buying fishing sunglasses

[Unknownwaters]

alright im about to go to bass pro and buy some new fishing sunglasses, i am looking to spend between 40-60 dollars and was just wondering what advice you guys might have.

[aarogb]

    Mine are called Fish Eyes.  Of course they are not Oakley's or Maui Jims but they get the job done.

    BTW, I think they cost around $20.00.

[DINK WHISPERER]

To be honest, i love my polarized Oakley's best for fishing! It is not necessarily about cheaper glasses getting the job done for me because they do. But i have found that cheaper glasses have cheaper frames and they tend to be too delicate for me. The lenses are basically the same but the higher end brands are stronger. If you are the kind of person who takes good care of your glasses than the BPS ones are great. But i am the kind that throws his across the boat upon hooking/landing a big fish!!!   ;D

[Tim Ford]

I did some research, and I found this website that has polarized fishing sunglasses that fall in your price range:

http://fishgillz.com/sunglass_styles.shtml

Here are some other sites with nice glasses, although most of them are quite a bit more expensive:

http://www.costadelmar.com/

http://www.habervision.com/

http://www.tifosioptics.com/polarized/index.html

http://www.wileyx.com/FISHING/index.aspx

http://oakley.com/search/straight+jacket

Here's some info on lens color:

*Gray or green-tinted: Offer the least amount of color distortion; good for all-purpose use and clear days.

*Amber and orange: Block blue light, offering a brighter view on cloudy, hazy, or foggy days.

*Gold and yellow: Add contrast; best in flat and dim-light situations.

*Brown: Best for enhancing depth perception.

*Rose: Has the highest contrast and best low-light image resolution.

*Mirrored: Reduces the amount of light that reaches the eyes; good at high altitudes.

*Gradient: Shaded from top to bottom. (A double-gradient lens is dark at the top and bottom, and lighter in the middle.) Driving glasses are often gradated so that you can see the dashboard clearly.

*Photochromic: Automatically darkens and lightens as light conditions change. Photochromic (transitional) lenses won't get very dark, and take some time to adjust to changes in light. Heat also hinders the photochromic (transitional) lenses from getting dark.

Hope this helps.

[dmac14]

I bought sunglasses on style, and got them polarized. So find ones you like, and then find them polarized. A $20 pair will do the same thing as a $200 pair. But the $200 pair will last longer, be more scratch resistant etc

[Jake.]

One thing not to skimp on is sunglasses. I used to use the $20 Wal-Mart specials, but I would get really bad headaches if I wore them for more than an hour or so. I gave those away and bought some Costa Del Mar, and haven't had that problem since.

[fivesixone]

One thing not to skimp on is sunglasses. I used to use the $20 Wal-Mart specials, but I would get really bad headaches if I wore them for more than an hour or so. I gave those away and bought some Costa Del Mar, and haven't had that problem since.

I'm not 100% positive on this, but I think the headaches come from the sizing of the frames squeezing your head. I've had the same problem with some sunglasses in all the price ranges. Get the right size for your head.

[smlbass]

I have a pair of Oakley Half jacket polarized slate lenses.  They seem to do really well in the water I fish.  

[Hammer 4]

I wear RX glasses, 1 pair for reading and another pair for distance..right now I can't afford 300.00 for polarized lense, so went to wally world, and bought some strike king glasses with the gray lenses, I woulda preffered amber...anyways, for $11.00 I can't go wrong, they fit well. Only problem is, I have to switch glasses to unhook a fish, or to tie on a new lure ect..lol

[burleytog]

A $20 pair will do the same thing as a $200 pair.  

Don't bet on it.  There is a reason those glasses are $200.  And it ain't the name.

While most choose sunglasses simply for the polarization, the best thing glasses offer is eye protection.  Think of sunglasses as sunscreen for your eyes.

[Tim Ford]

So, What did you end up buying?

[tbird]

One thing not to skimp on is sunglasses. I used to use the $20 Wal-Mart specials, but I would get really bad headaches if I wore them for more than an hour or so. I gave those away and bought some Costa Del Mar, and haven't had that problem since.

Your eyes can definitely tell the difference after a day on the water between a cheap pair of sunglasses and a quality pair. I have Costa Del Mar's , I used to have the cheapo Wal Mart specials.Word of advice don't skimp on the sunglasses.

                       T

[Hammer 4]

The more spendy glasses wil do the following, keep out more harmful uv, have way less distortion, lens material will be better, i.e. more scratch resistant. Best to try on several brands to see which one you prefer.

[mrlitetackle]

any polarized lenses will help.......

no questions asked......

bc of my rx......i had to spend alot more for mine.....

lower end brands are beneficial as compared to nothing......but with higher end brands you will definitely see a difference!!!

(i own costa's with my rx......and they set me back quite a few $'s to say the least....but you couldn't pry'em from my cold dead hands )

[nateobot]

I have a pair of Oakley Half jacket polarized slate lenses. They seem to do really well in the water I fish.

I have the same pair.  I bought the golf set of polarized lenses though, since I use mine for golfing as well.  They work really well and after two years, they don't have any scratches.

[cigarleaf]

I just bought a pair of Oakley STRAIGHT JACKET sunglass in shallow blue. All I can say is WoW!!!! Check them out.

http://oakley.com/pd/5717

[Unknownwaters]

So, What did you end up buying?

turns out i gotta wait till the weekend before ill have the time to go get a pair, but this advice will definitely help alot

[triwbass]

i tried the strike king and berkley glasses and well they are too small for me,,, i know im ot the only watermelon head on here so where can i find cheap sunshades ?

[fivesixone]

I've got a big head myself and the Strike King's seemed to work fine... I've owned like 2-3 pairs of em all with no problem.

[fishbully 2.0]

for the price range the bps ones are pretty solid, but after getting a pair of costas I don't know how I ever lived without them

[Hammer 4]

Try here..  http://www.sunglasswarehouse.com/

i tried the strike king and berkley glasses and well they are too small for me,,, i know im ot the only watermelon head on here so where can i find cheap sunshades ?

[Tim Ford]

I bought a new pair of sunglasses for myself Saturday. They are Oakley Icepicks with amber colored lenses:

http://oakley.com/pd/5706

After speaking with the manager of the store I realized that Oakley makes the best polarized lenses. I tried on multiple brands, and no other was even close.

This is my new pair:

[midnighthrasher]

One of my fathers best friends is a optometrist. He says that Oakley sunglass lenses are by far the best on the market and that the technology that goes into every pair of lenses makes them worth the price. He told me that when they do tests on lenses Oakley always has superior quality compared to other name brand glasses. Needless to say i have a pair of polarized straight's and i love them. Well worth the money. I also trust the opinion of a optometrist over any salesman.

[bassman31783]

I don't know if you have a Gander Mountain near your.  But @ mine they were having a 50% off all Native Sunglasses.  I bought a pair of the "silencers" and i love them.