(Ray Ban, Maui, Persol, Serengetti) vs. $10 street vendors/Exxon sunglasses

I have never paid more than $10 for sunglasses. I mostly buy them from gas stations or street vendors, and they get lost within a year or two. Rinse/repeat.

Now, I am wearing decent ties, shellC shoes, Trafalgar belts, slim fit pants and MTM shirts, so I might as well go the distance.

Are there "great value" sunglasses (Ebay/knock-off/under $30) for someone who wants the tasteful, conservative, "vintage?", 30/40-something preppy/professional look?
.....Not Ed Hardy, Not Jersey Shore, Not 20s loud muffler/tinted, Not gangster / sideways hat, etc...

Also, what is a more concise way to convey the above category???

Continue buying $10 shades at Walgreens. If it ain't broke, don't fix it. Seems like you are making dress overly complicated with the addition of designer shades.

You dont want to cheap out on sunglasses if you are using them for form versus function. The cheapos dont offer any UV protection at all. They probably even magnify the UV intensity. Go for anything that is 100% UV protected in a style you like.

Actually most cheap sunglasses are just as UV protective as those $300 pairs, according to Consume Report. You're really just paying for design and construction. But if you lose them anyways I'd stick with what's been working.

I went through 12-15 sunglasses from Ray ban to Persol, M. Frederiks, Oliver Peoples , etc. I settled on a pair of wayfarers from Target Girl's department. They cost $9.99 have tortoise-acetate frames and fit my narrow face the best.

Originally Posted by scohrdarkshadow

Click to expand...

Actually most cheap sunglasses are just as UV protective as those $300 pairs, according to Consume Report. You're really just paying for design and construction. But if you lose them anyways I'd stick with what's been working.

x2. And definitely don't buy current Ray-Ban, the obnoxious logo-feces they smear all over the product makes them unwearable.

Originally Posted by SpooPoker

Click to expand...

You dont want to cheap out on sunglasses if you are using them for form versus function. The cheapos dont offer any UV protection at all. They probably even magnify the UV intensity. Go for anything that is 100% UV protected in a style you like.
This is bullshit, plain and simple. What now passes for legitimate style advice...

Just because one buys a cheap pair of sunglasses and it has a little sticker stating UV protection doesn't do it for me. Are they made if China? Don't we constantly hear about lead and other things added in their manufacturing processes.
I have always bought Ray-Ban and now have Serengeti sunglasses, I doubt that I've been through more than 4 or 5 pairs. The quality is just so much better. You only have one set of eyes.
I remember once, a truck passed me on the expressway, and I had my window down. The truck kicked up a rock and it hit me square on the lens of my Ray-Bans, I was wearing at the time.
I hate to think what would have happened if I had a cheap pair of Chinese sunglasses on.

Originally Posted by jacnyr

Click to expand...

Just because one buys a cheap pair of sunglasses and it has a little sticker stating UV protection doesn't do it for me. Are they made if China? Don't we constantly hear about lead and other things added in their manufacturing processes. I have always bought Ray-Ban and now have Serengeti sunglasses, I doubt that I've been through more than 4 or 5 pairs. The quality is just so much better. You only have one set of eyes. I remember once, a truck passed me on the expressway, and I had my window down. The truck kicked up a rock and it hit me square on the lens of my Ray-Bans, I was wearing at the time. I hate to think what would have happened if I had a cheap pair of Chinese sunglasses on.
Actually I've heard a good number of Ray Ban's are made in China. As are a lot of luxury goods. http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/23/opinion/23thomas.html

Originally Posted by scohrdarkshadow

Click to expand...

Actually I've heard a good number of Ray Ban's are made in China. As are a lot of luxury goods.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/23/opinion/23thomas.html

It's becoming pretty rare to see even luxury goods that aren't made in China nowadays. Sunglasses are one area where a lot of people can get away with cheapies, because the sunglasses will frequently get lost, sat on, or destroyed in some other way.

The best sunglasses you can get for that price is probably American Optical. They have some nice aviator designs, and good colors. New they are 50-100 dollars, but you can find them on ebay for around 30 dollars.

I just got some American Optical Generals(aviator gold/amber lenses) for 24 bucks off ebay, and they are really nice.

Try Big 5 sporting goods. They have some good shades on sale. I once found a pair of serengeti for about $50 there. They had some python sunglasses for $30.

Originally Posted by Pezzaturra

Click to expand...

I went through 12-15 sunglasses from Ray ban to Persol, M. Frederiks, Oliver Peoples , etc. I settled on a pair of wayfarers from Target Girl's department. They cost $9.99 have tortoise-acetate frames and fit my narrow face the best.

Lol.

You can try some of these.

http://www.randolphusa.com/

Big difference between the lenses in inexpensive vs. quality sunglasses. While UV protection can be had in the lesser grades, there are other things to take into consideration. Optical clarity across the entire lens is much greater in your higher quality eyewear as is color transmission and polarization. A $15.00 pair of Foster Grants is NOT the optical equivalent of a $250.00 pair of Ray Bans, Maui Jims, or Persols. Upper end eyewear is also repairable. The hinge in my seven year old Maui Jims let go about three weeks ago. For ten bucks MJ replaced both temples. For some reason, they seemed to think they were still under warranty even though I expressly told them the warranty was expired. My Ray Ban Outdoorsmen (uber big aviators from the '70s) are still going strong, though out of style. I'm a fan of Ray Bans, Maui Jim's, and Serengetti.

I don't know what to recommend. Most of the cheap $10 sunnies I try on seem to look and feel almost as good as the famous branded varieties with some rough edges. But the biggest downfall every time has been distortion. Most tend to zoom in the image to various degrees and it really screws with estimating distance, especially when driving or hiking along rough ground. On the other hand the expensive branded sunnies are ridiculously expensive to repair... typically more than $100 to replace an arm on most branded sunnies for example. The quality isn't necessarily that great either. For example you would think the metallic T on Tom Ford frames would be there to attach the arms to the frame. It's just tacky decoration and the hinges are poorly fused/melted to the frame like on any $10 sunnies.

My guide is to judge each pair on its own.