Safety glasses: An experiment.

[Sisco]

We all know we should wear safety glasses when we shoot, right?
Some will buy glasses made for use at the range, others of us (me included) figure our prescription glasses will do just fine.

I tried a little experiment this afternoon. Had a pair of OSHA approved prescription glasses that I don't wear anymore and a pair of the cheap plastic shields like you would buy for range use (also OSHA approved).

I put them inside an empty box then shot them with 177 cal. lead hunting pellets from a distance of six to eight inches. Unsure of the velocity of the pellets, I put a fresh CO2 cartridge in before shooting though.

The cheap plastic ones held up fine. I missed the lens with the first shot and hit the frame, second shot was a bullseye. You can barely see the damage, doesn't even show up in the photo.

The glass lenses however shattered. Badly. Remember, these aren't ordinary street glasses, they are OSHA approved safety glasses.

Food for thought, eh?

 

[dasmi]

I have that pellet gun.

 

[Sisco]

I have that pellet gun.

No you don't. That one is sitting next to me right now.

 

[Azrael256]

OSHA approved doesn't mean it's necessarily resistant to projectiles. There are different ratings for different tasks.

 

[P95Carry]

Hopefully for most part - our glasses ( I admit I just use my prescrip' ones) should only have to protect against a flying case and or powder particles. That is food for thought tho - should a kaboom happen.

Maybe I'll add my safety ones over prescrip's ... better safe etc.

 

[Sisco]

OSHA approved doesn't mean it's necessarily resistant to projectiles. There are different ratings for different tasks.

True.
These even come with a warning label saying they do not shatter into "Harmless Granules" but rather "Jagged Shards" that can cause injury or even blindness. Real reassuring, huh?
They are, however, more resistant to impact than regular street glasses.

 

[Azrael256]

Real reassuring, huh?

Yeah, no kidding.

 

[jamz]

Were they supposed to be "shatterproof" glasses?

-James

 

[armoredman]

I had fragment of a casing eject into my polycarbonate lense of my street glasses. Caused a nice little gouge, would have blinded me if I had been wearing glass....
Thanks for the great visual!

 

[DarkKnight01]

Maybe I'll add my safety ones over prescrip's

Id certainly do that bud, plenty of brands to chose from that are made to fit over your regular specs, If something should happen, youve got 2 layers of protection, and also if you catch a casing that happens to strike your glasses, youll be scuffing the shooting glasses and not your specs, a single lens in your specs probably costs alot more than the pair of shooting glasses itself =)

why do I feel like I just lectured someone thats probably been alive alot longer than I have hehe oops sorry if I came off that way

 

[HighVelocity]

That's a damn good illustration. I am a big believer in Polycarbonate safety glasses. I did a similar experiment in the 80's with a few pairs of glasses/goggles and a single shot 410 with 7 1/2 shot. None of the polycarb lenses were penetrated by the pellets at 10'.

 

[Mr. Mysterious]

I think that the curved shape of the cheap shooting glasses helped bounce the pellet off of the glasses.

As for the presciption safety glasses, I have to ask, those seem kind of worthless as safety glasses with no side protection.

 

[Standing Wolf]

I haven't worn glass glasses in decades, and never will again.

 

[Third_Rail]

SW, even safety glasses when shooting??

 

[NMshooter]

I suspect Standing Wolf is talking about glass lenses in prescription glasses.

Polycarbonate is really the only way to go for prescription lenses.

Lighter and stronger.

 

[Third_Rail]

NM, you're right. I misread his post as "I haven't worn glasses...." not "glass glasses".


Thanks for the correction!

 

[Zach S]

My Gargoyles have also been shot with a .177 cal at around 3 feet, it just put a scratch on them. That same distance busted a window on an LTD wagon headed to the crusher.

They have (had?) a pic of a pair shot with a .22 on the website, I didnt have a .22 when I decided to shoot a $50 pair of shades (they were scratched anyway). Still have them, they're my backup pair when I cant find the 3 year old $4 shades I normally wear. Theres no way I'd shoot the cheap shades, I already know what will happen...

 

[Gunsnrovers]

I like my $10 AO Safety glasses. I took a hit from a fish hooking 3/4" 8mm pin I when I was knocking down sheet steel to I beams. Bounced off the lens with only a minor scratch. Very comfortable as well. When you're wearing them all day, comfort counts for a lot.

I use their dark glasses for outdoor and driving and use their amber glasses for indoor range use.

 

[Taurus 66]

Be careful when you say "OSHA Approved" because the only ones that will be have "Z 87" stamped somewhere in the plastic .. usually near or on the side protective shield.

 

[Sisco]

Z87-1 watermarked on the lens.
As for the side sheilds, I don't use them. My job is 95% office work, only wear the safety glasses when I do walk through the plant.

 

[Kevlarman]

What you really want to look for are the glasses that are certified ANSI Z-87.1

We make a big deal out of this when we play airsoft. If your glasses don't have the ANSI marking on them, you're not getting on the playing field.

 

[pax]

sisco ~

I moved this over to General Gun Discussions because it is shooting related.

pax

 

[Chupacabra]

I've never felt comfortable using my regular prescription glasses as "safety glasses" at the range, even though all the guys working there say that it's okay. They just don't offer enough protection. I'll either wear the normal safety glasses over them or just wear the safety glasses by themselves.

 

[farscott]

I use a pair of Rudy Project safety goggles that accept prescription polycarbonate lenses in metal inserts. I have a pair of inserts, one for my distance prescription and one for my near prescription. The goggles accept removable outer lenses. I have outer lenses that are clear for indoor shooting and gray for outdoor shooting. These have the advantage of full wraparound protection and I can update the prescription inserts each year.

These are rather spendy but I only have one set of eyes.

 

[DelayedReaction]

I have impact-resistant polycarbonate lenses in my prescription glasses. I used them for machining and shooting, and they work great. I've had a case or two fly at them with no problems at all.