Eye pro Spear or Smith?

[Anotsu]

I fog like a S.O.B mostly due to favouring full face pro plus wearing a lid.  Revision Bullet Ants no good, Smith Boogy no good. 
 

I have good enough performance with Revision eye pro with fog tech best option at the moment. But I have been looking at other options.

I have used dual pane lenses in paintball which eliminated fogging so I like the look of the Wileyx Spear dual lense goggles.

But I have also seen the Smith Optics turbo fan goggles.
 

Just wondering if anyone has any experience of either of these systems and know of any pros cons? 
 

cheers.

 

[TheFull9]

I've not really used paintball goggles for a long time, but I've used ESS turbofans for years and never ever have fogging even when everything else clouds up.  If you can put down the investment it'll really pay off.

 

[Anotsu]

What’s the better ESS or Smith Optics? 
 

Is the ESS silent as the Smith allegedly is. 

 

[TheFull9]

If a fan is spinning round, it will never be silent - science.  On the normal speed mode I cannot hear the ESS at all unless I am perfectly still in a totally quiet little room with no noise going on nearby; on the high speed mode I still don't hear it while actually walking around.  Occasionally other people will hear it but only if sat right next to me and we're all still and not making any noise.  I'm considering buying another pair and going with Smith purely since they come in tan and the battery pack has a headphone jacket (to connect to the fan itself) and isn't sewn to the strap like the ESS and Revision offerings; which makes the Smiths the far better choice in terms of options for helmet mounting.  Revision sell an extra thermal lens that I've seen from the other brands, but the batteries are sewn in as I say so personally I'm going with the Smiths as my next eye pro purchase.

 

[djben9]

You may find smiths hard to get hold of as I’m sure when I spoke to UKT a while back they were still on back order/ being discontinued?.... never found out if true??

ive got both the ESS and Revision ones, both work well. They are not completely 100% effective but they do the job, Revisions have a lower profile 

I’ve been using Abbey anti fog which is ok but occasionally there is moisture buildup so reapply at a break (forgot to clean lense last time). Will be going back to fog tech again

end of the day you may have better luck than someone else, we are all different, some people wear glasses and don’t fog, i seem to fog in them really quickly!

have a look around the forum and the search function for other fogging advice 

Ian had some.... still waiting for my lens to be returned....sure he can order if available....

https://www.tactical-kit.co.uk/smith-optics-elite-outside-the-wire-turbo-fan-otw-goggles-13212-p.asp

 

[Anotsu]

Thanks guys plenty to look at there.  I do like the look of the Smiths.  But part of me just likes the simplicity of a thermal lense only. 

 

[djben9]

my Revisions have a thermal lens, its the one i sent back to Ian and still haven't heard back from....the seal came apart in the rain, must have been a dodgy set, i do have another but tbh ive not really seen much difference, maybe i need to play more in the cooler climates?

but like i said you may have better luck

 

[TheFull9]

It's possible that the seal wasn't, you know, sealed hence why they both didn't work and came apart, but I've not owned a thermal lense in any eye pro myself so I've no experience to back up that guesstimate.

My experience has been that there's nothing complex or awkward about the fan goggles and they're insanely effective, you just keep appropriate spare batteries in your kit bag and you'll never have any issues and I'd imagine a lot of people probably already do that for lights/ear pro etc anyway so an extra battery or 2 is no great shakes in the slightest.

 

[djben9]

It's possible that the seal wasn't, you know, sealed hence why they both didn't work and came apart, but I've not owned a thermal lense in any eye pro myself so I've no experience to back up that guesstimate.

My experience has been that there's nothing complex or awkward about the fan goggles and they're insanely effective, you just keep appropriate spare batteries in your kit bag and you'll never have any issues and I'd imagine a lot of people probably already do that for lights/ear pro etc anyway so an extra battery or 2 is no great shakes in the slightest.

And they use sensible sizes, AA, not the typical bloody CR123 type ones!  :lol:

 

[Anotsu]

Thermal lenses fail once the seal between the two fails. I’ve used to go through about one a year in the in my paintball mask. Did have the occasional one fail sooner. 
 

I prefer using something without batteries as it’s just one less thing to have to worry about. But it’s good to see the Smiths use AAs and nothing exotic or bespoke. 

 

[TheFull9]

None of the fan goggles use anything but AA and AAA (ESS, Smith, Revision).

It's also super easy to get CR123As they're pretty cheap on ebay usually with free shipping, I buy a few lithiums every like... 5 years (tops) and never have to worry.

 

[hunter511]

Following onto this are Smiths still making their OTW fan goggles? I can't seem to find them in stock in the UK or for that matter on Smiths own website......

 

[Rogerborg]

I can't speak to the fancy brands, but I will confirm that DIY dual pane and cheap ~£20 fan goggles both work.  I can sweat up anything else, including Pyramex i-Force dual panes.

I'm currently using FMA goggles like these.  https://www.taiwangun.com/en/glasses-goggles/protective-goggle-with-built-in-anti-fog-fan-black-fma-2

The fan at one side isn't ideal as it really does clear that side first, but it does the job.  If I were buying again, I'd go for a central or dual fan model.

Point taken that a disconnectable / helmet mount battery pack would offer more options, but it's a small pack that takes a single 1.5V AA, which surprisingly does actually spin the fan.  A ~1.2V nihm won't.  A 3.7V 14500 rechargeable lithium battery will spin it up a treat and I find it only needs used in short bursts.

But wait, there's more.  Why not DIY dual pane your choice of fan goggles?

This is the lens from a Wiley X dual pane.

View attachment 51226

See that black line?  That's the seal between the two panes, and indicates the size of the inner pane, which can be made of any clear plastic.

You can pop the polycarb lens out from any goggles and DIY that in minutes.  2mm / 3mm thick double sized adhesive foam cut into strips about 2mm wide and butted tightly together, 0.7mm PETG plastic for the inner lens, cut to size with scissors to fit just inside the frame. It really is simple - just make it look like that image. Total cost < £10 with enough spare to do several more pairs.  That Wiley X lens is £35, just for the lens.

You know it makes sense.  Join the ghetto side.  Join usssss.

 

[Musica]

I fog like a S.O.B mostly due to favouring full face pro plus wearing a lid.  

Not really what you asked but if you use full face pro why not just use a dye mask? 

They have a good success rate and the cheek weld isn't as bad as people pretend it's. The lower face part isn't solid plastic it somewhat pliable so when you put it against your stock it does curve around it a bit.  I don't even use any spray or wipes on mine but my brother in law does need to. I suspect that is because I wear a hat which prevents sweat run down but could just be I'm lucky. My only comparison is the pyramex i-force which I used revision wipes on and still near the end of a game everything would get a bit blurry. 

I've seen them used with helmets but I wouldn't really recommend it without airflow from a fan because the vents are covered up by the helmet. 

A guy on ebay even sells fan kits should you need find you do fog one https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/MATTS-Dual-20x10mm-9V-Fan-Kit-Airsoft-Paintball-Goggle-Mask-Anti-Fog/183209441147?hash=item2aa822377b:g:r1oAAOSwFb5aMXq3 

If you insist on a helmet might be easier to fit a dye i4 to a helmet because the i5 has a bulk strap at the back for quick tensioning but it might not sit nice with a helmet? I have seen it done but not sure how people do it here's some helmet surgery someone did to fit an i5 https://imgur.com/gallery/mh9vj3D 

 

[djben9]

Following onto this are Smiths still making their OTW fan goggles? I can't seem to find them in stock in the UK or for that matter on Smiths own website......

see above! 

most places are out of stock it seems or you'll find ski goggles!

UKT told me they couldnt get any in....ebay has 'clone' versions...... but beware!

 

[Anotsu]

The smiths appear to be only available from limited places in the US.

One the I4s I had a pair back for paintball but didn’t like them. Too tight a fit. Didn’t fit well with head gear. I still knocked the mask when shouldering the weapon! JT Flex never got beat by anything else. 
 

Field of view (downwards) was always restricted with PB masks. Like the liberty of airsoft for that reason. 
 

I might well go the custom route and build my own fan system. 
 

I do like the self made dual pane lense idea.