Lens materials
We like to keep things simple and for lenses we only use two different materials.
For almost all our sports styles including shooting and cycling models we use polycarbonate. This is the ideal lens material for sports eyewear. It has up to 10 times more impact resistance than regular plastic lenses. We use a minimum thickness of 2mm which means the lenses will withstand the impact test requirement of EN166F. Historically the image transferred to your eyes with polycarbonate was poorer quality than plastic but with the advent of Class 1 Optical Grade polycarbonate the difference is now much less significant. All our polycarbonate lenses are Class 1 optical quality. Additionally, polycarbonate naturally blocks most UV light and do not need the application of a UV coating although we always apply a UV filter coating to all our lenses to ensure our eyewear can be UV400 rated.
The other lens material we use is TAC (Triacetate) for our polarised models. In common with Evolution it’s used on virtually all lower priced polarised sunglasses. This multi-layer material has the polarised film applied to the front of the lens. Even though it’s multi-layer, a TAC lens is thin, usually no more than 1.2mm providing little impact protection and they can shatter, so Evolution polarised sunglasses should not be used if impact protection is important.
Frame materials
Historically, we used polycarbonate to make our frames (a different grade of polycarbonate to that used for lenses). About 2 years ago we switched over to TR90 and all current production now uses TR90. TR90 Grilamid is a type of nylon and the one of best materials available to make eyewear frames. It’s super strong, flexible and lightweight for all-day wear. It’s more resistant to extreme temperatures and has high chemical resistance. As the material is pliable, TR90 frames are far less likely to break or bend from impact. TR90 is more expensive to use and so not not normally found on less expensive eyewear. Another good reason to buy Evolution!