By the far, the reader who’s contributed the most and best tips to this newsletter is Emory Kimbrough. Thanks, Emory! Here’s his latest:
“We’re all familiar with safety glasses and goggles, but there’s a third option - sealed or hybrid safety glasses. These look like ordinary safety glasses, but they have foam seals around the eyes to keep out dust. Dust easily sneaks around the sides of safety glasses, and a minor dust irritation has some risk of growing into a serious problem. So, sealed safety glasses should be far better known and far more popular.
"You can buy sealed/hybrid glasses for
less than $3.00 each, affordable for a school workshop or makerspace that needs safety glasses for every student. But my favorite new gear for 2021 was
prescription sealed glasses. Prescription safety glasses are more comfortable and give better vision than putting goggles or oversized safety glasses on over your usual prescription glasses. And less nuisance = more compliance. I chose
Titmus SW09R Livewire sealed glasses, for four reasons. First, they combine ANSI-rated impact protection with the dust seals. Next, they have a removable head strap that creates an even better seal against sneaky dust, and keeps the glasses from slipping down or slipping off at a bad moment. Finally, I have a very strong prescription for nearsightedness, plus I’m old enough to need progressive lenses. Many prescription safety glasses are not compatible with strong prescriptions, but these were available with progressive lenses
and in my strong prescription. (You can also get the Titmus Livewires without prescription lenses.)
"I got mine with good customer service and prompt shipping from
safetygearpro.com, but they are available from other suppliers. They came with a case that can clip to your belt – good for keeping those safety glasses handy instead of way over on the other side of the shop tempting you to ignore them. They also came with a cleaning kit and an eyeglasses screwdriver. Prescription safety glasses are also a
spare pair of ordinary eyeglasses, so these will go in my suitcase as an emergency back-up whenever I travel.
"Compared with ordinary safety glasses, dust-sealed hybrid glasses are all benefit and no drawback - So, prescription or non-prescription, make the change.”