Polarized Sunglasses

J

Joe Lane

Active member
I've started looking for a good pair of polarized sunglasses and thought I'd ask here what you guys wear. I typically buy the under $20 glasses but have been considering the higher end stuff. Are they that much better? I've been looking at Costa del mar, Native, and H3O. Any thoughts?

Thanks,

Joe Lane
 
I worked part-time for a buddy of mine in a sunglass shop for a while. Got to know them well.
Hands down, Costa del Mar and Maui Jim have the best lenses in the business, no questions asked. The difference between them & a $20 or $40 pair of glasses are simply incredible. Out of the hundreds of glasses we sold each month, over 50% (by volume) were Costa's, the rest of the sales were the combined other 15 brands we carried. That tells you a story right there. Costas would be my first choice. Maui Jims are great but you dont have the selection that you have in Costa. They do make some great driving glasses but not stuff I would wear hunting or fishing.
Natives are a good lense as well, a true sports sunglass. Most come with interchangeable lenses and all are ANSI impact rated. They also used to have a great replacement warranty, not sure if they still do. They would be my second choice behind Costa's.
Oakleys, which were a big seller, had the worst lenses for the money. Scratched too easy., are outdated technology compared to Costa & Maui.
Whichever one you choose, get a frame that is comfortable. If they dont feel comfortable for the few seconds you try them on, they will feel reallyyyyyy uncomfortable after wearing them for hours. So make sure they fit and feel good.
What do I wear? I have to have prescription, and still wear the same frames & lenses I first bought when I got glasses 8 years ago. Prescription shades are expensive (these are $250 back then), so I guard them like they are gold. If I could afford it, I would have a prescription pair of Costa del Mars.
 
If you keep your eyes open (no pun) Boater's World will put their polorized glasses on serious sale once or twice a year. Bought mine for 50% off. The biggest difference to me is when I'm fishing and can see under the water much better than I could with my old Ray Bans.

The brand I bought was Sea Striker and they are more reasonable than many others (I think they are kind of a house brand for Boater's World). Maui Jim's are super but I can't afford them. Way too much for something that may wind up overboard.

Jusy my $.02 worth,
Harry
 
Ray-ban Predators' rock...

Don't I look cool! The guy with the glasses...

IMG_3471.jpg


was always one to ware the cheap ones till the Wife turn me on too the higher quality glasses now I never leave home with out them!! Yes they are a bit pricey but you take a lot better care of them too!!!!
 
Costa del mar Fathoms are all I will wear. The lenses are great and the customer service is great. I bought mine about six years ago. Whenever they break or I get a scratch I send them in and they charge almost nothing to fix or replace them. They will replace glass lenses for 60 bucks. And there in Florida so if you call there office you can actually talk to an American that gives a crap. Well worth the money. Thats all you will ever see on any of the fishing guides down here.
 
CraigS - That worked out great didn't it? Another legitimate excuse to post the picture of your bucks. Thanks for the info on the Ray-ban's too.

Joe Lane
 
Joe
I am a person who needs polarized glasses. I have had several kinds, Oakley, Maui Jims, Revo etc. . I have a pair of Hidef Spex.. They are great. I also have the same glasses for shooting sporting clays.that are not polarized. The polarized ones I have had for almost 3 years. They have held up extremely well. They are expensive.. $280.. www.hidefspex.com
 
Thanks for all the information. You guys are confirming what I've heard from other sources on the Costa del Mar quality. The problem with Costa's is there are very few suppliers in my area. I want to try them on before I buy them.

What are your thoughts on the interchangable lense systems? I like the looks of the Costa fluids with interchangeable lenses. That way I don't have to choose a lense color. What's the biggest advantage/disadvantage of glass lenses vs. polycarbonate?

Thanks,

Joe Lane
 
You may want to check with Hildalgo's, hildalgos@suddenlinkmail.com, 800-786-2021. Have used them for 25+ years. It is the place a lot of military and commercial pilots get their glasses. Prices are very reasonable and the service has been great. Good luck on the search, R.Bell
 
I don't have experience with the other brands, but I have had several pairs of Native shades since 2001 and I love em!!

I forgot about the warranty on the first pair, so when they got ran over, I trashed em.

I broke pair #2 on duck opener last fall and can't find the box they came in. I put the receipt in the box, so I'd know where it was if I need to return em!!

So now I'm on pair #3, and still looking for the box for pair #2.

I'll never go back to "unpolarized" lenses !

NR
 
Glass: Best quality & visual clarity. Extremely scratch resistant. Heavier. Not as impact resistant, will shatter if hit/dropped the right way. More expensive

Polycarbonate: Great quality & visual clarity, just not as good as glass. Lighter. Impact resistent, will not shatter (ANSII Rated). Will scratch easier.

Interchangeable Lenses: I liked the Native system better than the new Costas.
The lenses on Native are polycarbonate. They are not as good as Costa but are great lenses. Better than Oakley in my opinion.
The lenses are easy to take out/put in & they have a range of colors from clear to amber, brown & dark grey. I like the natives, if I didnt need prescriptin, I would have a pair for hunting and a pair of Costas for fishing.

What ever you get, get a neck strap! They are cheap insurance against loss.
 
Some one made a comment about never getting non-polarized again.
Unless you are a pilot flying a plane with polarized windscreens & an LCD glass cockpit, never get un polarized sun glasses!
It is the glare that tires out your eyes and glare is what polarization reduces/eliminates.
So, even when you wear sun glasses that are un-polarized, your eyes are still under strain.
Do your eyes a favor, only buy polarized.
And, BTW, anything marketed as sunglass has to have UV A/B protections, so any polarized lense is going to give you that.
 
Joe,
Some will think this is spam, but it isn't intended to be anymore than some say good things about certain gun,shells,boats etc.
I spoke earlier of plain jane sunglasses. If you want really good shooting glasses especially if you already wear precription glasses that's another story. My favorite and the favorite of the majority of competition shooters is Decot Hy Wyd. You can get most any color lens imaginable and you can get them polorized and made for your prescription. Bud Decot is an opthamologist who is also a shooter. I am not trying to sell glasses but I learned about these when I was on the skeet circuit and figured I should share this with my Duck Bro's.
decot@sportglasses.com 1-800 528-1901. They are not cheap but are very durable. Lenses are polycarbonate.

Not only do they help you see but mine have saved my eyes from pieces of broken clay targets many times. They have also kept reeds and twigs from poking me in the eye when brushing a boat or blind at 0 dark thirty.

Check out their website, I bet you will be impressed. Not a rep for them or encouraging you to buy their product.

Best,
Harry
 
Get a hold of a current copy of the Sportsmens Guide catalog.

They have H2 Optixs that regularly sell for $80.00 a pair on sale for $25.00.

If you're a club member they're $22.00.

These are the same sun glasses issued to the USCG & many game commissions including the FWC down here.

I spend an average of 120 days on the water & the salt plays He!! on the eyewear.

You can pay big bucks for the Ray-Bans, Oakley's or Costas but the H2O's are just as good.

I just ordered (5) five pairs last Friday.

(2) two greys & (3) three browns.

I prefer the blues for offshore but they had none in stock.

Good Luck!!!
 
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Joe,
when I chartered on the salt I leaned toward the Maui Jims. I really liked the glass and the frames worked for me. The service was good on waranty issues as well. I used to keep two pairs on rotation and my wife had to sneak sunscreen on my nose at night so I didnt have such bad raccoon eyes in my wedding pictures.
But I loose to many pairs now that I cant use the safety string with all the work around moving engine parts. I go thru $10 walmart fishing section junkers like popcorn. I do only buy ones that have no bend in the lights reflected off the lens in the store.
I will also say the Dycott shooting glass is very good and will protect you in case of an impact which is no small issue. I wear safety glasses at work a lot and should do it even more.
 
Joe, a number of years ago, I was the Costa del Mar rep in Wisconsin, and the guys on this site have already done a great job of describing and selling the product. However there are a number of Wisconsin dealers for CdM. Scheels in Eau Claire, is probably the closest.
 
Thanks Mike.
I called Scheels and they do have some CdM's on hand. No fluids but they said they would order for me if I was interested.
I need to do a bit more research on the brands mentioned above before making a decision. As a rule it appears the higher end glasses do make a difference.
I've been practicing good sunglass care with my el-cheapos. I try to keep them in one of three places.
1. On my face.
2. Around my neck on a cord.
3. In a hard case and safely stowed.
I think I'm ready I just need to find the right pair.
 
When you go to the store to try them all on, do yourself a favor and be sure to try the Costa 580 lenses. I wear the 580's with amber tint. They are amazing. The difference between the 580's and their "standard" 400 glass lenses is about the same difference between the 400's and a pair of cheapo's.

Take a pair of glass lensed 400's and a pair of the 580's outside and try them on for a real, true life comparison.

Also, take the time to read through Costa's website to educate yourself on which color lenses and mirrors would suit your conditions best. I chose the 580 ambers for sight fishing redfish in South Louisiana (as well as wearing them for everyday use) because the amber lenses are the highest contrast lenses. They make a redfish glow like super-red crayon on fire. I see 2 - 3 times the fish that folks with grey lenses see and at further distances.
 
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