New Oakley X-Metal Sunglasses Coming?

[ucdavis4PT0gpa]

Simply the worst news I've ever read about a product. I'm a pretty centered and practical person and only the most personal things get to me emotionally...but this has me VERY upset. I've suspected it for a long time and I've said on this forum many times that I thought Lux was executing a strategic slow death of the line...but to know now the end has come hurts. Personally, I have in my collection what I want for the most part...I might pick up one more pair of the XS (no Juliets...trust me the next news will be they're shutting down Metallurgy at Icon and no more tune ups..I'm not buying anything with rivets) but beyond that I can't afford to just stockpile a dozen various pairs to have for wear in 10 years. As it is, I am very careful with my pairs...I have 10 year old Juliets that are like new tight with perfect lenses and that's with regular wear....so no matter what happens I have a collection I can wear for north of 10 years.

As for something new....well...Oakley, I have yet to be truly impressed with ANYTHING you've produced post Jim (Pit Boss and XS doesn't count, PB was a Jim design and XS was already greenlit at the time he sold) so I'm not optimistic. Yes you can do decent things with CNC and other products but the trend tells me Lux will only allow a cautious, mass market appealing design with high margins....and that doesn't bode well. I know Lux is in the business of making money, but Oakley became one of the most recognized and valuable brands in the world by doing the opposite of what Lux is doing. I'll be waiting to see what happens...but for now Oakley has one less customer.

 

[BriP]

if the **** hits the fan and x-metal is canned for good, i for one will only be scrounging what remains of the x metals..second hand or remaining stock in the vaults. doubt i'll get many more Omatter frames..

 

[TheRevTy]

To be honest, I've always figured a lot of the ridiculous info surrounding X Metal was either myth or marketing.

Is the material really that dangerous to work with?

If so, makes it tough to justify dropping that much coin on a Pit Boss, which uses boring ol' O Matter.

 

[BriP]

To be honest, I've always figured a lot of the ridiculous info surrounding X Metal was either myth or marketing.

Is the material really that dangerous to work with?

If so, makes it tough to justify dropping that much coin on a Pit Boss, which uses boring ol' O Matter.

part of the reason i didnt buy one haha. titanium isnt dangerous per-se.. its HARD to work with. the temperatures and pressure requirements to make it castable is a recipe for kaboom

 

[Menendez1293]

Wow now you go to eBay buy a pair of X squareds half oFf of retail. In a couple of years it's going to be wow you got a X squared at retail. Your so lucky. I personally don't have any Xmeatals but that is going to be a sad day for Oakley history to see them go.

 

[ucdavis4PT0gpa]

Wow now you go to eBay buy a pair of X squareds half oFf of retail. In a couple of years it's going to be wow you got a X squared at retail. Your so lucky. I personally don't have any Xmeatals but that is going to be a sad day for Oakley history to see them go.

Its already begun. Certain X Metal frames and combos have increased about 20% in the past couple weeks on eBay. But yes, the same as Romeo's go for very close to double their original retail now, the same will be true of the other X Metals with time.

Again, I really hope the company does do something special with a new line.....but as I type that, I smirk and shake my head because, well...you know.

And as for the myth and marketing? Some part of everything is myth and marketing, but this much is real: the alloy IS extremely difficult to work with and work with SAFELY but if you can do so, you can cast products in shapes you otherwise can't AND do so with a light weight and strength like none other-just try and find another product of equal mass and made out of some other metal and I guarantee you won't have something nearly has strong....and they will weigh a ton.

But aside from all that, owning and wearing X Metals was never about just all that....it was about wearing something that looked unique and like nothing other...you didn't look like just some other person wearing some other plastic frame. It was about wearing something that really was a fusion of science with art...X Metals are works of art and they were not works of art made out of plastic that will scratch or snap...they were made out of nearly indestructible materials that you truly could own for life.

In my mind, the loss of the X Metals isn't just about the loss of a line of sunglasses, its about the loss of a set of some the most innovative products ever built.

 

[NMOne]

This is pretty disappointing to me as I just got into the X-Metals with my first pair being purchased after my son was born. However, I would rather see the current lineup go out on a high note rather than have them continue into mediocrity.

At the very least, this means I can do whatever to get my hands on an XM/Ruby combo for my birthday.

 

[BriP]

the things that irked me about the Xmetal line (and in my view tarnished its uniqueness) was firstly, when they made the Juliets en-mass. theres just so many jokers out there who has a pair and doesnt know how special the frame is. to them its just 'metal sunglasses'.

secondly, since THAT time, when x-metals stopped being serialised.. you KNOW some of that uniqueness was lost.. something special turned into some mass-produced, money making gimmick. that hurt. Imsad that there wasnt even a serialised series of the Xsquared, Romeo2, HalfX. i know youre gonna say the special edition etc but come on.. i mean like how the romeo was serialised.. or the XX.. every piece was an individual..

i think the Xmetal line should go out with a bang. make a 'last hoorah' serialed series for the lines still in production.. and then let it rest in history forever. if its not gonna be made the same way or more innovative, i rather not see the name getting cheapened.

 

[Rustpot]

Its already begun. Certain X Metal frames and combos have increased about 20% in the past couple weeks on eBay. But yes, the same as Romeo's go for very close to double their original retail now, the same will be true of the other X Metals with time.

Again, I really hope the company does do something special with a new line.....but as I type that, I smirk and shake my head because, well...you know.

And as for the myth and marketing? Some part of everything is myth and marketing, but this much is real: the alloy IS extremely difficult to work with and work with SAFELY but if you can do so, you can cast products in shapes you otherwise can't AND do so with a light weight and strength like none other-just try and find another product of equal mass and made out of some other metal and I guarantee you won't have something nearly has strong....and they will weigh a ton.

But aside from all that, owning and wearing X Metals was never about just all that....it was about wearing something that looked unique and like nothing other...you didn't look like just some other person wearing some other plastic frame. It was about wearing something that really was a fusion of science with art...X Metals are works of art and they were not works of art made out of plastic that will scratch or snap...they were made out of nearly indestructible materials that you truly could own for life.

In my mind, the loss of the X Metals isn't just about the loss of a line of sunglasses, its about the loss of a set of some the most innovative products ever built.

Two words: Carbon Fiber.

Helluva lot cheaper, much lighter, can be made stronger than steel. Composite technology has come a LONG way in the last 10 years. Hockey equipment companies have been making carbon fiber sticks that are molded in any shape they want for years. Extremely flexible, very resilient, cheap Mexican factories, very low temperature molding allows you to make a LOT cheaper molds.

 

[ucdavis4PT0gpa]

Two words: Carbon Fiber.

Helluva lot cheaper, much lighter, can be made stronger than steel. Composite technology has come a LONG way in the last 10 years. Hockey equipment companies have been making carbon fiber sticks that are molded in any shape they want for years. Extremely flexible, very resilient, cheap Mexican factories, very low temperature molding allows you to make a LOT cheaper molds.

And yet the only carbon fiber glasses Oakley has ever built cost over $4000..........