posted
It's been a LONG time since I've had a truly great experience as a customer. This was truly an awesome experience and now has earned my brand loyalty for as long as they make sunglasses.
I always bought cheap sunglasses when i was a kid. Until I started working, then for a couple years I bought oakleys exclusively. Mostly because I was a lamb, and just bought what everyone else thought were the best sunglasses. I owned 2 pairs of Frogskins and 1 pair of M-Frames. They fit ok and had very good lenses. Over the two years I owned Oakley sunglasses they always broke within 6 months of owning them. To me, I see sunglasses as items that shouldn’t need to be babied and handled like glass. Because if I were to ever to have a face impact skiing or playing volleyball I wouldn’t want them to break and take my eyesight. But, it never failed that a small impact or just having them in a bag folded up in my backpack they would be broke the next time I pulled them out. I got sick of all that bullshit and all the bullshit the factory gave me when I tried to have them replaced. Plus paying all the money i paid for them. I also owned a pair of KILLER LOOP sunglasses for a while but those had very weak Lens coatings and scratched easily.
I bought a pair of metal framed RUDY PROJECT sunglasses about 5 years ago (not cheap but comparable to Oakleys). Though listed ad 140$ I actually only paid 80$ because I bought them through a co-workers team program. The first thing I noticed were how thick the wire frames were and how big the hinges were, both with out looking bulky at all. Also they fit very well on my gigantic head due to the springs in the hinges. Oakley always seemed to have very cheap hinges for the price you paid. They came with Rudy Project’s standard lens guarantee, which is for just shipping cost both ways you can send your pair in and get new lenses for as long as the pair is still in the current year catalog. I have absolutely abused these sunglasses over the past 5 years. They have been sat on, put in my pocket, carried around in a backpack with books in it, washed in the clothes washing machine, dropped on rocks, mud, logs, into water, and hit with various things; all without any structural damage, only minor scratches on the lenses over 5 YEARS. Finally recently I broke them, they fell to the floor and got stepped on while open. The hinge gave out and I thought I was going to be shopping for another 140$ pair.
I called Rudy Project North America to see if they might still have replacement lenses and the temples with the hinges in stock. They have been out of the current catalog for over a year so I wasn’t expecting to get anything. If anything I was expecting to have to pay a whole bunch for replacement parts. But I thought I would try because every time I have lost the bag for them or even once when one of the little rubber earpieces came off and I lost it they had sent them out to me for free. 2 times for the bags and 1 time for the earpiece. The original warrantee was only for 1 year. The lady I talked to was awesome and never even mentioned trying to sell me a new pair. Also NEVER asked for any evidence that owned the pair i was claiming i owned!!!! For just the cost of shipping she said she would send me a replacement pair of the same sunglasses that they still had, (they were optometrists fitment pair with clear lenses). And, further said she would include a new pair of replacement laser (mirror) black lenses all for like 10 bucks on my credit card!!! When they arrived priority mail 2 days later I found she had included two pairs of lenses!!!! So I basically got a 140$ pair of sunglasses for 10 bucks including a new bag and a pair of replacement lenses!!! AWESOME COMPANY AND VERY AWESOME PAIR OF SUNGLASSES. DEFINETLY WORTH THE INITIAL INVESTMENT!!!! They will most likely last me another 5 years and definetly longer if I take better care of them.
posted
Are those the blue ones you have had forever? Those are some heavy duty shades.
-------------------- Gisel, I was looking at the picture page and I do have to admit, you look pretty good for a gaming female. Having said that, don't expect any sympathy when we meet on the battlefield. I am a fighter first, lover second. Posts: 2220 | From: Prescott, WI, USA | Registered: Apr 2001
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posted
I have owned many brands of sunglasses, cheap ones, and expensive. These things are just like anything else. If you do not take care of them, they are going to break, end of story. I guess that I have never thought once about placing my glasses in a backpack or bag where something heavier than them could end up on top and crush them, nor have I needed to have them in a pants pocket so that I could sit on them. I have tried to be a bit observant of them, cheap or not, they are just fucking glasses, its not like they are supposed to be " idiot safe ", so not to take damage when ran over by a truck.
Not that I am a big defender of a certain brand of glasses, but Oakley's lenses conform to eye protection standards in place at the time of manufacture, as do many of the finer glasses. And a frame or lens braking in a bag is a totally different stress environment, than what could be encountered while facing an impact. Any dual lens shade could have the lens pop out and cause problems, that is why, if I am going to be in a situation where a dual lens glasses could cause a problem, I opt for a single lens.
This lamb still has the first pair of razor blades I purchased in 1988, and the m-frames (?)(Purchased in 1995), the frogskins (purchased in 1999), and one other pair of Oakley’s that I cannot remember the name for (purchased in 1997), and I recently purchased a new pair of polarized shades that are awesome!
In the years that I have dealt with Oakley, I have had many pieces replaced, including bows/mainframes, ear pieces (triggers), lenses and the like, and shy the money I am out for shipping, I do not remember spending, or having my card charged for any of this. I was able to get parts for the original pair in 1997. They had not been made since 1990. I was given a new lens and earpieces for the m-frames? (I think that is what they are) for whatever reason, they replaced them, when I sent them the glasses. Each time that I had an issue, I sent them the glasses (which were not any good to me) and received them back in a new cleaning bag, and a contact person’s name and number if I had any questions.
Every time I had a problem or a question, I was able to be helped by them, and taken care of by them beyond what I would have expected from a company on the left coast.
Perhaps I have just been lucky, again. Someday this shit will run out....
Glad to here that you have found a company that provides you good service.
[ 08-06-2002, 16:14: Message edited by: SUCK MY DICK ]
Posts: 771 | From: Farmington | Registered: Oct 2000
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posted
My only pair of Oakleys is the M-frames w/ black iridium lens I bought in '99 prior to my eye surgery. I was very anal about taking care of them, always used the bag to clean them, always stored them in the hard case, etc. The frame cracked on the front above the lens due to a weak design (not abuse) according to Sunglass Hut and they were about 6 months outside the year warranty. Oakley had since redesigned the M-frame much thicker and tougher because of that problem. Even so, they charged me $20 for the replacement frames which was mildly irritating considering they had cost about $120 new and broke due to a known design issue. Still, I didn't think $20 was unreasonable for the frames and I think that included shipping. Sunglasses are such a delicate and highly abused item, it's a wonder these companies can stand behind them as much as they do. Overall not a super experience with Oakley but not a bad one either and their lenses are great.
posted
Or you could do yourself one better and just get his signature tattoo'd on your ass check.
-------------------- Gisel, I was looking at the picture page and I do have to admit, you look pretty good for a gaming female. Having said that, don't expect any sympathy when we meet on the battlefield. I am a fighter first, lover second. Posts: 2220 | From: Prescott, WI, USA | Registered: Apr 2001
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posted
I supose it is better than your dream of having Gary Coleman's face and afro tatooed across your chest. Or having the rainbow stickers on the back of your FORD probe.
Posts: 2331 | From: Rosemount | Registered: Mar 2001
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posted
Dude, why you gotta bring my idol Gary Colemen into the situation? You know I just finished my 12 step program to cure me of that infatuation!
Now if I could just get rid of my David Hasslehoff obsession things might be okay.
-------------------- Gisel, I was looking at the picture page and I do have to admit, you look pretty good for a gaming female. Having said that, don't expect any sympathy when we meet on the battlefield. I am a fighter first, lover second. Posts: 2220 | From: Prescott, WI, USA | Registered: Apr 2001
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