I recently treat myself to some Oakley geps with the prizm road lenses. Wore them at the weekend for the first time (admittedly on the MTB) but after about 20 mins it started belting down so took them off and put back in the soft case.

When I got home they’ve got quite a few nasty scratches in them. Really disappointed especially given they were not cheap. They’ve scratched up like a £5 supermarket pair of sunnies.

I got onto Oakley about it and registered an account on their service/warranty portal and received a response earlier today..

They’re saying it’ll be £77 for them to repair them in Italy and £5 postage. Complete and utter pisstake. I can buy a new replacement lens for £76 FFS.

I’ll probably end up just keeping them for road bike only and being extra careful not to **** them up even more. I was planning on getting the prizm trail lenses for them but I’ve not much faith they will be any more robust! Not sure what I’m asking really just wanted to vent and warn others how fragile these glasses are.

Does the Oakley marketing blurb make any special reference to the lenses being scratch proof or even a little more scratch resistant than normal?

I ‘ve given up with Oakley. Last three pairs have all scratched so badly they are unwearable. Last pair were Prizm for sailing/watersports which were not cheap and lasted 1 season. Absolutely useless. Never go near the brand again.

Its not that the lenses scratch into the plastic, its basically the coating which starts coming off renderiing the glasses unuseable. Should all be recalled as they are not fit for use.

I ‘ve given up with Oakley

Yeah me too, their response about spares for some older glasses was poor, their once-famed customer service doesn’t really seem to exist anymore. They’ve become “just another” fashion brand owned by Luxotica.

The marketing blurb says “impact protection” in the list of features but can’t see anything about scratching.

Agree that they’re not fit for use. Interesting I’m not the only one that won’t be going near them again. Actually looks like you can’t even buy prizm trail anymore judging by their website.

That’s the key to it.

No longer an american company with customer service. Swallowed up via predatory anti-competitive practices by Luxotica, in a style youd normally associate with other Italian ‘organisations’.

and the competition regulators both in the USA and Europe did….the square root of fheckall.    Luxottica needs breaking up as they have a near stranglehold in the glasses market.

Came here to recommend some Endura Dorado II – clarity good enough that as a prescription wearer off the bike, I’m fine with these and not wearing my script. Cheap(ish) enough to not worry about too much. I put a tiny scratch in the coating of my photochromic lens, but know I was being too rough – they have survived a good few muddy rides unscathed any further.

Then I just saw these on offer for the price of your new lens. Would be tempted if I needed some

POC Aspire

Had my prizm trails (Flak Jackets) for 5+ years. Yep, they’re a bit scratched now but that’s after almost daily use….

Did you put them in the wee bag, or just loose in the case?

The coating on both my Half jacket (polarised) and Flak jacket (Prizm road) is coming off around the edge and I would agree they seem prone to scratches.  The Half jackets replaced a (lost) pair I had used heavily for many years without the issue.

Will be looking at other brands to replace them.

I have two prescription pairs that cost a bomb but are excellent – they’ve had 5+ years usage, are optically superior to my everyday glasses, and don’t have a scratch on them despite wearing them for mtb and road. Worth every penny. The one thing I do though, that I would recommend to anyone owning these- is to never rub the lens with any cloth without first washing any particles off under a tap (or water bottle if out), to rub the coating when there’s any invisible dirt/ dust on there is asking for trouble.  This is what I do religiously, and it makes them last, and they need to as being prescription they cost 3-4 times the normal price. And never store them away in a pack without first being well protected, preferably in the proper case.

Also, are you sure they are not fakes?

Aye, I put them away in the little soft bag mid ride not the hard case. Also do the run under a tap thing when there is visible dirt on my glasses. I bought them from Oakley.com so they’re not fake just shite 🤣

Cheers for the other recommendations. Those POC ones do look good value

The iridium coating is soft.  The lenses in some flak jackets I have got to the point I couldn’t really use them so I’ve just got some cheapo replacements from ebay for about a tenner.  They seem fine.

Consumer Rights Act here surely. They’re inherently faulty / not of satisfactory quality.

I’ve also given up on Oakley. At one point they seemed to take pride in their work, but since they’ve been bought out they are just a money-making company.

I reckon you’d be better off buying these:

https://www.temu.com/uk/mens-cycling-sports-uv-protection-sunglasses-sun-protection-sunglasses-decorative-accessories-for-traveling-party-outdoor-activities-g-601099518457443.html?top_gallery_url=https%3A%2F%2Fimg.kwcdn.com%2Fproduct%2FFancyalgo%2FVirtualModelMatting%2F282a717221366c2029ef4a7a18007a6b.jpg&spec_gallery_id=4008081841&refer_page_sn=10009&refer_source=0&freesia_scene=2&_oak_freesia_scene=2&_oak_rec_ext_1=ODQ4&search_key=Oakley%20ev%20zero&refer_page_el_sn=200049&refer_page_name=search_result&refer_page_id=10009_1695820827133_36ohhg9voh&_x_sessn_id=h6s40719z7

or these:

https://www.temu.com/uk/cycling-glasses-motorcycle-equipment-outdoor-sports-for-mens-and-womens-sunglasses-windbreak-running-fishing-glasses-g-601099517496302.html?top_gallery_url=https%3A%2F%2Fimg.kwcdn.com%2Fproduct%2FFancyalgo%2FVirtualModelMatting%2F75bc0862df353650f5c942a76d0ebc8c.jpg&spec_gallery_id=4009367811&refer_page_sn=10009&refer_source=0&freesia_scene=2&_oak_freesia_scene=2&_oak_rec_ext_1=NDk4&search_key=Oakley%20ev%20zero&refer_page_el_sn=200049&refer_page_name=search_result&refer_page_id=10009_1695820827133_36ohhg9voh&_x_sessn_id=h6s40719z7

and having a new pair every week.

I have a set of radar ev’s with a prism golf lens (surprisingly good on the bike). some of the coating has ‘smudged’ with removal and refitting. genuine oakley product, now has a slight smear just visible when riding. it’s not a huge problem, and the lens isn’t used that often, but I was hoping for better as I’ve been pretty careful with that lens, clean hands to change it, always clean with the lens cloth. hey ho, I’ll not be replacing the lens, probably go for different sunnies.

I had some Metal Holbrook with every technology they have, bar X rays. Did excellent service for 3 years and over warranty. I enquired if I could purchase some new lenses to fit.

They asked for some photos, said these qualify for a replacement and sent me a new pair. I wonder if the right to repair law meant as they did not have the lenses in stock, they had to send out a new pair.

Perhaps it’s how one asks as well?

I’ve had 3 sets of oakleys where the coating just decided to give up the ghost and start flaking / easily scratching.

Cost to replace the lens was pisstaking so I went with aftermarket ebay specials.  So far I can’t tell the difference (other than I can see again) and they cost about £15.

I don’t think I’ll be buying oakley again tbh

the coating which starts coming off renderiing the glasses unuseable.

thats a known issue with some lens coatings and salt water. If you look on amazon you’ll find some aftermarket replacement lenses that claim to be salt-water-proof – no idea if its true but might be worth a go

I got some Oakley’s as ‘everyday’ glasses with prescription lenses.

They are the single worst item/thing/commodity/purchase I’ve ever bought. The straight side arms that don’t hook round the ear coupled with the unstickyium Unobtainium that loses its sticky after a day or so mean they fall off my head everytime I look down!

I can’t wait for them to break so I can happily throw them in the bin.

“thats a known issue with some lens coatings and salt water. If you look on amazon you’ll find some aftermarket replacement lenses that claim to be salt-water-proof”

Excellent!   So the most expensive glasses I’ve ever bought and which are specifically designed for sailing, presumably on the sea, come with a special coating that peels off on contact with salt water and need to be completed by purchasing some cheap additional lenses.

Lol, you couldn’t make it up – as I said, never again.

Oakley iridium (and anyone else’s for that matter) has always been fragile and required careful handling in my experience of nearly 30 years wearing Oakleys.

And the impact protection is about the lenses protecting your eyes from stuff, not about the lenses being protected. They’re sacrificial.

They’re not worth the money nowadays. Even the stickers that come on the lenses to tell you what type of lens it is damage the cheese-like iridium coating. Definitely riding their past reputation which doesn’t match their current quality.

Luxottica have owned Oakley since 2007.

“thats a known issue with some lens coatings and salt water. If you look on amazon you’ll find some aftermarket replacement lenses that claim to be salt-water-proof”

Excellent! So the most expensive glasses I’ve ever bought and which are specifically designed for sailing, presumably on the sea, come with a special coating that peels off on contact with salt water and need to be completed by purchasing some cheap additional lenses.

I’ve no idea if salt water affects oakleys designed for sailing or not (one would hope not) – but just flagging you can get lenses which are apparently not impacted.

Oakley have been garbage since they sold out to Luxottica.

RustyNissanPrairieFull Member
I got some Oakley’s as ‘everyday’ glasses with prescription lenses.

They are the single worst item/thing/commodity/purchase I’ve ever bought. The straight side arms that don’t hook round the ear coupled with the unstickyium Unobtainium that loses its sticky after a day or so mean they fall off my head everytime I look down!

I can’t wait for them to break so I can happily throw them in the bin.

yep, I had some and found the same. In the end I blasted the arms with a hairdryer and bent them down at the ends. Couldn’t really tell when they were on. I figured it might snap the arms but I was planning to get rid anyway because they were so annoying!

my prism trail lenses did the same. Oakley are just one of many now, whereas they used to be a product worth investing in akin to Exposure lights

I gave up on Oakley after I had a pair of titanium spike glasses (some years ago) that had the worst hinges imaginable. These were definitely made of cheese. Anyway after just over a year so out of guarantee the hinges just broke so I splashed out on a new frame from Oakley (I think they have me a very small discount) and had these for possibly less than a year before they fell apart again and at that point I just chucked them. Not fit for purpose.

Oakley support were crap when dealing with returning 2 sets of shoes due to their sizing mistake on site. A known issue I was told too.

Lol never again. Waste of time not to mention money.

I m on my second replacement Oakley transition lenses, coating fails after 2 years, both free of charge.  Local indie optician must have more clout with Oakley.  They do get salt water splashes when kayaking, but not immersed, well once.

Salt water,  sweat,  grease from hair,  basically you need to wash iridium coated lenses after each wear,  and they all won’t last forever but will do several years.   I’m not complaining,  my lenses lasted OK, just saying the days of legendary customer service are gone but the cheap lenses on ebay seem just as good so far.

I’ve previously had fantastic experience of Oakley for prescription sunglasses but the recent ones have been dire.

I’ve tried four pairs of their prescription glasses over the past couple of years and have had to return every one of them for refund as the lenses are poor quality and distort vision. According to Oakley, it’s not the case despite my previous glasses being absolutely fine.

I’ll not bother going to them again, they’re just pointless and expensive.

Salt water, sweat, grease from hair, basically you need to wash iridium coated lenses after each wear

But not with fairy liquid/dish soap, because the salt in that will do the coating in as well.

I’ve got 5s that are very old the frames started to splinter for want of a better word stress fractures really. They replaced them no hassle.

The two pairs after have in all honesty been rubbish the last pair not sure what the frame is just look and feel like Tk max specials if I had not got them directly from Oakley I would have said they where sinde copies. Just trading on past reputation it seems

I gave up years ago with Oakley after two sets of M frames just cracked – seems they wear hardened and the frames just developed loads of racks.  More than happy with my Choakleys – been wearing them for years and were less than £20. They even take my RX inserts perfectly.

My Prizm lenses have not scratched at all in a few years, but then I do take good care. My very old jawbreakers did fracture but they were battered. The frames are ok.