doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Good sunglasses?

Although I tend to avoid amber or any nonneutral lense color, Orvis's house brand glasses with bifocals are excellent for spot and stalk fishing. I ordered them with double strength bifocals to make bloodknot tying easier.

I have considered ordering grey polarized glasses for my Ranger Edge shooting glasses for hunting, but mostly I use Maui J's or similar quality, all with bifocals, but otherwise, uncorrected lenses. My only complaint is that they tend to be a bit too dark when consulting OnX or my Garmin collar gear.

Glasses for grouse, however, are a real hard one. Nothing seems perfect all the time, or even most of the time.

BrentD: Boy do I get that one, bought some Smith "Low-light Ignitors" a while back to see how they would work for grouse on those flat grey days up there. Not one of the better Smith models (not even glass lenses) and ugly as hell so maybe not a good sample but... they didn't (and still don't) roll my socks down for that application. Newer Smiths have "Chroma-Pop" color-enhancing and even a new version of the old "photo-grey", meaning that they will lighten in lower light conditions and darken in brighter. So hard to separate the facts from all the "fluff" here because all the makers really pile on the sales jargon (most of which is meaningless or nearly so).

After much consideration, I want: 1. real glass and 2. good polarizing, 3. decent quality (no crappy or ugly plastic), and if possible 4. the latest coatings to add clarity and reduce "clutter". In rifle scopes the newer "coatings" seem to enhance light-gathering and eliminate superfluous input (blue light, glare, clutter, etc.). I'm hoping the "new" sunglass lines can do that now too.

I purchased my Maui Jims at the Cabelas store in Denver while on a recent trip to the big city. Lenses are polarized glass and the frames are metal. I won’t own plastic lenses!
Sometimes they are a little dark. Haven’t shot with them yet, still recovering from my vitrectomy (for floater elimination) which went very well BTW.
You are correct in saying that one pair may not be the answer to all conditions. I ski, shoot targets, fly fish and drive. All in varying light conditions. Start with one good one and expand from there. Our eyes are WAY too important to take shortcuts.

I may have to get me a pair of these. They meet your criteria:
https://www.randolphusa.com/products/aviator-military-special-edition?variant=39494532366476
JR

I fell in love with polycarbonate lens through several deployments, the eye protection provided is important.

I could not easily determine the level of eye protection the Maui lens provide.

For driving not important, but for shooting in the uplands it cannot be minimized.

Not cheap but I know there is prescription support available for both Wiley-x and Oakley

Wy nobody speak about Serengeti drivers, is this not available in the US ?

Perhaps you missed this in my earlier post on the previous page?

Well...in the interests of protecting my now "older" eyes I bought some new fishing sunglasses Saturday. After much research I settled on yet another set of Smiths (their top-end Guide's choice). The tipping point was, of course, that I got them for "cost" yet again at my old gunshop/flyshop job(!). So, for almost no money I got ChromaPop, the new lightweight high-resolution glass, spectacular polarizing, & darn good fit. Other fishing glasses probably look better to me but...this was a deal I couldn't ignore.

Their sales pitch...

Lightweight, scratch-resistant Techlite™ polarized glass lenses cut glare
ChromaPop™ Glass polarized lenses cut glare and enhance color and contrast while being highly scratch-resistant
Smudge and moisture resistant coating for easy cleaning and clear optics
Anti-reflective coating improves clarity and reduces eye strain
100% UV protection

Fit / Integration
Medium-large fit, medium-large coverage
8-base lens curvature offers a wraparound fit
Megol temple and nose pads provide non-slip grip so glasses stay put (whatever the hell "Megol" is)
Spring hinges self adjust to your face for a snug, comfortable fit

I really wanted to try the competition's offerings (Costa, Maui Jim, etc. ) but I couldn't even find any to try on here, at least not conveniently. With the money I've saved I can possibly find other sunglasses to focus on my other outdoorsy passions, like maybe grouse-hunting? So taking my own advice, I also just ordered some discount Costa 580 "Sunrise SIlver" units on eBay with the lighter yellow tint. My new hunting and shooting glasses perhaps? Again....time will tell.

Got my Costa sunglasses the other day and wore them yesterday walking the dog. They seem very-much like my "Low-light Ignitor" Smiths in many ways (everybody's frames now come from Italy, it seems, and they all look a bit "clone-ish" to me), with perhaps a bit brighter yellow tint. They have very good clarity and resolution with that "580" coating that Costa heavily advertises so... they should be good shooting glasses as well. I had hoped that sunglass technology had advanced significantly in the last decade or so but from my initial comparisons to my 12-year old Smiths, I'd have to say these "new" versions are seemingly just "newer". The temples are nice and tight (not loose and worn) and they may have a few advances I've yet to notice, but it's not the dramatic difference my older Smiths were when I first got them. A mild disappointment perhaps, but really... too-soon to tell. Hard use in the field will be the real test.

Bought two more sets of the Bullhead Swordfish safety glasses last week. One brown/amber and one smoke/black I got them at a hydraulic supply business for $8.50/pair. Anyone who laughs at me for buying such cheap glasses, I understand. I paid nearly $300 for the last set of Pillas. But, I dare you to try a pair. If you aren't impressed I'll buy them from you.