I’m correcting my guess, if your current prescription costs you that much. Hell, I didn’t even know prescription glasses could cost that much.
New advice: call Oakley’s customer service department. They should be able to quote you a ballpark figure: 1-800-431-1439. They’re in Redmond, and they work on Pacific time, so they should be open for another hour or so, I think.
Well, I am unusual in this area. My last pair of lenses cost $485 for the Rx - coatings (anti-glare, anti-scratch, and for the sunglasses, the color) extra. Most people are not in my position.
I freely admit to any optometrist that I have a complicated and difficult prescription to fill. I need someone with patience who is willing and able to take the time to fit me. On the plus side, I am correctable to 20/20.
Can’t wait (groan) until I get bifocals. (Hence the long-term plane to have three pairs of glasses - adding bifocals to the mix might generate all sorts of new problems. The near-vision glasses and distance-vision glasses might keep the bifocals at bay for a decade or more - maybe by that time there will be something better.)
Some folks express the opinion that I’m being “ripped off” with such high lens costs. Nope. I have shopped around. That’s how much they cost.
Not in the market for new pairs right now, but I’ll make a note of the phone number and keep them in mind for next time. As I said, I’m willing to pay for actual quality.
That might be a problem too, as most of the major manufacturers can’t do a bifocal lens- multilayer lenses can’t be formed into separate curvatures.
Broomstick -
How about contact lenses? Thats one of the best things I have ever done for myself. I am blind with out correction. Can’t function at all.
But the contacts are great. I can wear any type of sunglasses I want.
I even SCUBA dive in them.
I may be making an involuntary trip to the desert soon, thanks to Uncle Sam. Peolpe swear by these glasses. I have a fairly large astigmatism, and might not be able to get a prescription pair of these made. Do you know of any similar alternatives to the SG-1s?
TIA
That’s a great idea, but while my myopia is correctly with contacts, apparently my other two vision problems are not. So the choice for me would be glasses or thinner glasses+contacts. I’m trying to keep things as simple as possible here.
A few, but sadly none which will take a prescription lens. I would suggest wearing contacts under glasses, which is what I do.
Woohoo, some expert advice 
Alright, I live in lovely Brandon, Manitoba, Canada. I ski, I rollerblade, I drive a lot in varying conditions. Snow + 60 degrees below celcius + wind + sunlight = staring at the surface of the sun over a 50KM stretch. I’d be looking for something in the ~$100 (US dollars, so $150 Cdn. or so) range. I’ve got a fat head, and definitely prefer the fit of the mid-sized lenses. The large aviator ones just, well…let’s say they don’t augment my looks. And the small ones that hug the eyes get very aggravating while rollerblading. I’m currently using a cheap set of gas-station glasses until I find what I’m looking for. I need a set that are comfortable to wear while sweating heavily. It’s not a lot of motion, so it’s no huge deal if they don’t hug my face and can’t move. They also need to be able to handle freezing cold adequately as well, seeing as how I live in what was the 2nd coldest place on earth this winter for a day 
Any suggestions/ideas? I’m fairly careful with them, so I’m thinking glass lenses would be nice. My plastic ones in the past have had a tendency to get scratched up, but I’ve yet to sit on/drop a pair in a way that would shatter glass.
Thanks in advance
I just bought a new lens for my Oakley M frames. The lens is one of the iriduim series. The instructions say to only clean the lens with the supplied cleaning cloth. I am worried about scratching the lens with any dust of dirt that might be on the lens before cleaning.
Do you have any suggestions?
Yep. Pop the lens out of the frame (remove nosepiece; grab lens in center right above where nosepiece was in one hand, grab frame in center with other hand, pull apart; don’t worry about breaking either part… the lens is designed to be removed) and rinse it under water. This will remove any sand or grit that you might otherwise rub into the lens surface. To reinsert the lens, push one side into the frame; you’ll feel a little gap where it fits, and push it in. Bend the lens until you can do the same with the other side, and then grasp the lens (using the soft bag, unless you wish to clean the lenses all over again) and the frame firmly, and push the center of the lens into the center of the frame. It should pop in firmly; if it doesn’t, play with it until it does. You don’t really have to remove the lens to clean it, but there will be a little line of unwiped dirt just below the edge of the frame if you don’t. This was a good question; a lot of people either assume that a shirtsleeve or handkerchief are fine for lens-wiping, but sunglass lenses are extremely easy to scratch and under no circumstances should you use anything other than a microfiber or extremely soft cotton cloth to clean them. Also, if you use your glasses outdoors a lot, rinse them under water (high-end sunglasses won’t rust; all the top manufacturers use titanium or aluminium alloy (or occasionally plated steel) frames and nickel/silver alloy fasteners) before you wipe them off.
If you have very hard water where you live, go to an optical store or sunglass retailer and pick up some of their cleaning solution. Despite what Oakley says, it won’t damage the lenses, UNLESS IT CONTAINS ALCOHOL. Under no circumstances should you ever use any alcohol-based cleaning product on a sunglass lens (including Windex).
Thanks for the info, but why no alcohol?
Alrighty, follow-up to the follow-up here.
I tried the Oakley XX’s and the just did not rest on the bridge of my nose properly. They felt very “floaty” at that contact point, the arms/ear grip was good but the nose floated. The sales rep at the store kept apologizing for “not knowing the Oakley line very well” so I do not know if he was knowledgeable in his assesment that the nose piece/arms are not adjustable in any way.
I did try the Half Jacket’s and they fit much better - Got any advice, pro/con on the Half Jacket’s for my particular need: sand volleyball?
Thanks again,
MeanJoe
Ditto for Ray Bans. I managed to squish my frames so badly that the glass lenses kept popping out, but I sent them back and received a new pair. Didn’t even cost me postage, IIRC.
I’m not sure whether this is standard practice for Ray Bans or not, but I’m maybe our resident expert will. 
Great thread, Really Not All That Bright.
I hate to quote myself but to extend my previous post with an additional question…
On the Oakley site, in regards to the Half Jacket, it states: “Interchangeable Unobtanium nose pads and earsocks ensure comfort, secure fit”.
As I mentioned, the clerk had no idea about if there was any adjustment capability to the Oakley Half Jackets (or XX’s) so can you please elaborate on this interchageability? Could I have gotten a better fit out of the XX’s by changing nose pieces? Are they included or extra? Would a knowledgeable clerk be able to fit me properly or can I do it myself?
Gracias,
MeanJoe
Hmmm. Snow + wind + sunlight + ~$100 + midsized glass lenses - face hugging = Ray-Ban
They aren’t adjustable, I’m afraid. The nosepads and earsocks are interchangeable (nosepad/earsock replacement kits cost $9) but they only come in one size. If the H-Js fit you well, then go with those with my blessing. They should do you just as well as the Twentys (XXs) and they have the added benefit of interchangeable lenses. Note that there are two specific Half-Jacket styles- the regular Half Jacket and the Half Jacket XLJ, which has a slightly larger lens which flares slightly above the cheekbone. The frames don’t change between the styles, just the lenses.
Actually, that kind of thing isn’t officially standard practice for any manufacturer. Oakley and MJ do it pretty much every time, though, so I don’t mind telling people that they will. Other makers (including Ray-Ban parent Luxottica) are… less reliable. Sometimes you’ll get the excellent replacement service you describe, and sometimes you’ll get shafted.
Oh, and thanks, btw.
It makes anti-reflective coatings (the stuff that goes on the inside of the lens to keep you from seeing your eyelashes reflected) flake off. It also makes certain mirror finishes flake.
I forgot to mention: there are a couple of extremely shiny frame colors which the Half Jackets come in that the XXs don’t- Black Chrome, for one. I’d avoid those, because sand is going to scratch the surface up rather badly. The 5.56 and FMJ (metal-look finishes) and the regular colors should stand up okay, though.
Thanks again for the insight and advice. I am sticking with the Jet Black frames w/Black Iridium for the Half Jackets. Sadly, they nor any other store in town carrys the grey lense so I cannot compare the two. I am quite happy with the black iridium, seems to be a nice blend between style and function.
Oh, and happy day for me - Mrs. MeanJoe said (without any prompting on my part!) that they’ll be my birthday present in a couple weeks.
By the way, I am going with the Half Jackets not the Half Jacket XLJ. Odd shapes and futuristic colored iridium lenses make me look like a 34 year old guy desperately wanting to look 21. 
Whodathunkit a thread on sunglasses would be this popular!
i have frequently bought tinted safety glasses for use as street sunglasses. they come in a wide variety of styles, they are required to meet specific federal standards, and they are cheap, sturdy and invariably have unbreakable polycarbonate lenses. any thoughts on optical quality or potential problems?
http://www.labsafety.com/store/dept.asp?dept_id=3666
Damn everyone who got the appropriate UserName Nominative Determinsim thingy before I did. :mad:
Anhow ,
I have gone through 6 pairs of E-Wires , the kinda square shaped ones.
They fit my face well and quite obvioulsy the faces of the people who picked them up whenever I left them unattended.
Only one of those pairs actually met a natural end.
I had them in the semi hard case , which was in my pocket , which was in my coat , which was under my first wife , who was in a field … ahem…suffice it to say that we bent the things all outta shape.
Slave to the old cliches , when we left the field I needed to be wearing my shades and smoking a cigarette with one arm twisted around my Moll. This despite the fact that it was the dead of night.
(Did i mention we were drunk ?)
One of the lenses fell out and was scratched.
I did my best to look cool anyway and remebered a few days later that the glasses came with a lifetime warranty. “Whaaa Hey” thought I , If I can convince the guy that what I was doing with the glasses could easily be construed as being within the boundaries of normal use as defined by the end user license I can have them repaired.
but it appears the warranty only covers the frame. Why ?
Why not cover the most expensive and most easily damaged part of the product.
Fine …charge more if you must but dont give me a worthless ‘lifetime warranty’ that is effecitivly useless. How can you damage the frame without damaging the lenses ? If it gets even slightly bent out of shape the lenses can pop out.
So why ?
Hmm. Polycarbonate lenses aren’t unbreakable, just much harder to break. I didn’t look at the labsafety.com equipment for long but it appears their products only meet ANSI Z87. This is the one for impact resistance (you drop a ball bearing on the lens, then the lens and frame, and make sure nothing shatters; I didn’t see anything about UV resistance, so you might be losing out there. I can’t really tell you much about the actual optics of the lenses without seeing them, though.
E-Wires are oval, not square. Oakley doesn’t provide a lifetime warranty, either. The manufacturer warranty (except possibly outside the U.S.) is 1 year. The lenses aren’t covered because… well, because that’s just the way it is. It’s actually more common for the frames to break than the lenses, anyway.