The Boating Forum - Sunglass Recommmendation

Looking to see what most prefer .

Best bang for the $$

I've got Maui Jim's, best dam sunglasses I've ever had.

Costas

Costa Del Mar. I had a pair for 5 years, they broke at the nose piece. I sent them in, they said, hey, your lenses are scratched also. I was not even worried about the lenses. So to cut it short, they replaced my glasses and charged me what the repair would have been. $180.00 for a new pair, which I was prepared to do, vs. $50.00 which they charged me. A great deal, and great customer service.

Costa's I've got 3 pairs, but my favorite pair I've had for 6 years. Can't beat them.

Costas with the Wave 580 lenses. :thumbsup:

My only experience is with the Costa's. I would not hesitate to buy another pair.

$12-$20 at the drug store on the way to the dock.
Usually about one pair per season.

Maui Jim. Don't be a cheapskate and buy glasses that are not UVA/UVB protected. Doing so is worse than wearing nothing. Sunglasses dialate your pupils, so if you open up your pupils with sunglasses, and don't filter the UV light coming into them, it's WORSE than not wearing any.

Hello cataracts?

I love sunglassess... The Maui's and the Costas are great. You can also check out some Oakleys...

Erick

Maui Jim, I can't live without them!

Maui Jim here.

Costa's with the 580 (blue) lens here. My wife has both Maui Jim's and CDM. Her CDM's got smashed in the leaning post so she started to where the MJ's while the Costa's were being repaired/replaced (FOC other than postage by the way). She liked the Maui's but loves her CDM's.

Im also a big fan of Costa del Mar.

Hobie

What are the differences in CDM besides the style ? Do they make them in glass ?

Long Point - 4/26/2008 10:42 AM

Best bang for the $$

I go to Home Depot or Lowes and get the tinted safety glasses. They are about $10.00 a pair and meet all the UV standards. Several styles including wrap around.

Not that good for looking "cool", but they work the same as the more stylish ones.

Just picked up my first pair of prescription MJ's a few days ago.
With the curved lens they do take a bit of getting use to, but the clarity is amazing. This is my fourth pair, but 1st with scripts. I'm sure I'll never wear anything else. ;cool;

Costas! I have 2 pairs and they go everywhere with me. First pair is over 9 years old and are still my favorite. I have never had a problem with them.

Ocean Waves are my favorite. Top quality glass lenses that resist scratches (I am abusive on glasses), the coatings wont come off like alot of Costa owners complain about...

Maui's All the way. Lost mine a month ago and was so excited to get the new Costa 580's. Wore them for two days and took them back to get the same pair of MJ"s i have been wearing for many years with the bronze lense. My buddy who fishes with me just bought the 580's, I can see fish far better in the water with my MJ's. Also, I feel as does he the salt water beads off of the MJ's much better. All of the dam things are to expensive but i will never be without them!

Hi.

I own both Maui-Jim (Kahuna - see random link below) and Costa del Mar (Havana-see random link below), and I have to give a slight edge to the Costa del mars. I've used both while fishing both the North Eastern USA, and while fishing in the Caribbean and that's what I base my opinions on. I have never used/seen the two web sites below, and only post them to reference my particular choice in sunglasses. Although, if it's true, the price on the Costa's is close to $100 less than I paid a few years ago. Maybe they're an older model now?

I will also say that I prefer glass lenses to plastic. I believe both manufacturers offer both glass and plastic lens models. Make sure what ever brand you buy, that the lenses are polarized. Make sure the frames fit your face well......obviously. I also keep a less expensive pair of glasses on the boat for swimming, excursions, etc........any time there's a good chance my glasses are going to get bent, twisted, dropped etc.

I also own Revo's, Raybans, Oakley, and a few other Brands, but the two I mentioned stand out in the crowd. Good Luck. -TomT

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05 Albemarle 248XF



LINKS:

http://store.seattlesunglass.com/mj162-02.html

http://www.sunglassesgiant.com/havana.html

I have both Costas and Maui Jims. The Mauis have always been more comfortable for me. I recently got a pair of Tags. The watersport lens seems to repel everything. I fished offshore last week and never had to clean them off. I was very impressed with them. I can also read my instruments better with them.

I had problems with Costa. And the resolution was lousy.

Best bang for the buck? Go google Sea Strikers. Cheap ($26) and the blue UV 100% and polarized lenses are awesome. I have three pairs. $78 for three pairs instead of $175 for 1 pair.

The Costa Del Mar Brine's that I had were great. The glasses are nice. My problem came when my lenses shattered on my face, while I bent over to pick up a quarter that my son went to pick up at the same time. The solution offered to me was to buy a new pair at 20% discount, or pay $105 for new lenses plus shipping.

Revos for me. You compare the Costas and Maui Jims and Revos all at the same time, in the same light. It'll be the Revos!

Smith glasses. They are good glasses and smith will warranty any problems no questions asked for life.

I have h2optics, costas, and smith. I prefer the Smiths. I think any quality polarized sunglasses with the uv inhibitors will be fine. Just choose the style and price you like.

Revos...??? Come on...Do they even make fishing glasses. I went to SGH and tried on a pair. Not even in the same ball park.

Costa Fathoms. Go to www.eyesave.com

Blublockers!

http://www.brianbehrend.com/links/archives/images/plummer-porn.jpg

Maui's

Revo H2o for me. Maui Jim second, costa 3rd.

I have tried several others, but always come back to the Maui Jims.....As far as "bang for the buck" if you're a costco member, they often have the MJ Sports at about half the price of sunglass hut.

maui

Maui Jim

Bang for the buck is a tough question. Flying Fisherman at Walmart for $30 is tough to beat. Not very cool looking though. I've had Ocean Waves (kinda heavy), Oakleys (very cool but very scratchable), Flying Fisherman that my son lost overboard (loved those things), and now Costas 580. None of the previous listed glasses had anywhere near the clarity of the Costa 580's. They are extremely poplular here in Florida. But, if coolness isn't real big in your criteria and you don't need the highest clarity possible, Flying Fisherman is hard to beat. I had to buy another pair of them just as a back up (in case I lose my Costas overboard one day or forget to bring them with me).

Does anybody else need lenses with built-in magnifiers? Any comments on Onos?

You guys kill me with these yearly sunglass threads.

What glasses are the best?

What glasses are the best buy?

What glasses have the best warranty?

Problems with Maui Jim"s!

Problems with Costas!

Sheesh! If I spent that much on a pair of sunglasses I wouldn't have no money to go fishin.

I have always had trouble losing/breaking glasses so I just always bought fishing glasses at Walmart. Never spent over 20.00. When they got too scratched up I just bought another pair.

I now own a pair of the Costas with 580's and they are awesome. I also picked up a pair of the new "fishing specific" Oakleys and they are also very cool.

I haven't yet been in really decent blue water to test them but I love 'em both at this point.

twentynine - 4/29/2008 6:57 AM

You guys kill me with these yearly sunglass threads.

What glasses are the best?

What glasses are the best buy?

What glasses have the best warranty?

Problems with Maui Jim"s!

Problems with Costas!

Sheesh! If I spent that much on a pair of sunglasses I wouldn't have no money to go fishin.

:thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup:

No compromise when it comes to the eyes. Take that from an optometrist (the wife). Maui Jim's.... on a hot bright day, it's like a cool glass of ice water for your eyes :thumbsup:

I know it's tempting in these economic times, but dont skimp on your eyes. I use Ocean waves for fishing(Havana, backwater green, mirrored) and I totally love my Costa's for driving/everything else (Rum Cay). If your bad about loosing or breaking glasses, spend the extra seven bucks and get a neck lanyard.

Can someone explain to me why a pair of ANY sunglasses, no matter what the quality, with only 3 moving parts, 7 mass produced components, costs more than an Intel computer chip that can perform 2 billion computations per second?

Well, Revo does make great offshore sunglasses. Blue mirror, h2o, (their version of polarized). And no, Sunglass Hut doesn't carry them. I've been out with buddies with their Costas and Maui Jims, and we've all compared on the same day and all were surprised by the Revos. So it's just not me!!

Apples and oranges. High quality sunglasses have very good frames and lenses that are prescription quality (if not better)...which means they are free of abberations and the lens treatments (anti-glare, polarization, etc) are top shelf. The fit and finish are also high quality, which means better looking and more durable. Many people don't understand the benefits of high quality eyewear until they try it. A fair analogy would be television with "good" definition as compared to HD. Clarity and lack of distortion equates to better overall vision, less eye strain, greater comfort and protection. Ya only got two eyes.

Ocean Wave, Maui, Costa.....all high quality. Be cautious of half-off Maui at Costco. I'm pretty sure they are discontinued models. Not a good move by Maui IMO.

GulfCat - 4/29/2008 4:22 PM

Apples and oranges. High quality sunglasses have very good frames and lenses that are prescription quality (if not better)...which means they are free of abberations and the lens treatments (anti-glare, polarization, etc) are top shelf. The fit and finish are also high quality, which means better looking and more durable. Many people don't understand the benefits of high quality eyewear until they try it. A fair analogy would be television with "good" definition as compared to HD. Clarity and lack of distortion equates to better overall vision, less eye strain, greater comfort and protection. Ya only got two eyes.

Ocean Wave, Maui, Costa.....all high quality. Be cautious of half-off Maui at Costco. I'm pretty sure they are discontinued models. Not a good move by Maui IMO.

But aren't "discontinued" sunglasses the same quality as the current models? Isn't it just style that causes them to discontinue a model? ;?

GulfCat - 4/29/2008 4:22 PM

Apples and oranges. High quality sunglasses have very good frames and lenses that are prescription quality (if not better)...which means they are free of abberations and the lens treatments (anti-glare, polarization, etc) are top shelf. The fit and finish are also high quality, which means better looking and more durable. Many people don't understand the benefits of high quality eyewear until they try it. A fair analogy would be television with "good" definition as compared to HD. Clarity and lack of distortion equates to better overall vision, less eye strain, greater comfort and protection. Ya only got two eyes.

Ocean Wave, Maui, Costa.....all high quality. Be cautious of half-off Maui at Costco. I'm pretty sure they are discontinued models. Not a good move by Maui IMO.

This from:

http://www.allaboutvision.com/faq/sunglasses.htm

11. Are the more expensive sunglasses of better quality?

Not necessarily. While expensive sunglasses are usually high quality, you can also get a good pair for under $20 if you're a careful shopper. Just make sure to check that they provide adequate protection from UV light and are free of distortions.

Maui Jim....I'll never get anything else...and the sport models even stay on your head without a lanyard...

There was just another thread on Sunglasses where MJ's were discussed. I'm on my 3rd pair now. I lost my 1st pair in a boating mishap and scratched "both" lenses by stupidity with my 2nd pair. I also bought a pair of Rayban's on my last purchase.

The thread talked about how good MJ's customer service so I figured what the hell and sent my scratched pair in with a letter asking for some type of consideration for a discount to replace both lenses after my woes. They called me and said they were sending me a brand new pair for free. They arrived several days later in a brand new zippered bubble case.

So it's MJ's for life for me.

Funny thing is both the MJ's (sport model) and the Rayban's ran me aboout $150. After they sent me the replacement MJ's I switched them back and forth for a few days and now have not worn the Rayban's again, because to me there is a noticable difference in eye comfort. The poster above who said something like putting the MJ's on is like putting your eyes in a cool glass of water is just what I have found. The Rayban's are in their case buried in my drawer now because the MJ's simply feel better on my eyes and Raybans are glass and heavier in weight too.