Madman/Badman not entirely metal (reasons to be thankful)

[kronin323]

I am just thinking,sincethe parts on Madman are Alu+O matter,is there anybody who tried take the plastic O matter pieces out and replace it with his own made Alu pieces?-I guess CNC machined nosebridge and earstem pieces?I mean there are lots of cheap CNC machined bike components,so IMHO it should not be such a big deal to make proper 100percent Aluminium badman?

See this post, a couple of prototypes made completely from C-5:

Oakley NYC/Miami Collectors Events - 2/15 Info and Picture Thread | Page 26 | Oakley Forum

 

[kronin323]

As noted, the flex coupler issue was fixed with the XS---and the introduction of the flex coupler in the first place was to address the stress fracturing of lenses on the R1...so see the evolution in design and hammering out of design issues over time. While the coupler issue on the Juliet could be problematic if you treated your frames right AND took them off your head OVER THE TOP like goggles, they never flex. I have a pair of 10 year old Juliets that are as tight as day one and have thousands of hours of wear using this method.

The joining of plastic and metal like Oakley has done with the Badman is actually WORSE than an entirely all plastic or all metal. The design reminds me somewhat of the original Splice and we all know there were issues with that design due to that mixture of materials especially at the screw points etc. And in those cases, as very well may happen with the Badman, you can't just get a service and have them be good as new- the frame is essentially ruined. Given some issues we've seen with the Carbon Blade QC, I can see there being issues with design/QC on the Badman/Madman and with Oakley only providing a 1 year warranty, I'm not about to go spending several hundred dollars on them....though its moot because I wouldn't pay $100 for either of these new models. In my eyes the current Wiretap has more of a kinship to the X-Metal line than these two models in terms of heft, quality and build- to the point that it's a dead ringer from some angles for the Half-X (leaving out of the mix for right now the argument that the Half X should have been a member of the Wire family to begin with).

Of course, this debate old X-Metal's vs new etc is going to rage forever or at least until those of us "real" X-Metal heads are old and the minority and new blood has long forgotten about the "Golden Age" before Lux took over and started moving production overseas, changing (to lower) lens qualities, making O-Matter more fragile and jacking prices. But that's my view; am I happy Oakley is stepping a little outside the box again? Yes. Do I hope this leads to some more innovative designs I may like? Yes. But I'm not holding my breath.....and in the meantime I'll enjoy my Juliets, X-Squareds, Pit Boss' and whatever other couple newer designs have any remnant of the DNA that made Oakley one of the most innovative companies on the planet in the late 90's to mid 2000's

So you're saying you like them?

 

[pjd1234]

I am just thinking,sincethe parts on Madman are Alu+O matter,is there anybody who tried take the plastic O matter pieces out and replace it with his own made Alu pieces?-I guess CNC machined nosebridge and earstem pieces?I mean there are lots of cheap CNC machined bike components,so IMHO it should not be such a big deal to make proper 100percent Aluminium badman?

They really could if they want to but it will be more expensive as metal is always expensive than plastic plus the time frame of making ansingle piece is harder compared to plastics. It would have been nice inwont mind the 35 dollars increase for ll alums.

 

[Oakley G]

Using O Matter is fine for the design and the material they used. In terms of the design, they needed flex especially in the bridge. Aluminum could not be used for the bridge in this design because they used diecast aluminum. Diecast aluminum provides for low per unit manufacturing costs if producing in high quantities, but the casting method does not allow for a great deal of flex. Over time a diecast bridge for something like the Madman would fail. break.

Of course they could have come up with a more elegant design that would allow for an all metal frame that would allow for flex in the bridge. As many alluded they were getting there with the XS.

So some of the detractors would say Oakley took the lazy way out and cheaped their way out on materials. I would not say that myself, but I think that's what some are alluding to.

 

[Arron1980]

The madman and badman could just be like the romeo as in that the romeo was the start of something great for the X Metal Family. So maybe the Mad/Badman is just the start of something great too

 

[Arron1980]

Just received my plasma Badmans.wow

 

[Arron1980]

Finally got them

 

[joecool862]

Finally got them

View attachment 131760

Really like that lens! Beautiful!

 

[Arron1980]

Really like that lens! Beautiful!

Yes I totally agree. I love them. The glasses in general are so refined. Quite stunning

 

[Sundalo]

Just wish those Badmans were a little smaller. Tried it and it is too big on my face. Will wait for that future Juliet style/size one.