Recommendation on sunglasses that truely polarized & 100% UV?

[okumasheffield]

I am looking for a new pair of sunglasses which is truly polarized & 100% UV protected without spending $$$$ on it. Any suggestions on brands/models & place(s) with best deal(s)

 

Would be great if it is good for both driving & fishing

[hoops12]

I have a pair of these brand new forsale. They are to big for my face, but are amazing glasses.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HyPV-tz4-RM

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P18_AkIneg4

[Gregoire]

You get what you pay for. Sometimes at Costco Maui Jim's go on sale, I think $90 or so is the cheapest that I have seen them. The bottom line is: if you do a lot of sight fishing investing in a good pair of sunglasses is worth it. I know that I have tried $50 sunglasses and they pale in comparison to better ones. These are the cheapest ones that I own that work. They also have the advantage of having interchangeable lenses for different light conditions.

[Walleye72]

I got a pair that I like at Mountain Equipment Co-op. They are Sun Cloud, and they are polarized.

 

http://www.mec.ca/product/5028-295/suncloud-hook-polarized-sunglasses-unisex/?q=suncloud%2Bhook

 

I like the amount of light that they block due to the style of the frames. They are similar to the cheaper ($20) pair of Rapala glasses that I previously owned. It seems to me after having worn both pairs, that the clarity of the lenses in the Sunclouds is better than the Rapalas.

 

Down the road I might consider a more expensive pair, but right now I like these. And I don't have to worry about losing a $200 pair of glasses while I fish.

 

One last thing. Be wary of buying online without having tried them on. It was amazing how important trying on all the different options at MEC was. Many of the glasses that I viewed on the website were not comfortable on me at all. I am grateful I didn't order the pair I thought "looked the best" on the site as they felt awful. Lesson learned.

[musky_hunter]

Numa

[kickingfrog]

The mark-up on actual prescription glasses is enormous. If you think a couple of hundred bucks gets you better sunglasses have at it. I'll spend my money on other things.

[NANUK]

You will probably get reasonable UV protection with a $20 sunglasses,

But it is also good vision / clarity you need if you are wearing them all day, good quality lenses are very important IMO, you get what you pay for.

I get headaches from cheap sun glasses,

[Gregoire]

The mark-up on actual prescription glasses is enormous. If you think a couple of hundred bucks gets you better sunglasses have at it. I'll spend my money on other things.

 

It depends on what type of fishing you do. If you need to be able to see the lure, or a following fish, or are sight fishing I can tell you from experience that there is a huge difference between cheap glasses, and more expensive ones. If you have a recommendation for less expensive shades that do the work, please give it, as I would love to try them.

[kickingfrog]

 

It depends on what type of fishing you do. If you need to be able to see the lure, or a following fish, or are sight fishing I can tell you from experience that there is a huge difference between cheap glasses, and more expensive ones. If you have a recommendation for less expensive shades that do the work, please give it, as I would love to try them.

Sorry, mine are for looking cool. Have at it. Always pick white.

[blarg]

I dont think you need expensive glasses to get polarization or protection. You might get a clearer or more durable lens qith more expensive glasses idk, some of the cheap one i have used made as much difference on the water as the more expensive ones I have now.

[mosquito]

I got another pair I wear most of the time but don't remember the name but I also have a pair I really recommend if you need reading glasses, there is a pair you can get at Sail that has a small magnifying lens built in, The other oddball glasses for the tackle box are an ugly tortoise shell but have an LED light in each side, great for in the low light.

[cram]

I have Smith Optics, and they're great.

 

KickingFrog - I can definitely tell the difference between those and my cheaper ones. Could be because of Smiths are glass and the others plastic, but I think it's more than just that.

[FloatnFly]

i bought a pair from Gagnons in Oshawa 3 years ago for $20 and they are awesome, I forget the name on them, think it was xtreme blue or something like that. but people i've fished with that are using costas have said that mine are just as good if not better. The UV protection is amazing, I've had sun burn on my face except where my glasses are. so yes, you can get great glasses on the cheap, but hard to find.

 

I would highly recommend the xtreme??? if you can find them, if not, Costa Del Mar would my next choice for around $170

[Shloim]

I also use 60 sun cloud glasses from MEC and they work fine. We tried them against more expensive glasses and the result was that the difference was minor and not worth the extra $

[kickingfrog]

I didn't say there isn't a difference from one type to another. Just trying to point out that more money doesn't necessarily get you a better pair.

 

You can spend your money as you like, as I said.

 

The facts are that prescription glasses are over priced and quality has zero to do with price. If someone thinks that off-the-rack sunglasses are worth the same as a pair of prescription glasses, I can't do much about it, clearly. Some offer opinions, others offer facts.

[cram]

I didn't say there isn't a difference from one type to another. Just trying to point out that more money doesn't necessarily get you a better pair.

 

You can spend your money as you like, as I said.

 

The facts are that prescription glasses are over priced and quality has zero to do with price. If someone thinks that off-the-rack sunglasses are worth the same as a pair of prescription glasses, I can't do much about it, clearly. Some offer opinions, others offer facts.

You should try it before judging. The expensive ones are often much better.

[kickingfrog]

I know, I might as well pee into the wind.

[okumasheffield]

Are there different levels of polarization?

 

I have not yet found any pair of sunglasses completely black out the LCD screen when rotated 90 degrees as shown.

 

Edited June 12, 2014 by Okuma-Sheffield

[musky666]

I love Revo shades, wear them all day with no issues, and since switching to amber lenses will never go back to darker shades.

[cram]

I know, I might as well pee into the wind.

I'm not saying that a 200 dollar pair is 10x better than a 20 dollar pair......but to say there's no difference is absurd. I know a lot of fly fishermen who would emphatically disagree with you.

 

Put on a pair of Costas (glass, not plastic) or Smiths and compare them to your 20 dollar rapala or bass pro glasses. If the difference in what you can see isn't obvious, then I guess your "facts" are better than my "opinion".

[kickingfrog]

I didn't say there isn't a difference from one type to another. Just trying to point out that more money doesn't necessarily get you a better pair.

 

You can spend your money as you like, as I said.

 

The facts are that prescription glasses are over priced and quality has zero to do with price. If someone thinks that off-the-rack sunglasses are worth the same as a pair of prescription glasses, I can't do much about it, clearly. Some offer opinions, others offer facts.

 

 

I'm not saying that a 200 dollar pair is 10x better than a 20 dollar pair......but to say there's no difference is absurd. I know a lot of fly fishermen who would emphatically disagree with you.

 

Put on a pair of Costas (glass, not plastic) or Smiths and compare them to your 20 dollar rapala or bass pro glasses. If the difference in what you can see isn't obvious, then I guess your "facts" are better than my "opinion".

 

Just the facts... in red.

[cowanjo]

Revo Guide Extreme amber - I know people may want to pay less - these are awesome I know its probably not fact based but I feel less fatigued and can follow my musky bait

[cram]

If it helps:
- glass is better than plastic for optics. Less scratchy too. More expensive, and can be heavier.

- colour of the lenses can be important. Copper is a good universal colour for tea stained water. Green for green or clear water (you'll see a lot of ocean guys wearing green/blue costas).

- Dark grey is best for brightest days, but sucks when it's not. You can get polarchromic lenses which darken with brightness and visa versa. I have this in mine, though not sure how well it works.

[doubleheader]

For what it's worth the most recent issue of FLW magazine reviewed 4 inexpensive "best value" sunglasses that offered UV and polarization. Probably can read on their website.

[aero_ball]

I have used glasses with MSRP under $30 and over $200, from my experience you "somewhat" get what you paid for.

 

What I mean is that, first off, the more expensive sunglasses usually have higher markups, so if you're buying a pair at MSRP then it's likely overpriced. However if you get it at a discount the performance enhancement would usally worth the extra money spent.

 

I can't really comment on UV protection but regarding polarizing performance, some (not all) of my budget sunglasses are less than desirable to say the least. I've had ones that the lenses were not cut at the correct polarizing angle so I'll have to tilt my head to one side for maximum glare cut-out. Worse yet I've had budget glasses in which the left and right lenses were cut at different polarizing angles. So not only does it make it impossible to get maximum glare cut-out, I would actaully feel dizzy after wearing it for any prolonged period.

 

Secondly, many of the higher end sunglasses have a more sturdy / quality built. I know when it goes down the drink the $200 ones sinks pretty much just as fast as the $20 ones. However, quality does come into play. For example, many of the screws on the budget glasses were mounted directly onto the plastic frame. Depending on how the users treat their sunglasses and how much "mileage" you put on them, the threads could wear out quickly. I've had to glue some of the budget glasses solid, while the metal threads on the more costly ones work year after year. And if I can't fold a pair of sunglasses and put it in a case it's a matter of when it gets crushed and decomissioned.

 

Regarding optical performance, from personal experience, the clarity of higher end sunglasses are better than budget ones in general. My take is that if you're getting a pair that's $100+ then the quality is usually there. If you're getting a budget pair then you've got to weed out the bad ones. Of course you might find a hidden gem along the way. That said some of the glass lenses that come with more expensive pairs have supreb optical performance. It's heavier and breakable but if you want more clarity then I found that's the way to go.

 

I love my pair of Maui Jim in grey from Costco (around $100). It's got glass lenses and one feature that I really liked personally is the gradation they put on the lenses. The top and bottom parts of the lens were darker and the middle band is lighter. I found it exceptional cuz it cuts out the light from the sky as well as the glare from closest to the boat. At the same time it leaves the area straight ahead more visible with the lighter shade.

 

Color wise I use an amber/copper pair during low light and a grey pair when it's bright. Much like how I use seperate combos for drop shottin' and flippin'. Just my 2 cents.