i’m seemingly sensitive to light, and so sought to find the DARKEST & LARGEST lenses, which would provide the maximum amount of coverage over my visual field (i.e. letting in the least light, from any angle or direction), whilst dimming down daylight the maximum amount (welding-style “Shade 5” lenses let in, typically, 2% of visible light, allot less than the next-darkest “dark grey” lenses, at 9-10% V.L.T. visible-light-transmission). i’ve tried out TWENTY (20) types of frames for fit (relying on returns-for-refunds)… and found the following… First, perhaps importantly for other people, different brands are different COLORS: grey-green… Hot-Max green-green… Jackson yellow-green… Sellstrom, Uvex greenish-yellow… Crews, Edge, Hobart, Miller, Pyramex For example, the JACKSON’s are “green-green-green-green-no-no-seriously-ONLY-green”. Thru Jackson green-green lenses, red lights & blues are blocked out, practically completely. i think, that Jackson lenses let in light, only of green, visible-band, wavelengths, 550-600nm… i think, that they block out EVERY-and-ALL other wave-lengths, i.e. ALL UV, and ALL IR… if so, then those are the ones you’d want, were you welding (or whatever) where IR / UV protection was preferred. Conversely, most manufacturers make lenses, that are (by comparison) only a vaguely-greenish yellow, through which reds are readily visible, only dimmed a degree. i think, that that means, that those lenses let in light, of red visible, and even IR invisible, wavelengths. That might make some degree of difference, for some people. But, what i was wanting, was mainly overall DARKNESS ( = all Shade 5 welding lenses) and COMPLETE COVERAGE… that’s where the specific form & fit of FRAMES makes dramatic differences. The following frames are ranked, per that PERSONAL preference… COMPLETE COVERAGE ========================== PYRAMEX “V2G” (w/ optional Rx insert) UVEX “Genesis XC” (w/ optional Rx insert) top two types, cannot complain about coverage… “XC” supposedly stands for “Extra Coverage”, and it does deliver in that regard… Uvex lenses are greener (“slightly-yellowish-green”) whereas Pyramex’s are yellower (“greenish-yellow”)… reds are readily readable, with a Pyramex pair, but are dimmer-and-darker, seen through a Uvex lens (cp. Jackson lenses, which are “Brilliant Irish Emerald Green ONLY”, which block out both blues & reds practically completely)… the V2G’s have a got a good gasket, allot like the Hobart’s (below), made from semi-soft-but-solid rubber, which (unlike foam, which Wiley-X uses for their face-fitting frames) does not absorb grease or moisture, and is quick & easy to clean & dry… V2G’s also come equipped w/ inter-changeable temples / struts / legs / arms vs. single strap (adjustable)… both of the above can accommodate special Rx inserts (for Uvex, the cryptic part number is “3350”)… Overall, the Pyramex V2G''s may be a degree darker than the Uvex Genesis XC's... UVEX “Skyper” as complete a coverage as the previous pairs… BUT are big, boxy, bulky, with wide wings… they jut way out at the temples, such that the sides look like ice-cream scoops… they scoop up lots of light, which readily reflects off the back of the lenses, straight into eyes… might not be as bad, for bigger faces… overall, would NOT recommend SELLSTROM “Grafit” perhaps the DARKEST of the lenses i look thru… the wings are basically blinders, letting in nearly no light from any direction but fully from the front… only down-side, is that the wings are apparently produced from the same poly-carbonate plastic as the lenses, only dyed much more, until they’re basically black & completely opaque… but, they are SMOOTH & SHINY, and unless they absolutely hug your face, and seal to your skin, any light let in reflects off the back of the lenses, constantly creating bright ghostly shimmering mirrory mirages… work well for working IF you have a hat on, e.g. a densely-woven beanie pulled down over the tops of the temples EDGE “Dakura” according to Safety-Glasses-USA, “everybody loves these”, and i see why… surprisingly tight wrap, they absolutely HUG your face, letting little light in, despite their small size… would be PERFECT if peripherals were blocked out, with wider bigger temples / arms / legs / struts… as is, they provide nearly NO PERIPHERAL PROTECTION (straight from sides, 90-degrees from front) HOBART “770726” mean-looking mirrored lenses must make some sort of statement… have got a good gasket, of spongy-but-SOLID RUBBER, allot like the Pyramex V2G’s, which let in little light, without being a form of FOAM, which absorbs facial-skin-oils & get greasy whilst being hard to clean (and take tons of time to dry out when you do)… but, are built on a big “base curve”, which would work well, only for BIGGER FACES… as is, they do not wrap tightly to me, jutting way out at the temples… and the MIRROR coating reflects any-and-all light let in from the sides, straight back in the eyes… otherwise would be the one’s i’d want LET A LITTLE LIGHT IN ========================= CREWS “Storm” competes for the DARKEST over-all lens tint i tried… and competes for CHEAPEST frames i fitted… temples ROTATE to some degree, so you can ANGLE the lenses for fit… no other pair possesses that particular feature… wrap way around to provide peripheral protection, and are shaped so as to minimize any internal reflections… overall, even i like these allot HOT-MAX “25064” one-of-a-kind “DARK green” lens, looks like a Uvex lens dyed with more gray / black coloring agent (or a dark-grey lens dyed w/ gobs of green), pretty-good-protection, especially peripherally, and do not create any kinds of “internal reflections” bouncing light, let in from the sides, back into eyes LET LOTS OF LIGHT IN (ordered by decreasing coverage, largest lenses at top, tiniest at bottom) ==============================================================================================UVEX “Genesis” SMITH & WESSON “Magnum 3G” these top two are about the best of this bunch, but let in lots of light from low down on the visual field, i.e. the lenses don’t extend downwards far enough, to block light from low angles RADNOR “Premier” wide, out-flaring nose cut-out, lets in lots of light, in bottom-center of visual field, allot like the Jackson Nemesis’ CREWS “Triwear” nose-piece lifts lenses off nose, creating a gap letting in light CREWS “Blackjack” all three (3) CREWS frames i fitted, look like their lenses, are essentially the SAME… but, the ability to ROTATE the lenses, of the “Storm” style, made for a much better, light-blocking, fit (to my face)… the “Blackjack’s” look like the identical lenses, fitted to more stylish sleek metal-made arms / legs / struts / temples, which are not-adjustable… the one fixed fit didn’t fit my face, letting in lots of light EDGE “Zorge” JACKSON “Nemesis” = BOUTON “Answer” (Bouton’s “answer to the Nemesis” was apparently to directly copy the design) JACKSON “Hell-Raiser” Jackson has some special proprietary production process… their lenses are GREEN-MORE-GREEN-NOTHING-BUT-GREEN… probably provide the best possible protection, you cannot read red LEDs (like on clocks, microwaves, or appliances) through Jacksons… theirs are the lenses i would want, were they fitted for fuller frames MILLER “235658” angle up towards temples & look “bug-eyed”, rest fairly far from face, let allot of light in from all ways around (except from direct front)
