Polarized Fit-overs

[Swamp Fly 0]

So I have about given up on being able to wear contact lenses again.  I'm unwilling to buy new custom <insert brand here> quality fishing sunglasses at $300+ every year or so. I purchased some Cocoons branded fit-overs a 3-4 years ago.  The wheels are about to fall off of them at this point, the last inch of both arms are bare wire now. At $50 they don't own me any money.  They are/were okay, not spectacular but certainly not hot garbage either.  I'd like something a little better but a very quick cursory search is not showing me much other than throw away junk from the usual sources.  I'll buy Cocoons again but I'm open to suggestions.  FYI I really don't like clip-ons etc. I'm looking for something that covers and blocks light coming in from the sides etc.

From sunny but very bright Florida....

 

Swamp

[Poopdeck 0]

I can’t wear clip ons or fit overs. Too heavy and hot for my comfort.  I get prescription progressive sunglasses that are polarized, impact resistant, scratch resistant and anti glare coated. They set me back 5 to 600 bucks. I am very careful with them and can get 4 or more years from them.  After 4 years I get a new pair and I can keep the old pair as lawn cutting, dirty work glasses. I think the key to longevity is to never take them off your face. If you do, place them in a protected case or hang them from a lanyard around your next for times when you momentarily take them off. Good luck in your search but I’m afraid goid glasses cost money. 

[Philly 0]

I use Cocoons.  Some of mine are more than five years old and I haven't had any issues with them other than them not fitting over a new pair of my prescription glasses.  I solved that problem by bringing a pair with me when I get new glasses.  One suggestion with your next pair of Cocoons, black out the side panels.  This totally eliminates any side glare that might come through the clear side panel.  That said,  when I got new prescription glasses this past summer I added polarization to impact and scratch resistant and anti-glare.  They weren't cheap.   But there's no way to they cut down the side glare.  I'll continue to wear the Cocoons over them when I fish.

[chugbug27 0]

I'm also very happy with cocoons, in the largest size, they cover my glasses and fit against my face very well. 

1 hour ago, Philly said:

One suggestion with your next pair of Cocoons, black out the side panels.  This totally eliminates any side glare that might come through the clear side panel. 

Great idea, I'm gonna try this with tape first.

OP & pd, have you tried ski goggles? I haven't, just a thought.

[Mark Knapp 0]

I use cocoons too. Mine are completely plastic and have not warn. They also have tinted side panels so there is no need for blacking out. I buy a new pair every year so I'm sure they are the newest version. They only problem I have with them is, I look funny wearing them, I might look funny even when I'm not wearing them.

[Bryon Anderson 0]

I think I've tried every different type of product made to solve this particular problem. Cocoons makes the most comfortable fit-overs onthr the market, IF they fit snugly over your eyeglasses. Philly's suggestion of taking your current pair of Cocoons along when you pick out eyeglass frames is an excellent idea. The downside of the fit-overs--at least for me--is that they don't offer a wide range of sizes. If the smaller ones are not big enough to fit over your eyeglasses, chances are the next size up is going to be way too large. 

If clip-ons aren't your thing, then I would agree with the others who have recommended biting the bullet and getting prescription polarized sunglasses. One word of caution with those -- if your prescription lenses are the progressive multi-focal type, you won't want your Rx sunglass lenses to have much of a curve to them. My first pair of Rx sunglasses were wrap-around style, and I found that this distorted my vision through the progressive lens. 

My current Rx sunglass lenses are almost flat, and my vision through them is very clear. I use opaque side shields that slide on to the bows when I'm on the water. 

Best of luck in your search.

[JDM3 0]

6 hours ago, Bryon Anderson said:

One word of caution with those -- if your prescription lenses are the progressive multi-focal type, you won't want your Rx sunglass lenses to have much of a curve to them. My first pair of Rx sunglasses were wrap-around style, and I found that this distorted my vision through the progressive lens.

Thank you for this insight!  I am highly motivated to get Rx sunglasses this year. I wear the progressive multi-focal lens in my distance glasses (versus my computer lens glasses; so happy I got those), and was wondering if the effect those have (where you have to be mostly squared up with what needs to be in focus through the middle of the lens and stuff left and right is not in focus) would be worsened with a wrap around sunglasses lens. My doctor mentioned going with a bifocal lens in the sunglasses over the progressive, and that makes sense given your explanation. I'm looking forward to having a pair for fishing.

[Poopdeck 0]

I’m not sure what you mean by multi focus but looking through the center and having blurry stuff to the left and right doesn’t sound right no matter what they call it.  In fact it sounds like something you should avoid. With progressive lens the flatter and bigger the lens the better. I don’t have a single issue with side glare and my fishing/everything sunglasses are wayfarers. If there was a problem I would simply thread those thin plastic side panels onto the arms like shooters do.  I gave up wrap arounds years ago because of the lack of air flow. They were hot and got sweaty to wear and I was wearing them because of an issue, side glare, that wasn’t actually an issue to me. 

[Swamp Fly 0]

Wrap around frames are what I am used to and I'm going to sweat regardless of my glasses, welcome to Florida I hope you brought extra shirts!  I've never been a fan of wrap around lenses for the very reason that is mentioned, the ones I've worn do distort at the periphery.  The distortion doesn't interfere with my activities, but I noticed that I get eye strain much faster.  When I bought this current pair of Cocoons, I thought the side panels would be an issue but it hasn't been a problem.  Of course now that I'm thinking about it, it will be!  Good tip using a Sharpie though. Humm ski googles are probably good for running the boat after the sun goes down.  The bugs can be so bad that with a spot light it looks like a snow storm to the point that I have to hold the light as low or high as I can just not to get blinded from the light reflected off of the bugs, eye protection of some sort is mandatory.  I'm just glad I'm not a mouth breather.🤮 During the day with our humidity wearing goggles might be like looking through a full aquarium from the inside while sitting in a sauna.  I'm not sure what it is but my sweat is tough on most rubber, eventually it will disintegrate. I've even had some plastics fall apart, I guess it's not just my personality that can be caustic! 😈  I've learned to live with it, the personality too.

I'll probably wait till I go in to get new prescription glasses and then buy some new Cocoons of the appropriate size.  I'm good with that, like I said the ones I have have worked just fine.  It just never hurts to look around for even better options if you have to replace something anyway.  As far as how they look, well I have been know to call them "My Birth Control Glasses".  The good news is that while I'm fishing, I don't really care unless I look so bad even the fish don't want anything to do with me...

Thanks for the input.

 

Swamp

[Philly 0]

21 hours ago, Mark Knapp said:

They also have tinted side panels so there is no need for blacking out.

That's true, Mark.  I've found that blacking out the side panels seems to improve my sight picture.   Mine are all plastic so I don't understand the comment about wear. I own four pairs of them yellow, amber, copper and gray.  Large size so they fit comfortably over my glasses.  I always considered them senior citizen sun glasses when I was younger.   Now that I'm a senior citizen they look good.

[Mark Knapp 0]

2 hours ago, Philly said:

That's true, Mark.  I've found that blacking out the side panels seems to improve my sight picture.   Mine are all plastic so I don't understand the comment about wear. I own four pairs of them yellow, amber, copper and gray.  Large size so they fit comfortably over my glasses.  I always considered them senior citizen sun glasses when I was younger.   Now that I'm a senior citizen they look good.

Maybe I'll try putting some tape over my side covers and see if it improves the picture. Thanks

[Swamp Fly 0]

The ends of the arms are gone, just the wire that allows one to shape the arms to personal head/ear profile is left sticking out.  There is about 3/4" of wire sticking out of one side and 2"+ out of the of the.  This is not something that is exclusive to Cocoons in my world.  Granted this time it is a little more extreme but I've had this exact thing happen before too.  I've had  plastic/rubber glasses arm ends get gooey, peel off, or like in this case disintegrate.  Most of the time it just affects over-molded rubber.  Here I expect the plastic was compromised enough that the ends were inadvertently pulled off.  I'm not griping about the quality, I'm keeping my personal history with all eyewear in mind.  While $50 is not peanuts, I still consider the price point to be significantly less than heirloom quality.  If they are 4+ years old that's less than $15 a year, I often spend that in gas for a single fishing excursion.  If this was a "high end" pair of sun glasses I'd be getting in contact with the company.

I just looked at the glasses again and it appears that the last 2/3s of the arms are not the same material as the frame.  It's a softer material probably chosen for comfort and to be soft enough to be shaped for improved fit (that's what the wire is for).  Keeping them in my car (HOT) probably is not doing them any favors either.

As far as how they look on me, my sunglasses are the least of my problems there.

[Guest]

Used cocoons for awhile after clip ons on scripts.  The $25 cocoons from Walmart were junk.   After awhile the salt “ dissolved” the lense finish.  WTF!  

 

 

 

 

[kerrek 0]

What about Tacfire glasses from Bell and Howell? Fitovers that seem to fit comfortably over glasses, at least they do for me. Available at Wal-Mart.

[Swamp Fly 0]

I figure that at some point I'm going to need eye surgery, I've spent a lot of time around kilns.  I've always been careful about having didymium lenses or #5 shades on but when someone else opens a door or peephole it's tough not to glance at it.  When surgery is needed I'll go back to better sunglasses.  As far as readers, the one nice thing about being nearsighted and wearing corrective glasses is that I just drop the frames to the end of my nose and I can see perfectly at about 9"away. 

 

I'll have to take a look at the Tacfires whenever I get to Walmart again.  Most of the Walmart's around here have parking lots that are so screwed up it takes 15 min to get back out again. I avoid going as much as possible.