Feb
26
Frag Out 23 Angel 7 Outlaw
- February 26, 2019
- 0 Comment(s)
The protective eyewear market is without any doubt, pretty saturated. There are so many reputable brands that everyone will find something that will meet their needs. All companies are still trying to attract customers with new features. So, who would even waste time, or even, money on checking out new brands?
Last April, someone from Angel 7 Industries poked me on Facebook (or Instagram, I don’t remember). They were launching their “tactical stuff” such as gloves and eyewear. Further in the chat and it turned out I was talking with Kerry S. Harris, Angel 7 CEO and former military (USMC officer and later a P-3 Orion’s pilot). Since he is also retired, we quickly found a common ground. Sometime later we received a gift box from USA with some brand-new stuff inside: few sets of gloves and two Outlaws. I took one and Shash took other. Now, we’ve been using them for few months and right now we can write a bit about them.
Design
Outlaws are protective eyewear developed to protect your eyes where guns are in use, but it doesn’t mean you can’t use them as your casual shades.
They feature separate lenses and does not scream “I AM TACTICOOL” with their design. They look more like sport eyewear so they can be worn without being laughed at. Of course, we can’t compare them to typical sunglasses but to those we can find in sport stores.
Frame is made from TR-90 Grilamide polymer and has bottom-opened design and not full frame. The TR-90 is quite popular recently as it is durable, but still stable enough to keep lenses and flexible enough to resist bending without damage. The temples are quite thick, ergonomically shaped and slightly bent it the back. Temples thickness decreases from 7 mm next to hinge to 3 mm at the end. The reason for thicker front is an option to take off the temples from the hinges and replace them with elastic headstrap to convert Outlaws into goggles (straps were not included in the package as we received pre-production samples). Inner side of each temple is covered with rubbery-like material that prevents
glasses from slipping from head. On very ends of each temple there are holes to attach a safety strap. Of course, we don’t have to mention that model (from the inside), brand name and logo are also placed on temples. Despite temples being massive, they are made to work with hearing protection headsets. They supposedly do not squeeze. Glasses also fit Asian faces which in terms of biological matter
are smaller.
The front part of frame features nose piece made from (most probably) a metal strip coated with rubber. It is screwed to the frame and it can be replaced if necessary. Doesn’t matter if that’s metal or unobtanium, the nose piece can bend in every
direction, so it will fit every shape of nose, even the most misshaped. The rubber is nice in touch and prevents the eyewear from sliding down. Above nose piece, in the frame, there is a rectangular socket for Rx insert.
Two separate lenses are made of durable 2.5-3 mm thick polycarbonate and they are shaped to cover both front and sides of the eye. They are very clear and do not interfere with eyesight even at the sides. You see things the way they are, not deformed or distorted etc. Moreover, they have antifog coating on the inside and hydrophobic coating on the outside, so fog and water drops slides down. This way even during raining you have a clear sight.
The lenses are made with proprietary i-RMR technology. Lenses blocks all UVA/UVB/UVC and meet US Federal
www.fragoutmag.com
OSHA, ANSI Z87.1, MIL-PRF-32432 (GL) and CE EN 166 safety standards. The test results showed that the new lens technology achieved a V0 of greater than 1000 feet per second and a V50 of almost 950 feet per second! i-RMRTM lens technology has achieved these remarkable results without increasing lens thickness or weight and while maintaining perfect optical clarity.
Currently there are 5 standard lenses (High Definition – yellow, Subzero Blue, Infernus Orange, Clear, Tinted – smoked lenses) and three Angel 7 Industries unique ones: Ghost ShieldTM Photochromic (Clear), Ghost ShieldTM HD Photochromic (Yellow )and smoked Polarize. The most from our point of view are ballistic photochromatic lenses which are automatically adapt to the lightning conditions.
Lenses are interchangeable. To change the lens, you need to use some force and bend the frame upwards in the ends to release lenses tips from the socket and then take them out. There are no lenses available for purchase on website, but maybe they will be there soon.
Depending on the lens included the MSRP are ranging from $79.99 to $184.99. All Outlaws will come with kit: nylon zippered case, microfiber cleaning bag, cleaning cloth, Rx insert (yep!), goggle strap and safety strap.
Rabbit’s POV
I am an eyewear-whore, so I was really excited when we received the proposal of Outlaws review. After unboxing I wasn’t sure which lenses I should take, yellow or clear. In the end, I took the clear ones. I have used these glasses for a more than couple months, through all seasons (since last Spring), in different conditions and activities.
Outlaws look durable, have this “thick and heavy” look but are surprisingly light. Design is neat, not too aggressive, but personally I would change the design of the lenses into more sharp ones on both ends.
Eyewear is comfortable but people with bigger heads will have the temples closely fitting their heads. I wear 56-57 cm headgear and I felt squeezing. It is not in negative meaning, they just sit well on head and there is no chance to fall off, even without a strap. Temples are comfy, feel nice and designed to work as good as possible with headsets. After some time (3 hrs I think) you can have that unpleasant feeling under headset: you will feel temples but not in a way you want to get rid of them. On the other hand, they can be worn in different activities. It is a compromise.
Lenses’ quality is top shelf – polycarbonate does not change or distort the image, even on the sides so no “buts” here. So far, I haven’t made a single scratch on them and let me tell you, I dropped them few times or left them outside the case inside my backpack. That’s why a hard case would be great – it is normally included but well, I got the trial product so no case for me apparently.
Fogging. Beside walking from cold to hot condition when lenses cover in fog for a second, I haven’t had any issues with that so far, even while exercising. Obviously, might occur for a second but in very small area and it disappears quickly.
Frame is made of durable, but elastic TR-90 polymer and it has that tactical, aggressive look. Outlaws stays well and do not tend to fall off while running, shooting, riding on the bike and such. TR-90 also known as Grilamid, has few advantages – it doesn’t break in low temperatures, is UV resistant and withstands bending. It also doesn’t get unpleasantly cold. Temples are well designed but their ends could be bent bit more to the inside so it would mentally comfort the user that they will not fall for sure. Frame does not painfully squeeze the head especially while wearing standard hearing protection.