Wilderness eye protection

[Mentor]

Hi All,

After sustaining a messy but largely superficial (thank goodness!) injury to my face while chopping wood this past weekend, I have decided to look into some quality safety glasses for outdoors use (I already have a pair for in the shop).

I would be interested in hearing whether any of you guys wear eye protection when 'working' in the woods, and, if so, what you would recommend in terms of designs and brands. I will need to get a prescription pair.

Thanks, and all the best,

- Mike

 

[fugawee]

I wear photo-chromatic sunglasses with
some polycarbonate lens that would protect
my eyes.
Never really gave it much thought to wear them specifically
for protection,I wore them as sun glasses.
I will think twice from now on.
Thanks for the reminder.

 

[go2ndAmend]

Prescription safety glasses are something I am unfamiliar with. I have several pairs of safety glasses scattered about my shop, truck and shooting bag. None of them are prescription, but some of them are tinted and some are clear. Most of them I picked up at the local welding supply company.

 

[dawsonbob]

Mike, do you have any prescription shooting glasses? If you do, and they're like mine, they're impact resistant. Just a thought.

 

[ROCK6]

Hey mentor, I know Oakley and Wiley both make prescription lenses. The good'ol Army paid for mine before I got eye surgery. I still carry clear lenses for my Oakley Half-Jackets. I'm a big believer in eye protection!

ROCK6

 

[udtjim]

I lost my right eye many years ago when the head of a nail went through it. It was gone in a heart beat and there was nothing they could do for it. I had safety glasses. They were in the truck. How dumb was that?

 

[Mentor]

Shoot, udtjim, I didn't know that. Sorry to hear it. I think I came about an inch from joining the club. My safety glasses were about ten feet away, in my shop, waiting for my next visit to the belt sander. I'll bet that a fairly high percentage of accidents take place close to safety equipment that could have made a difference if we had the wherewithal to use it!

Thanks for the advice on shooting glasses, guys. I'm going to look into a pair.

Best,

- Mike

 

[KuRUpTD]

Mike,

You might want to look at some prescription polycarbonate sports goggles like these.

http://www.sporteyes.biz/cart.php?m=product_detail&p=263

 

[Bushman5]

ESS glasses.

 

[dbltap45acp]

Wiley X is the way to go my friend.

 

[MattM_Gilbert]

It was gone in a heart beat and there was nothing they could do for it.

Jim, I am so sorry that this happened.



Not to long ago, the woodsmonkey site had a contest where the contestants would list the 20 items they would take in an emergency pack.

My frame of reference was that if the scenario was an emergency, one would most likely self rescue to civilization or signal for help. Key to both of these is protecting one's self while walking or waiting. Thus, three of the items which I listed were double palm leather gloves, ANSI rated safety glasses, and a disposable dust mask. These items have much more to do with an urban emergency; for me, this is much more probable than a wilderness emergency.

For the OP, I put basic ANSI glasses in a hard sided ray ban case which came with sunglasses. In my vehicle tool bag, I have another pair in a soft case. In cold and windy conditions, the goggles help keep warm and clear when sunglasses are not viable.

 

[kr1]

I had my eye saved once, as a kid by my prescription glass which are all safety glass. Firing pin shot out of the receiver I was looking into. Just like udtjim my eye was fine and then I couldn't see out of it. Fortunately the plastic/glass that was thrown into my eye fell out before I even got to the emergency room and my eye was fine though the sensation of stuff in my eye lasted for a while. I know I would have been blind if it wasn't for the glasses I was wearing that day.

I am nearsighted so I have been wearing glasses for some time. They do offer some protection but when I'm bushwacking I wear regular safety goggles. I can wear them over my prescription glasses and have side protection. Not saying its the best but for me it gives me piece of mind.

Very sorry to hear about your accident udtjim. I know how close I came at 14 to loosing my eye.

 

[udtjim]

It only takes a second. I di carpenter work for quite a few years. I had driven a jillion nail before that but one day for some reason the head flew off the nail and got me. A brownish shadow crept down from the top down and it was gone. Had that happened now days with lazer surgery and such, it might have been savable. I get along pretty well now and I am used to it. HOWEVER, that other eye gets a lot more care than it used to.

If it happened out in the middle of nowhere, infection might also be a real problem.

 

[kr1]

It only takes a second. I di carpenter work for quite a few years. I had driven a jillion nail before that but one day for some reason the head flew off the nail and got me. A brownish shadow crept down from the top down and it was gone. Had that happened now days with lazer surgery and such, it might have been savable. I get along pretty well now and I am used to it. HOWEVER, that other eye gets a lot more care than it used to.

If it happened out in the middle of nowhere, infection might also be a real problem.

Yeah, very good point as well. I don't know how many people have ever had a corneal abrasion but the sissy name doesn't due justice to the amount of pain or debilitation that it can cause. And getting an infection is a very good point.

I will point out with eye care for an injury. It was standard practice to cover both eyes in the event of an embedded object in an eye. Stabilizing with 4x4's and using a cup to protect the injured eye and also covering the unaffected eye was the standard protocol. Particularly in a wilderness situation there is no reason to cover the unaffected eye. There is no evidence that it substantially changes the outcome and some people will get very claustrophobic and/or anxious with both eyes covered and more important in a wilderness context they will be unable to assist in thier own evacuation. There is no reason, particularly in a wilderness context to cover both eyes.

KR

 

[k_estela]

I had a piece of wood cut my cornea badly back in April. I was cutting a branch in a pile of wood and brush and didn't know it was under tension. Should rthe wood have been a bit deeper, I could have lost my sight.

My vote goes to Wiley X glassess too.

 

[gehrm_73]

Interesting topic.

Udtjim - very sorry to hear about your accident!

For those of you who recommended Wiley X, is there a particular model or type you feel works best for the outdoors (e.g., goggles vs. glasses, interchangeable lenses vs. fixed, etc.)?

Thanks!

 

[Quirt]

28 years ago I was in the woods training and I got a piece of wood in one of my eye. I tried all the standard first aid techniques and couldn't get it out. Miserable isn't a good description. I suffered for a couple days. Finally after getting home my wife took me to the ER. I'm not sure what was worse...the wood in the eye or the doctor's technique to get it out. Bottom line...I'm a hard wrap around safety glasses guy since then.

Call it "geek wear" if you want but training in the wild is eye dangerous...too many hazards to content with. In ever pack or kit is two pair of safety glasses, one clear and one shaded. I'm a believer.

 

[d_filgate]

I've had a few close calls in the past with wood, scratches around the eyes,
things getting into the eye, etc....
Went and got some woodworking safety glasses from Home Depot.
Carry a pair in my kit for when I go out.
Last thing I need is to not be able to see when out in the bush.

Udtjim, I'm really sorry to hear about your eye.
Like Kevin, I got a scratch on the cornea once, and know how that
feels...can't imagine how it would feel losing an eye though.


Dave

 

[Mannlicher]

excellent point!

I wear glasses, and in the field, they are heavy duty, so that covers the issue to some extent for me.

 

[dawsonbob]

Jim, sorry about the loss of your eye. I can't really imagine what that would be like, but the very thought makes me shudder. I make my living as an illustrator, which is about as vision dependent as it gets, and the thought of losing that vision is a nightmare.