Protect Your Eyes on Duty, at the Range and on the Street

I’ve had the pleasure to try out three different styles of the newly released Wiley X Black Ops collection over the past few months, and am thoroughly impressed with the quality and attention to detail.

While seven different styles are now available, and an eighth is coming soon, the three I’ve presented here for review are the Revolvr, AirRage and Airborne. The Black Ops collection “fuses stealth design inspired by the shadowy realms of covert operations.”

Essentially the goal of the product line is to deliver stylish eye protection that military, law enforcement and shooters can wear both casually, on duty, or at the range. Hence the “covert protection.”

Protection

The entire Black Ops collection exceeds ANSI Z87.1-2003 high velocity impact safety & optical standards, using shatterproof Selenite polycarbonate lenses. Most frames are also prescription ready so you can stop using the boot camp issued BC glasses your friends have been giving you a hard time about.

While these glasses aren’t going to stop a bullet, they can definitely save your eyesight from ricochets. I haven’t been in the situation where these particular glasses have saved my eyes, but have witnessed first hand a pair of ANSI approved glasses save a buddy’s eyes and believe me you’ll be thanking that rating if that happens to you.

Revolver

The Revolvr features grey ANSI Z87 lenses with an Italian-inspired wraparound black matte frame that was a welcome change from most protective shooting glasses. I typically wear Gatorz sunglasses and these seemed to hug my face equally as well. I did notice increased peripheral vision in the wraparound design versus the other two models.

Revolvr fits medium-large faces and includes a zippered case, leash cord, cleaning cloth and Black Ops morale patch.

AirRage

Designed for smaller faces, the AirRage features the removable Climate Control Facial Cavity Seal and grey ANSI Z87 lenses on black matte frames. The arms of these glasses are rubberized throughout, which really helps them stay put. I didn’t notice any slipping when running or going prone.

AirRage fits small-medium faces and includes a zippered case, removable Facial Cavity Seal, T-Peg Elastic Strap, leash cord, cleaning cloth and Black Ops morale patch.

Airborne

The Airborne features a fat temple design for added peripheral protection, Climate Control Facial Cavity Seal and grey ANSI Z87 lenses on black matte frames. The Airborne frame has neither a wraparound design like the Revolvr or rubberized arms like the AirRage, and I noticed these creeping down my face while moving. I’d highly recommend this design integrated some rubberized arms like the AirRage.

Airborne fits medium-large faces and includes a zippered case, removable Facial Cavity Seal, leash cord, cleaning cloth and Black Ops morale patch.

Field Notes

I was able to try out all these glasses during quite a few sessions on the range, and the Revolvr style is by far my favorite. They just seem to fit my head/face well, and didn’t slip off when going prone or running. Of course, your mileage may vary as I have a fairly medium head/face.

Both the AirRage and Airborne  styles feature a removable foam “Climate Control Facial Cavity Seal” that keeps out dust, debris and peripheral light. While this insert did work as advertised, the increased depth of the glasses created a loss of peripheral vision, which I didn’t care for. I can definitely see a purpose for the insert though, and it is very easy to remove and re-install.

The ventilation holes the Facial Cavity Seals provide, adequately kept the lenses fog-free during my use. While they didn’t do much for the sweat running down my face in the Texas heat, the distance that the lenses sat away from my eyes helped keep the sweat from running down the lenses themselves.  Without the inserts and on the Revolvers, sweat did streak down the lenses.

All together I really liked the collection and loved that each pair came with a Black Ops morale patch. It’s a nice addition that helps reinforce the name.

Do you wear protective shooting glasses that also double as your casual sunglasses? What do you roll with?

Update: The Wiley X Black Ops Collection is also available from ReactGear at below retail prices. Plank Owners and Crew Leaders, you can also save more at ReactGear by using the discount code available on your resources page!

Video and Photos

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