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carl1864

Are these cheap goggles any good?

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I just graduated AFF, bought my own helmet, and I want to buy my own pair of goggles. The ones my skydive place has, which they once told me are "some of the best goggles you can get". Look like they came out of a mcdonalds happy meal.

You'll probably know the kind I'm talking about if I explain them. They are like cut out of a flat piece clear flexible plastic, and the two edges are sort of crunched together into sort of a cone shape on each side, so it really distorts any perepheral view. The band that is on them is basically the same band a girls hair tie is made of, with the ends poking through the holes in the plastic and tied in a knot to keep it there. They fog up within seconds (on the plane, not in the air), and most of the pairs they have are well enough used that they are really smudged and cloudy. I really have a hard time believing anybody thinks these are good goggles, unless maybe that guy was being sarcastic.

Anyways, I want to buy my own pair, thats better. I just want to get the cheapest pair I can get as long as they aren't junk. I want a clear lens, no tint.

These are the ones I've been looking at, are they any good? Any recommendations on better ones within the same price range, or even some cheaper ones?

Birdz Wing
http://cgi.ebay.com/Birdz-Wing-Sky-Diving-Skydive-Goggles-Sail-Paragliding_W0QQitemZ390153169955QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item5ad6f0ec23

Flare wing
http://cgi.ebay.com/FLARE-Wing-Skydive-Sky-Diving-Goggles-Clear-Lens-UV400_W0QQitemZ290396861611QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item439d0074ab


PS: I found some pictures of the type of glasses I was talking about earlier that my skydive place uses in case you didn't understand the description.
http://www.thejumpshop.co.uk/acatalog/Goggles.html#a101
The top 2 goggles on that page look like the ones I'm talking about.

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in the beginning i tried many different ones. krops were the worst and flexvision are the best value goggles ever. they are simply indestructible and i'm jumping mine now for the 4th season :)
edit: if they get dirty just wash them. any non-scratching detergent will do wonders :)

The universal aptitude for ineptitude makes any human accomplishment an incredible miracle

dudeist skydiver # 666

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The goggles you don't seem to like are in fact the best goggles ever. I've tried an awful lot of different brands, types and styles of goggles, I'll stick with FlexZ for ever :)
The ones you like have foam that always seems to come off plus these are too big for my helmet so not comfy for me.

If you keep jumping you'll buy a lot of pairs of goggles and you'll buy ones that turn out to be not comfy, wear out very soon or have other "issues". But you'll find a type that works for YOU. If you want to buy goggles like your links I'd go with Sorz w/clear lens, as these are proven skydive goggles: anything I've ever bought that wasn't through a skydiving shop had had way more "issues" :S


ciel bleu,
Saskia

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My personal favorites are the Flex Zs. I even have two different pairs (different sizes). They work well, keep my contacts in place, don't fog up too horribly, and are more comfortable than the student versions, but still pretty cheap. I think I paid about $16/pair.

The ones with foam around the edges need to be replaced frequently as the foam comes off. In skydiving, pricier does not always mean better.

Do or do not, there is no try -Yoda

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I have three pairs of flex z mini goggles. two colored and one clear. I like them, but I also bought sorz goggles just to try them out.

I don't think you can go wrong with flexz's. They fog if you keep them on on the plane, but who does? Put them on on the jump run and you won't have problems.

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Wow, I'm really amazed how many people love those flex-z's and flexivisions. I've never had a chance to try anything else, so I don't really know any better, but they just don't seem good to me. Isn't your perepheral vision all distorted from the plastic being bunched into a cone on each side? It is for me. As far as them fogging up on the plane, well yeah, I wouldn't wear them the whole plane ride, but being I was in AFF, I pretty much put them on when the instructor told me to, right around 12000 feet. They would fog up by about 4 times before we'd make it to the 13000 foot jump. I'd have them pulled away from my face, shaking them around like a dork the whole time just to get past that last 1000 feet.

Well, now I know that a lot of people do indeed think they are awesome goggles, however I still want to try something else first hand to see. I like the look of the other ones posted in the links, and the sorz ones that someone on here mentioned. They just look much more like a nice molded lens that would have no sort of distortion in the perepheral vision, or anywhere else, unlike the others that are all bunched up and distorted.

Does anyone have any other opinions on these, good or bad? One person mentioned the foam can come off, I'm not too worried about that, I could use welder or shoe goo (some of the best glues ever), to permanently put it back on if needed. Are there any other good/bad things about them I should know?

Also are those sorz brands in any way known as superior to the birdz wings, flare wings, etc? Or are they all pretty similar. The birdz wings are easy to find all over with free shipping, etc. The sorz seem much more rare, and I've only seen them on a couple dedicated skydive sites, and would end up costing twice as much since there would be shipping involved.

Thanks.

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The foam WILL come off, and usually it breaks up so there's no glueing anything back- think you're the first to think of that? :P

About the different brands, like I said, often these have issues, if you want the least problems stick with the skydiving brands. Often times you can just buy various types of goggles at your local skydiving shop so no shipping involved, plus you get to try them on - not all goggles fit all people very well. Another reason why the FlexZ and the FlexZ mini are so widely used on dropzones: they fit pretty much everyone so are ideal for students and tandempassengers. Especially if you have contact lenses or had your eyes lasered you really want good quality goggles that keep your eyes wind-free. If that is not so important for you sure you could try any ebay goggle you want, and leave a review on here whether they're any good or not :)


ciel bleu,
Saskia

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The pro shop at my DZ has an incredibly nice lady who is extremely helpful in helping newbies buy gear. She had me try on many different pairs, not only for comfort but more for fit. It seemed pretty important that there was no gap on the bridge of the nose, otherwise air flowing through can dry out your eyes? So maybe something worth considering--the flexvision as people suggested seemed to be best for me. Not the most stylish but works well.

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I've been jumping a couple pair (clear and tinted) of Soarz for a year and they've held up great. There's no sign of the foam pulling away and aside from some scratches on the lense (my own fault) they practically look new.

They have a great field of view. They fog up on me a tiny bit sometimes when it's really cold up top, but tilting them open at the bottom clears that up in a second. They're also really comfortable to wear. That's not such a big deal for a minute of freefall, but if you start going in the wind tunnel for longer periods of time having something comfortable makes all the difference.

I got mine for twenty bucks at the shop on our DZ.

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If you dont like the goggle route you can always get a full face helmet and eliminate goggles altogether.



That's my thought too. I haven't had a chance to talk to an instructor about buying gear yet, but I was told by the shop ower that they don't allow "students", even on solo status, to wear full face helmets. But I've seen people with them though without any sort of license. Can anyone confirm this?

I'm still torn about trying to fly full-face; I think it'll help when I go to tunnel, but I want to avoid having to buy two helmets...I'm used to the sound of the wind. :)

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I've jumped a bunch of different kinds of goggles in my time, my 2 cents:

Started on old-school "Kroops" googles, they worked fine for years.

Then I started jumping the kind with the tube-stoe edge beading (basically neoporene tubing) and loved those for years.

Switched about 3 years ago to the Sorz/Birdz/Flare-type goggles, where i snagged like 3 pr for $15 (including shipping) on ebay a few years back. Haven't had any of the foam come loose, I either break them or scratch the crap out of them before that.

Never liked the flex-vision or similar "no-edge" goggles because they dug into my face. No vision issues with them, but the edge just seemed.. rough.

Thats my 2 cents.
NIN
D-19617, AFF-I '19

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If you dont like the goggle route you can always get a full face helmet and eliminate goggles altogether.



That's my thought too. I haven't had a chance to talk to an instructor about buying gear yet, but I was told by the shop ower that they don't allow "students", even on solo status, to wear full face helmets. But I've seen people with them though without any sort of license. Can anyone confirm this?



Its all up to how your dz operates. If the instructors dont want you wearing a fullface, then you dont.

ETA: I wear Flex-Z's, damn things are indestructable! May be looking at getting some liquid or gatorz sometime in the near future, not sure yet...
"I may be a dirty pirate hooker...but I'm not about to go stand on the corner." iluvtofly
DPH -7, TDS 578, Muff 5153, SCR 14890
I'm an asshole, and I approve this message

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Assuming you do not wear contacts, get a pair of Gatorz. They are great and look cool. I have gone through about 10 pairs of goggles plus I wear the Gatorz regularly. I like the Gatorz the best in really sunny conditions. Otherwise I just wear clear goggles. I prefer goggles with some foam to keep the plastic from cutting into my face , but hey, that's just me. Most goggles are about $18 - $25 per pair so it not like it is a big expense.
Charlie Gittins, 540-327-2208
AFF-I, Sigma TI, IAD-I
MEI, CFI-I, Senior Rigger
Former DZO, Blue Ridge Skydiving Adventures

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I usually wear a Z1 but I have some of those Birdz goggles, I like them better than the standard soft goggles as they don't seem to fog up as easy, and they are more comfortable IMO. Not to mention dirt cheap on eBay.
*I am not afraid of dying... I am afraid of missing life.*
----Disclaimer: I don't know shit about skydiving.----

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Sunglasses may look cool (very important of course) but they aren't quite so nice when you are on the sunset load and him being a newbie he may very well not be allowed to jump sunglasses for a while yet... Plus he said he wanted clear lenses ;)


ciel bleu,
Saskia

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