Help for older eyes needed

[ReadyDiverOne]

Exactly. There is only 1 lens in each package. I have no idea why they advertise it as a "left eye" lens other than I guess they assume you wear your computer on the left wrist. It doesn't matter what side you put it on. It's perfectly round, flat on one side and convex on the other and works equally well on either side -- I mount one on each side, which means two kits. I've done at least three masks, two lenses each, and all worked perfectly.

Three installation tips:

1. Because one side is convex, and it is subtle particularly in the 2.0x version, it is important to make sure you are mounting the FLAT side against the inside glass of your mask. You can easily tell by setting the lens on a hard surface. If it rocks, that's the convex side. If it doesn't, you've got the flat side and that's what glues to the inside of the mask. I think some folks (including my dive buddy) inadvertently attach it with the convex side against the mask lens, which (a) is not very secure and (b) doesn't work. Properly applied, it will not come out unless you pry it out with a razor blade and a lot of gentle persuasion. It is very, very secure.

2. The glue is very thin and only a drop or two is necessary to fully cover the area of the lens. Until you expose it to UV light (a sunny day is perfect), you can move the lens around very easy and it is easy to get all the bubbles out. Until you take it outside in the sun, there is no adhesive effect at all. The lens will slide around freely if you even slightly tilt the mask. So, be careful to make sure the lens is exactly where you want it before you expose it to the sun because the glue almost instantly starts to set.

3. What worked best for me was to clean the mask and lens well, apply a drop of two of the glue inside the mask and get the lens exactly where I want it -- all while inside and out of sun. Then go outside, expose it to direct sun (making sure not to tilt the mask and move the lens) for about a minute. Then I go back inside and use a toothpick to remove any excess glue from around the lens - because the lens has been freely moving back and forth on the glue, there will be a smear of it around the perimeter. Another few minutes in the sun and it is more or less permanently attached.

It is not hard to do, just take your time. Optically, its 1000x better than the vinyl ones.

Awesome many thanks super helpful.

 

[caruso]

Exactly. There is only 1 lens in each package. I have no idea why they advertise it as a "left eye" lens

I'm not familiar with this product however it may have to do with the location of the optical center of the lens which would be in a different location for a right vs a left lens. The concern is "induced prism" which can cause eyestrain or even diplopia (double vision).

 

[jgttrey]

The actual lens is perfectly round and symmetrical - no up, down, left or right. No way (or need) to orient it on the mask. I'm not an optometrist, but I can't conceive how it could be eye-specific unless one eye works differently than the other. I can vouch for the fact that it works just as well on the right side. If I can figure out posting a picture, I'll try to do it.

 

[caruso]

The actual lens is perfectly round and symmetrical - no up, down, left or right. No way (or need) to orient it on the mask.

Since there is no specific orientation required then the optical center is directly in the middle of the lens and therefore no valid reason for the manufacturer to refer to it as a "left" lens.

 

[jgttrey]

Let's see if this works....

 

[caruso]

Due to the shape of your mask it's only possible to put it in one location near the bottom, if you were to raise it higher then you could move it a bit left or right depending on what works for you but if was too high then it would obstruct your view beyond arms length. For divers using this product it might be better to consider a mask that has a wider field of view i.e. more glass at the bottom so the lens could be moved in or out. As per at least one reviewer on the Amazon site, the lens is intended for use on the left side because that's where a diver's gauges usually are, but of course that can vary. In the end it's a matter of what works best for your configuration. Optics and eyes have nothing to do with it other than most people are "right eye" dominant and that's the eye that is typically left uncorrected for distance because it's more comfortable to see far away with the dominant eye.

 

[jgttrey]

I'm just trying to illustrate what it look like. I'm super happy with them.

For me, I find the location ideal - out of the way except when I look down to check computer. That's one reason I didn't like, for example, the gauge reader mask from DGX. YMMV, but the reader part was so big that I find it distracting and in the way for the 99% of the time I'm looking at things more than 12 inches away.

Again, YMMV, but I greatly prefer this to the cheap plastic paste on things. You can see from the pics that it's a much better, sharper solution, albeit more expensive.

The last factor me is that I had to work pretty hard to find the perfect mask for my face, especially one that doesn't slightly leak gas. Thats a real pain on CCR where it ultimately means you lose enough loop volume that you've got to make adjustments. So, I'd much rather find the perfect mask and bolt on good readers. Finding specialty mask that fits my face as well as this model might have been a challenge. Or at least more work than I wanted to undertake.

 

[ReadyDiverOne]

@jgttrey I totally agree, it’s ALL about the mask! And I think the manufacturer says (not just a reviewer) that there’s one and it should be installed on the left mask side “because that’s where most divers have their gauges.” So thanks again they look good will definitely try next time. Thanks again.

 

[Chris_A]

I was just coming back to this as I have been looking around at different masks. I am looking at a ScubaPro Spectra mask with the two lenses in it but I am also looking at the full lenses masks as well. I am just trying to figure out which one to go with as I have played with a few at the dive shop just need to figure out which one to go with.

 

[Boiler_81]

I use the same lens. I have one mounted in the left side of my masks. It does a nice job as a gauge reader as I wear my primary computer on my left wrist. I wear a backup on my right wrist and can read it my moving my right wrist in from of my face and cocking my head to the right.

I'm just trying to illustrate what it look like. I'm super happy with them.

For me, I find the location ideal - out of the way except when I look down to check computer. That's one reason I didn't like, for example, the gauge reader mask from DGX. YMMV, but the reader part was so big that I find it distracting and in the way for the 99% of the time I'm looking at things more than 12 inches away.

Again, YMMV, but I greatly prefer this to the cheap plastic paste on things. You can see from the pics that it's a much better, sharper solution, albeit more expensive.

The last factor me is that I had to work pretty hard to find the perfect mask for my face, especially one that doesn't slightly leak gas. Thats a real pain on CCR where it ultimately means you lose enough loop volume that you've got to make adjustments. So, I'd much rather find the perfect mask and bolt on good readers. Finding specialty mask that fits my face as well as this model might have been a challenge. Or at least more work than I wanted to undertake.