Big Boy Sunglasses?

Nothing beats American Optical

 

I like Randolph Engineering.

 

THIS

I have been using Wayfarers since the 80's

Still do it

Have a box full of parts and from time to time I can put a Partsglasses together

 

Not the new Ray Bans now produced by Luxottica. Just cheapo plastic lenses and terrible cheap hinges that don't last, they bought Ray Ban and immediately cannibalized the Wayfarer brand. How do I know this? I have a few pairs of pre-Luxottica Wayfarers with Bausch & Lomb glass lenses and seven-barrel hinges. There's no "Ray Ban" logo plastered on the lenses or the temples, they just have "Ray Ban Wayfarers" in block letters engraved on the inside of the temples, out of sight (nowadays they put the logo in the corner of one lens and on the outside of both temples, ew, talk about overdoing the branding!)

Now, those older ones are damn near indestructible. I have one pair that I've been wearing since high school and I've had them for 36 years (I got them in 1984 when I got my first real summer job as a navigator on a sloop sailing for the Bahamas and points south). Still going strong, no scratches, look almost brand new, the only sign of wear is a little relicing of the hardware.

Like so many other things we use today, the quality no longer resembles the original product.

 

I second Randolph Engineering. Well made and worth the extra money if you can keep your wife/girlfriend from losing them in the ocean and your kids from playing with them. The type of sunglasses someone demanding like Chuck Yeager and other pilots would wear.

If you just want a normal pair of sport-oriented wraparound shades and you have an active lifestyle (exercise and/or sportsmanship), I highly recommend Oakley Turbines:

https://www.oakley.com/en-us/product/W0OO9263

 

A small brand that is popular among Spec Ops personnel is called Gatorz.

https://www.gatorz.com/

 

A good pair of polarised glasses is necessary here- especially in winter.
They are also tax deductable for most of us.

 

They are very high quality.

However, I will not buy expensive sunglasses anymore, because no matter how hard I try, I always end up losing them. So in my opinion, no they are not worth it.

 

After 35 years I'm on my second pair of Rayban Aviators. Only reason I'm on the second pair is that the original pair I had got accidently sat on .

 

Im in the Maui Jim group on this. My latest pair are the "twin falls" model....very light with a little wrap cause I also want them while riding.
The great thing is that you can order them with readers built in, didn't know if I would like that or not, but I sure do.
My eyesight is better then 20 20 for everything but reading and these are awesome on the road for maps, menus, etc.
The reader is small and barely noticeable from the outside

 

Oakley M-frames for me.

I lost/broke too many cheap sunglasses over the years. Something in my subconscious has a price point that takes care of my stuff. I bought my first pair 20 yrs ago and still have em.

I used to do a lot of bike riding. I had three sets of lenses: dark, amber and clear. Worked great. Now I go fishing...got a set of polarized lenses for them.

I don't use bifocals, just carry readers. I tried reading sunglasses...nope.

 

My kids have gifted me with several pairs of really nice sunglasses. I have a bad habit of losing them or sitting on them, so I leave the expensive ones at home or in my car toy. I buy my cheapies at the Dollar Tree.

 

Last night I picked up take out food for me and the wife. On the drive home, I couldn't find my sunglasses and I was sure I had dropped them or left them at the restaurant. When I got home, I walked over to the mailbox, and reached into my back pocket for my keys, which were actually in my other hand. Then I realized I had been sitting on my sunglasses all the way home. This is why I buy cheap sunglasses.

 

This. They are pricey but worth it - $13.67.

 

Having really blue eyes has meant that I need to wear sunglasses or else I get a splitting headache. I always used to just buy cheap ones and buy new as needed. For most of the 80's I worked all over the world for an American pipeline coatings company. I had been home on some leave and was on my way back to Cairo in Egypt. We touched down in Zurich to refuel i think and there was around a couple of hours before we continued so I thought I would grab a bite to eat, on the way back I had time to take a look in the duty free shop and saw an offer on RayBan Aviators and bought a pair for if memory serves me correctly $100 or maybe that was what they cost at home.

Got into Cairo, headed out for the plant in Suez, into the office to see what was what and got asked to take a look at the cooling tank when I got changed. Got into my work gear put on my new Raybans headed over to check out the 5mtr deep by 5mtr diameter cooling tank, climbed up the the gantry to the walkway looked over the side of the tank and my raybans promptly fell off into the tank. I offered to pay any of the locals to go in and get them for me but got no takers as it was likely jam packed with both known and unknown bugs. Later that day on the way to buy a new pair of cheap sunglasses I thought to myself, that's me finished with status symbols.

 

Exactly

 

Yes

 

My favorites are, in order of price:

Oakley - stylish, sporty, very good lenses

Serengeti - excellent clarity, glass lenses.

Maui Jim- lense clarity rivals Serengeti, despite being plastic. I would consider these the best all around sunglasses on the market. Expensive, but worth it. Relaxed eyes is not only healthy, but improves your mood.

I have 5 pairs of "good" sunglasses in my rotation. I'm pretty good about keeping them safe. If I damage or lose one, I start looking for sales. Costco is great.

 

Hard to beat Ray Bans. My mom used to carry them in her neighborhood store all the way back to the early '50s. That said, I don't like the Wayfarer style sunglasses with the wide arms. They actually block my vision when I'm driving and trying to merge into traffic or change lanes. So, I always purchase the ones with the narrower arms. They still block your vision some but not nearly as much as the wide armed Wayfarers.

 

Ray Bans are okay but not normally polarized and I like polarized and polycarbonate better. That is Maui Jim’s, Costa Del Mar, Serengeti. Any of these are good. I also have a large head and face so have a hard time fitting my face. I am of the opinion Maui Jim’s are normally sized for teenage girls so try them on for fit.