bernmart

For years I've been using a pair of Native Eyewear non-prescription sunglasses when I ride. I need reading glasses, so I used stick-on bifocals on the lenses. My distance vision was close enough to OK that I just made do without a distance prescription.

Yesterday the Native glasses broke at the joint between the frame and the arms, and will need to be replaced. In the last year or so my distance vision has gotten bad enough so that I'd like to use prescription lenses, though the stick-on bifocals would still work fine. Native doesn't make prescription lenses.

Any suggestions?

Homebrew01

Transition lenses (change from light to dark)

edit: I haven't tried them, but might for my next pair. How quickly do they lighten when going inside after being in the sun ?
Any downside ?

eippo1

Oakley has a separate prescription line and also does a great job with integrating prescription lenses into their sport sunglasses as well. They aren't cheap, but they are far better than anything else I've used. If they made contact lenses, I'd probably get them from Oakley as well

djohannsen

My optometrist put me in Zeal frames with Transition lenses (Zeal is what he carried). This is a great solution. I wouldnt want to go the prescription insert route (for me, it would be too heavy, as I have pretty bad astigmatism), so the Transition lenses mean that I can get by with a single pair of sunglasses. This has worked very well for me. Good luck to you.


Dave

Scooper

I bought my prescription Adidas from Bicycle Rx.

neurocycler

+1 A friend of mine really likes his prescription Flak Jackets.

aggarcia

I bought a pair of Rudy Project Rydon RX glasses. They offer many different colors and transition lens. The RX can be made into the lenses or clips that slip on to the back on the frame. It helps that the eyeglass shop has some cyclists as employees so they had a very big selection and were really helpful.

tmass

After years, I gave up on the prescription sunglasses (last Month) and tried/went with extended wear contacts. Now I wear regular Oakley's of my choice and lovin it. But I do know people that love their prescription Oakley's but they do cost a good bit. My contacts are just running $6.00 a month.

Laminarman

$6 a month? So $72 for a years worth of extended wear contact lenses? You're sleeping in them? There is a stinky fish in the woodpile here somewhere. Either one or all of these things are happening: you're wearing a crap lens or getting them grey market; you're sleeping in lenses not meant to be slept in; you're wearing them longer than they should be; or you forgot a zero on the price somewhere?? Just curious. Please enlighten. That would be like me saying "I just got a SRAM Red gruppo for $145 on bikes.com" Sometimes you cannot escape economic reality unless you're doing something gravely wrong.

rjfrzb

Like anything related to bicycling, it depends on your budget.

I wanted it all, progressive lenses, transitions for varying light and ability to use them for cycling and driving. I opted for Oakley Jawbones with Drivewear progressive lenses. The Jawbones offer protection from the wind and the Drivewear lenses work for driving and cycling.

As Drivewear is not well known in France, it has been a bit of a challenge, but the optometrist has been understanding and willing to work with me so it has worked out in the end.

Can't compare them to Transitions, but have found they work well in low light to bright light with no issues. I'm able to read my Garmin easily, no fogging, and no more tearing when descending hills. Really a great combo.

It wasn't possible to try other options, so cannot compare to others such as Rudy. Overall I'm really happy, especially as I am able to wear them inside and out, and they are especially great when driving. No problem with windshield UV filtering.

The only downside is they are relatively expensive and Drivewear is not well known.

aeonderdonk

Not necessarily cycling specific but Costa Del Mar does prescription lenses and I LOVE their glasses.

woodway

I used to wear reading glasses over contact lenses and about a year ago switched to multi-focal contact lenses, which means I get the close up and distance thing all in one lense, and I can wear any pair of sunglasses I want. They work great and I highly recommend them if you are able to wear contacts.

tmass

My cost; my insurance pays the rest..should have clarified. Not cheating and take them out at night.....haven't had them a full month yet.

tpelle

I am VERY nearsighted, and with a strong astigmatism besides. I'm so blind without my glasses that I always bought two frames, one with regular lenses and one with tinted lenses, on the premise if my regular frames broke I could swap the clear lenses into the sunglasses frames and at least continue to function.

This year, when I updated my prescription, I had to replace my frames as well. I'm also dealing with a dry-eye/cloudy cornea issue in my right eye, and when that's finally cleared up I will likely have to update that lens again in a couple of months. In lieu of buying a pair of prescription sunglasses at this time, my optician sold me a pair of inexpensive clip-on sunglasses. They are really working out pretty good.

I think, when I get my cornea issues fixed, I'll still buy the extra glasses for reasons previously mentioned. But for now the clip-ons are working good. (You can also buy el-cheapo clip-ons at Wal-Mart, Target, wherever, that work OK too. The ones from the optician are just nicer, but about 50% more.)

Laminarman

Good for you! I'm an optometrist, sorry dude. I came in over the weekend to treat an ulcer from someone who slept in the same contact lens for over a month. She's at a corneal specialist now, she's likely losing the cornea and will need a transplant. You're lucky to have vision insurance with that good coverage.

bassjones

The only drawback to transition lenses is cold weather. When it's cold outside they take forever to lighten back up when you're in normal indoor lighting. In the Spring, Summer, Fall they normally lighten up pretty quickly, but in the winter, UGH. I'm going with contacts at my next check up and getting a good pair of sunglasses. The other issue for me is I'm preparing for triathlon, so I would need RX goggles as well and unless I could find transitions in those, probably two pair, plus the prescription sunglasses AND my regular prescription glasses... Cheaper to get contacts, a good pair of cycling/sports sunglasses and 2 pair of goggles (tinted and clear).

fordmanvt

They don't change in the car, but for everyday and cycling should be fine. I've gotten it on my last two pairs, so that covers 7 and 6 years without issue. I don't have a cold weather issue with the color change.

I got a set of Maui Jims. I was looking at Rubys, but my total Rx of 5 was too high, Ruby can only do 4.

AllezDada

Got my progressive bifocal/polarized lenses: https://www.bicyclerx.com/product.php?code=RUDY-4.

Kind of expensive, but work perfectly for me. One of the few cycling glasses that would work for eyes as bad as mine.

novacoke

I bought cheap sunglasses with Rx inserts from zennioptical and they do the job for my cycling. It came to $40 - no complaints. https://www.zennioptical.com/700711-p...d-goggles.html

revchuck 

I'm using Rudy Project Rydons with the clip-in inserts. I've had them less than a year, and they're working out well for me so far. I didn't get them until Rudy Project came out with the deal where they throw in some serious schwag - helmet, sports duffel (good one, too), tee shirt, hat, and a free set of lenses. The clip-in frames were covered by my vision insurance, but the lenses were something stupid like $150 for bifocals. Still, I like them, and paid less for everything than the last pair of glasses my wife bought and decided she didn't like and so doesn't wear them.

Looigi

I recently got a pair of glasses for riding: Hoya progressive bifocals, photochromic, AR coated. I already have good dark progressive bifocal sunglasses that I ride with and which work very well, but I got these new ones because I wanted something clear, and the photochromic lenses I got are indistinguishable from clear when they are light. The fact that they darken up in sunlight is a bonus. They work very well for me and I use them day and night, though they don't get nearly as dark as my dedicated sunglasses. Naturally, for riding you want larger lenses that wrap around for eye protection and the exclusion of wind. The biggest trick is finding frames with a wrap-around that isn't too much for the lenses.

You can put clip-in prescription lenses behind sunglasses, or clip-on sun glasses over prescription lenses, but the multiple surfaces start to take their toll on contrast. A good AR coated lens is like it's not there, except in the ways you want it to be.

back4more

Not all Oakley's can be done in bifocal lenses due to the curvature of the lense. I do Oakleys with transition lenses and do monocular contacts

Nachoman

rudy projects with a prescription insert option. But since the insert is a bit heavy, I prefer to wear them without the insert, just wearing contacts.

oldster

I use Walmart clip-ons over my High index everyday, normal glasses, they are less than $20..Work very well( the clipons are hard coated as well)
Bud

climber7

+1 to your +1. i also have prescription flak jackets and love them. i'm sure there are cheaper options that work well, too, but i needed them for other things - driving, working as a lifeguard one summer, rowing - so it made sense for me to invest. they've been great.