Explain high end sunglasses to me

Fit and finish, durability, and lens quality. I have owned a few different lens variants of Ray Ban aviators for the past 10 years or so. There is no comparison to drugstore sunglasses. Plus I tend to take better care of something I spent a bit extra on.
 
I love me some good sunglasses. I just went from a pair of $120 Smith Ramblers to a pair of $190 Oakley Jupiters. Even going between those pricepoints, there is a major difference in frame quality and optic quality. I get headaches from sun glare easily, so it makes a great difference to have a good polarized lens.

For sports and stuff, I have a set of Oakley Radars with three lenses: Polarized, amber vented, and clear vented. They make a huge difference. Coverage, unobstructed view, grippy, fog free...Awesome. I've gotten the money's worth because they last and last. If they brake, Oakley replaces them.
 
Expensive shades (much like a Rolex) will get you laid.
 
I went on a holliday to singapore with my gf, i had shades from Ralph Lauren and my gf had cheap shades from H&M. On the second day, her shades started melting
 
I too have tried all manner of cheap sunglasses and even some not so cheap. When I was in the Army we were required to wear ballistic lens glasses/sunglasses. I wore the ones the Army gave me and the optics were not quite right and in addition to making my vision funny around the edges they made me nauseous. I tried two or three brands on the Army approved list and they all did the same thing. I was finally issues Oakleys and everything was great. The optical clarity was amazing and I was no longer getting nauseous after wearing my sunglasses for extended periods.

Now I am required to wear safety glasses on my job sight and after my wife requiring eye surgery and her doctor telling her to always wear polarized lenses I decided to go with Oakleys again. I spent $300.00 for my pair but now I have glasses that exceed ANSI standards for safety, are polarized, and I have clear vision out here in the desert where I work. Oakly aren't the only brand of good sunglasses but they are the ones that have performed for me.

Get cheap sunglasses and chalk the price of quality sunglasses up to hype, marketing, and profit if you want to, they are your eyes. I may be a dummy for buying expensive sunglasses but I am a dummy with perfect vision and no eye injuries.
 
Nullity said:
This is an area that many reviews overlook.

Haha... funny post. :D
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Thank you! I was wearing the Sea Dweller when I met my wife. I got her the MOP Lady Datejust for our 1 year.

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I didn't read all the posts but I didn't read anything about glasses with real glass. I really prefer real glass to plastic. They resist scratches better than plastic. Only problem is if you drop them they can shatter. But for scratches they have held up much better for me.
 
on_the_edge said:
Contrary to what hoxhunbe just wrote, the cheap crap is NOT ok. Cheap sunglasses do not block out UV rays. As a result, you put the glasses on because it is bright out. To compensate for the darkness, your pupils dilate and let in even more UV light than if you were not wearing the sunglasses in the first place. What's the big deal with UV rays? Well, besides causing skin cancer, as far as your eyes go, exposure to UVA and UVB radiation can cause cataracts, muscular degeneration, and ocular cancer.
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My wife, with her 9 years of optical experience, has personally checked the UV protection of cheapie sunglasses and found the claims on the lenses to be factual. You can take your "Cheapie" sunglasses to any Optical store and have the UV protection checked.
 
I have also heard the story about "cheap sunglasses giving people headaches". Personally the most expensive sunglasses I ever bought were $25 years ago. I still have them in my truck too, I don't know how I managed to keep up with them but I did.
 
Some time back a major pilots magazine did a test of sunglasses and tested amongst other things optical distorion. Oakley was way ahead of nearly everything else. in the high 90% for clarity... the enxt nearest were ray abn and Maui Jim in the mid 80's if i recall along with polarized Oakleys.

It explained to me why Oakleys had been the only brand I could wear for a full day of driving without a headache.

Also I have had great experiences with oakly standing behind their products, I sent a pair in after 5 years of constant wear and they replaced the polarizedc lenses whic were in rough shape for about $35 inlcuding shipping back to me.... Thats service since I could buy replacement lenses for about $150 ..

Reallt great glasses are worth every cent.
 
I've got a pair of Wiley-X glasses. For sure my favoite ones. You can get several types of lenses to go in them (including prescription ones).
 
Polycarbonate or glass?? I will pay a lot more for glass lenses if they are made by Ocean Waves or Costa Del Mar. Shades are like everything else, it cost a lot more to get a little bit more but I think its money well spent especially if you work outdoors. I will not own poly or plastic lenses and I live in South Florida and spend 90% of my waking hours outside. All poly lenses scratch easily, glass with minor care will last for years, just my experiance.
 
fatheadhill said:
I used to work in a motorcycle shop that sold Oakley's.., and didn't believe the hype either until I got my first pair. I wore them for a couple weeks, and didn't think much of 'em until I tried on my old pair. Now Oakley is the only brand of eyeglasses/sunglasses I'll wear. The optics are better, they fit better, last longer, and just plain look better IMO. Give 'em a shot, like most other things, you get what you pay for.
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While I agree that Oakley makes great sunglasses, there are much better choices when it comes to lenses for regular ole eye glasses. :thumbup: I own three pair of Oakley sunglasses, and they are the only sunglasses I wear.
 
All this discussion about sunglasses and no mention of Luxottica? For those of you who don't know, there's a huge Italian company called Luxottica that owns most of the sunglass brands out there, as well as many of the stores that sell you sunglasses. The problem is that every time Luxottica buys up a brand, the quality goes way down so they can improve their profit margins. Ray-Bans used to have Bausch and Lomb lenses and be better build; now they're flimsy and substandard. Your best bet at any price point is to go with an independent company; and sunglasses made in Japan tend to be the best ones.

I hear a lot of people talk about Oakleys, and I have a few pairs that I like myself, but they're only good if you're playing sports or doing something that requires impact protection for your eyes. Otherwise, their optics aren't anywhere near the best. They use a polycarbonate-based lens for strength, but polycarbonate was never designed as an optical material, and isn't as clear or tintable as cr-39 plastic or glass. It also picks up scratches much more easily.

There are a few companies that I'd recommend, but overall I'd have to hand it to Maui Jim. They're an independent company that puts out excellent quality and has the best customer service in the business. I've heard of people sending back sunglasses they've broken 10 times or more, and getting new ones back every time. They make glass and plastic lenses, with the glass ones being a little better optically. But if you ask around, you'll find that nearly every optician agrees that Maui Jim has the best optics you can buy. Pretty impressive considering they cost far less than the high end sunglass brands. Other good companies out there are Randolph Engineering (and the similar American Optical brand), Serengeti (a close second to Maui Jims for me regarding optics), Costa Del Mar, and Rudy Project (these are sport oriented ones, again. But they do use a different kind of plastic that has the impact resistance of polycarbonate but much better optical properties).

The high end brands focus more on the frames, but they really are leaps and bounds ahead of typical Sunglass Hut brands when you examine them close up. Kind of like a Sebbie; you may not appreciate it immediately, but if you really care about the product, the quality will come through. These brands are usually around $300-500 MSRP, but they change styles frequently, so it's pretty easy to pick up a discontinued style for a low price if you're patient. The big players are Oliver Peoples, Barton Perreira (formed by former OP designers who thought the company was selling out), IC Berlin, Mykita, Salt, and Lindberg. Also like a Sebbie, these brands tend to the more understated and elegant; none of them have visible logos on the outside.

Oh, and even if you don't want to invest a lot in sunglasses, it's really a good idea to make sure you get at least a good pair rather than something from a gas station. Kind of like gas station knives, really cheap sunglasses are dangerous. If they don't have proper UV blocking, the darkness of the lens will dialate your pupils and let in more damaging UV light than your eyes would be exposed to if you weren't wearing the sunglasses at all.
 
CR-39 wasn't developed as an optical resin either...
:rolleyes:
Oakley consistently comes out very high (top one or two) with independent testing of optical clarity and distortion, as opposed to biased testing by brands. Not sure how define optical qualiyt, but thats how I define high quality optics. FWIW polarizing reduces optical clarity and increases the distortion of all lenses of any sort or brand compared to equivalent non-oplarized lenses.


Tsujigiri said:
All this discussion about sunglasses and no mention of Luxottica? For those of you who don't know, there's a huge Italian company called Luxottica that owns most of the sunglass brands out there, as well as many of the stores that sell you sunglasses. The problem is that every time Luxottica buys up a brand, the quality goes way down so they can improve their profit margins. Ray-Bans used to have Bausch and Lomb lenses and be better build; now they're flimsy and substandard. Your best bet at any price point is to go with an independent company; and sunglasses made in Japan tend to be the best ones.

I hear a lot of people talk about Oakleys, and I have a few pairs that I like myself, but they're only good if you're playing sports or doing something that requires impact protection for your eyes. Otherwise, their optics aren't anywhere near the best. They use a polycarbonate-based lens for strength, but polycarbonate was never designed as an optical material, and isn't as clear or tintable as cr-39 plastic or glass. It also picks up scratches much more easily.

There are a few companies that I'd recommend, but overall I'd have to hand it to Maui Jim. They're an independent company that puts out excellent quality and has the best customer service in the business. I've heard of people sending back sunglasses they've broken 10 times or more, and getting new ones back every time. They make glass and plastic lenses, with the glass ones being a little better optically. But if you ask around, you'll find that nearly every optician agrees that Maui Jim has the best optics you can buy. Pretty impressive considering they cost far less than the high end sunglass brands. Other good companies out there are Randolph Engineering (and the similar American Optical brand), Serengeti (a close second to Maui Jims for me regarding optics), Costa Del Mar, and Rudy Project (these are sport oriented ones, again. But they do use a different kind of plastic that has the impact resistance of polycarbonate but much better optical properties).

The high end brands focus more on the frames, but they really are leaps and bounds ahead of typical Sunglass Hut brands when you examine them close up. Kind of like a Sebbie; you may not appreciate it immediately, but if you really care about the product, the quality will come through. These brands are usually around $300-500 MSRP, but they change styles frequently, so it's pretty easy to pick up a discontinued style for a low price if you're patient. The big players are Oliver Peoples, Barton Perreira (formed by former OP designers who thought the company was selling out), IC Berlin, Mykita, Salt, and Lindberg. Also like a Sebbie, these brands tend to the more understated and elegant; none of them have visible logos on the outside.

Oh, and even if you don't want to invest a lot in sunglasses, it's really a good idea to make sure you get at least a good pair rather than something from a gas station. Kind of like gas station knives, really cheap sunglasses are dangerous. If they don't have proper UV blocking, the darkness of the lens will dialate your pupils and let in more damaging UV light than your eyes would be exposed to if you weren't wearing the sunglasses at all.
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Rapt_up said:
CR-39 wasn't developed as an optical resin either...
:rolleyes:
Oakley consistently comes out very high (top one or two) with independent testing of optical clarity and distortion, as opposed to biased testing by brands. Not sure how define optical qualiyt, but thats how I define high quality optics. FWIW polarizing reduces optical clarity and increases the distortion of all lenses of any sort or brand compared to equivalent non-oplarized lenses.
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Not sure where you're getting your information, but Oakley is nowhere near the top for optics. You must be reading some skewed tests, or they limited their options to only polycarbonate lenses, or something else is at play here. I don't know what you're referring to with the "biased testing" reference, since Oakley is the only company I know of that uses biased testing as part of their marketing (Notice how they compare their products to Maui Jim glass lenses for impact resistance but not optical clarity, and likewise use brands that are not well known for clarity to compare their optics to? There's a very good reason why they don't compare themselves to Wiley X, Rudy Project, and Kaenon for impact resistance and Maui Jim, Serengeti, and Costa Del Mar for optics). There is a general consensus among opticians and sunglass owners (many of whom, like me, started out as Oakley fans and have nothing against the brand) that there are much better brands out there for optical quality. You might want to try believing less in the advertising and trying things out for yourself; I think you'd be pleasantly surprised at the quality of a really good pair of sunglasses over Oakleys.
 
I just recently picked up a pair of Wiley-X sunglasses for riding my motorcycle. The optical difference between them and the $20 drug store sunglasses I wore for years is night and day. Much less eye strain after a full day of riding.
 
Persol and Rayban are the best bang for your buck. Timeless designs. Superiour construction. Glass lenses.

Cheap glasses look cheap. Like a 10 dollar Winchester knife looks cheap. They both work about the same too.
 
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