Rugged Sunglasses...

Don Rearic

Don Rearic

Joined
Oct 8, 1998
Messages
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I've worn Gargoyle Classics for years and have had a pair of Oakleys that finally gave up the ghost a couple of months ago. What are the top three rugged sunglasses out there that won't rival a car payment?
 
Well, if you are looking for ones that you can abuse, plastic frames and polycarbonate lenses are nice. I have a pair of Smiths from the Slider series that has seen many trips and has taken many hits. If the lenses scratch, you can just slide them out and replace them and you can find at least a few of the Slider series on sales somewhere pretty much anytime of the year.

Smith has above average optics, but they are not as good as Oakley. The only pair of sunglasses I have ever owned that came close to Oakley optics quality were a pair of titanium Nikon sunglasses I had years ago. I don't really need the absolute best optics when wandering around in the woods, so I take my durable Smiths to the wilderness and keep the Oakleys in the car.
 
The pair of sunglasses I've had the longest that have been in the ocean with me, got peppered with sand jumping dunes and hauling a$$ through the desert, drinking in Mexico (:p previous to the escalation of the drug wars), Downhill skateboarding in the mountains during summer, joyriding through the desert on my motorcycle (no helmet in the middle of nowhere, just shades), snowboarding from Bear to Tahoe, they survived me working with about 600 different kids over the course of my three years with an afterschool program and even survived being worn by a very sad six year old that I let wear them for a few days :p. Of course daily wear, a funeral and a couple weddings are under their belt as well :D. The glasses? A pair of Von Zipper "Papa G's"....italian frames/black. I love these glasses. I HAVE replaced the lenses :p.
 
I'm big on oakley, every pair I have had seem to be built like a tank.
 
Thanks guys!

Anyone have any experience with Wiley-X SG1 sunglasses/goggles? They're quite attractive from an Urban-to-Wilderness Survival angle because you can swap out the colored lenses for clear which is a real good thing to have during some type of 9-11-01 event, etc.
 
I have a pair of Oakleys that I love but I don't have the receipt any longer. They have a cracked frame, I wish they would replace them.
 
Hey Don - do you wear corrective lenses? I do and I always go to my optics store for sunglasses and have prescription lenses made. So basically I am really buying the frames. I really like Rayban frames. They seem to last. I've had one set of frames where after destroying the lens (I use my sunglasses in field research and am hard on them, they've saved my eyes a few times though) through a couple years of use, just had a new set of prescription lenses made. Worked great. I always get polarized lenses.

Having had to live with buying normal glasses for a decade or so. Metal frames last longer and are more comfortable for me than plastic frames. Good quality frames allow always have a spring action, the lets you widen the arms past the normal point and return to them. Cheap frames just rely on the flex provided by the frame rather than including a spring.

If you go to an optics store, they almost always have a discount section. You can usually get a pair of good quality frames that original sold for $400 for about $275.
 
I know, I know, that be a lot of money too!

I have a real problem when it comes to my corrective lenses, it's been that way since I was a kid. I don't give a shit who checks my eyes or changes the Rx on them, it's always been the same damned thing, I get headaches that will make you want to just curl up in a ball and shit. :D

Everyone says the same damned thing, "You didn't give them a chance!" Yeah, when you're still having headbangers three weeks into it, damned right.

I only wear them when I have to.
 
I'm gonna have to give Smith a :thumbup: as well. Though I have to disagree with storl that their optics aren't as good as Oakley. I'd say they're as good if not better.
 
I don't care how rugged the sunglasses are, if you scratch the lenses, they are worthless!

That's why I buy 'm cheap at Walmart. In the fishing section, Berkley sunglasses are $10 and are polarized! For that price, if you break them, scratch them, lose them, or drop them in a lake, you aren't too heartbroken. I haven't broken a pair yet, but I have replaced them because scratched lenses, or because I lost them, and I've even dropped a pair in a lake... ... or two.
 
Look @ Rudy Project. I have a pair of the Zyon's couldn't be more pleased with them. I have had them for about a year and trek through the woods and haven't had any issues. Now I don't us them with my chainsaw or anything like that but they have been dropped a few times without issue.

Les
 
Oakley
Wiley
?

Oakley seem clear winners in all the reviews that look at tougheness adn lense quality I looked at before buying recently - but at a price. Especially if you want polarised (which I do).

Wiley have a good reputation - but some claim the scratch more easily

Otherwise at the beach I just use Australian Cancer Council Polaroids and recgnise sand and kids will destroy them evenutally - they won't stop a bullet but they do a good job on blown sand and most other things and are cheap enough to be disposable. Apparenly a lot of local motorbike people use them as well. They must bne in the US under another name - they probably all come from the same Chinese factory

There is a online US shop safetyglassess.com or similar - with a sunglass/polarized section.

So the question is do you go in the bush bird hunting with any republican vice presidents or near euqivalents?
 
Polycarbonate lenses are great, but they will never compare to ray ban lenses. They are tough plastic, but they are plastic.

Ray ban wayfarers with tortoise shell frames have been in my hunting pack for almost 20 years. Same pair. 20 years.

For everyday, I wear ray Ban predators. Also glass lenses
 
I wear cheap polarized sun glasses. I found a nice pair at Big Lots. Bass Pro has an Aivator style with brown lens for twenty dollars. Thats what Im wearing now.
 
I have several pairs from different makers with me here in the sandbox.

Wiley (fog up because of "goggle" design, useless for me here). Sawflies, and another I forget since I've packed them away.

Bottom line, I stuck with the ESS Naro II's. They are ballistic rated which I had to have and I could get a 2 pair package for under $40. That package gets you a case, 2 frames, and IIRC 3 lenses. Spare lenses are under $10, I think I've replaced them twice in a year of hard use and getting blasted by rotor wash. Still on the first set of frames.

I have been very happy with them and will be wearing them when I return.

Nothing against the others makers, just more money that I want to spend and I don't see any gain. This place and I am too hard on gear to loose/crush $100 glasses.
 
Don, I'm a range-master for our agency and I assign guys Wiley X Outdoor Changeables at my range. I don't know what their optics are like as far as polarization, UV blockage, etc for the sun glass lenses because we use clear lenses strictly for eye protection. However, they've been very durable for the money. If I didn't have to wear Rx, I'd buy their sunglasses without hesitation. I don't know if they even make that model anymore; we've had them a few years now.

As far as Rx frames, I'm with KGD. My poly Rayban frames have been reasonable in price, not too gaudy, and very, very durable. They are also very light and, as I've found the hard but thankful way, they float.
 
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