Goggles

[rikytheripster]

My goggles are soon to be replaced and i am after a pair that has interchangable lenses. two different lenses should do, one for snowy/flat light, the other for sun.

Helmet attachment not a neccessity but would liek goggles that can be adapted to fit a helmet

recommendations?

[Guest Salomon Orangge]

I've never had problems with my Arnettes. I swear by them and their sunglasses. They fit into both of my helmets with no issues.

[Gleb]

i bought some zeal optics ones here and they are incredible. The beat the sh*t out of my room mate's oakley wisdoms and it takes 5 seconds to change the lenses. I got the Zeal optics Link. Good luck.

[scotts.Scheinman]

Oakley, i love my oakley thumps. Flip up lesnses music what could be better. I think oakley makes goggles too

[Guest needanswer]

Just saw some Spy googles that come with two sets of lens and wonder why most manufacturers do not sell goggles like that. Most of the places that sell extra lenses are almost the price of 80% of a new goggle.

Also, Uvex has a goggle call F2 Magic. It switches between dark and light tint with the touch of a button. I think it's some lcd thing, also what fighter pilots use.

personally, I love Scott goggle's amplifier lens because they are good in bright conditions without distorting color and amplifies flat conditions too.

I can't stand most goggle tints (yellow , orange, amber) because it could be mid-day and it looks like the sun is setting.

[Gleb]

the zeal come with two lenses. Rose and yellow. The yellow is perfect for night riding. I didn't realize how effect the tint of goggles really is until i started switching them.

oh and needananswer, i looked into the Uvex F1 Magic, and wow those are great. If you're thinking about putting down $210 on goggles then go for it. They were featured in popular science here. Nifty stuff.

[AaronG]

I picked some Carrera Kismerik (sp?) goggles up from Sierra Trading Post. They have not two but three interchangeable lenses,

One lens is polarized and shaded grey with a mirror coating on the outside

Second lens is double lens yellow with no exterior coating

Third lens is double clear lens which comes n great for night carving at my local hill

I think they were around 50.00 when I bought them.

[ak_rider]

dragon goggles. if you buy the frame with either gold mirror or ionized lense they come with a free amber lense. I have all the lenses they make-thank you Dragon ;) , the gold mirror are actually almost all you need. they are a yellow like lense so when it's snowy/flat light it's like wearing yellow lenses and when the sun comes out the mirror reflects the sun. I love em on partly cloudy days, when the sun goes away i can still see and when it comes back out i don't go blind.

[Justin A.]

Smith makes something like 20 different lens tints for all their goggles. I had one of the regulator series goggles and had Clear, Dark Brown, Orange and Yellow lenses for them. The only problem is that all of their Goggles aren't helmet compatible, so you need to make sure you try them on with your helmet before buying. Even at that, the non-compatible goggles aren't THAT bad of a fit. I rode with non-compat. ones for about 3 years before upgrading. I 100% wholeheartedly reccomend the Smiths.

________

Yamaha Tdr 250

[freecarver]

I love my Okleys what ever is the weather foggy or sun light, and they're fit perfect on my face.

I won't change them.I thing they have the best lenses.

Zeal optics though would be my next choice.

[Gleb]

do polarized lenses make a big difference?

[LeeW]

yes, polarized makes a difference.

me, i carry three goggles -- two von zipper (one for cloudy days, and another for britght day) and one carrera. i use carrera often, except on not so sunny days.

[Gleb]

how different does it look with polarized? Can you judge depth much better or just colors?

[LeeW]

try it on ski slope from store on ski slope and ask for checking it out on snow.

[Guest azrcd5]

Just saw some Spy googles that come with two sets of lens and wonder why most manufacturers do not sell goggles like that. Most of the places that sell extra lenses are almost the price of 80% of a new goggle.

Also, Uvex has a goggle call F2 Magic. It switches between dark and light tint with the touch of a button. I think it's some lcd thing, also what fighter pilots use.

personally, I love Scott goggle's amplifier lens because they are good in bright conditions without distorting color and amplifies flat conditions too.

I can't stand most goggle tints (yellow , orange, amber) because it could be mid-day and it looks like the sun is setting.

The Uvex is really cool but it does develope sports where the liquid no longer flows. In otherwords great idea, needs some work.

[Guest needanswer]

how different does it look with polarized? Can you judge depth much better or just colors?

I got the following from REI.com expert advice -> camp/hike -> sunglasses.

Polarized lenses are a great choice for skiers, drivers and people who enjoy water sports. Polarized lenses have a special filter built into them that blocks flat, reflected light (off of snow, water, glass).

These filters also optimize true colors, giving you a clearer view of the world around you no matter how bright or hazy it gets.

Keep in mind, however, that polarized lenses reduce contrast between objects, which can be a hindrance in low-light conditions or when enjoying fast-paced activities like snowboarding, skiing, or driving.

In general, sunglass lenses are tinted to cut down on overall brightness. But different tint colors can have different effects on your vision. The specific lens color you choose will affect 1) how much visible light reaches your eyes, 2) how well you see other colors, and 3) how well you see contrasts.

• Brown/gray/green—Brown, gray and green lenses are color-neutral, which means they cut down on overall brightness without distorting colors. These darker shades are intended primarily to cut through the glare and reduce eye strain in moderate-to-bright conditions.
  
• Yellow/gold/amber—Yellow, gold and amber lenses provide less overall brightness protection, but excel in moderate-to-low level light conditions. They provide excellent depth perception, which makes them perfect for skiing, snowboarding and other snow sports. They also enhance contrasts in tricky, flat light conditions.
  
• Rose/vermilion—Rose- and vermilion-colored glasses really do make the world seem brighter. They provide excellent low-light visibility and enhance contrast (perfect for skiing and snowboarding in cloudy conditions). They also enhance the visibility of objects against blue and green backgrounds, which makes them perfect for driving or exploring in forested areas.
  
• Mirrored Coatings—Mirrored coatings are reflective films applied to the outside surfaces of some sunglass lenses. They help reduce glare by reflecting much of the light that hits the surface of the lens. Mirrored coatings make objects appear darker than they are, so they're most appropriate in bright situations.
  

just wondering what you mean by "Can you judge depth much better or just colors"?

polarized lenses reduce reflected light so you won't be blinded by reflections.

colors have do with the color of the lens (different color blocks different light, e.g. yellow lens blocks blue light)

neither would affect your depth perception, just enhance visibility through contrast.

[Guest azrcd5]

in very simple terms, polorized lenses look the same as any lense except that the reflections off of non-metalic objects (i.e. water/waves or snow crystals) are minimized. So on the Mt. they are a nice feature but not that critical (since you are facing downhill most of the time you are usally not encountering glare.) However, on water they can be a great help. Darkness and contrast are still controlled by the density of the lense tinting and color. This is not affected by polorazation or lack of.

P.S. I have Oakley Polorized Amber goggles and find them a very comfortable fit as well a good all-around lense. I think its known as the X50 lense.

[Gleb]

aright i understand it now. I ride 90% of the time at night so getting polarized lenses is not a necessity. when I was riding all night and into the day, my amber lense did well but the moment the sun started coming up but didn't cover the slopes with light yet, the goggles became useless. I couldn't see any ridges in the snow and I wasn't ready for any of the bumps. thanks for the research i should've done myself:)

[Guest needanswer]

regarding the uvex F1 magic google that can go between light and dark with the push of a button, Zeal's got the photochromatic lens that beats it hands down.

Zeal's got photochromatic lens for a few of their models ( Detonator, Link , ...)

The lens changes depending on the amount of light hitting it.

also, it's got a polarized layer too. I googled it and it's about $140. not cheap , but still cheaper than the F1 magic's and most polarized goggles that are not photochromatic are already more expensive than $140.

with that many companies out there, I wonder why it took so long for this development.

[paappraiser]

polarized lenses

I wear polarized lenses for driving. (I have very a screwed up eye)

My wife had lasik and she swears by them during the daytime. (little glare)

My assistant cut her eye lens and the doctor made her wear polarized sunglasses.

not needed at night ..

IMHO I wore them on the slopes once and never noticed a great benifit.

[Guest needanswer]

polarized lenses

IMHO I wore them on the slopes once and never noticed a great benifit.

I've never wore them , but I wonder how useful they are in the snow.

may be someone who has them can comment.

They only work on reducing horizontal glare. like on the pavement or the water.

1) Not sure if snow is such a smooth horizontal surface. may be on wide grommers, they'll be useful.

2) Snow is white and reflects a lot of light. any reduction in light level can give it more definition. it's like high beams don't work in the fog.

3) sometimes glare is useful in identifying icy spots whey the sun comes out.

[DrCR]

Has anyone used Scott's Night Amplifier lens?

Leaning towards getting a yellow lens for night use, but since Scott went through the trouble of getting a patent for their night amplifier, perhaps they're on to something...

[Justin A.]

During the day I use mirrored yellow, grey, amber, brown, whatever dark color I have around at the time. At night I generally switch to clear or stick with the yellow. My current lenses are Polar' Yellow Mirror, and I honestly don't notice much of a difference between the polar lenses and anything else. The polar lenses just make it...look...funny. I can't describe it. I think they may actually add to the flat light issues rather than helping them like yellow usually does.

For a detailed explanation of what colors are supposed to do what, check out smith's website. www.smithsport.com or www.smithoptics.com

Edit: here's a direct link to the color explanations: http://www.smithoptics.com/technology/snowgoggletechnology_enhancedvisualclarity.html

[Pow]

Be sure to look at the price tags of the interchangable lenses... many goggle lenses are the same price as another pair of goggles, and so buying another pair of goggles with a different lense would actually be more convenient, because you wouldnt have to take out/put in different lenses before heading out. just grab the right goggles for the job.

that said, I prefer Oakleys, and they used to have a huuge replacement tint selection although theyve reduced it now.

[carvin29]

I got some Oakley A Frames off overstock.com last year for a big discount. Here is a pair they have right now

http://www.overstock.com/cgi-bin/d2.cgi?PAGE=PROFRAME&PROD_ID=1893608