Problem with sunglasses

[Ultranomad]

Ladies and gentlemen, I have to admit a predicament with sunglasses. I am a serial sunglass killer. Not that I buy the €€€ models of the <insert your favourite brand>, I simply pay attention to every supermarket (or fleamarket) rack of sunglasses, and once in a while I find a fairly decent pair going for a song, but they don't last long. In recent months, I remember sitting down on two pairs, crashing one pair in the aeroplane seat mechanism, breaking one pair in half when trying to readjust the frame, etc. Nothing bad ever happens to the glass, it's the frame that always suffers. Is anyone aware of any super-heavy-duty frames on the market that have thin cable temples (necessarily thin so as not to cause headaches with the headset), roughly Rayban-like in design, and made of shape-memory alloy, so they'd recover their shape when heated?

[27/09]

How can you wreck so many sunglasses?

My only suggestion is to buy an expensive pair, this might encourage you to be more careful with your sunglasses.

[Halfbaked_Boy]

27/09, didn't help me much when I crushed my £300 pair under the wheels of my car on my driveway, thinking it was just a sock or something and being too lazy to get out and check! :uhoh:

[SloppyJoe]

How many times have you run over your sunglasses though?

I agree with the guy saying buy some expensive ones. I used to wreck glasses also, with me was the lenses, always got scratched really quickly. Bought some £150+ ones and they lasted years in pristine condition.

[Peter Geldard]

For flying, I have found those supplied by Grett Optik (http://www.grettoptik.com/) to be ideal: Sunglass for long vision and clear reading glass when you need them when looking down at your charts etc in a darkened cockpit.
Because they are such good value, it doesn't matter if you damage them occassionally!
Unfortunately, I believe that the firm is soon to go out of business: I hope that some entrepreneur will fill the gap.

[cats_five]

Put them on string (or whatever) round your neck. That will stop you dropping them on the drive, sitting on them and so on.

[Andy H]

It is a shame if Grett Optik are going out of business as I have found their bifocal reading glasses just right for summer flying. A good price too.

However, there is an alternative if you have a Clas Ohlsen store near you. They sell for £8.49 I believe

Andy

[Tableview]

My solution after losing many expensive pairs of sunglasses over the years was to buy two pairs of relatively cheap but serviceable ones. Needless to say, I have never lost them, although I have temporarily mislaid them but they have always turned up like the proverbial bad penny. The only other pair I managed to keep for a few years were a gift from someone whose friendship I valued greatly at the time, and thus they had sentimental value so I rarely wore them!

[Captainkarl]

Have you thought about Pitts Sunglasses?

JAR & FAA PILOT MEDICALS LONDON (http://www.pilotmedicals.com/index.php?f=data_home&a=7)

Designed by a consultant ophthalmic surgeon and AME, who is a medical adviser in ophthalmology to the Civil Aviation Authority. Dr John Pitts. So they do the job right! :ok: and at a decent price tag :)

Cannot speak highly of the glasses having used a pair on diabetes polar flight last april. Diabetes Polar Flight, flying and diabetes research (http://www.diabetespolarflight.org)

:-)

[stiknruda]

My team just love our Pitts sunglasses - by way the best I've ever worn.

See our unbiased write up and pics Our Partners (http://www.wildcataerobatics.com/about/our-partners/)

I'm contemplating a second pair to keep in the motor-car!

Stik

[impulse9]

I am also a sunglass serial killer! I switched to Wiley-x and have never looked back, almost indestructable and can take a huge amount of mishandling...and you can switch out the lenses if needed too.

[Ultranomad]

Just received these glasses for my birthday:

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51N1GeL1i2L._SX395_.jpg

They are very sturdy (a much thicker frame than e.g. a similar model by Ray-Ban), have cable temples (so, they don't interfere with the headset), don't distort colours, and are very reasonably priced. I think I found what I was looking for.

[Unusual Attitude]

My team just love our Pitts sunglasses - by way the best I've ever worn.

See our unbiased write up and pics Our Partners

I'm contemplating a second pair to keep in the motor-car!

Stik

Could be very good timing since I destroyed my trusty Raybans a few weeks ago and my Birthday is looming, the wife is asking what I want as a present, hope she's feeling generous! :ok:

[fernytickles]

Buy the ugliest pair you can find, that do the job, and I bet you won't loose them. I have a pair I bought as a joke in Arkansas about 3 years ago, and they are the only pair I haven't lost.

[SpeedbirdXK8]

Look at www.bigatmo.com (http://www.bigatmo.com) great glasses :cool:

[stiknruda]

Ultranomad - happy birthday. Had you lived closer I would have lent you mine for a week - your new ones look great but do look rather heavy. When I pull 6"g" mine only weigh 90 grams!

But Stik that means at 1g - they are a mere 15grams?

Yes - I've actually forgotten I've had them on - they are so unobtrusive!

Good luck UA - well worth it. Price is not as important as value in my opinion!

[Unusual Attitude]

Never have a problem paying a premium for a trully good product Stik!

I see you'll be displaying at my local Airshow in Sept, look forward to seeing you in action. May be there on the Static lineup myself.....

[gileraguy]

Randolph Aviators
Military Spec

[southport]

If it is the frames you keep snapping get the Rayban Carbon Fibres I have a set in my flight bag and do not snap

[toptobottom]

Lots of threads on PPRuNe re sunglasses. Caution buying the cheapies though - those that don't have a genuine UV filter can be very damaging as they dilate the pupils, which allows in even more harmful UV rays.. :eek:

[b2vulcan]

I have just ordered a pair of sunglasses from Grett Optik and spoke to John who confirmed they are closing.
However they have some stock left so if anyone wishes to purchase I suggest you order soon.

[Genghis the Engineer]

Am I alone in having pretty much stopped wearing sunglasses because I struggle then to clearly see all of analogue gauges, outside, and screens and the same time - and instead have gone for the "baseball cap option" ?

G

[toptobottom]

Genghis - you're not the only one. I had to give up looking cool when I relied on readers to see what the instruments were saying... Baseball cap for me

[hlmmic]

I bought a pair from Grett Optic last week and they are brilliant! Going to order a spare pair before they close.

[Andy H]

Whilst I would agree with all of you Grett Optic fans that their product is very good (I have several of their sun readers) I have to say that I no longer wear them when flying.

The reason is that I have come to rely very much on my Airspace Aware unit - and the screen is just not bright enough to read with sunspecs.

Genghis is quite right about the baseball cap option. Works a treat! And less easy to lose too!

Andy

[Genghis the Engineer]

Genghis is quite right about the baseball cap option. Works a treat! And less easy to lose too!

Andy

Plus still works after you've sat on it!

G

[JW411]

I realise that wearing sunglasses is a very personal thing. In 46 years of professional flying including years of flying and living in the desert (Libya, Aden, Bahrain and Oman) I have never, ever worn sun glasses.

I have always relied on the baseball cap and/or the sunvisor in the aeroplane if needed.

I can remember doing my first medical in Aden with our MO (where are you Russ Martin) and he asked to see my sunglasses. "Haven't got any" said I. "That's good" said he. "They lull your eyes into a false sense of security and mostly don't stop the damaging UV light". I still have 20/20 eyesight at the age of 71.

In my spare time I used to spend all day out in the sun at the gliding club at Sheik Othman without a problem. In fact, not many of us wore sunglasses. Obviously some people absolutely have to wear sunglasses and I fully accept that the sun at White Waltham is much stronger than it is in the Middle East but I can only speak from my half a century of experience.

[Genghis the Engineer]

But then the duty "non pilot wannabee" reviews in Pilot and Flyer would basically be limited to wristwatches and briefcases.

G

[mad_jock]

I have heard a theory....

That by wearing sun glasses it lowers the amount of stimulus the pituatry (sp?) gets from the eyes and makes you get more sunburnt and stops you getting a tan.

[jecuk]

Oh come on it is entirely a personal preference thing and has nothing to do with flying competence or tanning. If you don't want to wear them then don't. I like to as it stops me squinting and I firmly believe they stop UV damage to the eyes.

[Andy H]

"In 46 years of professional flying including years of flying and living in the desert (Libya, Aden, Bahrain and Oman) I have never, ever worn sun glasses."

Then you obviously never experienced a Ghibli in Libya. Sunglasses (or goggles) were an absolute necessity then.

[Shoestring Flyer]

Baseball cap wearers....

Do you wear the cap under your headset, or perch the cap on the top of them?
I find if I wear it under the headset it causes seal issues with my Lightspeed Zulu's, in addition the button in the middle of the cap presses hard on the top of once's bonce!
Perched on the top it doesn't feel quite secure enough and is prone to falling off!

Anyone found the answer or can recommend a particular type/brand of cap?

[toptobottom]

No problems with Bose, but I always used to remove the button when using other headsets

[Bear 555]

G,

Theory works for me perfectly - if you carry a spare, it's also useful for carrying keys, tools and snacks!

I have lost or destroyed £££ worth of sunglasses - and will invest no further.


B

[Sam Rutherford]

Cheap as chips, but all :)have the correct UV protection etc.