Sunglasses recommendations?

[rhinolith]

I need some new shades for plate work. Pretty wide face. I feel like my eyes get sunburned after a weekend and on Monday’s I am squinting all day. Any suggestions? Thanks a lot.

[BT_Blue]

This is a tough question. And a loaded one as well. Akin to asking for chest protector opinions. Lol

What kind of glasses do you like and price range? I grew up loving the wrap around style (ala Oakley Radars). But the last decade plus I have really loved the Oakley XLJ frames. I also really liked the Native Sport frames I could change the lenses on. Those were about half the price of Oakley back in the day. Not sure if that is still the case.

[ousafe]

As a sunglasses cheapo (I'm a sailor and have donated too many expensive pairs to Poseidon...) I'm really happy with my Easton Flare sunglasses.

[BT_Blue]

I can tell you this... you know those sunglasses you find at gas stations and truck stops? Some of those are really top notch sunnies!

You really want to be disgusted... look into the manufacture of glasses. They are controlled by only a handful of companies. The only difference on some pairs is the brand name. 

[Rock Bottom]

Whatever frame you get (I love Oakley Radar EV Pitch, but that's incredibly personal preference), if you get Oakley I highly recommend getting the Prizm Field lens for day games. The contrast is fantastic and makes picking up the ball very easy, and they are just beautiful to look out of. 

[Rock Bottom]

1 hour ago, BT_Blue said:

You really want to be disgusted... look into the manufacture of glasses. They are controlled by only a handful of companies. The only difference on some pairs is the brand name. 

Exactly! Makes you wonder how the sales got approved since that market is so highly concentrated and how some strong arm tactics were used to force formerly independent companies to sell.

[Thunderheads]

you can parous this also ......... (searched 'sungasses' in the equipment forum)

https://umpire-empire.com/search/?q=sunglasses&quick=1&type=forums_topic&nodes=9

[BT_Blue]

7 hours ago, Rock Bottom said:

Whatever frame you get (I love Oakley Radar EV Pitch, but that's incredibly personal preference), if you get Oakley I highly recommend getting the Prizm Field lens for day games. The contrast is fantastic and makes picking up the ball very easy, and they are just beautiful to look out of. 

Agreed. The PRIZM lenses are quite wonderful.

38 minutes ago, Thunderheads said:

you can parous this also ......... (searched 'sungasses' in the equipment forum)

https://umpire-empire.com/search/?q=sunglasses&quick=1&type=forums_topic&nodes=9

Great idea doing a search. Lots of great ideas.

7 hours ago, Rock Bottom said:

Exactly! Makes you wonder how the sales got approved since that market is so highly concentrated and how some strong arm tactics were used to force formerly independent companies to sell.

There is a great episode of Adam Ruins Everything where he gets into this topic. Quite interesting!

[BT_Blue]

Anyone else run into an issue with getting a reflection of the white base lines with your glasses? Particularly on a very sunny day?

Wonder if my issue with this comes from using the Oakley PRIZM lenses on my XLJ frames or not? I didn't recall having this problem with my previous sunglasses (Native Sport). But it was so long ago I might have just forgotten. 

[humanbackstop19]

If you go the Oakley route, which is my recommendation, go to a retailer and try as many frames AND lens styles for those frames as possible.  I like the wrap-around lenses for XLJ and Radar Path frames, as they fit my chubby cheeks, ha. And I agree, the Prizm field lenses are outstanding and designed to make the red seams of the ball pop!

[Rock Bottom]

If you don't have your heart set on the Prizm Field but want some great deals on Oakley's go to Sportsman's Outdoor Superstore.  The link below just has a sampling, but you can search for all Oakley's as well.  Put "OAKLEY" in the coupon code after adding it to your cart and you'll get a huge discount.  For example, the Radar EV Path with Deep Water Blue Prizm Polarized lens go from $242 down to $130!!!! (I wish the Path fit me better than the Pitch - seems like a lot more places carry Path, and even on Oakley.com there are more Path choices in the Radar EVs.)

Also, for really bright days the Prizm Black Polarized are awesome!  If they had them for replacement lenses in Pitch I would have got some, but got the Deep Water instead.

This works for all Oakley's on their site as far as I know guys!

https://www.sportsmansoutdoorsuperstore.com/search.cfm?kword=oakley+radar

The Path have a curved bottom, while the Pitch is more straight and more coverage - here's how the Deep Water look in Pitch, not the Path (the stock Oakley photos don't do a good job showing how the lens looks):

 

[Thunderheads]

1 minute ago, Rock Bottom said:

If you don't have your heart set on the Prizm Field but want some great deals on Oakley's go to Sportsman's Outdoor Superstore.  The link below just has a sampling, but you can search for all Oakley's as well.  Put "OAKLEY" in the coupon code after adding it and you'll get a huge discount.  For example, the Radar EV Path with Deep Water Blue Prizm Polarized lens go from $242 down to $130!!!! (I wish the Path fit me better than the Pitch - seems like a lot more places carry Path, and even on Oakley.com there are more Path choices in the Radar EVs.)

This works for all Oakley's on their site as far as I know guys!

https://www.sportsmansoutdoorsuperstore.com/search.cfm?kword=oakley+radar

That's cool, didn't know that, thanks!

Agree, ... I need the PITCH also, much better coverage for my face!

[Richvee]

13 hours ago, Rock Bottom said:

Whatever frame you get (I love Oakley Radar EV Pitch, but that's incredibly personal preference), if you get Oakley I highly recommend getting the Prizm Field lens for day games. The contrast is fantastic and makes picking up the ball very easy, and they are just beautiful to look out of. 

The best for the baseball field. Hands down. Everything else comes in second place. 

[kylehutson]

On 3/8/2022 at 12:09 AM, ousafe said:

As a sunglasses cheapo (I'm a sailor and have donated too many expensive pairs to Poseidon...) I'm really happy with my Easton Flare sunglasses.

As a fellow sunglasses cheapo, I wear these: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002JG55BW/

[BLWizzRanger]

7 minutes ago, kylehutson said:

As a fellow sunglasses cheapo, I wear these: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002JG55BW/

Not to brag on being a cheapo, but a 6 pack of Sam's Club shaded safety glasses has worked well for me.  I haven't lost one pair since I first purchased them a few years ago.

[Rock Bottom]

Here's another great deal - this one straight from Oakley - 50% off!  Reg. $232, on sale for $116.

These aren't the Prizm Field, they are the Prizm Black, and only in the Radar EV Path (not Pitch).  I personally wouldn't use them off the field, but for ump-only glasses they'd be fine:

https://www.oakley.com/en-us/product/W0OO9208PTC?variant=888392529817

[rhinolith]

On 3/8/2022 at 9:26 AM, Rock Bottom said:

If you don't have your heart set on the Prizm Field but want some great deals on Oakley's go to Sportsman's Outdoor Superstore.  The link below just has a sampling, but you can search for all Oakley's as well.  Put "OAKLEY" in the coupon code after adding it to your cart and you'll get a huge discount.  For example, the Radar EV Path with Deep Water Blue Prizm Polarized lens go from $242 down to $130!!!! (I wish the Path fit me better than the Pitch - seems like a lot more places carry Path, and even on Oakley.com there are more Path choices in the Radar EVs.)

Also, for really bright days the Prizm Black Polarized are awesome!  If they had them for replacement lenses in Pitch I would have got some, but got the Deep Water instead.

This works for all Oakley's on their site as far as I know guys!

https://www.sportsmansoutdoorsuperstore.com/search.cfm?kword=oakley+radar

The Path have a curved bottom, while the Pitch is more straight and more coverage - here's how the Deep Water look in Pitch, not the Path (the stock Oakley photos don't do a good job showing how the lens looks):

 

I went to an Oakley store and tried on everything and check a lot of Prizm lenses. I got the Radar EV Pitch with the Field lenses (and a spare Deep Water for everyday). I used the Field lenses for games this weekend and it was great. Very cool. Thanks a lot for the recommendation!

[Rock Bottom]

On 3/8/2022 at 8:56 AM, BT_Blue said:

Anyone else run into an issue with getting a reflection of the white base lines with your glasses? Particularly on a very sunny day?

Wonder if my issue with this comes from using the Oakley PRIZM lenses on my XLJ frames or not? I didn't recall having this problem with my previous sunglasses (Native Sport). But it was so long ago I might have just forgotten. 

I was missing what you meant re: the reflection - do you mean a doubling of the lines, like a ghosting-effect?  I never had that happen (I've only worn the Prizm Field's - not other Prizms - for the games) on the lines - but I do notice a ghosting effect around lights, but it's not a problem as generally I'm not wearing them where there are lights - only time I noticed it was when I was in the garage going in and out when I was trying them out the first time.

[BT_Blue]

6 minutes ago, Rock Bottom said:

I was missing what you meant re: the reflection - do you mean a doubling of the lines, like a ghosting-effect?  I never had that happen (I've only worn the Prizm Field's - not other Prizms - for the games) on the lines - but I do notice a ghosting effect around lights, but it's not a problem as generally I'm not wearing them where there are lights - only time I noticed it was when I was in the garage going in and out when I was trying them out the first time.

Yes, pretty much. Especially on turf fields, out of the corner of my eye I can see the white foul line in my glasses. Mind you, these are older PRIZM lenses. So I imagine this has been solved. But it is a distraction to me as my eyes keep getting drawn to the white without me even meaning to do so.

[Rock Bottom]

18 hours ago, rhinolith said:

I went to an Oakley store and tried on everything and check a lot of Prizm lenses. I got the Radar EV Pitch with the Field lenses (and a spare Deep Water for everyday). I used the Field lenses for games this weekend and it was great. Very cool. Thanks a lot for the recommendation!

You're going to love both! Good call!

[Thunderheads]

Hate to revive, but stupid to start a new thread, plus, it's only a few months old ....

I just took advantage of the Oakley summer sale, ... 30% of plus $10 (for first time buyers from the Oakley site).  I've been rocking a pair of 'Split Jackets' with Oakley transition lenses which have been great, as they go clear to about 12% .  Well, I've had them for quite some time (2011?) and finally broke down and got some Prizms ....

I got the Flak 2.0 XL w/ the Prizm Road Jade lens.   The 'road' series, like the 'field', is a rose based lens that have different coatings and different VLTs (variable light transmission).  The original road lets in 20%, the road jade lets in 15%, and the road black lets in 11%.   I went w/ the road jade because it had the same VLT as the field.  I chose this over the field for aesthetics, (green/blue vs red/orange) and that I bicycle more than I umpire, so I figured this was a great blend to cover both activities.   Always wanted to try a Prizm lens, and now they're on the way!

I'll update w/ a photo when they come in  

[wolfe_man]

I use these and really like them. I had the Flak Jacket XL with black Prizm lenses and liked them, but I like the larger frame and lenses on these a bit more I think. 

The best part is I found a pair on Sideline Swap for around $65 shipped with blue Prizm, black Prizm, clear and yellow lenses.

Oakley Radar EV Advancer

[Velho]

Two added thoughts for those having under mask fitting issues:

- I use a youth pair (left over from when my son was 10). They are slim and work well for me even with my big head (they are Nike, not that that matters).

- Oakley (and maybe others) have an "asian fit" variant that is a narrower and deeper nose bridge (so they don't sit too far off the nose). https://shadesdaddyblog.com/what-is-oakley-asian-fit/

[ArchAngel72]

I got the Oakley Flak 2.0's with prescription lenses that have the field prizm, love them  they make things darker yes but also make colors pop and to me make things contrast better.

 

to note my hat size is 7 1/8th to 7 1/4  I wear a Skully and an AS FM4KMAG and never have clearance issues at all 

 

 

[Vegas_Ump]

Not sure if this response fits......

In 2017 I had cataract surgery.  The good news is that my eyes had a ton of obstructions removed from the optical train; the bad news is that a strange phenomenon that was affecting my left eye was now really observable!  [OK, this happens when you get to be my age!  No excuses!]

Optical noise was interfering with my vision at about the 10 o'clock position.  It was in the UV spectrum, and it was annoying!  It made the contrast on a cloudy day so bad that I could not pick up the ball off the bat when i was doing the field.  The solution was to wear wrap-around glasses of any kind:  clear, yellow-tinted, or conventional sunglasses.

The material in the lenses filtered that UV noise out, and I was fine.  I wear yellow-tinted glasses for night games as the Musco lights put out a lot of that UV noise!  I use Wiley glasses--a little high end, but they have excellent optical purity.

Good luck!

Mike

Las Vegas