Reviews > Eye Protection > Sun Glasses > Smith Axis > Brian Tannehill > Field Report

Backpacking Background:

I am fairly new to backpacking, but I have hunted/fished/camped all my life in East Texas, Colorado, and California. My young kids (4, 10, 12) limit me to weekend overnight camping trips, or day hikes Geocaching. I am also an avid mountain biker. For now I live in the Central Coast area of California (Lompoc, Santa Maria area), and am surrounded by many different areas from beaches to mountain regions ranging up to 5,000 feet (1,500 m), with the temperatures averaging about 60 F (16 C) degrees year round.

Product Information:

Manufacturer: Smith Optics
Year of Manufacture: 2005
URL: http://www.smithoptics.com/
Weight of glasses only: 7/8 oz (28 g)
Weight of each pair of lenses: 3/8 oz (10 g)
Glasses + case + two extra lenses: 3 3/8 oz (94 g)

Features from the web site:

Medium/Large Fit
Patented Interchangeable Lens Technology
9 base TLT™ Carbonic™ Lenses
Grilamid™ TR90 Nylon Frame
Hydrophilic Megol™ nose/temple pads
100% UVA/B/C Protection

Field Locations:

The locations of my tests will range from the San Rafael National Forest just east of here ranging up to 5000 feet (1500 m) and any where I run, hike, drive, or ride my bike in my local area in central California

Field Reporting:

I have used these glasses now for numerous things in the last couple of months. More precisely I have used them every day. I have driven with them over 5000 miles (8050 km), hiked, ran, biked, fished and partied with them on. I'll discuss some of the things I like and some of the things I do not like below. Please read my initial report for some of my concerns starting this test.

Comfort/Fit:
As mentioned in my initial report I thought fit might be an issue with these glasses as my head is wider than usual. For the first week I had these glasses I could not wear them longer than a few hours because they were so tight on my head. Now they fit great. I have driven multi hour trips up to 15 hours in a day while wearing these glasses. Some where along the 8th hour they became annoyingly tight. Overall these glasses really fit well now. The Hydrophilic Megol™ nose/temple pads really keep the glasses securely on my head. I have an oily complexion and these glasses do not slip on my nose. The web site gives a description of its Hydrophilic Megol. "It looks like rubber, but appearances can be deceiving. Think of Rubber 2.0. It’s Hydrophilic Megol and its moisture absorbing qualities promise a secure, comfortable fit. They won’t slip. They won’t slide. They won’t fall off. Your just going to have to use your hand."

I have only noticed one instance of movement while running and sweating. Overall these things do not slip. I think its due in part of the Hydrophilic Megol and the tight fit on my head. I really appreciate not having to continually push glasses back up on my face.

These glasses are also very lightweight. After I got used to them, I wear them for almost everything I do. I have used them while fishing, hiking, biking, running, and generally hanging out outdoors.

Durability:
For as much as I have used these glasses, two months is a record for me to have them and not broken them. These glasses have held up extremely well to a number of different conditions. I've taken them to the beach to fish with, played softball with them on, biked with them, ran, and even splattered them with WD-40 while working on my truck.

The right side of the frames became loose during the first week. While donning the glasses the right side will pop off a bit because of my wide head. Over the last two months though this has not gotten any worse and the lenses have stayed in place during a myriad of high impact activities.

The frames themselves do show a slight bit of wear. There are a few scratches from when I dropped them, but the paint does not seem to be wearing off. Will it wear off though after six months?

Lenses:
I received the dielectric blue, rose, and yellow lenses. All lenses are 100% protected from UV A/B/C light. All have a new technology called Tapered Lens Technology which provides distortion-free vision and are made of a material called Carbonic which the web site says is ideal for sport or casual wear. I have used the dielectric blue lenses the most. The web site says they are ideal for bright sunny conditions. I have dropped them a few times and there are a few scratches on the lenses. I do not notice the scratches while wearing them. I've also splattered some WD-40 on them and it wipes right off. I also noticed that they cut out a bit of glare on the water from the ocean while I fish. While the polarized would have been better for fishing, these cut out enough glare to be effective. See below for a comparison on how these lenses look. I took a picture through the lens with my camera. I did it half and half to show the difference with that lens and the naked eye. You can see below they cut out a considerable amount of glare.

The yellow lens is supposed to increase visual acuity in extremely flat or low light conditions. I wear these some in the evening times to help see a bit better. Greens are really green with the yellow tint. See below for a picture of the yellow lens. The yellow line in the middle is just the edge of the lens. It only looks like this for the camera not in real life.

The last lens set I received are the rose copper lenses. The web site states these are "a universal tint that provides the best vision for the widest variety of light conditions. Enhances depth perception, increases contrast and sharpens visual acuity."

I find these most useful on cloudy rainy conditions. I use these while driving in the rain for a couple of hours down to LA. I can see a bit further down the road with all the road spray coming up from other vehicles.

Below is a picture of the rose copper glasses. The line in the middle is just the edge of the glasses and is not visible while wearing.

Changing the lenses has become fairly easy. Once they were broken in they switch out with ease. It is a good balance between the lenses being too loose to fall out and too tight that I can not quickly change them out. I still get numerous fingerprints on them while changing them out. I think a small cleaning rag should be included because I do not always have a nice rag or shirt to clean them with.

I have noticed since I wear the dielectric blue lenses the most that around the edges that fit into the glasses a light line of dirt/grease has built up. I have noticed this more in dusty conditions such as mowing the yard. So far the dirt just wipes off but I am noticing a small bit of residue being left on it. Will this get worse over the life of this test?

One thing that keeps playing through my head while writing this is viewing the world through rose color glasses. Someone showed me this phrase and I think it fits for this test.

"Some unfortunate people never take their rose-colored glasses off, but everyone wears these spectacles occasionally. This attitude of cheerful optimism, of seeing everything in an attractive, pleasant light, has always been with us, while the expression itself goes back to at least 1861, when it is first recorded in 'Tom Brown at Oxford': 'Oxford was a sort of Utopia to the Captain. He continued to behold towers, and quadrangles, and chapels, through rose-colored glasses." From the "Encyclopedia of Word and Phrase Origins" by Robert Hendrickson.

Overall these have quickly become my favorite set of glasses. These glasses are durable, lightweight, and stylish. At this point in the test I have nothing bad to note about these glasses. These have been one of the better sets of glasses I have owned. I'm definitely viewing this test through "rose colored glasses."

Questions and Concerns:

I still think some of the following questions are still applicable to this test.
Will the right side of the frames where the lenses pop out become worse over time?
How well will the anti-scratching layer hold up?
Will the frames wear out from all the swapping of lenses?
Will the lenses stay in place?
Will the arms break because of my wide head?

Some newer questions to answer:
Will the residual layer of dirt have an affect on the glasses?
How much wear and tear will the frames show after six months of hard usage?

Test Plan:

My plan is to continue testing these glasses as I have been for the last two months. These glasses will be used daily for almost everything I do.

Brian

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Reviews > Eye Protection > Sun Glasses > Smith Axis > Brian Tannehill > Field Report