Oakley Vs Costa

[ULG]

Anybody have experience with costas and oakley angling specific lenses?? Iv used oakley anglibg specific lenses n i love em. Thought bout diving into the costa family but just want a opinion of comparison of th 2 if anybody has any insight. Just trying to justify th cost or should i just get another oakley lense n frame. I kno that costas are all th rave but just wanted a compatison is all. Thanks guys

[BassinLou]

I cannot give you a fair comparison because I never have used Oakley's. I have used Costa's for several years now and I never leave home without them. They are awesome to say the least. I can also vouch for their CS. I have had to return two pairs for wear and tear issues over the years and all I have had to due is send them $10 or $12 (I forget) plus $5 USPS box and I get a brand new pair in about 2 weeks. Not bad considering the glasses cost over $200.

[00 mod]

I had no fewer than 6 pairs of Oakleys before switching to Costas.  That being said, none were "fishing" lenses but all were polarized.  I like the Costas much better.  My fishing buddy just switched too, and he loves them!

 

Jeff

[Cwitherington3]

I bought my first pair of costas this year and I won't leave home without them! I couldn't imagine a better pair of sunglasses

[tallen316]

Never owned costas but I love my Oakley. I have polarized lenses and never fish without them. I would recommend them to anyone.

[Teal]

Made the switch years ago, costas make a far better lens imo

[Dyerbassman]

Too rich for me. My Berkleys work just fine.

[MCS]

Costas lenses are great their frames feel solid compared to my two pairs of oakley i had but the rubber trim on some models peels off. A problem they had for a while and yet to fix, send in as warranty you got a 50/50 of it being replace for warranty or them telling u it is wear. That said to me is a minor but annoying issue that I can and will live with, guess others like me and that is why no fix yet. Lol

[Bluebasser86]

I've had a few pairs of both, Costa's blow the Oakley's out of the water when it comes to being able to see what's down there. 

[Mccallister25]

Never owned a pair of Oakleys, so my opinion is biased. I have a pair of Costas with polarized amber lenses, and never hit the water without em.

[MDBowHunter]

IMHO Oakleys are way over priced, and no where as nice as they are made out to be. Costas are great glasses and blow Oakleys away, but I think I like my Maui Jims better then any Costas that I've ever owned.

[Hanover_Yakker]

I have had both and can tell you that the lens quality on the Costas are better but the price point is what scares many people away.  The one caveat to this whole discussion is that in actuality, the manufacturer is not the limiting factor in your decision - your own vision is.  The amber lens from Oakley, Native Eyewear, WileX, Amphibia, Hobie Polarized, Maui Jim, Ray-Ban, Costa, Smith Optics, etc are not equivalent to one another.  Your best bet is to find someone that has a lens color you like and go out on the water and see for yourself.

 

The other factor to consider then is the fit.  Although the lenses for Costas are far superior to Oakleys in my opinion, none of the Costas fit my nose structure or face comfortably.  The nose pads on the Oakleys just sit better for me.  Your face may be different.  It's a shame too, because I love the Costa designs and the inshore green lens color.  Heck even Hobie Polarized (whom I have a Pro Staff deal with) doesn't have a frame or nose/bridge configuration that fits my face without giving me a splitting headache.

 

Forget the brand and go for fit first, then worry about lens color.

[QUAKEnSHAKE]

I have had both and can tell you that the lens quality on the Costas are better but the price point is what scares many people away.  The one caveat to this whole discussion is that in actuality, the manufacturer is not the limiting factor in your decision - your own vision is.  The amber lens from Oakley, Native Eyewear, WileX, Amphibia, Hobie Polarized, Maui Jim, Ray-Ban, Costa, Smith Optics, etc are not equivalent to one another.  Your best bet is to find someone that has a lens color you like and go out on the water and see for yourself.

 

The other factor to consider then is the fit.  Although the lenses for Costas are far superior to Oakleys in my opinion, none of the Costas fit my nose structure or face comfortably.  The nose pads on the Oakleys just sit better for me.  Your face may be different.  It's a shame too, because I love the Costa designs and the inshore green lens color.  Heck even Hobie Polarized (whom I have a Pro Staff deal with) doesn't have a frame or nose/bridge configuration that fits my face without giving me a splitting headache.

 

Forget the brand and go for fit first, then worry about lens color.

 

X2

Ive bought pair after pair of Costa (8 total) only to return them after a few outings couple weeks and tried many of their other frames over and over. One pair of Permits can fit differently than the next same pair so trying multiples of same is needed. For my wants I cant find a frame that fits me well. One that wont slip while sweating. One that gives very good coverage top bottom sides to block out light. They just dont have the frame selection for larger/wider/flatter skulls. The Fisch came close but light enter from upper corners. Plus even the blue mirror I would like to be a bit darker. 

 

With Oakley they have a fair number of frames that fit larger different shapes. A few frames close around my eyes, above the eyebrow, back farther on sides blocking side light from coming in better than any Costa Ive tried. The unobtanium holds great even on highly humid days with sweating heavily the frame stays put much bettter no slippage this with sunscreen applied as well. I dont use the fishing specific lens I opt for the black iridium polar it just better for me on mostly to bright sunny days but may be helped from the light blockage of their frames.

When I tried on my Pitbulls it was literally like, fitting like a glove, fit great not squeazing my temples the covering above around eye is excellent.

 

Ive also purchased REVO and MJ but those had a few of the above issues. The REVO lens though had a distortion to them that bugged me.

 

So yeah price not the factor for me its the fit function that drives my purchase.

[ULG]

fits already figured the lens i want, thats exactly why i posted this topic, to see if anyone has used both and could make a valid comparison but from what im gathering as long as i can find a pair of costas to fit my face right im all in! thanks guys for all the input, i kinda figured it might lean toward this but i think i just wanted to see in front of me! lol! but thanks again everybody for your posts and input! hopefully i will post something in the near future bout how i love my new costas or...... about how i couldnt find a frame to fit my face! lol either way, im gonna post something. thanks again to the members and the BR staff!

[BassinLou]

Congrats. Enjoy.

[Sam]

Outstanding thread.

 

I plan to get either Oakley's or Costas and will now go with Costas.

 

I want prescription lens and my local Bass Pro Shop will send them to a lab who does the grinding for Costas.

 

Thanks to all who posted.

[flyfisher]

I'll also echo the Costa dominance over the Oakley   I have owned both as well as a few others like native and smith all being polarized.

 

Chuck had it right when discussing the fit as that is key, no great lens does you any good if you don't wear them.  That being said, the biggest difference is when going from plastic lens to glass lenses.  I have always liked the smith lenses the best when it comes to plastic but when it comes to glass the costas offer the best non-distortion view out there.

[SPEEDBEAD.]

My wife put my costas on the other day. Her expression?  "It's like seeing everything in HD."

 

Yeah, they are awesome.

[Zach Dunham]

Not to hijack this thread, but I figure this is a good place to ask. Has anyone owned or tried a pair of Amphibia's? I have always been an Oakley guy but I do want to see all my options. After reading this thread I definitely want to try Costa's. I do love the way Amphibia's look though and I like the idea of floating sunglasses. Any info would be awesome!

[Brian Needham]

imo there is no "vs" but only Costa.

 

Costas = living life in HD.......(still waiting on Costa to buy that slogan from me)

[ULG]

good thots to "imanidiot" lol but thats a very good point, the amphibias seem to have made quite and impression on the market. im up for thots on the subject myself for my own benefit but im goin with the costas, price isnt the issue, its fit and lense quality, ive tried on some 580g cabolitos with blue lenses and they awesome but....... the ear peices puched my ears out, freakin deal buster!!!! i had a good deal going on them too, a friend said he tried on the black frames and he bought them cz they didnt do that so im set on costas js hope they fit my face!!! but info on amphibias would b nice to hear seeing many pros are using them. thanks again guys

[PotomacBassin]

Little late on this, but I literally switched from Oakley to Costas two weekends ago (both polarized) and couldn't believe how much more I could see under water.  The Potomac can be pretty muddy, but I started noticing more clear water with my new Costas.  I got the Costa Saltbreak with blue mirror lens.  Love 'm.

[PotomacBassin]

One last thing (not sure if it was mentioned above), is to make sure you get the strings to make sure they stay on your head.  I forget what they're called.  I had a pair of RayBans go in the river last month when I was untieing the boat from the dock.  I'll never wear glasses on the water without them again.  I don't care how dorky I look.

[Brian Needham]

One last thing (not sure if it was mentioned above), is to make sure you get the strings to make sure they stay on your head.  I forget what they're called.  I had a pair of RayBans go in the river last month when I was untieing the boat from the dock.  I'll never wear glasses on the water without them again.  I don't care how dorky I look.

 

croakies

[flyfisher]

Croakies suck in my opinon.

 

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