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Put The Oakley M Frames To The Test...

xtremehardy388

Oakley Beginner
142
68
A, A
I'm a firefighter for our area and I'm always wearing my Oakleys. Typically I wear the original Minutes or Flak Jackets to scenes (both are SI). We got called to a brush fire and the closest pair that I had were a pair of M Frames (not SI). The weather was hot and humid and I had my turnout (firefighting) gear on. I was wearing the Hybrid grey lens. For brush fires, we have backpacks with water and small nozzles the was use to pump water on the fire. I have to admit that I was disappointed with the performance of my M Frames. The nose piece kept coming loose and almost falling off. I got so frustrated that I ended up taking the sunglasses off and throwing them in my pocket. Though the lens did not fog, it did become covered in sweat (I should have used the hydrophobic solution). Wearing a helmet and the M Frames also caused some problems. The fit was a bit uncomfortable and caused the M Frames to fall out of place. In comparison, the Flak Jackets have worked very well with the helmet. (I'm using a Cairns 880). During the Fire Academy, I used the same pair of M Frames as safety glasses for vehicle extrication but with a different helmet. The weather was much cooler so less sweat was involved. I also used the clear lens. The M Frames did stay in place and held up well during that scenario. The good news, about the M Frames, was that the unobtanium worked well when I took the helmet off. After the fire was out, we were able to take off our helmets and coats when looking for "hot spots". I threw the sunglasses back on as to protect my eyes from direct smoke. During this part, the M Frames worked well and stayed in place (I left the nose piece off as I had become frustrated and stuffed it in another pocket).

Lessons learned: The M Frames are okay for light duty work. Otherwise, I will be sticking to the Flak jackets (preferred) or Minute 1.0s. For Safety glasses needs, I will continue to use the SI M Frame 2.0.

Hope this post/review helps.
 
It sounds like you need a new nose piece. Otherwise you just had some incompatibility fit with your helmet, which is why they made the 2.0 and 3.0 versions.

As the nose pieces get older they lose their springiness and grip on the lens. New ones will be practically difficult to put on and take off. I have only a few spare noses for the large number of pairs and lenses I have. I've thrown quite a few out.
 
I was considering picking up Ms over Radars, simply because Radars just remind me of a Flak with a hammer temple. I totally LOVE the wacky "Heater" lens and wanted them, but hearing this is kind of disappointing. I'd be using them for running which is pretty vigorous, and with me it's also pretty sweaty.

Guess I'll be sticking with my custom Flaks then :cool-20:
 
I was considering picking up Ms over Radars, simply because Radars just remind me of a Flak with a hammer temple. I totally LOVE the wacky "Heater" lens and wanted them, but hearing this is kind of disappointing. I'd be using them for running which is pretty vigorous, and with me it's also pretty sweaty.

Guess I'll be sticking with my custom Flaks then :cool-20:
This is just my experience. I love my flaks (and a number of other firefighters have flaks). They fit securely on a wide array of faces.

It sounds like you need a new nose piece. Otherwise you just had some incompatibility fit with your helmet, which is why they made the 2.0 and 3.0 versions.

As the nose pieces get older they lose their springiness and grip on the lens. New ones will be practically difficult to put on and take off. I have only a few spare noses for the large number of pairs and lenses I have. I've thrown quite a few out.

Yeah. The problem is, I don't wear the M Frames too much so for the nose piece to wear out (when I don't usually take it off of the lens) and lose it's springiness is a bit disappointing. I will be sticking with the 2.0s though.
 
Yeah. The problem is, I don't wear the M Frames too much so for the nose piece to wear out (when I don't usually take it off of the lens) and lose it's springiness is a bit disappointing. I will be sticking with the 2.0s though.
It's just a time thing, not a use thing. Some are worse than others, and there's inconsistency to the cut of the lenses. Some of my lenses don't hold a brand new nose piece very well.

Which is indeed a bit disappointing.

That, I suspect, is why the SI lenses have actual clips for the nose pieces.
 
It's just a time thing, not a use thing. Some are worse than others, and there's inconsistency to the cut of the lenses. Some of my lenses don't hold a brand new nose piece very well.

Which is indeed a bit disappointing.

That, I suspect, is why the SI lenses have actual clips for the nose pieces.
That and it's a safety/ANSI issue, I think.
 
Looks like it was just a fitment issue with the helmet rather than the fault of the glasses themselves. And as Rust pointed out, a loose nose piece is usually an indicator that it needs to be replaced.

For swear try the M-Frame strap kit as it also contains a brow pad that will absorb sweat.
 
That and it's a safety/ANSI issue, I think.
The original SI-specific frames have clip-on noses. The Ballistic revision included the clip for APEL and military standards regarding the lens popping out of the frame on impact. The 2.0 came from the retail frame's incompatibility with helmets. The 3.0 is an improvement over the 2.0 to work with ear protection and optics better.

Interestingly the 3.0 I have does not have clips on the nose. But the whole nose piece is revised and much stiffer. I've been using mine over 6 months daily with no nose issues. My original M Frame lens to get continuous wear has been through 4 noses over several years.
 

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