jokeleys (jawbones?) were doing the rounds?
One of our own went and tested the lenses, and found them to be just/very nearly as good as the genuine oakleys.

/waves.

Actually tested the DX ones against the US specifications (along with some polarised, safety specs and something expensive the wife owned), I didn't perform the ball bearing test.

Polarised failed the tests (98% absorption).
Mirrored extended the cutoff range.
Everything else had identical spectra and passed all the tests.

no.

😉

I can definitely tell the difference with Oakley polarized optics compared to cheap sunnies

http://singletrackmag.com/forum/topic/clear-glasses-distorting-vision

Posher glasses are definitely worth the extra, to a point. I have three pairs of Oakleys and shopped around and never paid more than £80 (Frogskins, Switch Jackets and Five Squareds) and they're great. I'd not spend more than £100 on glasses without a prescription myself, and probably between £50-80 is the sweetspot.

I have to wear safety glasses at work a lot and the distortion is poor around the edges and they can strain my eyes and give me headaches. Same happened with a set of Foakleys from DX. For reference I am a normal glasses/contact lense wearer as well, which I think increases your perceptiveness of poor lense quality.

Yes and no OP. There is of course a law of diminishing returns to take into account. I use clear safety specs from Screwfix or wherever else. I buy 2-3 pairs at a time as wiping them when gritty destroys them. If I did much road riding I may change my mind.

I have some excellent Gill sunnies for sailing, surfing, SUP'ing etc. They float and the optics are very good. Think they were around £35. I've had Bolle. Several. The clarity was fantastic and much, much clearer than cheaper models. I'd guess they were around £60-£90 a pair. Currently have some Blocs and they're great.

I've had a pair of Oakleys in the past and was fairly unimpressed. The quality of the lenses and frames wasn't above Bloc and perhaps worse than Bolle, a personal fav. They were expensive versions too. Full alloy frames (exepct for the shitty plastic hinge).

I can't mentally justify spending more than £80-ish. Living in SE Asia where I wear sunnies for hours and hours every day though, there is certainly a benefit in spending more than £30-£40. My eyes are noticably less tired after an outdoor day. Polarising is important.

The real life difference IMHO between £5 safety glasses and something a bit more expensive is the latter usually has coatings that help water bead off and reduce fogging up, they can also be polarised/photochromic.

I've got some fairly cheap BBB photochromic glasses that seem to do the job just fine and cost about £40, the difference in performance between these and the super expensive ones is largely the difference in time keeping ability between a Casio and a Rolex IMHO.

Would those brands include Bolle? I note they used to sell cycling glasses at the same price as lots of other high end brands...

Bollé make safety glasses, and have also made cycling glasses for a long, long time, not to mention ski eyewear. I used to sell Edge and Edge2s 21 years ago. Back then they were popular and reasonably priced, as well as good to deal with. The Snake range was great too - ahead of its time. Personally if they fit, I'd happily run them.

Similarly I had a pair of Oakley Mumbos / M-Frames while I was working as a guide back in the early noughties. The frame broke while in Grenada, so I contacted Oakley UK. A few days later a new frame arrived, Fed-Ex'd from the 'states, no questions asked. There's obvious Snap-On comparisons there, but it does highlight why they are the price they are, but also why they have the following they do. Unfortunately they were stolen two years later in Croatia, and I've never replaced them. 🙁

I also broke a pair of Smiths while guiding; I like the company and they were good to deal with, but I had to explain the situation and then buy a discounted frame as opposed to the seamless and faultless Oakley experience. All in all it felt far more 'small company', which could be a good or a bad thing, depending on your point of view.

You pays your money...

as my (very blue) eyes

Strangest...............

Yes they are, so long as you are ok at taking care of things and not likely to lose them.

You are only given one set of eyes, why risk damaging them by getting cheapo sunglasses with "100% UV protection" 🙄 🙄 ....(Some are possibly more likely to actually damage your eyes than protect them).

And yes, you notice a surprising difference in visual clarity with better sunnies.

None of the Maui Jim styles seem to have enough around the sides for skiing, in my experience. You certainly need coverage at the sides and also from bellow for use on snow or water..

Saying that, skiing = Goggles, Restaurant terrace = Glasses. So you need flat ones which fit in your pocket without breaking or being to bulky. I have Oakley Frogs for this purpose.

Cheap sunglasses are shit, but cheap eye protection with a tint is good. I've got some bolle silium for about 7 or 8 quid, the clear ones get a lot more use in this climate but the tinted ones are fine too.

I constantly leave my sunnies in stupid places, so I've taken to buying multiple cheap pairs and just leave them dotted all over the place. You will frequently find me browsing those annoying rotating display stands in the local pharmacy, I like to find the most audacious Miami Vice style Aviators possible. I splashed out £13 on the last pair as they had a black frame and matched my moustache nicely 😀

Hmm, tough one.

There are good shades and bad shades, imo, but they don't necessarily match up with price. I tend to buy Oakleys because I like them, they are so widely available and they fit me well. However there are other brands that I like the look of. Tifosi spring to mind.

Best things about Oakleys I rekcon are the range of models for cycling that are all quite different in fit and funciton, and the choice of lens.

Gutted to have lost my Oakley square wires a couple of years back, and was unable to afford to replace them with like.

Probably yes but given discounts and sales not sure. Own

Oakley's - so many in our family radars, half jackets, split jackets and racing jackets.....great but shop around and you can find equal or better

Nike we had some from USA in 2000 and they were excellent lost about 5 years but got some from tk maxx 19 quid and they are great

Polaroid glasses not a fashionable brand but the glasses are great again a tk maxx special

Bloc, got about three sets via a work contract and they are brilliant

Dragon .....daughter has several sets and they are equally great if not better than O's

So my point is shop around around and you will find equally great lens and remember folks

No- one looks good in white framed Oakley's.

None of the Maui Jim styles seem to have enough around the sides for skiing, in my experience

[img] [/img]

These are the ones I use,no light iterference from sides, above or below

Hustler, TBF they look OK.

Pigface - the bluer your eyes the more sensitive they are to sunlight. I have to wear top grade high mountain lenses for sailing and certainly for skiing. The good news is they are cheap.

i have one pair of Oakley's i bought them over 12 years ago for about £80 i have worn them most days (sensitive eyes) about 7v years ago i had a bad crash broke my helmet and chiped my cheek bone the lenses of my Oakley's got a v shaped scratch exactly the same shape and size as the scar on my cheek. Two years ago the frame snapped in my pocket when compressed oddly fixed easily with super glue, then i got hit by a car the frame died but the lenses survived inducing one i picked up from the middle of the road 5 hours later.

i have replaced the frame at a cost of £30 the lenses for £25. 3 or 4 times i have rung oakley and had the arm covers / nose bumpers replaced free of charge when lost or worn.

So a value for money product over its life time and really really robust . i am also sensitive to optical distortion and have never noticed any with the selection of lenses i have.

Crankboy's Oakleys

[b][url= https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luxottica ]Luxottica[/url][/b]

As a vertically integrated company, [b]Luxottica designs, manufactures[/b], distributes and retails its eyewear brands, including Lenscrafters, Sunglass Hut, Pearle Vision, Sears Optical, Target Optical, Eyemed vision care plan, and Glasses.com. Its best known brands are Ray-Ban, Persol, and [b]Oakley[/b].

£.£.

Same. Same.

been using some oakleys for 15 or so years now, money well spent.

I'm thinking about prescription sunnies for road use, what worries me is that I look back often (as you should) and look out of the corner of my eye - prescription lenses won't help me there I suspect..
I prefer wraparound versions due to wind drying my contact lenses out, which is why i was looking at Smith etc.

prescription lenses won't help me there I suspect

Nor will they help you when it rains, or you're out at dusk or later...

Nor will they help you when it rains, or you're out at dusk or later...

Which is what made me go for contacts.

I've had a pair of Oakleys in the past and was fairly unimpressed. The quality of the lenses and frames wasn't above Bloc and perhaps worse than Bolle, a personal fav. They were expensive versions too. Full alloy frames (exepct for the shitty plastic hinge).

[quote=twisty ]The real life difference IMHO between £5 safety glasses and something a bit more expensive is the latter usually has coatings that help water bead off and reduce fogging up, they can also be polarised/photochromic.

Anti-fog coating on my £5 safety glasses, which seems to work as well as on anything more expensive I've owned.

Though you do identify the things I'm missing - tempted to try a pair of Tifosi photochromic as those are about the only ones I've seen which aren't getting silly expensive. Might have a look at some fishing glasses for polarized lenses given they've been suggested on here - would be handy for watersports.

Looking at the Bolle website...with them doing clear/yellow and tinted glasses with anti-scratch and anti-fog lenses, designed for far more intensive environments than riding a bike, why do people spend silly money on eyewear when a lot of their stuff costs around £10 a pair? Serious question.

Optical clarity
Fit
Comfort
Eye/Face coverage
Venting
Range of lens tints
Ability to change lenses
The way they look
The fact they make the wearer happy
Etc.

'Optical Clarity' 🙂

@CountZero

Just out of curiosity, which metal framed Oakleys have plastic hinges?

[url= https://www.amazon.com/Oakley-Mens-Jury-Rectangle-Sunglasses/dp/B004L2JUZO ]Oakley Jurys do[/url]. I'd forgotten the model but a quick google of "broken plastic hinge oakley no replacement" soon found it. I was offered a £50 voucher. As well as the broken hinge, the lens was delaminating and bubbling around the edges. Some film on it. Perhaps the polarizing layer. It's never happened before. They were well taken care of ie. fresh water after the pool or salt water and not a scratch on them.

You are only given one set of eyes, why risk damaging them by getting cheapo sunglasses with "100% UV protection" ....(Some are possibly more likely to actually damage your eyes than protect them)

Shenanigans!

The wife and I use these for our riding and RC flying and have never had a problem with them.

http://www.rapideyewear.co.uk/product.php/11/expert-cycling-sunglasses-and-running-sunglasses

They also have a full range of replacement lenses and frames.

Well.. I dropped £80 on a set of Smith Asana glasses from RXSports.
They come with three lens options, dark mirror, Ignitor (rose tint) and clear. First opinion was that they are well made & the lenses are a decent thickness/rigidity & well finished with rounded edging. The nose clip has 4 adjustment positions which is nice, and the arms feel solid.
The 'clarity' is good, very good in fact & combined with a rimless design means you forget they are there - the very light weight helps with that too.
Thing is, I'm tight as a ducks arse, and £80 is a lot of money..
..so, are they worth the outlay? I'm not convinced they are worth quite that much but they are noticeably better than the triple lens glasses they replaced, that I paid £40 for.

No- one looks good in white framed Oakley's

You've apparently never met me then 😉

Maui Jim's are worth the money,

Stupendous charity and colour.

I've some RayBans I splashed the last £100 of some holiday money on at Brisbane airport 10yrs ago.
They've more than earned their keep.
But these days I'm wearing Animal prescription sunnies that came from Boots.
They are spot on.
Just about to get them re-glazed again, for a new prescription.

Oakleys I struggle with, as they are plastic. £200 for plastic glasses...
I'm sure they are great, but on a middle aged ginger nut, of rotund stature...
🙂

Went for Endura Mullets in the end.
Light-reactive lenses with holes so don't fog up.
Nice fit - not used in anger yet - that's tomorrow.
£31.50 at Wiggle = bargaintastic.

[img] [/img]

Its easy to spot some of you guys when i venture to the borders.

Hope the mullets work well cos they're certainly fugly.

Beauty is in the eye(wear) of the beholder 8)

No its not worth it. Just like any other thing you want to consider e.g. cars, houses, bikes, clothes etc. Cheaper alternatives are always just as good, sometimes better. But they're a luxury and we're lucky enough to live in the first world and these things are nice, so why not if you can afford it. I've got 2 pairs of Oakley's I got in sales - still chuffing expensive for sun glasses, but they're nice and I like them alot, but they're not any better functionally than cheap sunglasses i've had in the past - and i'm alot more precious about them which is a pain sometimes.