Ten plus year review – Nemesis Safety Glasses

I wrote this initial review ten years ago.

One person mentioned to me that he bought these glasses because of what I wrote “years ago.”   A person reading that comment bought them recently and said, “Your sunglasses recommendation has been great.” 

I figured it was time to update the article a bit after a decade of using one of my absolute favorite pieces of budget gear.

….

Good enough for Obama is good enough for me!

Most of us lose, forget, or damage something frequently.

For some, it is their car keys.

For others, it is their phone.

Or maybe their lunch at home.

For me, it is sunglasses.

Over the years, I’ve crushed, lost, dropped, left behind, misplaced, damaged, and put God-knows-where more sunglasses than I care to think about.

I’ve worn everything from Ray-Bans back in my Rhode Island Guido Days [1], to glacier glasses to drug store sunglasses to whatever I find at Tar-zhey or Wally World.

Living in Colorado for nearly twenty years and being an avid outdoors person, sunglasses aren’t for fashion. They are necessary items to block UV rays, cut down glare from the sun, help block the wind, and provide other protection when outside.

And now that I live in the high desert of Utah, having good eye protection is even more of a must.

My problem is that  I lose, damage, drop, or otherwise mangle them just too darn much. Even the cheap $10-15 sunglasses add up.

I lost yet another pair on a hike with friends on a fine trip back in 2013.

But the trail gods provided. My buddy Mark spotted sunglasses with amber lenses. The frames were camo. Not my first choice of sunglasses, but they worked.

By the end of the backpacking trip, I enjoyed them quite a bit. Lightweight, durable, and flexible frames. Comfortable to wear.  Lenses that wrapped around for good coverage.

Out of curiosity, I googled the brand of Nemesis sunglasses when I came home.

To my pleasant surprise, these now-favorite sunglasses were astonishingly inexpensive. Found as inexpensively as $18 for three pairs (including shipping!) They came in various lens colors and color schemes.

Have some friends?  Grab a box of twelve and pay $4 a pair.

I like clear safety glasses for biking at night and in winter and lighter-tinted gray ones for overcast days on ski tours or biking.

Want polarized ones? You can splurge and pay a princely $16.

Wanting an all-purpose one, I bought the black ones with smokey lenses.  

Being safety glasses for construction, they are highly scratch-resistant and durable.  Naturally, they block out UV rays as well.

As they get built to ANSI standards for safety, they are made to be of better quality than your typical drug store glasses. The wrap-around lenses block out the sun and wind effectively, and the design is such they do not fog up that easily.

I appreciate how the glasses have flexible temple and temple tips that don’t break and fit around a construction helmet. Or rather, a fleece beanie, a ball cap, or a boonie hat!

I’ve converted many people to the utility of these glasses over the years, be they friends, people online, coworkers, and my now-wife.

And they all see the utility, effectiveness, and excellent value of these sunglasses.

After over a decade of use, I swear by these light, durable, functional, and inexpensive sunglasses and don’t see any need to try “better” (more expensive) sunglasses for my current use.

At the end of my SEUG Circuit packraft/backpacking trip.

They are among my favorite budget purchases I’ve made over the years, and I can not recommend them enough, even all these years later.

Find them on Amazon and rock the outdoor look in an inexpensive style! 

[1] We all have skeletons in the closet. Mine happened to have driven a ‘89 Mustang with chrome rims, wore spiked and gelled hair, a gold chain, and an earring.  Do you want to see photos of those days in my late teens? Fuhgeddaboudit!