Australian Cycling Forums - Bicycles Network Australia

OK for now I'm using some great wrap around sports sunnys made for golf. I used to play alot and these were great because they have rubber over the arms which kept them steady and not slip off.

Time to get some proper riding glass's but don't know whats the GO for and against with brands,comfort important,don't like them too tight.
Is it worth these different shade lense's as well.
I have noticed in a few LBS's costs starting from $30.00, are these ok you know UV rating etc or do I have to spend more ?

Thanks

I only have experience with one pair but I am very sensitive to tight or uncomfortable glasses, which can easliy cause me headaches.
So with that I say

I bought a pair of BBB glasses for $60 from Rebel Sport. They come with 3 lenses - dark, amber, and clear.
They are very light, very comfortable and don't squeeze too tight as they are flexible. They do grip well though and I've never had a moment where they have come close to falling off.

The stop the wind for the most part but I do start getting watery eyes when going about 70kph or faster.
They block the glare well (don't compare to polarized lenses of my Arnetts) but do well enough.

At the moment I'm wearing a pair of Dirty Dog sunnies I bought in NZ, much cheaper there than here. They work well and for $50 bucks I can afford to lose or break em.

For clear lenses I have gone very low tech, a pair of protection glasses from Bunnings.

I would love a pair of Oakley transitions but can't justify the price.

Ive always worn MAKO sunnies, at the moment ive got there wrap arounds, $250 well spent

Have some BBB wrap around cycling glasses I got for $50, they're good enough.

Main thing I looked for is the frame linking at the top rather than the side of the glasses so they don't introduce a blind spot in your peripheral vision.

If your golf sunnys are working why do you need to change them though?

You can get fancy Oakly glasses with anti-fog treatments and so on for $lots.

I agree that a good pair of sunnies, preferably polarized, are a great investment. I use a pair of polarized Revo's for driving and casual wear but the lenses are glass optical grade and a bit heavier so they tend to slip down my nose when riding, hence the cheapies for cycling.

tatt2 wrote:Ive always worn MAKO sunnies, at the moment ive got there wrap arounds, $250 well spent

Bloody hell, that's a lot of dosh.

I have ridden mainly without them, but recently bought some on the last trip to HK, $8.33 per pair.

Do the job fine. I bought 4 pairs - 1 yellow, 1 dark and 2 reflective lenses.

At $250, you are paying for marketing and hype. IMHO

MichaelB wrote: At $250, you are paying for marketing and hype. IMHO

For some brands that is very true. Particularly brands new into eyewear that are all sourcing from from the same factories in china.

For other brands that invest alot in r&d on lens technology you are getting better optics, uv protection and scratch/breakage resistance, better quality frames too.

MichaelB wrote:

tatt2 wrote:Ive always worn MAKO sunnies, at the moment ive got there wrap arounds, $250 well spent

Bloody hell, that's a lot of dosh.

I have ridden mainly without them, but recently bought some on the last trip to HK, $8.33 per pair.

Do the job fine. I bought 4 pairs - 1 yellow, 1 dark and 2 reflective lenses.

At $250, you are paying for marketing and hype. IMHO

$250 isnt much for a decent set of sunnies, to be honest if the mako's were 500 id pay it

Blybo wrote:

MichaelB wrote: At $250, you are paying for marketing and hype. IMHO

For some brands that is very true. Particularly brands new into eyewear that are all sourcing from from the same factories in china.

For other brands that invest alot in r&d on lens technology you are getting better optics, uv protection and scratch/breakage resistance, better quality frames too.

They still only cost a few bucks to make. The rest is profit & advertising.

tatt2 wrote:

MichaelB wrote:

tatt2 wrote:Ive always worn MAKO sunnies, at the moment ive got there wrap arounds, $250 well spent

Bloody hell, that's a lot of dosh.

I have ridden mainly without them, but recently bought some on the last trip to HK, $8.33 per pair.

Do the job fine. I bought 4 pairs - 1 yellow, 1 dark and 2 reflective lenses.

At $250, you are paying for marketing and hype. IMHO

$250 isnt much for a decent set of sunnies, to be honest if the mako's were 500 id pay it

You obviously earn more than me.

Wanna buy me a pair while you are at it ?

MichaelB wrote: They still only cost a few bucks to make. The rest is profit & advertising.

But millions to research & develop. As a business owner myself I do not begrudge any company a fair profit for quality. Blatant rip offs anf profiteering like alot of cycling clothing in Australia is a different story. Sunglass brands like Revo, Maui Jim, Serengetti are worth it, the frames are as good or better than corrective glasses and so are the lenses. If you had a pair of these you would understand.

Ever find yourself taking off your sunnies to read a sign or view something in the distance? I don't with the Revo's but I do with my Dirty Dog sunnies.

Mako I can't comment on, I thought they did cheap polarized lens for fishermen, the $250 surprised me too but maybe they have different ranges I'm not familiar with. Just because you don't see the value isn't to say it isn't there. You would probably pay more for another product than I could justify, it's a personal thing.

Blybo wrote:

MichaelB wrote: They still only cost a few bucks to make. The rest is profit & advertising.

But millions to research & develop.

On some things maybe, but majority of the sunnies (fashion ones), I'd query that.

Blybo wrote:As a business owner myself I do not begrudge any company a fair profit for quality.

Me neither, but $250 + for a pair of fashion sunnies is not "fair"

Blybo wrote:You would probably pay more for another product than I could justify, it's a personal thing.

True. I have spent thousands on motorsport stuff that others would just look like

But still, $250 + for sunnies to ride a bike (non-prescription ones)

Bnej wrote:Have some BBB wrap around cycling glasses I got for $50, they're good enough.

Main thing I looked for is the frame linking at the top rather than the side of the glasses so they don't introduce a blind spot in your peripheral vision.

If your golf sunnys are working why do you need to change them though?

You can get fancy Oakly glasses with anti-fog treatments and so on for $lots.

Re the golf ones and I should have mentioned this, with the helmut straps pulled down at comfortable clip tension it feels like the straps are pushing the arms firmer on my temple/ear area, admittedly the arms are thicker due to the rubber moulding hence the thought to get some newies for riding.

All thanks for useful comments so far and I agree no point spending big bucks it's so overrated I've been and done all that.
I'll check out these BBB's (AT) Rebel.

MichaelB wrote:

Blybo wrote:

MichaelB wrote: They still only cost a few bucks to make. The rest is profit & advertising.

But millions to research & develop.

On some things maybe, but majority of the sunnies (fashion ones), I'd query that.

Blybo wrote:As a business owner myself I do not begrudge any company a fair profit for quality.

Me neither, but $250 + for a pair of fashion sunnies is not "fair"

Blybo wrote:You would probably pay more for another product than I could justify, it's a personal thing.

True. I have spent thousands on motorsport stuff that others would just look like

But still, $250 + for sunnies to ride a bike (non-prescription ones)

And Tatt2 and myself were not referring to "fashion" sunnies.

I'm into motor sport too, the dollars stop me from getting properly involved... By the way; Jim Richards swears by his Serengetti sunnies and wears them racing. I even wear my Revo's driving in the rain cause the polarizing lenses take away ALL glare.

Bolle Bandits, 'bout $35 from just about any decent hardware shop. Very sturdy with good side protection too.
Bloody Rx lenses cost more than the frames.


Still piffed that Rudys and BBBs Rx ranges don't fit well on my boofhead, I like the colourchange lens idea.

Shaun

Blybo wrote:

MichaelB wrote:

Blybo wrote: But millions to research & develop.

On some things maybe, but majority of the sunnies (fashion ones), I'd query that.

Blybo wrote:As a business owner myself I do not begrudge any company a fair profit for quality.

Me neither, but $250 + for a pair of fashion sunnies is not "fair"

Blybo wrote:You would probably pay more for another product than I could justify, it's a personal thing.

True. I have spent thousands on motorsport stuff that others would just look like

But still, $250 + for sunnies to ride a bike (non-prescription ones)

And Tatt2 and myself were not referring to "fashion" sunnies.

I'm into motor sport too, the dollars stop me from getting properly involved... By the way; Jim Richards swears by his Serengetti sunnies and wears them racing. I even wear my Revo's driving in the rain cause the polarizing lenses take away ALL glare.

Spot on mate, there not fashion sunnies if people want to wear $10 sunnies from the servos no worries to me, i know what works for my eyes (no headaches) and thats all i care about, i wear them all the time not only riding, my eyes are worth more to me than a $10 pair of cheapies from the 2 dollar shop.

Blybo wrote:By the way; Jim Richards swears by his Serengetti sunnies and wears them racing. I even wear my Revo's driving in the rain cause the polarizing lenses take away ALL glare.

He can afford to, and probably gets them fro free.

We'll have to agree to disagree on the def'n of Fashion sunnies. QED.

I guess that by not wearing them, I'm doing my eyes harm.....

MichaelB wrote:

Blybo wrote:By the way; Jim Richards swears by his Serengetti sunnies and wears them racing. I even wear my Revo's driving in the rain cause the polarizing lenses take away ALL glare.

He can afford to, and probably gets them fro free.

We'll have to agree to disagree on the def'n of Fashion sunnies. QED.

I guess that by not wearing them, I'm doing my eyes harm.....

years ago i used to wear the cheaper sunnies but found i would get headaches and sore eyes, with the MAKO's i dont get the headaches or sore eyes, $250 is a small price to pay, saves me having to buy panadol all the time.

To get back to the original question, you want polarized lenses that are 100% UV resistant to UV 400 standards (they block out both UVA and UVB). They should fit properly so perhaps steer away from some of the so-called bargains you see on ebay as you have no way of ensuring a good fit.
Mirror-coated or highly reflective sunglasses will reflect more sun onto the upper cheek and nose, so apply a high-factor sunscreen if they have these coatings.
The glasses should be dark enough to reduce glare, but not dark enough to distort colors and affect the recognition of traffic signals. Tint is mainly a matter of personal preference but from what I have read for the best color perception choose lenses that are neutral gray, amber, brown or green. Personally I find that orange lenses give better contrast in low light conditions.
Sunlight can still enter from the side of the sunglasses and be reflected into your eyes so you may want to look at ones that wrap around your temples.
What you pay for them is upto you. I have a pair of Nike that my wife got me for a birthday years ago. When I found out the price I wasnt too pleased but 4 years on I can see that they are actually good quality/value. But then I wear them every day, rain or shine.

Safety sunnies work best for me. Best ones I've found are the polarised ones from Eyre. Best of all, they cost me nothing - just like Jim Richards, eh?

Cheers,
Graeme

(PS - just how much R&D is involved in making sunnies? I can't imagine a lower tech item for my bike riding than sunnies ....)

MichaelB wrote:

Blybo wrote:By the way; Jim Richards swears by his Serengetti sunnies and wears them racing. I even wear my Revo's driving in the rain cause the polarizing lenses take away ALL glare.

He can afford to, and probably gets them fro free.

We'll have to agree to disagree on the def'n of Fashion sunnies. QED.

I guess that by not wearing them, I'm doing my eyes harm.....

I'm not trying to put you down Michael but it seems that your definition of fashion sunnies is "all sunnies". What have you proven by saying QED?

And if you are spending long hours in bright sunshine without UV400 protection you are not stopping the harm even cheap sunnies cab give you. The anti cancer council recommends Polariod sunnies (about $50) cause they give bang for buck in the protection stakes. The more expensive "technical eyewear" for want of a better discription will not necessarily give more uv protection, but they will give you superior optics, cut out virtually all glare and give higher contrast levels.

Rudy Project....look the part!!!!

http://www.rudyprojectusa.com/landing/index.htm

Blybo wrote: I'm not trying to put you down Michael but it seems that your definition of fashion sunnies is "all sunnies". What have you proven by saying QED?

And if you are spending long hours in bright sunshine without UV400 protection you are not stopping the harm even cheap sunnies cab give you. The anti cancer council recommends Polariod sunnies (about $50) cause they give bang for buck in the protection stakes. The more expensive "technical eyewear" for want of a better discription will not necessarily give more uv protection, but they will give you superior optics, cut out virtually all glare and give higher contrast levels.

Meh. In my eyes, a lot odf the specs that people wear are fashion items rather than true glasses that are technically designed as proper eyewear.

Their advertising may state loats, and claim miracles, but I take a lot of that with a grain of salt.

Whilst some glasses are better made than others (e.g. the ones I bought compared to yours), the fact is that they still cost bugger all to make compared to what they sell for.

There is R&D done, and they do spend more, and whilst research can be found stating one thing, there is research that is also saying the opposite - so who do you believe (sounds a bit like the global warming debate...) ?

I remember reading a quite detailed report many years ago that stated the waering of sunnies (good or poor quality) could lead to greater damage, by the fact that due to the reduced glare, the pupils were more dilated, and therefore let more sun in leading to more damage, and the effect was greater in kids.

I personally can't wear a lot of the warp around style/close fitting glasses, as my face hgets too hot and i sweat into my eyes and can't see, so for me, catch 22.

In the end, you spend what you can afford or want to justify. Purely personal.

Definatley go for polarized. My job means I work outside all day every day and for the most of my working years (9 so far) I hardly wore sun glasses or just ordinary ones. Found out this year that I've got UV damage to my eyes so whenever outside I've been advised to always wear polarized sunglasses to prevent further damage. Be carefull what your buying!