£49.00
Vulcan XH558 Aviator Sunglasses
The Finningley Collection
Available with Brown or Blue Steel lens
The classic teardrop-shape lens is set in a rose gold frame with arms made from sustainable redwood timber. Each arm is laser-engraved with XH558 on the tip.
Presented in a bamboo box laser-engraved with ‘The Finningley Collecetion’ and finished with a velvet pouch and cleaning cloth.
These stylish polarised Vulcan XH558 Aviator Sunglasses not only look good, they also provide UV400 protection against the suns harmful rays.
If you get too much exposure to the sun you will get sunburn. The ultraviolet rays (UV rays) can damage your skin. But it’s not only your skin that you should protect – your eyes can be damaged by sunlight too.
UV400 protection protects your eyes from the dangerous rays of the sun while the polarised lenses eliminate glare – reducing eye strain and discomfort in bright sunlight.
Think of UV400 protection and polarised lenses as sunscreen for the eyes.
Fitted with spring hinges (or flex hinges) the glasses give greater comfort than normal rigid hinged sunglasses. Spring hinges are resilient and more able to withstand everyday use. They allow the arms on the sunglasses to move more freely when handling or wearing them – preventing breakages.
What is UV400 protection?
UV400 protection sunglasses protect your eyes from both UVA and UVB radiation. UV400 sunglasses are capable of blocking light rays as small as 400 nanometres – a human hair is around 75,000 nanometres wide. This means that UV400 protection sunglasses will block 99-100% of the sun’s harmful radiation.
How do polarised sunglasses work?
Polarised lenses have a unique chemical film coating that helps eliminate or reduce glare. Glare is caused when light from the sun is reflected off water or a solid surface.
Have you ever noticed when you are at the beach or a lake the glare reflecting off the water causes blurry vision? When light is reflected off water or solid surfaces the reflected light shines back at your eye and is magnified resulting in a glare.
Polarised lenses filter the reflected light and reducing the glare. This makes images appear sharper and clearer, increasing visual clarity and comfort. Polarised sunglasses offer great advantages when it comes to decreasing eye strain and discomfort in bright sunlight. They are perfect for many outdoor activities including driving, water sports, fishing, flying and aircraft spotting.
The history of the Aviator style
Aviator sunglasses, or pilot’s glasses, were originally developed by the optical instruments company Bausch & Lomb. Their task was to create aviation sunglasses that would reduce the distraction for pilots caused by the intense blue and white hues of the sky. A specific concern was the pilots’ goggles fogging up, greatly reducing visibility at high altitude.
Bausch & Lomb came back with a prototype known as Anti-Glare. The classic large teardrop-shape was perfect for pilots, completely covering the eyes to even shield peripheral vision. The prototype had a green tint – then considered the best way to protect the eyes without affecting colour perception. The Anti-Glare Aviator Sunglasses became standard issue for pilots, replacing the out of date flight goggle.
In 1937 Bausch & Lomb rebranded the Anti-Glares as Ray-Ban sunglasses (so-called because they banish rays) and started selling them to the general public. Since then many brands have adopted the classic style.
The Aviator-style has been worn by stars of many eras such as Elvis, Brad Pitt and Paul McCartney. They’ve been worn by stars in films such as Robert De Niro in Taxi Driver, Tom Cruise in Top Gun, Sylvester Stallone in Cobra and Marlon Brando in The Wild One.
Today, Aviator-style sunglasses continue to be one of the most popular styles in the world.
Supplied by Friend or Foe | Category 3 | This product carries the CE mark on the arm of each pair of sunglasses: European standard EN 1836:2005 | Suitable for driving and road use
