perscription glasses

chuck buck

chuck buck

Joined
Nov 4, 2007
Messages
453
one thing ive been thinking about that ive never seen in anyones kits are glasses. im sure most folks dont wear glasses but to me, this is the just about THE NUMBER ONE when i consider any hiking /camping. i always bring my last pair of glasses as back up and keep a mini screw driver with screws and extra nose pads. sounds nerdy but if i cant see, i cant do ANYTHING. it really stinks because it takes up so much space and is a good chunk of weight in my kit but they are a top priority. i can barely get around home without them cant imagine woods where all id see is green in front, brown below, and blue above.

anyone else carry specs in their kit? how do you do it? are there any rubber frames? poly framed? indestructable glasses? i try and buy bendy titanium ones when i can afford them. in my kit ill just get an old hard case and stuff it full of glasses stuff then band it together tight. -CB
 
You bet. I have second pair of glasses with sunglasses in a crushproof case with me at all times. Be lucky to find the car without them, let alone drive. For me specs are as necessary as shoes. Once lost my glasses when younger,to a hawthorn branch, while chasing cattle out of a dry creek, went from a frustrated young man to a lost scared guy facing horned shapes coming out of the blur.. anyway never been without a second set since. A good post, as glasses are such a commonplace thing many might not consider the possibility of losing them, or their fragility.
 
I have an extra pair of prescription safety glasses that I bring along when traveling. They have the flexible arms and are pretty durable. I pack them in the hardcase they came in.

I can see pretty good without my glasses so I do not normally pack the spare pair for short outings in the woods. But when on extended trips they get thrown in the pack.
 
Heck yeah chuck buck. I have four old pairs, sunglasses, a dress pair, a shop pair and the nylon frame/ rubber banded set for wear under swimming and gas masks. A fix it kit as you described with 100 mph tape, krazy glue and rubber bands. Not only do I rely on my vision for most of my survival, I have had numerous times that glasses have kept my eyeballs in their sockets:)

Good post-protect them peepers

Mark
 
Last edited:
I keep some eye drops in my PSK, and I take my glasses when I go camping, but for day trips I don't take glasses.

I've never had a contact pop out of my eye, so I'm not too worried about it for day to day, but I will take my glasses if I'm carrying other stuff like when camping, because it's not that large compared to the other stuff.
 
has anyone tried starting a fire with their lenses? hmm...something to try when the rain stops. -CB
 
in The Lord of the Flies they use one boy's glasses to start several fires...

i just got glasses a few months ago because i'm somewhat nearsighted. i can read and navigate woods fine, but there's a touch of fuzz at about 4-5 feet, and at 30 feet i can't normally recognize a person's face.

they aren't really a necessity for me, but i normally bring them along in their hard case for those times when i'm at the top of a mountain looking out or if i just want to see really clearly far away for whatever reason.

day to day i keep them in my bag or often hooked in the collar band of my Tshirt.

they are stainless frames with the hinges that can bend way farther out than they should, but they are far from indestructible. i am careful with them and they have lasted so far.
 
Yep - - my eyes aren't super bad, but I do better with my contacts in or glasses especially on long distance stuff. Last time out in the mountains while bow hunting for elk, I got dust or something in my eyes. They were sore and watering like crazy making it hard to see as I drove along the dirt mountain roads. I had my kit with extra glasses, eye glass cleaner, eye drops, etc but they were packed away in my gear. Opps. - My eyes cleared & were o.k. - but lesson learned. Carry that gear so that it can be found quickly, and strictly by feel if necessary. If you can't see youre in trouble ! Regards, - -
 
I always have a spare pair, either regular or sunglasses in my day pack.
They do make both rubber and other frames that are near indestructible. Google Rec Specs
 
chuck buck said:
has anyone tried starting a fire with their lenses? hmm...something to try when the rain stops. -CB
Click to expand...

IMO that stuff about starting a fire with your eye glass lenses, or the lenses of a camera, or ice shaped like a lense is a bunch of baloney. - - Even if you could get it to work, under what conditions would this be most likely ? When in the middle of the day under direct and bright warm sunlight . . . not during wet, cold, and possibly overcast conditions when a fire would be needed. Has anyone who has actually repeated this old saw in a magazine article, book, or t.v. show actually tried it ? I doubt it. I have gotten a fire going with a magnifying glass going in the bright sun, but could never do so with glasses. - - I took an outdoor survival course from a man who retired after serving 30 years as a survival instructor in the US Air Force (he set up the survival training instruction at the US Air Force Academy among many other accomplishments) and he also said that this was a bunch of hogwash. - - Regards
 
I wear contacts, and currently have no glasses. The website above is good to know. When I am out camping, fishing, my contacts start bugging me at night, a pair of glasses would'nt be a bad idea. I can't see very well without lenses. If I were to lose them I would be having a real bad day to say the least. Great thread by the way.:thumbup:
-frank
 
FYI, in case anyone is wondering, lenses that correct myopia or nearsightedness do not work for starting fires. Reading glasses are precise magnifying lenses might. They work because they concentrate light into a focus. Basically if you hold a lens a few inches above text and the lens makes the text appear smaller, then they won't work. It ticks me off, because I have been nearsighted since I was about 12. All they ever did was make me see better. Sorry for the thread-jack.:)
 
I'm with ya on this one. I can't see all that well without my contacts in. I normally have a pair of extra contacts and an old pair of glasses with me. I don't sleep in my contacts so if it's an overnight trip then it's a no brainer to have my glasses with me.
 
For those of us blessed with unaided good vision - who have seen many moons - there is always prebsbyopia... the technical term for the shortening of one's arms as one ages. It starts ~40 for most. I first noticed it when I realized that my camera straps were let all the way out - and I still couldn't read the f-stop on the lens' aperture ring. Yep, the camera straps were being made too short - matched my shrinking arms!

It's bad - instantly I needed +1.75 diopter - still do 20 yr later - to read, etc. I use +1.00 full lens magnifier safety glasses to shoot revolvers with - +2.00-+4.00 for 'close up' work, ie, carving, modelling, etc. Lots of +1.75 readers around my house - but nothing in my 'bug out bag'. Thanks for the reminder! A trip to the 'dollar store' is in order... Actually, I am fortunate!

Stainz
 
I can see absolutely nothing (useful)without glasses, and have an old pair at work and in the car. Lately I have remembered to carry a spare pair at hikes. Unfortunately my glasses is so strong that they are extremly expensive :grumpy:
In a one week hike many years ago I should take a bath in a river the second day, and had to place the glasses so I could find them afterwards. The obvious choice was down in one of my boots:eek:.
When I came out of the water, the moscitoes descended, and I hurriedly started to re-dress. Of course I stuffed one foot down in the boot and pressed out one glass from the frame.
I got sceared, but could fortunately just press the glass back in place. I had no small screwdriver back then.
timann
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top