Cycling bi-focal/reading glasses

proto

Heads up for those of advanced years!

I need reading glasses these days, and struggle to read my Garmin in poor light, so have been using some cheapo bi-focal sunglasses for a year or two. However, these look like a significant improvement.

http://amba-marketing.com/amba_catalogu ... 1m25b0s146

handful

Look ok, certainly better than the stick on Optix lenses I have at the moment! Where can you buy them though, the search for a dealer comes up blank!

The joys of getting old. :roll:

proto

I'll ask and report back

dabber

These are only bifocal in respect of the small "reading" area though aren't they. The majority of the lens is just neutral and there's no opportunity for your personal prescription. In fact both lenses have to be the same strength as far as I can see, so limited.

I've got some Rapid Eyeware ones.http://www.rapideyewear.co.uk/product.php/65/pro-performance-plus-rx-prescription-cycling-sunglasses/f70a315c25f8d641e46fc0923b5686ef
Rapid were good to deal with and I think they look OK although this comes down to personal taste. With the lighter coloured lenses you can see the prescription insert but not really with the dark one.
They work very well and it's good to see the Garmin readout... and the road ahead

proto

Dabber, I think you're missing the point. They are in no way intended to replace prescription glasses, they are purely for reading. A small section of the lens is effectively a magnifying lens, replicating off the shelf reading glasses that you can buy anywhere (I buy mine from Waitrose)

My middle and long distance sight is excellent, it is only for reading that I need to wear glasses. This is all part of getting old, everyone over the age of 45 (ish) will start to struggle. By looking down through the small magnifying section of the lens I can easily read my Garmin, look through the clear section and I can see the road and scenery perfectly. My old ones have been a great benefit but looked a bit clunky. These look much better.

dabber

No, not missing the point... I understand what these are. I had similar before I went the Rapid route.

Just offering another option.

t4tomo

You think thats bad, i now need varifocals but they are crap for riding in so I use my stabndard prescription glasses or prescription sun glasses. so far can still read the garmin as it far enough away from my nose to be in focus but still big enough to read.

desertman01

What you need are the "Dualeyewear" glasses - check Wiggle. They are great and reasonably priced around 40 Pounds, I cannot read my cycle computer without them.

handful

proto wrote:

My middle and long distance sight is excellent, it is only for reading that I need to wear glasses.

Same here, anything up close is the only problem for me. I now need a garmin out front mount that's about 2 foot long!

crankycrank

handful wrote:

Look ok, certainly better than the stick on Optix lenses I have at the moment!

I've got two pairs of sunglasses with the Optix stick-ons (+2.00 magnification) and one pair is very clear while the other is barely passable. Both are fairly shallow curvature lenses and were easy to fit so it's a mystery. I have also heard that the more powerful the magnification the thicker and more difficult to apply they are. The advantage of stick-ons is they're cheap and you can put them on any pair of shades you like but no guarantee they'll work well with every style.

Bordersroadie

I have poor close up vision so have prescription reading glasses. I'm lucky that cheapo (+1.75) glasses are close enough to my prescription that I can get away with them.

I mostly use clear cycling glasses at night and even on sunny days, good for flies and reading the Garmin. Based on the fact that I regularly damage and/or lose things, I use these £14.25 glasses http://www.eyelids.co.uk/bi-focals/bi-focals-sam.html which are billed as safety glasses but work great as cycling glasses. They do tinted versions of the same.