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Polarised Sunglasses

4K views 20 replies 13 participants last post by  thetrouttickler 
#1 ·
Gonna be needing another pair , anyone got any recommendations, also I’m told amber is probably the best lens colour for general use ( unless people on here think different )

Any opinions on what on what ones /where to buy etc

tight lines ?
 
#3 ·
Agree re amber being the best all-rounder for most people most of the time.

Get ones that fit well*. If you can afford glass lenses, do. If you can't, don't stress it too much.

*Other considerations are a long way secondary IMHO. I spent a lot of time fishing with Snowbee fitovers and my regular specs on a recent bonefishing trip and tbh didn't feel the difference to the degree I expected.
 
#12 ·
Gonna be needing another pair , anyone got any recommendations, also I'm told amber is probably the best lens colour for general use ( unless people on here think different )

Any opinions on what on what ones /where to buy etc

tight lines ?
I guess it depends on whether your primary purpose is eye protection or to spot fish/wading hazzards. I have amber lenses in glasses made by Snowbee, Mau Jim and Costa. Price ranges from £30 - £160. If all I fished for the rest of my days was from a boat on Rutland then Snowbees would be fine. But I actually fish places where you need to see through the water. Mau Jims and Costas do a much better job and they also last longer because their build quality is much better. It's like the old adage on shooting optics - the more you pay the more you see.
 
#14 ·
I almost never sight-fish, one of last seasons carp was the first for years actually. Cheap Polaroids have been my benchmark for years (if you have a TK Maxx near you have a gander at their sunnies ?)
I have had various 'surf/snow' brands (O'Neill, Vuarnet, Smith's) from TK Maxx in Plymouth down the years. All at huge savings.
I know I will lose or break most within a season or two, so I really baulk at the idea of paying more than £15 or so for sunnies....
I actually have been using some super cheap clip-ons from Ebay this season on top of my normal specs which have been OK, surpriaingly OK ?
 
#17 ·
I almost never sight-fish,
There was a time when over half my fishing was sight fishing, mainly for salmon and trout but occasionally sea trout, grayling and pike. That is why I have a thing about the quality of the polarisation.

Even fishing lochs from a boat there are times when it is helpful to see through the surface. When on the oars I've lost count of the number if times I've seen fish following the rods flies which they have never noticed because they weren't using good polarising glasses.

Green lenses. I seem to remember somewhere that green works really well on chalkstreams. I don't have any chalkstreams within about 500 miles but I thought I'd try them for the estuary (lots of green and brown weed over pale sand in clear water). I can't say they were an outstanding success but I can say that in peaty rivers green lenses are the very worst choice! They just turn everything a dull flat brown and are almost worse than no glasses at all. You live and learn!

Andy
 
G
#21 ·
I have used 'Guideline' for over a decade, although I see Sportfish now brand them as 'Sportfish'. At £30 to £50 they are reasonably cheap. To the OP, I highly recommend them.

But as I said on a recent thread about the same topic, I am restricted to what I know. I fish the chalkstreams a lot at the moment and I see a lot of fish. I've never felt hampered and never felt that I need to spend more to upgrade.

So I always read with interest when people say that top end sunglasses like Maui Jim's and Costas do "a much better job" and the "more you pay the more you see".

I'm not going to pay to find out if that is right or not, seeing as I'm very happy with the pair I have. But am I missing out?... that buzzword FOMO... would a top end pair be like switching a light on underwater?

it would be really helpful if someone could do a thread to end all polaroid threads and take images of the same fish in the same lighting conditions through a range of cheap, mid and expensive lenses.

Of course, Oliver Kite thought polaroids were cheating on chalkstreams, so I might not upgrade even if the evidence was objectively overwhelming!
 
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