Oakley is just one of those companies. They are one of those companies that everybody (relatively) knows, and one of those companies that just has “it.” They are definitely a love or hate company, as their style is very unique and not appreciated by all. But those who love them are many, and if Oakley’s history is any indication, the Oakley Cult will live a long healthy life.
The Flak Jackets are easily thought of as an improvement on the classic Half Jackets that are so familiar. The half framed replacable lens Half Jackets are almost legendary among riders (as far as sun glasses go anyways) and are almost as recognizable as the Oakley M-Frames.
Featuring (as mentioned) a half frame design, the Flak Jackets are designed for althetes in mind. The Flak Jackets feature a replaceable lens system, allowing users to customize the look and performance of the glasses. Before you ask, yes, there is definitely a performance aspect to sunglasses, and the Oakleys in particular. Oakley has a full range of lenses that you can buy and add so you can tune what you see. Its hard to explain, better to go to the Oakley.ca website and play with the lens chooser yourself.
The frames are fairly standard stuff, albeit with Oakley’s style touches all around. They don’t feel particularly expensive, but they definitely look it. Again, it’s a love/ hate thing.
The lenses though are definitely the main attraction. The thing that makes Oakley’s as expensive as they are (besides paying for the name and cool factor) is the remarkable clarity of the lenses. There is no distortion, ANYWHERE. Look through any part of the lens, and you will have clear vision, with no “waves” or “ripples.” If you have been riding with cheaper glasses ($20 Canadian Tire specials, Faux-kleys, or that kinda junk) you will be blown away. No more depth distortion, no headaches, and no weird blurring when you look anywhere but dead center. The term “crystal clear” could learn a thing or two from Oakley.
The lenses have a few other tricks too. They are very impact resistant, and according to Oakley nothing short of a battleship shooting you in the face will wreck them. That doesn’t mean scratch resistant, but sharp branches won’t penetrate the lenses should you decide to molest a tree at speed. The lenses for the Flak Jacket also feature a neat Hydrophobic coating, which basically means liquid doesn’t stick. Water, and more importantly sweat, just beads up and rolls off. As a guy who sweats a whole lot, I definitely appreciated that.
Unfortunately, the hydrophobic coating isn’t a permanent feature, and can wipe off. The coating on our pair lasted about 6 weeks, but that’s after being wiped on shirts, shorts, other people, trees, and whatever else we had. Good news is that Oakley will be selling kits that can respray the coating back onto your lenses. Sweaty bastards rejoice.
Other then that, the only real question is, are the glasses worth the $210 MSRP? You definitely can’t argue with the performance. Performance wise, if the glasses fit your head then you just aren’t going to find a flaw with them optically. Hell, even if you get a screwed up pair Oakley will just send you a new set. They do come with a case now, which is a nice touch, but its still $210 bucks for a pair of sunglasses and a case. You are definitely paying to be part of the Oakley club, which you know as soon as you start looking at them. Me, I’m fine with that. Straight up, the Oakley Flak Jackets are pretty much the top of the line for riding glasses, it’s just a matter of swallowing the costs. If that’s not a problem, you aren’t going to be disappointed. I can say from a personal standpoint, I am thrilled with mine.
Even better, with the wide array of lenses available, you can build yourself a set of glasses that can accommodate most any situation.
