Ultimate Shooting Glasses Variolens

[seamaster]

http://variolens.de/

http://www.variolens.de/english.html

http://www.variolens.de/montage.html

http://www.variolens.de/bestellung.html

This must be the ultimate shooting glasses. Self-dial -3.0 diopter to +3.0 diopter, infinitely adjustable in between. It is a silicone oil filled diaphragm, adjustable to shape of human crystal lens during accomodation. When mounted on Champion/ Knobloch frame, this combination must be the ultimate shooting glasses. Adjustable lens position from shooting frame and the self-adjustable diopter lens for different lighting need, rifle and pistol front sight clarity.

It is ISSF approved. I can't read German, I am not sure if it is 79 Euro or 179 Euro. Knobloch is 149 Euro. Shipping is free if final order is more than 130 Euro. Subtract VAT of 19%, it is a very good deal for this ultimate shooting glasses.

Originally designed by Dr. Silva of Oxford.
http://www.ted.com/talks/josh_silver_de ... asses.html
Designed in early 1980's for the poor people of the "third world" (what a cold war colonial relic name) who can't afford eye exam and eye glasses.

Brilliant idea. Designed for poor people for $19. But when applied to us "elite" people who are looking for a few more hole punches on a piece of paper, we are willing to pay more for our "pursuit of excellence".

There you have it. "The" ultimate shooting glasses.

[ammagad]

In norway this have been used by shooters for some years now;)

[william]

Any way to correct for astigmatism? A perfectly clear but misshapen front sight might be problematical.

[David Levene]

Any way to correct for astigmatism?

The English version seems to be suggesting you use the Variolens in addition to one correcting the astigmatism.

I always understood that the fewer lens surfaces you had the better.

[nc513]

What's this supposed to mean:

"Uns liegt ein Schreiben der ISSF mit Datum 14. Februar 2012 vor, in dem bestätigt wird, dass die Nutzung des VarioLens Schießbrillenglases gemäß den momentanen Regeln der ISSF möglich ist. Allerdings muss hierbei beachtet werden, dass die Nutzung nur dann möglich ist, wenn das VarioLens nicht mit anderen Linsen kombiniert oder direkt ans Gewehr montiert wird. Von einer allgemeinen Zulassung kann nicht gesprochen werden, weil der Bereich der persönlichen Schießbrillengläser nicht in den Zulassungsbereich der ISSF fällt."

???

My German is horribly rusty, so I have to ask: Must the VarioLens not be combined with other lenses? Won't shooters with astigmatism be able to use the VarioLens in ISSF events?

[RobStubbs]

Any way to correct for astigmatism?

The English version seems to be suggesting you use the Variolens in addition to one correcting the astigmatism.

I always understood that the fewer lens surfaces you had the better.

Totally agree, and the variolens is quite big and clunky. It is however ISSF compliant and has been used in major internationals over the last few years with no EC problems that I'm aware of.

Another big drawback is that it encourages fiddling. So some shooters love to try and tinker and perfect things when in reality nothing is wrong. Twiddling the settings changes the sight picture and shooters then start concentrating on the wrong things (mentally). I'd strongly suggest you're far better getting the prescription right in the first place and then leave well alone, until you have your next eye exam.

Rob.

[Spencer]

Any way to correct for astigmatism?

The English version seems to be suggesting you use the Variolens in addition to one correcting the astigmatism.

I always understood that the fewer lens surfaces you had the better.

Totally agree, and the variolens is quite big and clunky. It is however ISSF compliant and has been used in major internationals over the last few years with no EC problems that I'm aware of.

Another big drawback is that it encourages fiddling. So some shooters love to try and tinker and perfect things when in reality nothing is wrong. Twiddling the settings changes the sight picture and shooters then start concentrating on the wrong things (mentally). I'd strongly suggest you're far better getting the prescription right in the first place and then leave well alone, until you have your next eye exam.

Rob.

Agree in re 'fiddling', but your eyes can change +/- 1/8th dioptre from day to day (and during the day).
Don Nygord's solution was to have his lens set for 'average' and have +1/8th and -1/8th supplementary lenses added as needed.

[Mike M.]

I bought one. It is a bit on the heavy side, but works OK. The adjustability is nice, and I think it would be a solid performer for someone not needing other correction.

I need corrective lenses in any event, so the question is whether or not it's worthwhile in addition to your base prescription. And the jury is out on that one...I like the concept, but the penalty you pay in weight and distortion due to having more lenses in the way may not be worth it.

[trinity]

I also bought one after seeing this post some time ago. However, my experience with the VarioLens, and that of my husband's, has been rather poor.

The adjustability is nice, especially since vision has always been a problem for me. The additional weight is annoying, but not a deal breaker. What is a deal breaker for me is the lack of clarity.

Since I have astigmatism, I used the VarioLens as an additional lens to compensate for day-to-day vision differences. In this role as an additional corrective lens, the added blurriness erases any gains made through the added correction.

My husband does not have astigmatism, however, he felt the same issue with lack of clarity was a deal breaker when using it as the primary lens.

So now the VarioLens sits in my closet. Anyone want to buy it?

-trinity
PS: my husband and I are both pistol shooters

[RobStubbs]

Agree in re 'fiddling', but your eyes can change +/- 1/8th dioptre from day to day (and during the day).
Don Nygord's solution was to have his lens set for 'average' and have +1/8th and -1/8th supplementary lenses added as needed.

That may indeed be the case, but it's too small an amount to worry about in practice. And of course how does a shooter know exactly what is right, and whether they need to change mid match ?

In reality the purpose of a lens is to make it easier to focus on the foresight with a relaxed eye. If your eye changes a very small amount then you'll need to use a tiny amount of eye muscle to acheive that, which is fine, that's what your eye does normally anyway.

Rob.