Tired old eyes

[RPG]

My 'reading distance' vision ain't what it used to be and I find myself reaching for glasses to see things close up. This also has created an issue over the past few years when trying to tour and look at the map on the tankbag.

 

Anyone have a solution (other than reading glasses), like magnifying laminates over the tank cover, etc?

 

thanks,

 

RPG

[bmurphypdx]

Same issue here. I just pull over for a minute. Better than trying to focus while drifting over into the oncoming lane.

[keithb]

Well the symptoms both of you guys mention is called AGING. It pretty much affects most of us around age 40. Are you in that general age group gentlemen? Unfortunately Lasik cannot fix it. I fought wearing reading glasses for 1-2 years but realized it was futile and I had to see to make a living in my line of work. Just go to the drugstore and buy a pair of reading glasses for every room in your house/office/car/bike and you are good to go. It is a pain getting older, eh?

[notacop]

Welcome to middle earth, er' middle age. Blended bifocals work just fine. Ask for the close up so you can read the little numbers on the financial page. The optom will know what you mean. Maps in tank bags are difficult to read on the move so a GPS at dash distance helps too. Live long and wrinkle leathery!

[BFish]

GPS

 

[ShovelStrokeEd]

Lasik managed to fix it for me. I didn't have a really serious case of presbyopia, which is the cause of loss of close-up vision. Had it done about 10 years ago and can still read some pretty small type at normal distances.

 

My eyes to fatigue quickly when working with small type though, so, lately, I have been using a pair of 1.25 readers for long sessions at the monitor. Seems to be working fine.

 

As I age, 65 now, my biggest trouble is transferring focus from near to far or vise versa taking too long. It gets there but it is now to the point where it is noticeable. Extra second to get the GPS screen in focus and a little less going back up to the road. It has impacted my riding a bit as well, making me a little more tentative on corner entry, especially on tight ones where my broad vision gets compressed if the vanishing point is moving around.

[RPG]

thanks guys, yep I just turned 49 and this started about two years ago. I like glancing at the map while I'm riding for quick checks etc. Guess I'll have to go the GPS route.

 

RPG

[Lawman]

Wear a pair of drug store readers around your neck on a cord and don't worry about the way you look or what people think..That's what I do and that's the good thing about getting old..I no longer care about how I look or what people think.

[johnlt]

I like the progressive lenses and wear them all the time. Good up close, dash distance/computer and far. You automatically focus through the section of the lens that gives gives you the best resolution. Wonderful invention.

[keithb]

RPG

Count your lucky stars. You surpassed the average age of 40 by 7 years. Good for you. Now it sounds like the piper is calling for you to pay up. No worries. Just a part of life. Enjoy those readers man!!

 

Ed you lucked out with the Lasik procedure working for you. Most of us aren't so lucky.

[Marty Hill]

Do you wear sunglasses? I had my reading prescription put on several pairs and during the day they do the trick.

[Dietrich]

My bifocals for work are adjusted for me to be able to read the keyboard. More or less corresponds with the GPS and tankbag in distance. Had the same problem in the car, could not read the speedo. All good now, at 64 years old I am allowed to those issues and the correction. And so are you.

Dietrich

[tomk99r11]

Have the same problem. I bought ANSI approved safety sun glasses with 1.50 magnification at the bottom edge, and also another pair in clear. Work great and I can read the map or even make out details on my GPS!!!!!!!!!! Think they were $11 each from Parmalee Industries in Overland Park, KS.

The ear pieces are adjustable up and down, and extend for thick headed people, sort of like me.

[ShovelStrokeEd]

Keith,

It wasn't luck, just a very careful conversation with the surgeon before we did the procedure.

 

At the time, I was pretty much playing pool for a living and was having a lot of trouble with my vision. I tried contacts, progressive glasses, even a special pair of glasses with the magnification on the top (wonderful for computer monitors as well as you don't have to crane your head up and back to see the screen). Nothing was working and my "game" was heading downhill, which meant it was costing me money.

 

We talked and I was very specific about wanting my vision optimized for 3 to 10 feet, not caring if I would need distance glasses, if it came to that. Doctor understood and we mapped out a plan/program. Worked better than either of us expected. I can read the fine print on the side of a pack of cigarettes, use my monitor on my laptop with 6 point type, and read a book with no problems. Distance vision didn't seem to be compromised either, although I do suffer with a bit of haloing at night.

 

I expect it to deteriorate more as I age and readers will once again be needed. I have a much better job than playing pool for a living now so pool is fun again and I don't much care that I'm not playing at an AAA level. The only caveat in all this is that I do require some pretty good light to read that little stuff or even a book if it is dim enough. The readers help with that.

 

Oh yeah, thank Dog for auto focus!

[topdal46]

That's what I'd like to find, Sunglasses with the 1.5 magnification in them, where do I find them, and Something that will work when I'm wearing my SHOEI RF1000 helmet...

[Quinn]

A lot of people with lasik or contact lens will ask for one close focus and one set for distance. You will automatically adjust dominance to whichever eye is sharpest and it doesn't seem to bother depth perception.

[Marty Hill]

That's what I'd like to find, Sunglasses with the 1.5 magnification in them, where do I find them, and Something that will work when I'm wearing my SHOEI RF1000 helmet...

 

Drug stores have different stick on magnifiers.

[ShovelStrokeEd]

That damn near killed me, couldn't adapt. It was OK for walking around but eye dominance is way too critical in pool shooting. The switch from near vision (the cue ball) to far vision (object ball up to 12 feet away) just destroyed any chance of making an accurate shot. Screwed up trap and pistol shooting as well.

[marcopolo]

Guess I'll have to go the GPS route.

 

That's what I did in 2005. I have it mounted on the clutch resevoir cover, with audio prompts to my in-ear speakers. Works like a charm for me, though I still carry hard-copy maps with me. I look at them (maps) in the evenings, while enjoying a cold beer. They're much better for seeing the "big picture".

[keithb]

Ed

That's very cool the procedure worked for your very specific needs. Especially if you are making your living that way. I have to be able to see as well being in the dental industry where I present very small pieces and parts. Obviously light is paramount for both professions.

[Linz]

I have special bi-focals made especially for riding and driving.

 

My optometrist measured the distance between gauges and eyes and made me a pair that focus on the gauges and on the distance.

 

It's so seamless, I don't realise that they are bifocal. They're coated as well to reduce glare for night time riding. I ride a lot at night.

 

Linz

[Wyn]

GPS will be your riding answer. For walking around go to www.debspecs.com search folding glasses. Getchya some folding reading glasses with the case that clips to your belt. You can skip the whole "don't have my glasses" part and the 5 or 10 pairs lying around the house that you can never find. You'll always have em on hand. I have the genuine fake alligator case. Makes you feel like a LEO!

 

Your never to old not to be cool! You ride a BMW for gosh sakes! Skip the rope around your neck stuff.

 

I like Linz's post too. Mine's the cheap way out.

[tallman]

Transition tri-focals.

Change to dark as needed, allow me to focus on tankbag, dashboard, down the road.

YMMV.

[RPG]

Do you wear sunglasses?

 

yes Marty I do. But not prescriptions. When I went to the Eye Doctor, he said I don't need a prescription yet, just go to the drugstore and get some reading glasses. I did, but they're not tinted or certainly not as nice as the Smith sunglasses I have.

 

Can't complain too much, at 49 I still have excellent sight past about 16".

[UberXY]

A few thoughts:

 

After wearing glasses for myopia for 30 years, I had Lasik ten years ago, which has given me 20/15 vision and no more glasses in helmets. I went to the surgeon who also did Tiger Woods - this is one service where it would be totally nuts to shop on price! Zero problems.

 

But the doctor predicted I would need reading glasses in a few years, and he was correct. The biggest hassle was in flying, where you have to look to a very distant horizon to a map on your lap and back, frequently, with no time (or hands) to put on/take off glasses. I solved this with a $15 pair of off-the-shelf bifocal sunglasses.

 

On the bike, my first GPS had a small screen and was black and white - I definitely could not read a thing on it unless I stopped, which really made it no more useful than a paper map. But now I use a Zumo, and I can see it fine without glasses. It's great for me as my trips are often guided by a wonder-where-that-road-goes impulse, and with the Zumo I have no second thoughts about checking it out, nor do I have to stop to consult a map.

 

Hope this helps...

[KentuckyBlue]

I work for a construction company. We provide eye protection for all of our trades employees. That population is aging as well. We offer bifocal safety glasses, both with clear lenses as well as sunglasses. I keep a pair of each on the bike. They not only offer ANSI certified eye protection when I want to raise my face shield, but they enable me to see my GPS and dash panel perfectly. They come in an assortment of frame styles and colors and are quite good looking. Highly recommend. About $3.00 a pair.

 

Ray

[Lawman]

I work for a construction company. We provide eye protection for all of our trades employees. That population is aging as well. We offer bifocal safety glasses, both with clear lenses as well as sunglasses. I keep a pair of each on the bike. They not only offer ANSI certified eye protection when I want to raise my face shield, but they enable me to see my GPS and dash panel perfectly. They come in an assortment of frame styles and colors and are quite good looking. Highly recommend. About $3.00 a pair.

 

Ray

 

Where can I buy a pair?

[realshelby]

Check your local fishing equipment department for sunglasses with the magnifier at the bottom. Yes, at 48 I now have the need for them to tie knots and other close up work. About a year ago I realized the glasses helped in reading also. Went to the local $1 store. As stated by someone else, I have a pair every where in the house and garage! BTW, I also have the clear safety glasses with the magnifier in the bottom. Some of the screws they are using today seem so much smaller........

[RPG]

Tom, I ordered a pair from Parmalee and they arrived yesterday. They're perfect and appear to solve the problem. Took a 200 mile ride with them and the map on the tankbag was clear as day.

 

thanks so much,

 

RPG

[TomK]

If you normally wear sunglasses, as I do, a solution that has worked for me is to get stick-on magnifiers that turn your glasses into bifocals. They are flexible so they form to the shape of you glasses and adhere simply by using a drop of water to create surface tension. I got mine from the Aerostich catalog. I use one set on my sunglasses and another on clear glasses for night and cloudy days. They are only about $20.

[Richard_G]

If you normally wear sunglasses, as I do, a solution that has worked for me is to get stick-on magnifiers that turn your glasses into bifocals. They are flexible so they form to the shape of you glasses and adhere simply by using a drop of water to create surface tension. I got mine from the Aerostich catalog. I use one set on my sunglasses and another on clear glasses for night and cloudy days. They are only about $20.

 

These work great. I have used them on my bicycling glasses as well.

[kdoddrell]

I am trying to avoid wearing glasses with my helmet, as I find them annoying around the ears. Yes, fussy I know!

 

Does anyone know of an adhesive magnifying film that you could apply to the bottom portion of the helmet visor to enable reading the map and GPS??

 

 

[tomk99r11]

Yes, WalMart often carries magnifying lens for around $20 that will adhere. Look for them where the cheater specs are stocked. I have some to mount but haven't gotten to it yet. Assume they will adhere to a visor. My eyes aren't bad enough yet to need glasses other than cheaters. I know you don't want to wear glasses but I buy sun glasses with cheater lenses built-in for $12. The supplier sells various strength safety glasses, which meet ANSI stds, in dark as well as clear. The ear pieces are adjustable and pretty comfortable for me. Good luck.

[Got2Greys]

Here is what I have:

 

http://www.whitehorsepress.com/product_info.php?products_id=5234

 

They have either a clear lens version (great at night) or the sunglass (smoke)for daytime wear.

 

Bill

[mswanton]

I got a pair of the Radians and my wife stole them from me! I bought two more pair. The ear pieces are thin enough that it doesn't bother while wearing a helmet.

Also, it's your helmet, so you can crush a little bit of the foam around the ears and the DOT isn't going to notice

I also have a pair of cheep wrap around safety glasses with 1.5 magnifyiers for days when it's not so sunny. (Google search)

Get them. You'll use them somewhere. Or you can say, "Honey look what I found for you!"

[Rinkydink]

RPG,do you have the parmalee link? I googled it and can't come up with it. Thanks

[tomk99r11]

TopDal46, I buy mine from Parmalee Industries in Overland Park, KS. I visit their showroom, safety glasses are one of their businesses. You should be able to order them from many places though, and I think there have been several suggestions on this thread.

[markgoodrich]

The references to "stick-on" magnifiers are to the Optx 20-20 company. They work well with any sort of glasses, but be aware they can and do come off occasionally. I bought a lot of them over the years, until I needed more than a single magnification, and switched to no-line glasses, both clear and sunglasses.

 

Optx makes several different sorts of stick-ons. It may be that those who want something on the inside of their visor can make the diver's version work, as a mask's lens is further from the eye than a pair of glasses. I have NOT tried this personally.

 

[You can cut the lenses with a pair of scissors, by the way, to any "height" you want.

 

http://www.neoptx.com/

 

EDIT: if you try any of their products, I suggest just using one lens, rather than two, especially if you're trying to stick one to the visor. You'll instantly adapt to reading the speedo or a map with just one eye, and you'll have a spare when you inevitably lose one. On the visor, this will also obviate the need to get them properly spaced.

[Jerry Johnston]

You might try marty's suggestion of stick-on and put them at the bottom of your flip up face shield, then raise the shield to see thru them ?