Transitions lenses?

Slipstream · 06-09-2008, 09:22 AM

Anybody wearing these? My eyes are getting weary of contact lenses after decades of use, and dry pressurized air doesn't help matters much either.

Do Transitions darken well in the cockpit? I've heard mixed results from this question.

hotshot · 06-09-2008, 10:36 AM

I wear Transitions, and they work pretty good when you're flying through the clouds and walking through the airport, but they don't darken enough when you're flying on top on a really sunny day. What I do is wear my Transitions and keep a back up pair of prescription sunglasses in my flight bag.

saabguy493 · 06-09-2008, 10:39 AM

They should be fine unless you are in bright daylight and suddenly start going into dark clouds. I tried it once and found they are only good on clear days. They are too slow to respond to changes in light an it can be annoying.

hotshot · 06-09-2008, 10:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by saabguy493

They should be fine unless you are in bright daylight and suddenly start going into dark clouds. I tried it once and found they are only good on clear days. They are too slow to respond to changes in light an it can be annoying.

I forgot to mention that

. The pair I have take about 30 seconds to go from clear to fully dark, and about 45 seconds from dark to clear again. It's not an instant transition.

saabguy493 · 06-09-2008, 11:17 AM

Not bad, again, there will be times you will probably get annoyed with what weather is being thrown at you. I personally like contacts and until I brave up enough to get the surgery, I will wear them. I found that my eyes feel soo much better when I started taking the contacts out sooner at night and just wore glasses. Sounds like technology is improving with them, when I had mine, it took a while for the change especiall when I went inside.

hotshot · 06-09-2008, 07:23 PM

From the FAA website:

Quote:

Glass photochromic lenses (PhotoGray® and PhotoBrown®) automatically darken when exposed to UV and become lighter in dim light. Most of the darkening takes place in the first 60 seconds, while lightening may take several minutes. Although most photochromic glass lenses can get as dark as regular sunglasses (approximately 20% light transmittance in direct sunlight), their darkened state may be lighter due to the reduced UV exposure through the windscreen. In addition, the faded state of photochromic glass lenses may not be clear enough to be useful when flying in cloud cover or at night.

http://www.faa.gov/library/reports/m...a/F2003_03.pdf

Slipstream · 06-10-2008, 09:30 AM

Thanks for all the responses! I think I'll stick with the contacts+Serengetis for now...

Fishfreighter · 06-11-2008, 01:26 PM

My transitions work well outside, but "under glass" in a cockpit or driving, they don't darken sufficiently.

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