Pilot Polarized Sunglasses + Case

Kill the glare, not just the brightness.

Late afternoon, sun low, heading west. The glare comes off the bonnet and off the wet bitumen and for a second or two you are driving on memory. Same story on the water — you cannot see past the surface, so you cannot see the structure, the shallow patch, or the fish.

A plain dark lens only turns the whole world down. Glare bouncing off a flat surface is polarised light, and it takes a polarising filter to cut it out and leave the rest of the picture alone. That is the difference between a cheap tint and a polarised lens, and it is the only reason to pay for one.

These are a metal-framed polarised sunglass with a dark grey lens, sold in four frame colours, and they arrive with a hard zip case, a soft pouch and a cleaning cloth so they are not living loose in the console collecting scratches. What they are not is certified eye protection. There is more on that under Limits, and it is worth reading before you buy.

What It Does

• Cuts reflected glare: the polarising filter blocks the horizontally polarised light that bounces off water, wet roads, bonnets and glass.
• Lets you see into water: take the surface flash away and the weed line, the drop-off and the fish underneath become visible.
• Stops the all-day squint: a dark grey tint on a bright day means you are not screwing your eyes up from smoko to knock-off.
• Travels in its own case: a zip-up hard case with a carabiner loop, so they clip to a bag instead of rattling around the centre console.
• Proves its own polarising: the supplier packs a polarisation test card, so you can check the filter yourself the day it lands.

Key Features

• Four frame colours: black, brown, gold and silver — the lens is the same dark grey on all four.
• Metal frame: a metal alloy frame and brow bar with moulded plastic temple tips. The supplier does not state which alloy.
• Adjustable nose pads: clear pads on bendable metal arms, so you can set how high the frame sits.
• Measured frame size: 151 mm across the front, 63 mm lens width, 37 mm lens height, 18 mm bridge, 132 mm temples — all off the supplier's own size panel.
• Hard case included: zip-close hard shell with a carabiner, plus a soft drawstring pouch and a cleaning cloth.
• Polarisation test card: the small printed card in the box shows a hidden pattern only through a polarised lens.
• Supplier states UV400: a manufacturer's marking for filtering light below 400 nm. It is not a certification and we have not tested it.
• Brand mark on the box: the packaging carries the CHUN Eyewear name. It is not a mark we hold any certificate for.

Limits

Straight up, here is what these will not do.

• Not safety glasses: there is no impact rating on these at all. They are not tested or marked to AS/NZS 1337.1 or ANSI Z87.1. Do not wear them for grinding, cutting, chipping, whipper-snipping or anything else that throws material at your face. Use proper rated safety eyewear for that.
• No lens category stated: Australian sunglass lenses are normally graded 0 to 4 under AS/NZS 1067.1, and a category 4 lens is not legal to drive in. The supplier states no category, and there is no standard marked on the frame or the lens, so we cannot tell you which one these fall into.
• UV400 is a marking, not a test: UV400 is stated by the supplier. Nobody has put these in front of a spectrophotometer, and there is no AS/NZS 1067.1 certificate behind them.
• Polarised lenses hide screens: that is physics, not a fault. Some LCD dashboards, phone screens, fuel bowsers and aircraft instrument panels go dark or blotchy through a polarised lens depending on the angle you tilt your head.
• Lens material unstated: the supplier's own lens diagram shows a laminated stack with a PVA polarising film, but it never says whether the outer lens is polycarbonate, acrylic or a resin. That matters for how well it survives a knock, so we are not going to name a material we cannot source.
• Lenses do not swap: the lenses are fixed and no spare or replacement lenses are supplied. There is no clear or low-light option in the box.
• Not prescription: these are a plain non-corrective sunglass. They will not take a prescription lens and there is no clip-on.
• Not a wrap: the frame is a flat rectangle, so light gets in around the sides. If you want side coverage on the water or in the snow, this is not that shape of glasses.
• "Pilot" is a model name: it is the supplier's name for the frame. It carries no aviation approval and no connection to any air force, airline or military body.
• Change of mind: a return covers gear that turns up faulty or not as described. Deciding the tint is not for you once they are out of the case is not covered.

Q & A

Is the case actually included, or is that just a photo prop?

Included. The supplier's own packaging panel shows the sunglasses, a zip-up hard case with a carabiner loop, a soft drawstring pouch, a cleaning cloth, a polarisation test card and the retail box. The case is in the picture because it comes with them, not to fill the frame.

Are Black, Brown, Gold and Silver the lens colours or the frame colours?

Frame colours. All four run the same dark grey lens — you can see the whole set side by side in the gallery. Pick on the metal you want, not on the tint.

How do I know the polarising is real and not just a dark tint?

Two ways. Use the test card in the box, which shows a hidden pattern only through a polarised lens. Or hold them up to an LCD screen and rotate them ninety degrees — a polarised lens goes black at one angle. If they fail either test, they are not as described and that is a return.

Can I wear these on the tools?

Not as eye protection. There is no impact rating stated, no AS/NZS 1337.1 marking and no ANSI Z87.1 marking, so treat them as sunglasses only. Anything with a grinder, a chainsaw or flying swarf needs rated safety eyewear over the top or instead.

Will they fit a big head?

They measure 151 mm across the front with 132 mm temples, which is a middle-of-the-road men's size — not an oversized frame. Measure a pair you already own from hinge to hinge across the front and compare. The nose pads adjust for height, but the frame width does not.

How long until they arrive?

Allow 10 to 14 days from the day you order, and up to three weeks in regional and remote areas. Free Standard Delivery.

Specs