Sunglasses - Polarised or not????

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 Derry 23 Mar 2018

I have prescription sunglasses. or I did, until I lost my last pair. I'm trying to replace them but the best wrap around pair I can get from spec savers can't do them in a polarised lens. Can I get away with a deep tint or is this just going to be a waste of money for being in the mountains? Bearing in mind I've got an expedition next year planned that I'll be using them for an extended period of time.

I've only ever used polarised sunglasses so if anyone has any good/bad experiences with tinted only sunnies, I'd appreciate your thoughts.

 Mal Grey 23 Mar 2018
In reply to Derry:

I've had an old pair of Bloc prescription shades with a fairly low tint for donkeys years. They're not Polarised, but have proven excellent for mountain biking and driving. 

My prescription has eventually changed enough to buy a new pair, a Bolle frame. I got these Polarised and darker. To be honest, a lot of the time I prefer the lighter tint of the Blocs, but in the mountains on snow, the Bolles are a different league, and much of this is, I'm sure, due to the Polarisation. I'm also a paddler, and its nice to be able to see through the reflections on clear water as well! You will, though get enough protection form a dark pair of non-Polarised lenses, as long as they're up the UV block level. So, I'd say it depends how much you want to stick with Specsavers, if there's a good price deal there, I think you'll be OK, but will lose some performance. You'll be able to see your phone/camera screen more easily though, I can see bugger all on mine with the Bolles on!

 

 

 james.slater 23 Mar 2018
In reply to Derry:

When I purchased my prescription wrap arounds (Oakley), I was told that polarized lenses help block out glare from bright surfaces, but that in itself can be a disadvantage, and means its not always easy to pick out the difference between reflective and dull surfaces. So for watersports, fishing etc, the glare off water is reduced with polarized lenses, but for skiing, snow sports etc it might mean you are less likely to spot icy patches in snow for instance. I decided that as rocktypes tend to be more or less homogenous in reflectively, and I was more likely to be in snowy enviroments than water, I went for non-polarized. Sorry, very long winded! 

 kenr 23 Mar 2018

Right: polarized helps for water sports, and for reflected glare off moisture on the road.

Does not help with glare from snow, because snow has millions of reflecting facets, each with a different planar orientation, so no well-defined polarization. Therefore no way that a well-designed polarized lense can selectively block the undesird glare versus (sometimes useful ) direct light.

Ken

 Webster 23 Mar 2018
In reply to Derry:

Don't think my mountain glasses are polarised, its the cat. rating that is important, cat. 3 or 4 is essential. if going to high altitude then cat. 4 is a must for an extended expedition.

 Kimono 24 Mar 2018
In reply to Derry:

important fact: you cant read your phone with polarised lenses!

 girlymonkey 24 Mar 2018
In reply to Derry:

I snow blinded myself a number of years ago and am paranoid about sun glasses now. The optician told me that they should always be polarised, so I have stuck with them. I think you get used to anything if you wear it enough. I like my eyes and am keen to protect them!! 

OP Derry 24 Mar 2018
In reply to Derry:

Thanks all good food for thought. I do a lot of paddling too so am going to have to look at a few other options

 Mark Haward 25 Mar 2018
In reply to Derry:

Are you able to wear contact lenses? Obviously you may need prescription sunglasses and contacts may not be an option. I started using daily disposable contacts in the mid 90s and use them for diving, sailing, skiing, climbing etc. I've had no problems on expeditions or bivvying - never had them freeze. Big advantage for me is I have a range of sunglasses such as polarised for water sports, lighter and darker lenses for skiing / climbing, ability to switch to goggles if the weather turns etc. I find, especially in the alps, sunglasses get scratched / trashed quite quickly.

 Prof. Outdoors 25 Mar 2018
In reply to Derry:

I suspect this may not influence the purchase of a pair of sunglasses but if you wear polarised glasses apparently you cannot see the heads up display in the Bentley Bentago.

(Know someone who works at Bentley)

 Mal Grey 25 Mar 2018
In reply to Prof. Outdoors:

> I suspect this may not influence the purchase of a pair of sunglasses but if you wear polarised glasses apparently you cannot see the heads up display in the Bentley Bentago.

> (Know someone who works at Bentley)

Its a shame they don't stop you seeing the actual Bentley Bentago, it truly is one of the ugliest vehicles on the road.

 

 

Learnt a few things about Polarised on snow, thanks to this thread. They always seemed "better" to me than my old normal lenses, but I've been so lucky with the weather since I got them that I've only walked under blue skies, which the glasses really help emphasise, and never in conditions where the identification of differing snow conditions was particularly critical.

 

 GForce1 26 Mar 2018
In reply to Mal Grey:

My understanding is that polarised is bad for depth perception in snow. They also give me a sore head...though I suspect this is just me.

 Stone Idle 26 Mar 2018
In reply to Derry:

Polarised specs plus polarised filter on camera equals black out. Never use them myself

Stew99 27 Mar 2018
In reply to Derry:

Polarised ... always.  But I do agree with some in the thread that after a couple of hrs I tend to need to give my eyes a good rub. 

I've worn them at altitude, in the snow and on boats.  All with a positive experience.


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