gsa103

Cheapest option, any cheap safety glasses. Personally, I prefer Oakley's the optical clarity is phenomenal. I have better than 20/20 vision and they're the first sunglasses I've tried where I didn't continually notice distortion.

soom

Whoops I did mean inexpensive and not cheaply made products that consequently are budget purchases. I generally think "cheap" as under $100 in anything provided it's the trusted brand/item to get. I was actually looking for inexpensive, excuse my poor choice of words, and thanks for all the great suggestions. I actually live a touch away from local bicycle shops so usually I purchase almost everything exclusively online.

Any other suggestions are welcome!!

soom

I'll try to pop by a REI next week!

Hiro11

$40, so perhaps not "cheap" but very well made and very comfortable:
Uvex Blaze lll Sunglasses | Chain Reaction Cycles

You might be able to find them elsewhere cheaper.

GravelMN

Any ANSI rated polycarbonate safety glasses will do. You can get them from many companies in tints from clear, to yellow, amber, smoke and mirrored. Many are UVA/UVB shielding and some are polarized (nice when dealing with a lot of glare from water or snow). Any big box store will have them in the home improvement/tool section as will home improvement stores like Menards and Lowes. Even the <$10 ones are pretty decent with minimal distortion. The more expensive you go, the clearer the vision and the less the distortion but you don't have to go more than $15-25 to get an excellent pair.

sced

Cheap sunglasses are like cheap watches - a lot of really good ones out there.

T Stew

Thanks for the info, I'm a perscription wearer but have already invested in Oakleys. But when these wear out I may try something different. But does $49 cover the perscription part too? Agreed markup is crazy on perscription stuff, but that was one reason to go with Oakleys in my case earlier, since for regular sunglases they are very $$$ but for perscription glasses they are par for the course. In fact, the next wall over the average price of just frames was >$200 and more than my Oakleys. Yeah they had one section of discount stuff but they really looked terrible. I've seen far nicer looking frames in the turn thingy at the drug store.

Insurance is a bit of a joke too. The glasses store say my insurance is great, yet to get the primary coverage I need to buy new frames. To just replace the lenses, which is the reason I need glasses, the discount is not as much, and i can't invoke the secondary coverage for more until I also get a set of frames. So why is medical insurance supporting vanity item like frames rather than the part that corrects my bad vision! The waste bothers me too, I have so many old frames that are perfectly fine. In fact I still have my very first perscription sunglasses from the 90's and the frame is fine save for a few spots of missing paint. Insurance should favor just replacing the glass, that is why our insurance rates are so high and our landfills are filling up. My Oakleys are the Racing Jacket and open for interchangable lenses so swapping em out is easy. I hope the frames last a long time and I can just get new lenses, but honestly the Oakley frames have me a bit worried about longevity.

noodle soup

I'm biased because I've worked for Oakley for many years, but Racing Jackets have a very good history of durability. Sadly that design has been on the chopping block for a couple of years. It hasn't been discontinued, but it is definitely on the way out. If I were you, I would look for a backup frame at an Oakley Vault store(or online). Sometimes the Vault stores have Racing Jackets available at very reasonable prices.

Gonemad

I own these. Amazing deal considering the different lenses, excellent shield design works perfectly for very fast downhill descents. Quality is a solid "good" and are not flimsy, though of course they are still in the cheap sunglasses category. The only real problem I've found is that they are subject to some lenses flare in harsh glare situations, which so far is a rare and minor annoyance.

Vexx Morph Sunglasses with Extra Lenses | Vexx
For $19 and shipping this a laughable deal; I took a chance and was completely satisfied.

FIVE ONE SIX

i used to use Ironman brand (made by Foster Grant) sunglases because they're pretty good and can be found at any local Stop & Shop, CVS, Walmart, Target and Sports Authority. just know that they will charge completely different prices for the same exact glasses at those stores though. for example, a specific glass will be $15 at Walmart, $20 at Target and $30 or even $40 at Sports Authority...

if you don't mind spending say $30ish dollars, then check Amazon for Ironman Pro Sunglasses. they are their top of the line sunglasses, and retail for about $90, but for some reason there are always a colors of a few styles reduced to around $30 or less on Amazon, and they're awesome glasses too! right now i use these ( Amazon.com: Ironman Pro Cronos Shield Sunglasses,Shiny White,116.6 mm: Clothing ) and i love them. they fit like a glove, they come with both a soft case and hard case and they're dirt cheap for what you get...

klein7862

Buy these [h=2]3M Performance Safety Eyewear, Model# 90191-00000@ Amazon[/h]

calamarichris

+1 They're great, lightweight, and more comfortable than many of my more expensive sunglasses. I lost a pair and gave away a pair--sure beats the remorse of losing a $100+ pair of sunglasses.

T Stew

Vault store?
I really like the Racing Jacket. They may be more durable than I realize, the light weight flexy plastic is misleading, especially after being accustomed to metal frames with metal hinges and screws, a plestic frame where the joints are just two little plastic nubs was a bit concerning for me. But maybe its all fine. The only issue on mine so far is the paint. I'm not rough on glasses but the paint has worn off the edges all around. So now the black undercoating (or plastic frame itself?) shoes through all the edges that were bright silver. From a few feet away this really isnt an issue, but every time I pick em up I see a heavily worn set of $600 plastic glasses. They look great to me, I love the two-tone colors, and the easily removable lenses. The vented lenses is a really nice touch too, but with the wide coverage and almost goggle-like fit they still fog up on some early morning races. I'm going to order a new set of lenses soon, maybe two depending on what insurance will cover. Right now I have an inbetween lens - the Fire Irdidium which is a medium tint and non-polarized. I'm thinking of Ice Iridium in polarized for bright days, or a photochromatic lens that might allow me to just wear my Oakleys on extended trips like overnight bikepacking, hiking, etc., instead of bringing a pair of plain glasses with me.

bakes1

Way too much angst over glasses. I am sorry to hear you are worried about the future of your Oakleys lol

CNC2204

I have a pair of Oakley Flak Jackets & 2 pair of Oakley Radar.

They are the only optics ive bought in 40 years that stand up to wear & tear and don't break.

I have a cheap pair of clear lenses for night.

You can get a nice pair of Radars shipped of ebay starting around $120.

Don't buy from the Oakley store they want $225 for the same thing.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-OAKLEY-R...QAAOSwx-9WuZFM

calamarichris

Okay, rule number one for getting cheap, good sunglasses is NO OAKLEY.

I have Oakleys and love them, but why are they even being mentioned in this thread??

CNC2204

Because they're about the best you can get.

Why mess with anything else ?

Campag4life

Oakleys aren't the best cycling glasses by a long shot.
Why? A fundamental reason. NO adjustable nose piece.
For a perfectly tailored fit because everybodies nose is different...in fact dramatically...having a nose piece with memory aka 'more expensive' insert molded metal within a nose piece allows not only better pressure distribution but vertical lense adjustment height...critical for seeing the road in the drops.

Best frames? Rudy Project...not Oakley.

bmthom.gis

I like designer sunglasses. I have 3 pair but have had them each for at least 7 years now. I won't buy a pair of sunglasses that doesn't have polarized lenses. The ones I use for cycling are Bollé. I used to wear them a lot when I was in the Coast Guard then stopped for a few years but they work really well for cycling.

Other good brands I like are Ray Bans and Maui Jim. I'll probably look at Costas next...whenever that will be.

Tifosi are pretty decent and cost effectivr, I don't know that they have polarized lenses though.

soom

Considering that they are generally perceived to be as quality it can be made as a suggestion. IMO Oakley is generally cheaper than other eyewear brands like RayBan / Persol / designer brands ... which to many would be seen as pure luxury.

It's a good suggestion although it could be seen as the highest limit (and then some) for this topic.

T Stew

My point was if you can use insurance, they really aren't any pricier than the average set of frames. They do get you on the multitude of coatings, depending on which lenses you get. When I was last at the eye doctor half the glasses they had on the wall were more expensive than Oakley and they did not looks as nice. And the OP did say OR quality brands to suggest. When it comes to department store cheap I don't know if there is much that can really be suggested, just find some you like and spend $10. Even if you don't need a prescription which the OP likely does not, you may be able to use a HSA or other tax free health savings account if you have one, but I am not sure. Sunglasses are to protect your eyes, which are an important thing! I know after my insurance kicks and drops the price in half or so, I can use my HSA to pay the rest tax free, so that's like another 1/3rd off the remainder.

And no, Oakleys are not the best. Good, maybe great but there are some other glasses out there that cost more and are better. For me Oakley was a good balance of price and looks. The non-adjustable nose does not bother me, but after a long while wearing them the squarish profile of the parts that go over the ear make me a tad sore. That is just my model they come in all different shapes though.

RubeRad

I just picked up a pair of these, apparently oakley knockoffs, for 'free' plus S/H.

https://www.bikemethod.com/products/...nt=27955789699

Got them in the mail last night, they're bigger and chunkier than I expected, but not cumbersome on the face, the rubber nose piece holds ok. I have a pretty big face, so the size works for me.

Like many other sunglasses, the bottom left rubs on my cheek, I think it's because my nose is crooked from being broken in high school. So that's a tiny bit annoying but probably not a problem for most people.

The biggest problem is those "O" shapes at the hinge on each side, are persistently visible in my peripheral vision. I don't plan to wear them on the road anymore because I kept thinking a car was sneaking up on me. For mtn they'll probably be good though.

noodle soup

I'm sure they are worth what you paid for them

noodle soup

Who are you?

seypat

I saw them in concert in either 83 or 4, can't remember which. Someone from the audience threw a glass bottle and hit one of the guitarists in the head. He went down and had to receive medical attention while the other two carried on! He eventually got up and finished the show. Afterwards he had to go to the local hospital and get sewed up. In the press release the next day they said they would never play that town again because of that. I don't think they have.