Thread: Shooting Safety Glasses

Okay... safety glasses and shooting glasses. I see at some ranges they are mandatory...

Who uses what... what are good what are not good, what makes a pair good, what to look out for etc.

I went into the hardware store and spent like $4 lol, it was only because it was in the range rules.. I think I forgot them last time though

I am thinking maybe something a little more up market... possibly a yellow option...

I have some Tasco ones I bought years ago. They have yellow lenses, it does seem to improve contrast. I can't remember what they cost but it wouldnt have been a lot, I probably have the box somewhere with the price sticker on it. If I recall correctly they can withstand a shotgun blast (was probably stated as a shot size at 20m or something like that), so your eyes are okay but the rest of your face is mince

Go to a NZ Safety Blackwoods shop and try a few pairs on. Some will fit your face better than others.

Should have to spend no more than $20 a pair for a quality, comfortable glasses, which is all you need unless you're expecting to be shot square in the face with a shotgun or going to Afghanistan and getting caught in IED blasts.

Get ones that wrap around your face for best protection. Thin arms are much more comfortable under earmuffs and less likely to interfere with 'muffs.

Get hard cases from a two dollar shop.

Clear, yellow and grey lenses will cover most things.

Good idea. Most people down hear appear just to wear sun glasses. They will likely save the day too, as they are also plastic "glass". But if you have a misfire, do wait a while before opening the gun.

The message is simple. Get some and wear them.

Also get some ear plugs as the glasses interfere with the seal.

There's a rating the us military uses that rates the glass as shrapnel resistant. It is worth looking into.

Aaah! Ready for a day at the range...

And look, here's @systolic arriving, always prepared.

Originally Posted by Rushy

The message is simple. Get some and wear them.

Educate me @Rushy. Obviously I've had a sheltered life or I've been exceptionally lucky to date, but I don't recall a single time I've ever felt the need for them. Ignorance is bliss... so what circumstances warrant their use?

Originally Posted by planenutz

Educate me @Rushy. Obviously I've had a sheltered life or I've been exceptionally lucky to date, but I don't recall a single time I've ever felt the need for them. Ignorance is bliss... so what circumstances warrant their use?

Life changing shit, having a gun pop and you aren't wearing specs.

QUOTE..Shooting glasses are a rule at most gun clubs, and a good idea at all of them. You should wear them in the field as well. There’s no excuse not to, since even $15 safety glasses will withstand a direct hit from a target load at ten yards. I know this is true, because I’ve shot a few pairs over the years to see what would happen. Even at close range, 7½ pellets make only divots in the lenses. The rest of your head would be gone, but you would still be able to leave your eyes to medical science.
If shooting glasses will protect your eyes from 7½ at dueling range, they will obviously shield them from lesser dangers. For instance, lately I have been shooting the dirt-cheap, Chinese-made Stevens 320 pump, under editorial orders to put a bunch of rounds through it.* So last week, I took it to the sporting-clays course in place of my usual target gun. The Stevens is a right-handed gun, and I am a left-handed shooter, so the ejection port is a few inches from my nose. I was shooting some cheap factory ammo, which was performing pretty well in the cheap pump gun, when, about halfway through the course, I shot at the first target of a pair, pumped the action, and a cloud of powder and smoke blew out of the ejection port into my face. It probably looked like a less-violent version of what happens when Bugs Bunny sticks his finger into the muzzle of Elmer Fudd’s shotgun. I could feel little stings of burning powder bouncing off of my face, but my eyes were perfectly safe behind the tough lenses of my Randolph Rangers.
I have never had a factory load do that before, but it may very well happen again sometime. When it does, I will be wearing glasses, as you should be, too.

Originally Posted by planenutz

Educate me @Rushy. Obviously I've had a sheltered life or I've been exceptionally lucky to date, but I don't recall a single time I've ever felt the need for them. Ignorance is bliss... so what circumstances warrant their use?

I witnessed something eighteen months ago that was shocking and life changing and in that moment I realised for the first time that we who shoot centrefire rifles take for granted the integrity of the firearms that we use and don’t expect them to fail and by and large they do not. On that one occasion though the firearm did fail and the explosive forces associated with shooting a large calibre projectile channeled quite unexpectedly through the side of the rifle with a catastrophic outcome. Prior to that occassion I had shot pistols a lot and had always worn safety glasses even though I was holding the pistols at arms length (I do understand that eye protection in pistol shooting is about the potential for projectile splashback) but now having witnessed the devastation that occurred that day, when shooting rifles I also think it prudent to wear safety glasses. I hope they never have to do their job but see little inconvenience in wearing eye protection just in case they do.

Originally Posted by Rushy

I witnessed something eighteen months ago that was shocking and life changing and in that moment I realised for the first time that we who shoot centrefire rifles take for granted the integrity of the firearms that we use and don’t expect them to fail and by and large they do not. On that one occasion though the firearm did fail and the explosive forces associated with shooting a large calibre projectile channeled quite unexpectedly through the side of the rifle with a catastrophic outcome. Prior to that occassion I had shot pistols a lot and had always worn safety glasses even though I was holding the pistols at arms length (I do understand that eye protection in pistol shooting is about the potential for projectile splashback) but now having witnessed the devastation that occurred that day, when shooting rifles I also think it prudent to wear safety glasses. I hope they never have to do their job but see little inconvenience in wearing eye protection just in case they do.

He is not even slightly exaggerating. I saw it too and am guilty of not wearing them even after that wake up call. Will actually put a new pair that I have in the glove box for work into the ammo safe now. Back soon.