pcray1231 wrote:
Interested in this too.
FWIW, are expensive glasses better? In my experience, YES, although I question whether it's a difference between glass and plastic or between brands. I've never really done a long-term test on expensive plastic. In the store, at least, they don't impress me that much over the cheapies I walked in with. (comparison was Sea Strikers as the cheapies, vs. Oakley, Costa, and Maui Jim plastics). Perhaps coatings and such are better, I dunno. But glass lenses from Costa and Maui, and it was immediately apparent that it was better. You put em on and say "wow".
Is a $200 glass pair 10x better than a $20 plastic pair? Probably not, but that's up to the owner. The $20 pair is light years better than nothing. Spending $200 on the glass gains a bit of clarity and better polarization over that. That said, many might be willing to pay for slightly better, and I'm one of them. I basically live in sunglasses, and having absolutely crystal clear vision really increases my enjoyment of the outdoors (even if it only rarely catches me any more fish).
My good pair is Costa Fathoms with 580 glass, in the copper/green mirror combo. I love them, but they are pretty dark. For fishing, I take them off in the morning and evening. For driving, I take them off in morning, evening, rainy, tunnels, etc. And they aren't any good under a canopy, either, such as a brookie excursion. I use $20 cheapies for that but would like a lighter pair.
Anyway, I now have pushing $300 worth of Cabelas bucks to blow, and am not in need of waders, boots, any new rods, etc. I have a few other ideas on how to spend it, but honestly, I'd get more use and enjoyment out of a really good pair of new shades. I am between:
1. Costa fathoms with a sunrise lens - I already know the frames fit great. Downside is that this lens from Costa only comes in plastic. I'm so in love with the glass lenses and am nervous about spending a lot of money on plastic lenses, fearing they aren't any better than the $20 pair I already have. If I'm gonna spend that much, I want glass.
2. Smith low-light ignitors - also plastic. Would need to try on new frames to see what fits. The upside is that 40% light transmission blows away any of the other "low light" lenses here (all 25-30%, whereas "normal light" lenses are 8-15%). I wouldn't want these as my only pair as they are too bright for daytime use. But as it's a supplementary pair specifically for low light they might be really, really good.
3. Maui Jim HT - the only "low light" lens I've found that comes in glass. But while Maui sales them on 7 or 8 different frames, the ONLY one that Cabelas carries them in is the Wassup, which, according to Maui, is not recommended for fishing (not sure why as it's a nylon full frame), and I have no idea if they fit right. A trip to Cabelas may be in order to try em on.
