Advice on glasses needed .

[one life fly it]

Hi guys , just had my eye test and now I need new glasses ( I'm getting on a bit )

So do, any of you fly with varifocal lenses ?

I have the option of one pair for long distance and one for reading , or varifocals I don't know what to do ?

Please help

Thanks

Alex

[Sheldrake]

I have same problem getting older! I have varifocals and sometimes fly with them or matching prescription sunnies.
However I prefer to wear contact lenses when flying with specialist model glasses!
Just one opinion I hope it helps?
Best of luck

[trexamanic]

i need glasses for reading but i am struggling in front of machines when i need clear glass and reading glass so i was thinking of varifocals too.
jeez writing on food is tiny now :(

[one life fly it]

[QUOTE=Sheldrake;1060870]I have same problem getting older! I have varifocals and sometimes fly with them or matching prescription sunnies.
However I prefer to wear contact lenses when flying with specialist model glasses!
Just one opinion I hope it helps?
Best of luck[/QUOTE]

I'm a bit scared. Of putting things in my eyes ! How do you find contacts ?

[1chris]

i have always used varifocals, get on very well with them, they are really good

[Mike Sanders]

Like some of the posters here I am getting on a bit also. I need glasses for reading and other close work, e.g. helicopter repairs, computer etc. I usually need sunglasses for flying.

i am no expert but I would consider that a pair of glasses dedicated to long distance work, i.e. flying, would be better than varifocals because you will get a greater width of useful vision.

[1chris]

Thats nonsense M Sanders, the idea of them is they correct for both close and long distance vision as required, how old you are is irrelevant

[buzzbird]

I'm in the same boat - long-sighted and wear one pair for reading/close up and supposed to wear another for normal.
Well, it's a pain in the arse changing glasses all the time, so I just wear the close-up ones most of the time, and peer over the tops for normal work. I suppose I should've gone for varifocals.

For flying I use [I]Model Glasses[/I] "Nimbus" and although they do prescription lenses, I have no idea what a clusterf**k varifocal flying glasses would be....

I guess what I'm trying to say is the two-pairs idea hasn't exactly worked for me.

[Sheldrake]

[QUOTE=one life fly it;1060880]I'm a bit scared. Of putting things in my eyes ! How do you find contacts ?[/QUOTE]

I was too! But they are fantastic. I wear them for several days at a time and then a few days of glasses normally.
you soon get used to taking them in and out.
One thing though I still need to wear one of those magnifying head band things when working on a heli wearing glasses or contacts especially in the evenings!!!
I think you are likely to get as many different views as there are RCHA members so i would suggest you try one of those free contact lens trials and make sure you have the silicon hydrogels slightly more expensive but less likely to cause any irritation!
Best of luck!

[sparky 2]

Like most i started off with just reading glasses and then readers and driving distance ones now wear varifocals all the time and i find that better than keep swapping pairs . I got mine from tescos and have one clear pair with reactor light lens and and the other are dark vari sun glasses and I get on with them fine for flying both planks and the helis only down side I have a pair of Oakley's sitting doing nothing now.

[Steve]

You don't need vari-focals for flying. You need distance glasses. I'm short-sighted, so I can see close-up fine, but can't see at a distance. So, I have to wear glasses for flying and driving etc.

When I'm fiddling with helis and little screws etc, I take them off, or put them on top of my head where they fall off onto the floor and I stand on them!

For a number of year now, I've been buying all my specs online. I go down the town for an eye test, and walk out with a prescription in my hand, then buy online. There are a few websites to choose from, but I use these - [url=http://www.glassesdirect.co.uk]Glasses Direct ™ UK's Most Trusted Prescription Glasses Retailer[/url]

Prices are miles better than the High Street.

[dillwhacker]

Don't worry about modern soft contact lenses - they cost 50p a pair, and you will get used to to putting them on your eye in a week or less. If they fit well, you can't feel them after 10 seconds, and the vision is betterr that specs IMHO as the image doesn't move around with your head, and no chromatic aberrations.
Disadvantage, of course, for folks like me - short sighted and getting on a bit - is you can't just lift them up & see really close - you need to reach for your reading glasses every time...
Ho Hummm
:grey:

[Steve]

[QUOTE=dillwhacker;1060956]short sighted and getting on a bit[/QUOTE]

You don't look a day over 25, but you do look short sighted as hell! :joyous::gnorsi:

[dillwhacker]

[QUOTE=Steve;1060959]You don't look a day over 25, but you do look short sighted as hell! :joyous::gnorsi:[/QUOTE]
Thank you young sir or madame (delete as applicable), hope to see you soon, it's been a while!

[pgkevet]

Varifocals here too. With my prescription contacts would have to be different for each eye and also the correct way up.
I have large rimless frames for best width vision.
When I was still working I also had a pair made up with a set of flip-down lenses for extra resolution for close work.
Cureetn specs have reactolyte coatings and i'm not sure they are such a good idea for flying: they'll darken down ina lot of situations when you need to resolve the model better against a background of trees (say)... such as hazy mornings or with snow on the ground.
Next eye test i plan to make sure i have the prescription details and then buy a range of cheapo prescription sunglasses over the internet with the range of sunglass colous one can get to see if that helps.

My loss of depth perception with specs means flying closer and lower to keep track of which way round everything is: less chance of recovering from errors (that's my excuse for crashing anyway)