New Glasses! -
I got my new prescription glasses today. I ordered them on December 31st. I had some issues with Ray-Ban ordering last year and that was a whole situation, but I walked out of it with two 50% coupons. I used the first one on a pair of of Chromance Round Metal sunglasses and a pair of Oval sunglasses for my girlfriend.
Well, the second coupon expired on December 31st, so I thought I shouldn't waste it. My prescription hasn't changed and I wouldn't mind having an extra pair of prescription glasses. I decided to go with the Ray-Ban RB3681 in polished gunmetal. I liked the roundness, they came in a smaller size (48-20), and the contour of the top had a steeper downwards curve near the edge.
Let me preface this too: I'm not here to flex how much I spend on glasses. In fact, my most expensive pair, I didn't even end up paying for. I have only bought Ray-Bans at full price once. I just want to write initial thoughts on my new pair and also take a moment to appreciate the rest of my collection.
I also don't have a crazy heavy presctiption. My left eye is -2.0 while my right is -1.75. I usually wear contact lenses.
RB3681 #
First thoughts, they feel pretty sturdy. You'll understand this comment once I talk about my current pair of prescription glasses, the Jack Titanium Optics (JTO). They look good one me, too! The color is a little less of a dark grey than my JTO's.
A couple things to note: Most of my other Ray-Bans have this cool etching in them around the lens. It's a small detail that makes them feel of a higher quality. It makes them feel more legit, I guess. The RB3681 are now my most plain and simple pair of Ray-Bans. No etchings, no small designs, no texture; just flat, smooth metal.
Pictured on the left is a close-up of the rim around the lens on the RB3681. On the right is the same location on the JTO's. It might be hard to make out, but the RB3681 is completely smooth.
The RB3681's are also much much heavier than the JTO's but the JTO's are titanium glasses, so it's a little bit of an unfair comparison.
My biggest gripe about these is that they are a "Made in China" pair. My JTO's are made in Japan, and all my other Ray-Bans are made in Italy. After Luxottica bought out Ray-Ban, the quality significantly dropped all while the price stayed the same. So far the RB3681's don't seem to be too terribly made, but it's something to note and it's just a little disappointing considering the comapny's history.
Jack Titanium Optics #
Ah, my current pair of glasses. My first pair of presciption Ray-Bans. My only pair of "made in Japan" Ray-Bans. These are just a delight to wear. They're made out of titanium, so they are extremely light. They also just have minimal and thin arm shape.
While they are extremely light, they feel very flimsy. They are spring-like. The thin construction is a double-edged sword. On one hand, I love how they look. I love the material and the color. I love the little etchings and texture all around them. On the other hand, I'm scared they'll break or bend.
I actually have two pairs of these. Just one pair costs $800 after the lenses were selected. Very expensive, I know! This is where I got my 50% coupons from. They had to cancel my order once, and then when I actually got these in the mail, they were bent. They told me to keep the bent pair and that they'd send out another one at no extra cost.
Here's the two: The top pair are the bent ones.
They aren't bent on the hinges, but in the nose bridge!
I honestly don't expect the average reader of this post to notice the bend as much as I do. I am a very nitpicky person. The bent pair didn't look exactly like the product pictures, so I was upset!
This is probably where most of my fear of bending them comes from. Despite the springyness of the titanium and its resistance to bending, I'm worried they'll bend because one pair already has!
I have sadly lost my love of how these look on my face. I just feel like they're too big. Another thing I've come to dislike is that the flat, octagonal shape along the top angles upwards towards the outer ends.
I must say though: the construction and attention-to-detail in the Jack Titanium Optics is unmatched when comparing with my new RB3681's.
Clubmaster Metal #
Can't be a Ray-Ban enjoyer without at least one pair of sunglasses. My first ever pair of Ray-Bans were the Clubmaster Metals. I rarely wear these anymore. I picked them up in a eastern-Utah ski town one evening. At this point in time, I was using a crappy pair of knock-off sunglasses.
When I was buying them, I had a choice between a few different types of Clubmasters. I chose the metal ones (because they were more expensive and felt nicer) and I chose the black and gold option. I had a choice between black and gold, or black and silver. This is the part I regret. I only chose black and gold to honor my crappy sunglasses (or something like that).
I do not like gold. I hate it, in fact. I think it's just a tacky looking accessory color. I think it looks cheap. It doesn't go with anything else I wear.
Nonetheless, I have them. Here they are:
My Clubmaster Metals are also a decent pair of hiking glasses. The hinges are thicker and sturdier, so the clamping force is greater. They feel solid on my head.
I still like the shape and they look good on me, it's just unfortunate I decided on gold.
Round Metal Chromance #
For my next pair of sunglasses, I wanted to splurge. Since the Clubmaster Metals are already polarized, I went with Round Metal Chromances. Chromance is just Ray-Ban's next-tier-up polarization offering. It does make a difference. Things look nicer. I will say there is a lot of marketing jargan that comes along with them. (who cares tho cuz 50% off!!! 🤑🤑🤑)
These are by-far my favorite pair of sunglasses. I love how they look. They have the same texturing as my Jack Titanium Optics. They aren't titanium, but it makes them feel sturdier.
Below you can see the texturing again. There is also some along the arm. It really makes a difference in the feel of these!
But as the story of my life goes, they aren't perfect. I have just one complaint. I had to get the 50-21 size because they don't make the 47-21 in the Chromance. That's all. They aren't too big on my face, but I definitely prefer the smaller lens option when I can get it.
Final Thoughts? #
My next pair of prescription glasses will definitely be the Round Titaniums. I can tell I'm already gonna miss the etching and texturing that I have on the Jack Titaniums. It wont be for another year though because now I have two prescription glasses to choose from. I don't need to go spending $800 on another pair of titanium Ray-Bans for a while.
Here's a bonus picture of all my glasses together (minus the bent pair).
From left to right: RB3681 in Polished Gunmetal, Jack Titanium Optics in Polished Gunmetal, Round Metal Chromance in Polished Gunmetal, Clubmaster Metal in Polished Black On Gold
Thanks for reading this far! #
Oh and as a sidenote, I have been almost entirely absent from Nekoweb for the past couple of weeks. I'm not quitting working on my site, I have just been working on a different project. It is completely unrelated from my website and Nekoweb entirely. Once it's done, I'll get back to working on my redesign.