Seeking Goggles advice

Nomenature · Post by **Nomenature** » Mon Oct 16, 2006 5:57 pm

I just got some really great "ATV / Snowboarding" goggles from an online seller. These look and feel great - but I noticed that there are little 'airholes' on the sides or on another pair, around the edges of the lenses. I am concerned about these being inadequate to protect me peepers from the dust.

Anyone have experience with such eyeware on the playa, and have ideas?

many thanks in advnace for your thoughts!

Post by **AntiM** » Mon Oct 16, 2006 6:03 pm

I prefer goggles with a little airflow. Have some really nice ones which are airtight and they get so foggy I can't see.

helitack · Post by **helitack** » Mon Oct 16, 2006 6:09 pm

I use my Bouton firefighter goggles, work great for smoke too.

Dork · Post by **Dork** » Mon Oct 16, 2006 6:10 pm

Vents are your friend. Without them the glasses will fog up and you'll be less inclined to wear them. The goggles I wear the most now have fairly large gaps around the edges when worn and/or vent holes and I've had no problem with dust.

My philosophy on goggles is that eyeballs, even those covered in contact lenses, are perfectly capable of shedding a small amount of dust that gently falls on them. The problem on the playa is when the dust is really thick or when it hits your eye with some velocity. Anything that covers the area directly in line with your eyes should take care of the velocity issue and keep the quantity of dust low enough. Not looking directly into a dust storm unless necessary also helps on both counts.

In the end, the most important thing is that the goggles are comfortable enough and shaded to the proper degree so you'll wear them consistently. You can always plug the holes up with some gauze or electrical tape if you like.

My favorite goggles have come from searching for "vintage goggles" on Ebay. Lots of goofy stuff to be found.

Chippyrat · Post by **Chippyrat** » Mon Oct 16, 2006 6:38 pm

Personally I found goggles that have vents to be a double-edged sword. On one hand, fogging is indeed bad, and vents help great. But on the other hand, if theres a huge dust storm (wow that storm this year was nuts), I found my goggles filling with playa dust like water. Maybe you can get two pairs of goggles if you are rich

Nomenature · Post by **Nomenature** » Mon Oct 16, 2006 6:45 pm

Okay, Great! I am totaly *stokked* about these, then!

(did I really just type that?)

Here's the seller's website:

http://www.bentbear.com/

The ones we got were only $5.50 each with $2.50 shipping for ther first one and $0.50 for shipping each one thereafter. Makes getting a few kinda worth it. They came right away, and he was even really cool about changing-up and order after I changed my mind on a style.

BTW: I don't gain a thing by recommending these. I just thought they were a good deal and others might benefit. Please let me know if I've broken the non-commenrcialism rule. I am a hpaless newbie, afterall...

cheers,

StevenGoodman · Post by **StevenGoodman** » Tue Oct 17, 2006 2:46 am

[quote="Chippyrat"]Personally I found goggles that have vents to be a double-edged sword. On one hand, fogging is indeed bad, and vents help great. But on the other hand, if theres a huge dust storm (wow that storm this year was nuts), I found my goggles filling with playa dust like water. Maybe you can get two pairs of goggles if you are rich :)[/quote]

Not wanting to sound like a lame assed old fart; but this year's dust storm was really pretty, but pretty mild. But the huge dust devils were nice, especially the really big one sitting over the Man!

I got pictures somewhere!

I have been worried about vents (and I have contacts), but I have decided vents are better than fogging, and vents are better than not having goggles.

Zhust · Post by **Zhust** » Tue Oct 17, 2006 6:38 am

When I first went I bought clear goggles for dirt-bike racing -- they have sizable vents but with foam inserts; the guy at the motorcycle supply store said to put a little oil (presumably organic like olive, not petro-based) on the foam to get it to collect more dust.

I found them to be nice but I also found that I thought storms lasted forever because my goggles would dust over a little and I wouldn't realize it was over. I'm pretty resilient to the dust (no allergies, no asthma, effective eyelashes), and find I really don't need goggles or dust masks for all but the worst of storms. This year I spent most of the time sporting yellow-colored UV-shielding wrap-around safety glasses. Although there were big air gaps near my face, they tended to do perfectly fine when I'd look into the wind.

pinemom · Post by **pinemom** » Tue Oct 17, 2006 6:51 am

My googles had vents too, but I really didnt have a dust issue, "that I can remember" heheheee
Although I remember being very hot at one point of that dust storm and enternal heat plus I had the strap on to tight...I did fog up...EVEN with the 3 lil' vents on both sides..

Just a sugestion:
...so i thought maybe putting a muslim scrap taped in place might help those that are contact wearers?

Post by **AntiM** » Tue Oct 17, 2006 7:52 am

BTW: I don't gain a thing by recommending these. I just thought they were a good deal and others might benefit. Please let me know if I've broken the non-commenrcialism rule. I am a hpaless newbie, afterall...

Making recommendations on good deals is fine, just as long as you're not the seller with the good deals.

phil · Post by **phil** » Tue Oct 17, 2006 9:41 am

I've taken the military surplus goggles for years to Burning Man. They are vented. I wear contacts, and I've never had problems with dust coming through the vents. It may be a goggle-specific thing, so I won't say all vented goggles won't leak dust into your eyes, but mine never have.

They never fogged over, either, despite some sweating into the foam.

The negative for them is that they are bulky and not always convenient to carry when you don't need them.

Etrit · Post by **Etrit** » Wed Aug 15, 2007 11:53 pm

I highly recommend goggles w/ vents because of the fog factor. Besides, if you start having dust problems.. just close off the vents with some kinda cloth, tape or...your Best friend...

SuperGlue!!!!!

(Yah, it rocks.. works for everything..I'm actually thinking my playa name should be SuperGlue King or something.. since I use it all the time for everything).

Also, its a good idea to either get a pair of goggles you can wear sunglasses under OR two pairs of goggles.

1 shaded for day
1 clear for night

I'm going for two pairs 'cause well, I found a kicken pair of shaded UV protected goggles that look really cool and are blue for $7.50 at a tinny local outdoor/army surplus store.

Oh, and on that note.. I highly recommend going to small local outdoor/army surplus stores for random stuff like this anyway.. they generally have cooler stuff like this and and most of it is cheap.

Post by **mdmf007** » Thu Aug 16, 2007 9:15 am

definately need shaded non shaded goggles. My buddy and I bought these kick ass goggles for fire fighting, thought they would be the cats meow at BM, put em on one night in a duststorm, and forgot they were dark - couldnt see a thing. DOPE!!

Angel Ben · Post by **Angel Ben** » Thu Aug 16, 2007 10:25 am

You can also get goggles that have interchangeable lenses so you don't have to carry around 2 pair. I'm also seconding the air vents. The biggest problem with dust is not just it getting in your goggles. I got caught in a dust storm once with no eye protection and a dust particle hit my eye at high velocity and scratched or damaged it somehow. It eventually got better without medical attention, but I spent the next day being unable to open it without pain, and the following couple days with irritation and light sensitivity in it.

A little dust inside the goggles won't do much, and you can minimize it by facing into the wind (facing sideways will have the dust blowing directly into the vents).

stew · Post by **stew** » Fri Aug 17, 2007 8:23 pm

for what it's worth, I just got these today:

Birdz Eyewear Eagle - you can get them for $20-$30. so far they make a good impression, I'll find out how good/bad they are in ten days I suppose :D

Galax · Post by **Galax** » Sun Aug 19, 2007 7:34 am

I found an old pair of welding goggles in a box in the closet. They're big, round, and make me look hilariously buggy-eyed, and they tint the whole world green. I understand this is not the option most people are looking for, but they DO fit over my prescription glasses and they should block UV rays, right?

Anyway, my idea was to cover the vents with fabric, in an attempt to cut down the dust but still allow air in. Besides which, they are hard plastic and do not quite sit right on my face, so I thought if I sewed on a bit of padding made of fabric stuffed with batting I could get a better fit. I guess I can't think of a way to test the ability to keep out dust without just taking them to Burning Man, but I'll let you know what my results are afterward!

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