Rothco G.I. Type Sun, Wind & Dust Goggles

First off, these are real NSN-numbered mil-spec goggles. These are the same ones I used when in the Marines. I have two of them now (one for my wife, one for me) to use outdoors (you have to live in the Desert Southwest to understand why you need these if you are out in the 'sand'.) That said, I have bought a dozen goggles - from DeWalt construction types, to RZ ATV sport goggles, and even tried dive masks. Nothing, NOTHING out performs these goggles. Here's why: These goggles are made of very soft rubber. The lenses are a polycarbonate piece that can be removed and replaced. The box comes with the clear lens AND a sunshade lens. You change them by unsnapping two buttons and swapping them in less than a minute. The head-size is adjusted by a simple bunji-type strap (like you find on dive goggles), just put them on your head, and adjust to size. They will fit anyone from a hat-size of 6 up to 8+. As for why they are so great? They have a foam-rubber seal that circles the mask, and vent-holes to prevent fogging that still filter through the 'foam' interior strip. You might feel wind, but you don't get dust in your eyes! I've used them in 100-mph straight-line winds with sandstorms towering 2-miles above the surface - and they work. PERIOD! You can't say anything better about good gear, than it is comfortable to wear, doesn't negatively affect your eyesight range, and that THEY WORK. As for some who say 'the seal leaks', I say 'tighten the straps, you don't understand how to fit a pair of goggles correctly'. People, this isn't casual eye wear. You have to fit them properly for them to work properly. I guess it takes fitting a military gas mask to ensure a proper seal on your face, to understand how to get a seal on protective wear. You aren't slumming on the block when you wear these, you are protecting your eyes. This does NOT mean you have to cinch them down until blood stops flowing, to ensure a good seal, but you can't just throw them on 'with nary a contact point' and expect them to seal, either. As for head-and-face shape and size, related to fitting? They are highly flexible for narrow faces (like smaller people - hey, even my wife has) and for those with larger or broader faces (I wear a 7-3/4 hat size - and they fit me fine too). They are relatively flat when you get them, only a small curve - you get face-fit by fitting them to your head with the retaining strap. The thing that takes the longest to fit these initially, is getting your strap right. Once you have fitted them, you won't have to do it again, the strap is an elastic that will let you stretch it a bit, to take them off without further adjustment. I have had 6-pairs of these over the years. I have NEVER had a bad pair of them, they always fit, they always seal. The lenses are polycarbonate, and can be scratched. That said, they also come with a protective film over them. I recommend leaving it if it has no air bubbles in it. Personally, I have used a single sheet of Saran Wrap over the outer side of the lens before installing it into the rubber frame, to protect the polycarbonate (a lot cheaper to replace Saran Wrap cover, than to replace the lenses). Think of it as 'not convenient tear-offs that don't tear off'. They may look 'uncool', they may not be all chromed out or stylish, but I wouldn't take anything for my dust goggles. Then again, I'd rather use a white 3M N95 respirator mask (for $1 each) and a bandana to cover it, than to pay $20 or more for a pretty toy mask that you constantly have to replace filters on, because it's cool with its little camouflage paint job, too. In the real world, function trumps 'pretty', anyday.

Looks good, although the buttons are brittle, but glue can fix it easily

Perfect Burning Man goggles. I worked through heavy dust and wind for two weeks on the playa. With normal sunglasses, my eyes were dry from the wind and painfully gritty with dust. The goggles don't provide perfect protection against dust – there are little air holes to let humidity escape and sometimes fine dust makes its way inside – but they still do a great job...enough so that I could ride open-air vehicles at 20+ mph into dust storms without a problem. The only fogging problems I ever had were when I worked with a respirator that redirected my breath up into the goggles, but a bit of adjustment usually fixed that. Then again, Black Rock is avg 2% humidity, so there's not much moisture to fog up anything. Maybe you'll have problems in high-humidity environments. It comes with one clear and one tinted plastic lens. It's a bit of a hassle to change the lenses though, so don't expect to do it quickly. I have two of these goggles and on one the two plastic snaps that hold the lenses in place are fairly easy to pop off and back on, but on the other it's difficult without applying force with a pair of plyers (I have the grip strength of a rock climber and even I had trouble getting them to close with my bare hands). Overall, fantastic goggles with some quirks, but more than satisfactory at this price point.

Compared to ski goggles that I am accustomed to, these military style goggles are cheap. This is immediately evident when you take them out of the box. Higher-end goggles have double paned lenses. These have a single layer of plastic. Nicer goggles have a more curved, sculpted look to them and will consequently have a more comfortable fit. These googles are rather flat by comparison. Nicer goggles would have a wider elastic strap that was longer, to distribute the load over a wider area and so that they wouldn't press so tightly against your face. Well, nicer goggles would also cost a lot more. These were quite inexpensive compared to the alternatives. I really like that. Nicer goggles have the manufacturer's logo all over them. These goggles are completely decommodified, where the only visible printing is raised letters in the plastic that say, "Goggles Sun Wind and Dust." There's no part number on the goggles themselves. These are generic. I like that too. I purchased these goggles for Burning Man. They don't have to be especially comfortable or stylish, as I don't anticipate having to wear them for more than a short period of time. What they do need to do is make a good dust-proof seal around my eyes, while providing room for my eyeglasses to fit on my broad face. That they appear to have well-covered. There is a half-inch thick foam seal between your face and the rest of the goggles. There are narrow gaps at the temples for your eyeglasses to pass through. Will these goggles fog up? Hard to say here at home. The plastic frames have 22 holes on top and 12 holes on the bottom. This is quite a bit sturdier but with much less ventilation than my Smith ski goggles that had large openings in a rigid plastic frame, covered with a thin layer of foam rubber that eventually disintegrated with age. On the inside of the goggles these holes are covered by black cloth that looks as it it will be effective in keeping the playa dust out. Humidity is low on the playa, so I'm hopeful that the amount of ventilation will be adequate. I judge that the goggles are well packaged. Both of the removable lenses (clear and tinted) arrived covered by plastic on both sides. It is commendable that the plastic is so well-protected from scratches; however, this does make me think that the unprotected plastic lenses are soft and therefore prone to easy scratches. The lenses are easily changed. I use a screwdriver to pop the two visible snaps to release the lens from the plastic frame. I judge it a good thing that it is difficult to pop the snaps with just my fingers. I don't expect these snaps to open unexpectedly. I don't believe any reviewers who say that these are military goggles exactly like the ones they used in the service. They certainly have a military look to them, but the quality and durability look to be much less than I would expect from military equipment. There's nothing on the goggles or the box that looks to me like a Mil Spec part number. I judge these to be cheap imitation military goggles. Still, these appear to be very well-suited to my needs. They form a good seal around my eyes. They allow eyeglasses. They fit adequately on my large face. They are much less expensive or much better sealed than the safety goggles available in hardware stores. This is exactly what I wanted, so I'm pleased to be able to purchase them.

Thought they'd be like what I wore on the flight deck but the workmanship was even worse. I tried to remove the lens to take off the membranes and was afraid the snaps would break, they were so difficult to unfasten. One did break. They barely fit over glasses but may be good enough. I'll find out.

The goggles are just for display with a vintage helmet so they will suffice, but build quality doesn't look like these would hold up well if used for their true purpose and as a result, they seem overly expensive.