I've used the good ones and the used the cheap ones. I'm hard on them. Maui Jim, Ray Ban , and Vuarnet seem to be durable in that it takes me longer to bend the frames or script the lens. Ray Ban aviators last me the longest since the arms can be replaced.

The $10-15 ones I look at as disposable, but when I'm coaching on the baseball diamond they work since the good ones get scratched from the dirt, stepped on in the batting cages etc.

I like polarized to cut the glare.

What works for you?

I'm kind of a sunglasses junky. I am also very particular about the quality of vision that I get. The best I've found in that regard are my Maui Jim glasses with the titanium ribbon bows. Very light, comfortable, exceedingly acute visually. Have gone through a number of Ray Ban aviators over the years. Several styles of Oakleys work well for me too.

Somebody will probably come on and say cheap sunglasses protect your eyes from UV as well as expensive ones, but there's more to it than protecting your eyes from uv. (Just like there's more to a riflescope than magnifying what you're shooting at.)

All mine also wear straps. I'll no more use cheap sun glasses than I will hunt with a $30 binocular.


I've been wearing the same Costa Del Mar for the past 9 years.

Only one type of sunglasses exist.




Dave

Every now and then I wander into a cheap store and buy half dozen or so cheap pair that suit, I then proceed to lose, scratch, and destroy said items.
I came to this after watching the left lens of a very nice set of zeiss sunglass' drop out of the frame and merrily wing it's way to a bloody great big piece out of it via the cement I was standing on.

And if I buy well those half dozen pair cost me no more than $30.

Same type since 1980 by American Optical:
[img]https://www.amazon.com/AO-Original-...3&keywords=american+optics+polarized[/img]

Smith Optics

The very best sunglasses made and most are lifetime warranted.

Good grief...what the hell was that!

You don't know about ZZ-Top???? You been in a cave for five decades??

This in spades^

I usually go through a couple cheap pair every year. I like amber lens, not too dark.

This year I bought a decent pair of Serengeti. Like them quite a bit so far. Haven't lost or busted them yet.

Not really...I have skun cats before but did not expect to hear it on my computer.

Cheap safety sunglasses for me, mostly from CDNN but only on closeout like they are right now.

Oakley half jackets with multiple lenses. easy to replace and very good.

Native eyewear. my newest ones are the dash plus. again, multiple lenses and everything is replaceable.

both are really light and function as shooting glasses also.

Optically, I would say the Oakley's might be a bit better but they are a bit more expensive.

We have nice looking dark safety at work. Get all I want

What works for me is the cheapest pair of polarized one's I can find that fit well.
I will also use a pair of dark safety or cutting glasses till they get scratched up a bit.

Since I wear glasses, my options are much more limited. Prescription shades are too expensive and a pain in the rear. I've finally gone with cheap clip ons and have several lying around. They get scratched too easily and aren't as dark as I'd like but it work.
For fishing, I have a pair with side panels that fit over my regular glasses. They're too bulky for normal wear, though.

An friend of my brother's is a MD, he field tests Costa Del Mar sunglasses. He once recieved a case of them for his troubles and promptly gave them to the local firefighters and deputies in his area. He speaks very highly of them as does anyone that owns them.

I use to drive for a living and always had Revo's. They have always been great for me and fit my melon head. In the last few years there quality seems to have gone down quite a bit. My next pair will be the Maui Jims.

I buy a nice pair and wear them til I lose them or someone steals them and then as punishment I buy a cheap pair and wear them until I feel like I'm adult enough to have another pair of Maui's or what have you. The cycle repeats itself.

I do think good sunglasses are important.

I have a pair of Costa Blue Waters that I bought 3 or 4 years ago. They were spendy, but I have been very happy with them.

I wore oakley's for years and they worked well enough. Made a change to the Native's about 10 years ago. REALLY like them. very light, and lifetime warranty. Top notch polarization as well.

costas with glass lens

Rock Chuck, go to zenni.com

I bet I have 15 pairs of sunglasses. I like polarized ones for fishing, but not for driving or golf. I would like them for driving, but they make the info screen in my car and on gas pumps impossible to read. I have Decot shooting glasses, NYX sport glasses, and several other makes. Most of them were $50 and under. I like medium amber (orange) tint for golf and shooting, smoke or dark amber for driving, and either polarized green or vermillion for fishing.

I have found that nothing beats a very light vermillion lens for night or bad weather driving. It cuts glare and increases contrast, especially in snow.

Great choice. Mine are in silver/gray and not gold.

kwg

I assume you won't even THINK about tellin' yer wife she has too many shoes..

I have 2 sets of prescription Oaklys, 2 sets of prescription Maui's, and 1 set of glass lens prescription Costa's.

The Maui's are optically superior.

After a lifetime of Ray Ban Aviators I went to Smith optics. I like them a lot. I would think they are pretty durable given the materials.

I used their goggles on my dirt bikes and street bikes and they were great.

Oakley half jackets since 04.

Been wearing the cheap safety shades we get at work for 30 years.

My Ray Bans have been in the safe the whole time.

I beat the crap out of glasses (and wrist watches) so I go with these. They work well enough.
https://www.amazon.com/3M-Protectiv...amp;keywords=3m+moon+dawg+safety+glasses
I use the same thing in a light amber lens for indoors and shooting.
https://www.amazon.com/3M-Glasses-O...ds=3m+moon+dawg+safety+glasses&psc=1

I always get the cheap ones because they go MIA in a year or less.

Nothing like the Maui Jim's.

I really like these.

https://www.northernsafety.com/Product/26495/Jackson-Safety-Nemesis-Smoke-Lens-Safety-Glasses

Edge Kazbek from Amazon. You can get them in polarized or not and with different lenses. They are about $25. They look like sunglasses, but are safety glasses with improved impact protection. Fog resist, scratch resist, and lenses that don't pop out. They have nylon frames and are very clear to me. I especially like that the fit keeps out most of the stray light from the sides or under the frame.

I started wearing them about five years ago. Before that I had expensive Serengetis, Ray Ban, and Oakleys. I really like the Edge, esp. for the cost. My favorites are the copper and the G-15 lenses.

Me with a pair of the Edge glasses a few months ago:

That's what my friends say too, but they're expensive for the way I treat sunglasses. I learned the hard way on over-priced Native's and they're only half the price of MJ's. And I can't seem to locate deeply discounted anywhere.

I like Maui Jim's. The ones I wear are very light,and the lens quality very good.

Often, a couple of hours behind cheap sunglasses results in a killer headache for me.

I only wear sunglasses when I am fishing and then not always. I have two $30 polarized ones. Can't recall the brand.

Nice glasses, but don't you need wings or at least a commission to wear those?

If you're serious about sunglasses, these are w/o a doubt, the best, especially for being on the water.

IMO, their durability is 2nd to none depending on the exact frame, like the Blackfin model.

And if you want them with prescriptions or bifocals, no problem.

MM

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
This


I have been using Smith optics for about 20 years (Action Optics then). If tough lenses is what you need then get their glass sandwich polarized. I have only needed to replace glasses for prescription purposes (and 1 Stolen). The sandwich construction can also be had with photochromic properties but do not change from clear to dark, only change about 20% or so depending on the lens. I am also tough on glasses typically my regular glasses only last about 2 years even with the hardening treatments. They are also available in prescription and bifocals.

Carreras baby !

Polarized Natives for fishing !

I also have been a nothing but Smith guy for over 20 years. I agree on their polarized glass lenses; very durable. The Ridgewell is my current favorite:

http://www.smithoptics.com/us/Root/Men%27s/Sunglasses/New/Ridgewell/p/RIGPPCPTT

Customer service is the BEST; recently shattered a pair(totally my fault) and sold me a new pair at 60% off, free shipping. Hard to beat that.

Have had Oakleys, Serengetis, Ray-Bans,Julbo, IC-Berlin,

now Im most satisfied with these -
http://www.safetyglassesusa.com/s4120sn.html

Agreed. I keep 2 pair of Costa's and about every 3-4 years, I manage to break one and then I send it back for lifetime warranty claim. Need 2 pair cause I can't live without for 6-10 weeks.

Smith Optics for fly fishing. Oakley Gascans for shooting & driving.

Costa.

I used to spend enough, each year or two, on keeping my Serengeti's repaired, to buy a new pair of Maui Jim's, which have lasted me 7 years!

Cheap...

Thanks for the report Scott and MM. I'll widen my search from Maui Jim and see if C-D-M have something that looks good on an ugly head. My current glasses look bad enough I need to give 'em a stomp and mail 'em in for a new pair.

I prefer Smith and Native. Lightweight and great warranties. My current Smiths have glass lenses, but the weight is worth it for durability and clarity. Costa makes nice sunglasses but I never could find a pair that fit me right.

Il

Dying men have sounded better.

Wiley X works for me.

Julbo. End of discussion.

Made here, inexpensive but not cheap, no cachet...
www.safetyglassesusa.com/genesis.html

I only need polarized lenses when on the water.

Most of the time I wear these Starlite glasses and am very happy with them.
And I pay less than $2 a pair for them. Always have a spare pair in the truck, and never sweat loss or damage.

Unless you're obsessive about it they are pretty good, optically. I buy a mixed box of clear and dark at least once every year. I wear the clear while priming cases and anywhere i might need some eye protection indoors.

Cheap, non-polarized sunglasses will "dim" everything, including your vision. Cheap polarized glasses will cut glare well, but scratch VERY easily. Expensive polarized glasses with plastic lenses will be clear and cut glare, but not last very long because they scratch so easily also. Expensive, glass sunglasses are, by far, the best and will last longer, but they are EXPENSIVE. It really depends why and how often a person needs them.

You can buy approximately 30 pairs of Berkeley fishing glasses for the same amount of money as a pair of top-shelf Costa's cost.

I personally have no use for non-polarized sunglasses, or expensive sunglasses with plastic lenses.

What are these?

I have horrible vision and wear prescription sunglasses. Cheap doesn't cut it with sunglasses for me. I love Maui Jim's and Oakley's. They both wrap around my eyes enough to offer protection of my eyes.