Operations
Center
-Command Center
-Mission Briefing
-Weapons Check
-Medical Center
-Interrogation
-TACINTEL
-Training center
-Joint Zone
Tactical Unit
-Active Duty
-Ready Reserve
-858QRT
-Operating Forces
INTEL
-Administrative Order
-Landing Zones
-Surveillance
-Allied Forces
-Warning Order |
|
Bolle T800R Tactical Goggles
Written by Tyler
|
| |
One of the biggest safety issues concerning the sport of
airsoft is eye protection. As I am sure everyone knows, the
big debate is whether or not ‘safety’ glasses or shooting
glasses provide enough protection. A lot of people complain
that wearing goggles or full face masks hinders their field of
view and that is the reason most people end up wearing
shooting glasses. We are not going to get into full-face masks
on this review; we are going to discuss the Bolle T800R
Tactical Goggle.
Now the first thing I need you all to know is that I have
invested probably three hundred or more dollars in different
shooting glasses, goggles and face masks. I have tried
everything from ‘safety’ glasses that I got for free all the
way up to ‘tactical’ goggles priced at near one hundred
dollars.
I for one was one of the people that didn’t like to wear
goggles. The reason was that when I wore goggles, I found that
my peripheral vision was severely diminished. In an airsoft
game or real life combat for that matter, this could be the
determining factor between life and death. With the Bolle
T800R tactical goggle, I noticed that my field of view was so
great, that I could hardly even see the frame of the goggles
even if I tried. So just by donning these goggles, I already
knew that field of vision was no longer an issue. Left, right,
up and down, I could see clearly anywhere my eyes were
directed.
Another reason people don’t like to wear goggles is that they
tend to ‘fog’ up quite easily. Well truth be-known, so will
safety/shooting glasses. The reason that most goggles tend to
fog easier or sooner is because goggles completely enclose the
eyes. This makes it hard for heat to escape therefore causing
them to fog. Now, you could use some anti-fog spray, but that
will only help for a certain amount of heat and moisture. Even
if the anti-fog did exactly what it was designed to do,
instead of ‘fog’ you would end up with condensation on the
inside of the goggles… in other words ‘water’. Having the
condensation on the inside lens will cause distortion in your
field of view which is just as bad as having ‘fog’ on the
inside lens.
The Bolle T800R Tactical Goggles have helped to eliminate this
particular problem. They have done this by designing the
goggles to have a small opening along the perimeter of the
goggle in between the frame seal and the lens. This opening is
approximately 3-4mm which is a large enough amount of space to
allow heat to escape but small enough to prohibit a bb from
entering. In addition to the heat being able to escape, it
also allows for a ‘cross breeze’ to flow through the goggle
that will help expel any developing condensation. So the
opening in the goggles helps to kill two birds with one stone.
Just the above description alone should be enough persuasion
to convince you to purchase these goggles, but these goggles
are so great that I can’t stop there. So the common question,
“Are they impact resistant?” The answer, yes, the Bolle T800R
tactical goggles are ANSI Z87.1 impact resistance rated. I am
not going to get into what ANSI is so you will just have to
look it up on your own. What I will tell you is that it is a
standard impact resistance test grade set forth as a ‘result’
of being able to pass a ‘general’ impact to the object. Didn’t
understand what I just said? Okay, in simple words, if you get
shot in the face with a BB from an airsoft gun, it will not
‘shatter’ the goggles. So in cliff note version, if you wear
these goggles, play hard.
The Bolle T800R tactical goggles are comprised of a High
impact 2.2 mm polycarbonate lens, a black frame constructed of
impact resistant "Zytel" and a special "bi-raw material".
Construction process bonds to the interior sections and allows
for a soft comfortable fit without the use of foam. Interior
sections of Bolle T800R tactical goggle frame that seal to the
face are made of an anti-allergenic elastomer rubber. The
nylon back strap of T 800 Bolle Tactical Goggle is 35 mm wide
and is 73 mm long. It has an elastic extension of 160%
allowing easy use with a helmet. They are currently in use by
U.S. Special Forces, Navy Seals, Army Rangers and many
municipal SWAT Teams.
Okay so back to the review, the first time that I wore these
goggles in an airsoft game, I wanted to see how well they
would work on their own without any anti-fog. During the game,
I did notice that they started to fog a little. I said to
myself, “Self, here we go again, more money wasted.” But I
noticed that they would not completely fog up. This was a
relief because normally when a pair of goggles start to fog,
you can guarantee that within the next couple of minutes they
would be so fogged up that you couldn’t see your hand in front
of your face. But when I started to move, I noticed that the
fog was gone. Now, I don’t remember ‘watching’ the fog
dissipate, I only remember that the fog was gone. The same
thing happened a few time through out the game. So even though
they did fog up a little, it was never enough to consider it a
major problem.
The next game that I played, I applied some anti-fog to them
to see how that would work. Throughout the entire game, which
was about 4-5 hours of play, they did not fog up once.
Honestly, since they didn’t fog up, I completely forgot that I
was wearing them. So I think that I had them on for the entire
time. In addition to them not fogging up in that game, I
didn’t re-apply any anti fog for the next 3 games. Now, when I
say ‘game’ I am talking about a whole day of play. Being that
I play nearly every week that means that I hadn’t applied
anti-fog to my goggles for nearly a month. So with one
application of anti-fog on my Bolle T800R tactical goggles,
they had remained ‘fog free’ for about a month. You can’t beat
that.
The next reason a lot of people don’t like wearing goggles is
because they can interfere with your weapon when you are
sighting your target. What I can tell you is that I have had
these goggles for over a year, I have used crosshair, red-dot,
reflex and iron sights and never once did the goggles
interfere with me sighting my target. The flush design of
these goggles and the way in which they ‘wrap’ around your
face keeps them perfectly placed so that they will not hit the
gun at an inopportune time. I have even used NVG’s with these
goggles and still they did not interfere with my tactical
operations.
The strap, well as I had already told you, I have had these
goggles for over a year and the straps on the Bolle T800R
tactical goggles are still as elastic as they were the first
day that I purchased them. This is especially good to know
because airsoft players that place them on top of helmets tend
to leave them there and when they need them, the strap is
normally brittle and stretched so they fall off or are not
secure. If you are lucky, all you would need to do is to
readjust them, but that isn’t always the case. With the Bolle
goggles, this problem, at least at this time, seems to be of
little concern.
So why should you purchase these goggles, not including the
‘cool’ factor of just how they look and the fact that true to
form military and law enforcement Special Forces use them,
they work. I guess that would explain why the above agencies
use them. The average price that I have found the Bolle T800R
tactical goggles sell for has been around $70.00. With a
little searching, you can find these cheaper, I think I paid
about $65 for mine. Now if you are saying to yourself that
that is a lot of money, think of it this way. If you purchase
these goggles first, they will pretty much be the only and
last goggles you will ever purchase. But if you opt for the
$24.99 goggles or glasses, remember after you have replaced
them 3 times, you will have spend MORE money than if you would
have gotten the Bolle’s in the first place.
In short, the Bolle T800R tactical goggles are probably one of
the best investments that you could make for the game of
airsoft. They are rugged and well-made using quality parts and
materials. They will last a long time and much abuse. But most
of all they protect your eyes from the possibility of injury
simply because you will not be attempting to clean or wipe
your goggles in the middle of battle.
For more information about Bolle be sure to visit their
website at
www.bolle.com
|
|
|
.JPG)
.JPG)
.JPG)
.JPG)
.JPG)
.JPG)
.JPG)
.JPG)
.JPG)