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Best Non-OEM Replacement Oakley Lenses in General

Do the guys that cut the lenses from donor lenses just cut them with a dremel or something like it?
Yes all the domestic ones do except for Infinite Hero who uses an optomologist's lens cutting machine. That's not to say that the other domestic choppers' quality is any less, just done by hand.
For OakleyOnTheSpot in UAE on ebay (AKA salj838 here) I cannot speak for, perhaps she will chime in.
Here's the exact donor table from the thread that OakleyFreak recommended:
2014 Updated Lens Cutting Guide
 
What do you guys think of Walleva lenses? They are the cheapest I could find on ebay...
 
Thanks @CarGuy for the list, was just wondering the following. Had a quick look at the chart and understand the lense needing to have a 8.75 curvature, but I am not sure why Fuel Cell are Toric. I have only heard this term used with contact lenses. This is to denote that they are weighted so the prism for correcting astigmatism is correctly located. Do you or anyone else know why they are called this?
 
Thanks @CarGuy for the list, was just wondering the following. Had a quick look at the chart and understand the lense needing to have a 8.75 curvature, but I am not sure why Fuel Cell are Toric. I have only heard this term used with contact lenses. This is to denote that they are weighted so the prism for correcting astigmatism is correctly located. Do you or anyone else know why they are called this?

I probably need to make a thread covering curvatures of lenses. Most of the X-Metal FRAMES are about a 8.5 Wrap. Oakley tends to have lens blanks made to closely match the Wrap of the frames no matter what style they make. Now the Question is: "Do you have to have a 8 base lens to match the 8 wrap frames". The scientific answer is NO you don't. If that sparks questions, go ask a Optician and he will tell you the same. But..... there is a catch to it. A professional lens cutting machine typically used at eye doctors offices and run by Opticians can cut most any curvature to any wrap frame. The machine takes in the information from the lens trace or frame trace and then reproduces it on the lens blank. Example is I know of a -12 base lens (yes concave) put into a 3 wrap frame. It worked and fit just fine. Of course that is a prescription and a severe one. So a 5 or 6 or 7 or 8 base lens will work just fine in a 8 wrap frame. That is if it is cut with a professional machine by a Optician. Now for the problems--- Hand cutting usually entails taking the template lens and laying it on top of the donor lens and tracing out the pattern on top of painters tape. Here lies part of the issue. If the curvature of the two lenses are not the same then the trace wont be correct for the frame. If larger, then when the cutter goes back and forth during the fitment stage, some will be cut off here and there and in the end there may be pressure points along the OD that are not suppost to be there. Plus getting that fitment is tough. When installation of that lens is done and you push the temple part in the frame (you do this also with OEM lenses) stress points wont be where its even along the OD like it would be if done with a Optical cutting machine. The machine takes out these problems. The new Turbine lenses will be the goto lens for cutting for X Metals. It has so far Ruby Polar, Jade Polar and Sapphire polar and Sapphire lenses available and with the Big tacos discontinued and most stores are out of them, the Turbines will be used. They will cut for all X metals but not the OTT. The Turbines are 7.25 base lenses. The Big Taco's were 8.75. Hope this info helps, I learned it myself over the past few days when I needed to explain to a customer that the 5 base radar lenses fit perfect for X Metal cuts and had to explain there was no distortion at all due to the difference in curvatures.

About the Toric, all I know is it has something to do with prescription things. I will find out and post my findings from a Professional.
 
TONS of awesome info on this thread but I'm not sure it answers the OP's question. The fact of the matter is that there is a great amount of debate about all aftermarket non OEM lenses. Many are simply cheap garbage and you really will get what you pay for. Personally, I prefer custom cut OEM on my nice pairs. I do however have several non OEM lenses! I currently have a Linegear Ruby clear lens in a beater Julie I use at work for eye protection. I wear it for many hours at a time and have had zero problems with it! Currently trying out a Revant HC3 Elite black polarized lens in a polished Julie. This is my beater pair. I've been wearing these for several weeks for extended periods of time and really like their contrast base! Very happy with that lens. Most recently I ordered a polarized black Linegear lens for a beater Mars. Still don't have that one yet so can't comment on quality. In general I recommend OEM or custom cut OEM. Optics are probably the best out there! If you don't want to go the OEM route Linegear makes a great lens! Revant's new HC3 Elite lens line is also quite good! Hope this helped!
 
TONS of awesome info on this thread but I'm not sure it answers the OP's question. The fact of the matter is that there is a great amount of debate about all aftermarket non OEM lenses. Many are simply cheap garbage and you really will get what you pay for. Personally, I prefer custom cut OEM on my nice pairs. I do however have several non OEM lenses! I currently have a Linegear Ruby clear lens in a beater Juliet I use at work for eye protection. I wear it for many hours at a time and have had zero problems with it! Currently trying out a Revant HC3 Elite black polarized lens in a polished Julie. This is my beater pair. I've been wearing these for several weeks for extended periods of time and really like their contrast base! Very happy with that lens. Most recently I ordered a polarized black Linegear lens for a beater Mars. Still don't have that one yet so can't comment on quality. In general I recommend OEM or custom cut OEM. Optics are probably the best out there! If you don't want to go the OEM route Linegear makes a great lens! Revant's new HC3 Elite lens line is also quite good! Hope this helped!

i am obviously a Oakley lens person. For my collection the only 2 pairs that I wear are customs completely. ALL others are BNIB pairs that are Shelf Whores and will never be worn. Maybe when I run for office :) Gotta sport the X_Metals if I did that!!!! But my wearers are custom pairs, one a Copper Plated with Sapphire custom lenses and one a Polished Ti-02 Black. Although they have Oakley lenses in them I personally am not opposed to putting in some other brand of lens and here is why.

I also seem to see people write that their aftermarket lenses are great and optics are clear and/or they feel are just as good as Oakley. ANY aftermarket lens you buy, you can look through it and see clearly, or close to clear. That doesn't mean anything. Put the same lens under a Stenograph and you would likely see BLUR. So someone saying how great their lenses are is about as meaningful as the commercial for the VW when the passenger girl says the car is fast and the girl driving says "OMG its so fast". Really???? Compared to what? A Horse? Anything can be the best there is, till it is compared to something superior. Too many times these days people make comments or give information that is meaningless. Might apply to the subject their speaking about, but change or add one element of information and the whole picture changes. Thats not scientific fact, thats hearsay.

1. Lens doesn't have to be polycarbonate (Plutonite for newbies), could be glass like Costa Del Mar lenses if we can get them cut correctly. Far superior optics due to clarity.

2. Whatever lens is used MUST be Prism Compensated, so the optics will be correct. Several aftermarket lens sellers do mention Prism on their sites, however the lenses are likely not due to pricing being cheap. (I tested a pair from @Linegear Official in the past and it was not (2013), but just did a test recently and the one I did was Prism Compensated) I am not so sure any of the other Aftermarket ones are. I tested others in the past and they all were plain plastic lenses colored. Good for display, but not much else.

3. Color coatings to make the lenses look cool, must be done correctly during the application. IF they are not applied correctly then the lens can have blurring that your eyes will sub-consciously correct and that can cause eye strain, headaches, and eventually possible damage. This is an issue due to the desire of people wanting very cool colors. (@Linegear Official test, their lenses were as clear as Oakley) This blurring happens during the application phase in a vacuum chamber. A leak would cause this, or the particles used microscopically in the coating could be too large are cause blurring.

4. Wiley-x, Arnette and several other manufacturer's make just as high quality lenses as Oakely does (likely the same manufacturer) and can be used for donors also. Their price points will be cheaper so they will add in colors we like and can be cut to what we want. I am working on getting in one of each color and then showcasing so people can see and choose. Great for daily wear, bad for value.

5. Value of your Oakleys: This has been covered to death in many threads, but your brand new aftermarket lenses are worth nothing and actually will detract value of your X-Metal frame. Same for the Rubbers. If you want to sell it, strip it and put OEM back on it and sell it that way and you would get higher amounts for them. This is the same for OEM lenses for the most part also if they have a scratch on them. I sell no frame with any lenses that have a scratch. If I am purchasing a pair and the owner tells me there is a mark or slight scratch, immediately that pair is worth only the frame. Lenses are junk value wise. (there is a catch to this, a Penny, OTT, R2, and R1's OEM lenses almost cannot be had, so some marks may not detract from the total value like a Juliet would. AND why is it always the Etched lens that has the mark on the lImited edition ones?)

I hope this helps people out with lens information and is of some value to a few.

IH
 
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