Online Sunglasses For Fly Fishing.....suggestions?

[bigalcal]

I have purchased a few pairs of eye glasses online at Clearly Contacts and $39 glasses.com. After my eye doctor visit today I want to get some prescription polarized glasses for fishing. Have any of you bought sunglasses online? My concern is the polarization as I know what to expect regarding my prescription. I appreciate the feedback.

Al

[ÜberFly]

Al,

 

I hear a lot of folks are happy with Maui Jim's for their Rx Sunglass needs...

[cheeler]

I love my prescription Maui Jim's for driving, but since they are fairly expensive to replace ($600) and I don't need them full time yet I tend not to use them for fishing. Nice polarizing, though.

 

There are options for bifocal readers on their site as well.

[RedBeard]

I have owned (and lost) many pairs of Oakley polarized and prescription polarized sunglasses. They are fantastic in my opinion. I've tried a few different colours but have found the "bronze polarized" coloured lens works the best.

 

[fishinglibin]

I am ordering 2 pair from Zenni today. A buddy did and he is very happy, with reg and sunglasses w polarized.

[beeker]

I have polarized prescription (progressive bi-focals) sunglasses in a kind of dark amber/rose tint. They are a partial wrap-around style. I love them for fishing, driving, etc. They cost me just under $300 at ...............Costco. I don't know what brand they are, but the fish don't seem to be offended, yuk yuk.

 

Beeker

[SkwalaStonefly]

I have used Maui Jims for years - first as single vision and now as a progressive bifocal. They have a high degree of wrap (at least the frames I have) with a high curvature lens (base curve 7 I think) and really keep the sun out. I have the gray, which is perfect for bright sunny days, but a bit dark for cloudy days. Bronze is a good compromise for all conditions, but not as good on really bright days. If you get Maui Jims I do NOT recommend the polycarbonate lenses - you lose visual acuity with them and when looking for fish you want to see as well as possible. The Maui Jim Evolution lens is the one you want. I cannot imagine fishing without them.

[Guest bigdirty]

I have owned (and lost) many pairs of Oakley polarized and prescription polarized sunglasses. They are fantastic in my opinion. I've tried a few different colours but have found the "bronze polarized" coloured lens works the best.

 

 

Loving the Rose lenses. have you had a look yourself?

 

sorry for the bit of threadjack

[Nbarks]

I have a pair of Oakley gray polarized lens in both prescriptions and normal. Given how expensive they are I generally use contacts and the normal glasses on full day outing, or if I am going to be fishing till after sun down. And then the prescriptions if it's just a couple hours on the water. I'd also hate to donate them to the river given how expense the prescriptions are. I find the gray lenses to be a great all round color for both very bright and clouded days.

 

[Mukka]

I bought a pair of polarized prescription lense glasses fr Hakim Optical, here in Calgary, well below the cost of Maui Jims or Costa glasses, and they seem to work quite well. They have quite a few styles to choose fr too. Not to mention my company's benefits covered the cost too!

[stonefly]

I use a pair of Oakley C-wire with polarized Amber lens. You can see pretty clear into the water.

[AndyR]

I have a pair of Maui Jim's with the Maui HT lens and they are phenomenal!

[WyomingGeorge]

Maui Jim products are phenomenal.

 

Another option is the Switch brand that you can get from MEC for about $150, and then order up just the swappable prescription lenses online. The lenses are attached by small but powerful magnets, suitable for skiing, mountain biking, etc., so they should not fall out while fishing.

[Muffin]

I don't know I do extreme fishing so not sure mountain biking or skiing would rival it. You should see my front slip casting technique, very unique.

[WyomingGeorge]

And of course, as Hank Patterson reminded us, insist on pulverized sunglasses. They let you see the fish, in the sense that when you stick your head completely in the water, you will see fish swimming around.

[scel]

I cannot really comment on the lens quality of each of Maui Jim or Oakley prescriptions. I would actually like to see how my opinions compare to prescription sunglasses.

 

I do, however, own 4 pairs of 'normal' polarized sunglasses. 2xOakley and 2xMaui Jim.

 

The Maui Jim are slightly better (but only slightly) for low impact (like fly fishing), but I could NEVER imagine riding my mountain bike wearing them. The Maui frames just do not have the same ruggedness and stick-to-your-head-performance as the Oakleys.

 

If I had to choose 1 pair out of the 4, I would choose the Oakleys---better performance over a wider variety of conditions.