Shooting Glasses

[cdbeaver]

Don't know whether this thread is in the proper category, but at least it should be shooting related.

I've worn eyeglasses since childhood, but have never worn shooting glasses while on the range or bench. Didn't think I could get any to fit over my prescription glasses, and without the specs I might just as well be lobbing hand grenades down range.

Is it essential to wear shooting glasses, or will my regular (plastic lenses) glasses protect my eyes sufficiently? After 50 or 60 years of shooting, it seems rather idiotic to be asking the question now.

 

[megatronrules]

I wear eyeglasses as well. I cant find any eye protection that fits over my prescription glasses comfortabely. I have had brass hit me in the glasses. Scratched my lens but thats about all it did.
I never did wear them really. I thought I was the only one.

 

[D.W. Drang]

If you go to the local hardware store you should be able to find safety glasses which will fit over yor spectacles. They aren't real high quality, but they will cover the gaps at the top and bottoms of your spectacles--which you need!
You sholud also be able to buy prescription shooting glasses, or shooting glasses which will accept prescription inserts. (At one time the local WalMart's optical department had safety frames for safety glasses for fairly cheap.)
The drawbacks to "just" wearing yor prescription spectacles are that they are usually open at the top and bottom, allowing hot brass and gasses to enter the immediate vicinirty of your eyeballs, and that the lenses may not be "up to spec" for safety glasses, i.e., shatter resistant. Any prescription glasses sold in WA State must meet the ANSI Specs for safety glasses, but YMMV...

 

[Ebbtide]

I wear my regular glasses. I'm not sure how safe that is, but I figure they are safer than those cheapo yellow shooting glasses.

Actually, I will be willing to bet my lenses are stronger than most safety glasses. They just don't go under the ANSI (or whatever) tests.

If need be, talk with your eye guy. My doctor sells actual shooting glasses with prescriptions.

 

[D.W. Drang]

If you go to the local hardware store you should be able to find safety glasses which will fit over yor spectacles. They aren't real high quality, but they will cover the gaps at the top and bottoms of your spectacles--which you need!
You shold also be able to buy prescription shooting glasses, or shooting glasses which will accept prescription inserts.
The drawbacks to "just" wearing yor prescriptin spectacles are that they are usually open at the top and bottom, allowing hot brass and gasses to enter the immediate vicinirty of your eyeballs, and that the lenses may not be "up to spec" for safety glasses, i.e., shatter resistant. Any prescription glasses sold in WA State must meet the ANSI Specs for safety glasses, but YMMV...

 

[Smoke]

If you ever had some spent powder blow back in your eye you will see the need in something that fits a little closer to the face.

I am as guilty as the next of just wearing my regular sunglasses, but I will always have some type of good quality lens over my eyes.

 

[Jesse H]

Sometimes I'll wear my polarized Raybans sometimes my actual shooting glasses which safely seal off my eye from any brass or powder.

I tend to shoot better with the Raybans since the view is more clear, but I have had brass fly and land between the frames and my face. Ouchie.

 

[shermacman]

I had a .22 rifle malfunction, the magazine blew out, the casing split, the bullet made it almost an inch down the barrel. But the powder blew back into my face with as much roar as a .22 can muster. I was wearing my prescription sunglasses which soaked up most of the blast but enough of it got around the glasses to make me think about the possibility of permanent blindness. I agree they are better than those stooopid shooting glasses but I would like a full goggle that would accept my glasses. And no I don't care how dorky I look!
Hey Jesse H! You gunna change yer signature line with that Dixie Chix quote?

 

[Jesse H]

shrmacman,

Yeah I've actually been thinking about it. I was at a Toby Keith concert and he mad a remark about Peter Jennings and the Chicks...up till then I didn't realize the Chicks were like that.

 

[cheygriz]

I too, can't shot without my glasses.

When I get new eyeglasses, I specify that the lenses must meet OSHA specs for industrial safety glasses. They are a tiny bit heavier than regular eyeglasses, but they give you even MORE protection than shooting glasses,

 

[Ala Dan]

Greeting's All,

I wear 'script glass'es as well. Approximately 3 year's
ago I switched over to the yellow tinted Varilux lens*
(no line bifocal's). Although I can still shoot without
these glass'es, my scores improve greatly when they
are in use. The sight picture is unbelieveable; crystal
clear, with a very sharp image. I reserve these top
notch glass'es strictly for shooting; as I use a $15.00
pair of drug store glass'es for reading, writing, etc.

*FootNote- The yellow tint Varilux lens makes all
setting's appear as bright daylight; even on very
cloudy day's!

Best Wishes,
Ala Dan, N.R.A. Life Member

 

[Waitone]

I wear prescription plastic lens glasses to the range. I too have experienced hot brass jumping behind my glasses. I now wear at all times while shooting a ball cap or golf visor pulled down low. Very effective at stopping brass.

 

[Standing Wolf]

All my glasses have shatter-proof, coated polycarbonate lenses. My regular trifocals are good enough for informal shooting; when I want to see the front sight truly crisply, however, I wear my computing bifocals, whose upper panel focuses my eye at slightly more than arm's length, as well as a Merit peep sight: http://www.meritcorporation.com

Eye specialists who give me mouth about needing ricochet-proof glasses don't get second visits from me.

 

[Blackcloud6]

I wear prescription glasses. The last pair I had were the light weight kind and they got scratched easily. I even had a 9mm case fly back and hit them and it put a nice scratch on the elnse. I went to getr new glasses and had two pair made. One for regular wear in small stylish frames and the second pait I had made for shooting using a older larger lense frame I had. The shooting glasses were made of saftey type glass that won't shatter and can resist impact.

A few month later I had a KB in a Model 1927 Sistema. Shards flew back and hit the glass. The lenses just deflected them.

Bottom line: Best $250 I ever spent in my life. The eye glass folks recommended the special lenses for shooting and told me not to wear normal glasses for shooting. They were right.

If you shoot a lot, I recommend getting prescription shooting glasses made.

 

[pax]

At the local industrial-supply store, you will probably be able to find nifty little clip-ons that attach to the earpiece of your regular glasses to keep flying objects (eg brass) from flying into the side gaps. Those, plus a baseball cap, provide enough protection to make me feel secure most the time -- but then, my prescription specs are shatter proof.

pax

My face in the mirror isn't wrinkled or drawn.
My house isn't dirty. The cobwebs are gone.
My garden looks lovely and so does my lawn.
I think I might never put my glasses back on.
-- Source Unknown

 

[coonan357]

since I worked with chemicals in the truck driving industry for 12 years I have a collection of used prescription saftey glasses I use , I find they last longer than the pull over types and you feel more adjusted to them , the last pair I had have been pelted so many times by eratic cases that you can see the marks in the lenses . spend what ever you think your eyes are worth in order to protect them . I spend apx $250 a year and my safties have saved my sight more than once.

 

[hso]

A polycarbonate lense will provide adequate impact resistance, but a properly designed frame with side shields will help mitigate the material that would damage the eye from getting around the lenses to your eyes. Good non-prescription safety glasses like UVEX (http://www.uvex.com/eyewearindex.html) can be had from safety supply houses. The prices range from $15 to $40 per pair. UVEX also makes over the glasses versions that are not too awful, but the best thing to do is get prescription inserts installed on the safety glasses or get prescription safety glasses.

Those of you that believe that your personal glasses are "better" than the ANSI A87 certified safety glasses, you're wrong. I can't say it any more simply. The lenses of your glasses may be as good as those in safety glasses, but not better. Is your future as a shooter and you vision worth such a grave error? Mine isn't.

 

[stevelyn]

I've been shooting several years relying on my prescription glasses for protection more as a matter of practicality. I recently started wearing contact lenses and as a result had to think about eye protection for shooting. I ordered a pair of Wiley-X Sabers with the wrap around lens and found they protected me better than my eye glasses ever could.
My advice would be if at all possible, purchase a pair of shooting/safety glasses in your prescription or look into getting contacts and use the proper shooting/safety glasses with them.

 

[ocabj]

I too use my prescription glasses. The problem is, I recently had cataract surgery in my right eye (at the age of 23; doctors think caused by a medication I was put on and off) so I have a synthetic lens in my right eye. For all intents and purposes, other than needing a bifocal/progressive lens in my right eye, my eye is perfectly fine. But, I'm weary of getting anything in my right eye or getting hit my anything for fear of possible hightened injury by the synthetic lens (ie: shattering, reaction to chemical, etc).

I haven't been back to my optimitrist ever since I got my most recent pair of glasses last December, but he said there are options I can get for shooting prescription glasss. Matter of fact, my cousin uses custom Oakley prescription+tinted shooting glasses for IPSC.

Try googling for "prescription shooting glasses" and you will come up with quite a few hits.

I'm still checking stuff out. Trying to keep it as inexpensive a purchase as possible. Gotta save money for that next gun.