I’ve got an appoitnment next week to get my eyes checked and I’m thinking of using some my work HSA (health spending account) to get some prescription sunglasses for riding and running. I figured that i might as well use the cash in the account since it goes poof if I don’t buy by end of Feb and submit by end of April.
Anyone have any brands/kinds that they specifically like? Oakleys, RPs, etc?? Lens style, colour, shape…any help muchly appreciated.
Oakley half jackets are great. Interchangeable lenses (theoretically - you really have to fight them out of there), hold on well, fairly lightweight, truly exceptional optical quality. This was discussed at some length a couple of months ago, and you might be able to find that thread with a search.
Thanks…I’ll do a search and see what i come up with.
I bought some Rudy Project Graals online a couple of years ago and they have been great.
If interested in Rudy Projects, check out www.SportsOptical.com. They custom make lenses to fit into RP’s instead of using the RX insert. They also do Smith glasses as well, but the RP’s are very cool. Bret is great to work with as well.
I also have a pair of Graals. They’re bifocals and worked out great!
I have Rudy Project RB3s – had to go with the rx insert due to my 'scrip. Have been very happy with them – really like the swappable outer lens. I have yellow, red & smoke to cover most light conditions.
Got them from Sport Eyes:
http://www.sporteyes.com/
My first attempt at prescription sunglasses was Smith Moab. If your 'scrip is anything very strong, definitely wouldn’t recommend them. The insert was very heavy and gave me a headache from the “walleye” vision it created because it was so thick.
Thanks
• Jeff
I just picked up my Rudy’s and they are awesome. I got the Perception frame with the golf lens package (smoke lens and red lens with prescription insert).
Rudy is going to be coming out with some new options for the direct in frame prescription for 2006
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I just got some Rudy Project Rydons with the RX insert about a month ago and have been very happy so far.
Pretty much any Oakley will go prescription and the Half Jackets are one of your best bets.
Got an Adidas prescription insert, a running frame, and a cycling frame and have been happy with them. The reason I went Adidas was they had a single insert that fit both frames. The other brands would require two prescription inserts making them far more expensive (this could have changed in the past year)
Here’s my opinion:
Don’t go for a dual lense (Rx in a holder behind the tinted lenses in the frame). They are heavier, prone to sweat getting between the two which is tough to wipe on the fly, and in general have more stuff to jiggle loose or break.
I use a Nike Rx model (can’t remember the model) that is a single lense and they are great. Check out which Nike models can accept an Rx. I also really like Smith glasses; I think the Nike glasses I have actually have Smith optics in them.
I just ordered a pair of Rudy Project Ekynox from Sports Optical last week. They seemed to be very on top of the lens aspect of the prescription insert. The price was very fair ($290 for the frames and one set of lenses) and they give you 20% off the second lense set.
I am very particular about my glasses, so I hope these work out.
If anyone is interested, I’ll post a review when I get them.
drn92
Bear in mind that if you have rather flat eyeglasses and get a real curved sunglasses lense, the transition between the two will be brutal on your eyes.
this is the most relevant point… I only have a fairly average prescription (-2 to -2.5) and a mild astigmatism. I don’t really notice much issue with the curvature on the prescription sunglasses because I have been wearing them for 15 years, but anyone else, even with a similar prescription, even holds my glasses in front of their eyes, they get woozy…
peripheral vision can also be an issue, especially on the bike, especially with frames with big arms or that don’t wrap the right way. I also have a bad neck, so I basically ride like a French motorist (ie if it is behind me, I can’t see it and it might as well not even be there). When trying frames, I also look for ones that even if I am bent over on the bike, I can still look through lense, rather than over the top of the frame, so go careful they don’t slip down your nose when face down.
Buy a decent frame from a decent store. my current set, they cracked 3 sets of cheap frames and then 1 set of lenses before they managed to get them in to a pair of Oakley Monster dogs.
I just picked up my glasses today and am very impressed by the quality of the work and the optical results from Sports Optical.
I have the Rudy Project Ekynox and Bret was able to create custom, prescription lenses for these frames and tint them very close to the “racing red” tint that is available through RP.
The craftsmanship on the lenses is very nice, and my vision though the lenses is great (much better than the last pair of “wrap” style lenses I tried from a different optical shop).
Bottom line … I would highly recommend Sports Optical if you are looking for athletic, wrap style prescription glasses. I’ll probably go there for my next set of “regular” glasses as well, since they have a great selection of frames.
They are on the web at www.sportsoptical.com.
drn92
I have the Oakley Half Jackets with Rx and photochromic lens.
I like everything about them, except two things: My eyelashes brush against the inside of the lens. Annoying. Also, the nose gripper fits funny on my nose bone and leaves a mark after a while.
I can live with both those things. Rx and photochromic are really cool.
I recently aquired some Oakley Juliet’s in a prescription similar to yours. Set me back about $500. The peripheral vision is okay, about as good as it gets for glasses, but not near as good as contacts. Compared to my contacts I have a hard time checking for cars behind. My old Rudy Project Kerosene’s are definitly better bang for the buck and probably more scratch resistant based on my previous experinces with Oakleys.
check post on “prescription cycling glasses another question” Mar 20 10:19 am I doc’s ans. to your question.