For those of you with fishwatchin' knowhow...
The snorkeling pics and writeups here on the forum have me wanting to try a little fishwatching of my own. My experiences with goggles, while limited, has not been the best. Full-faced goggles have always leaked, and the Michael Phelps/Speedo styles always mash painfully into my face and provide limited vision.
What should I be looking for in a pair of fishwatching googles? Any suggestions/recommendations?
Thanks!
Best goggles for fishwatching noobs?
Started by
mattknepley
, Jun 10 2013 11:13 AM
17 replies to this topic
#2
Guest_Casper_*
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Posted 10 June 2013 - 11:27 AM
A few NANFA members have very funny shaped heads but by applying a bead of silicone before application most masks tend to work fine.
Seriously you should be able to visit a dive shop and find a PERFECT mask. The silicone flanged mask contours near perfectly to faces. Ideally it should hold clean to your face with just a gentle nasal suck in. Facial hair can be an issue, some divers smear vasaline on their beards but that is messy. I do not have a problem with mine.
My big discovery was a few years ago i could get a mask that used full sized readers glass lens. 57 and getting older generally works on ones eyesight. The mask AND lens were only like $100 bucks.
Visit a Dive Shop... not Walmart.
Seriously you should be able to visit a dive shop and find a PERFECT mask. The silicone flanged mask contours near perfectly to faces. Ideally it should hold clean to your face with just a gentle nasal suck in. Facial hair can be an issue, some divers smear vasaline on their beards but that is messy. I do not have a problem with mine.
My big discovery was a few years ago i could get a mask that used full sized readers glass lens. 57 and getting older generally works on ones eyesight. The mask AND lens were only like $100 bucks.
Visit a Dive Shop... not Walmart.
#5
Guest_jblaylock_*
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Posted 10 June 2013 - 12:35 PM
Nose jobs are not that expensive nowadays and there are a few Utube videos that offer DIY for those so inclined.
I never noticed that Josh!
Surely a mask is available just for you.
lol, if only the name wasn't so insulting.... rhinoplasty
#6
littlen
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- NANFA Member
- Washington, D.C.
Posted 10 June 2013 - 01:02 PM
Matt, I will agree with what Casper said. You need to go to a dive shop and get a dive mask and not cheap-o 'goggles' from anywhere else. A dive mask will provide you with a better field of view (depending on mask style) and some thermo-protection when you're peering into 50 degree water. There are many styles and shapes of dive masks produced by many manufacturers. You'll need to try a lot of them on to see which fits the contour of your face the best. As it was mentioned, you need only to inhale every so slightly, (without putting the strap around your head) to see if a mask is the right shape for your face. You will be able to keep it on your face indefinitely if it fits right. Again, facial hair will always cause a leak, particularly the moo'stache area. The dive shop employee will be able to assist you. I would also recommend buying/replacing the rubber or silicone strap that comes with your mask with a soft-mask strap. These are essentially soft, clothed, padded straps that don't pull your hair out. Stream snorklers put on and take off their masks way more than SCUBA divers do---and most divers still use the soft straps. The masks can be a bit expensive, but they are a great investment and should last you decades, pending you don't get your mask blown off your face chasing a stoneroller upstream.
Good luck.
Good luck.
Nick L.
#7
mattknepley
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- NANFA Member
- Smack-dab between the Savannah and the Saluda.
Posted 10 June 2013 - 04:14 PM
Thanks for the input, guys. Another question I should have thought of earlier; my eyesight is somewhat equivalent to a cavefish's when I'm not wearing my glasses. My eyes just won't tolerate contacts anymore. How does this ocular challenge bode for me in regards to finding a mask? I can't ever recall seeing someone wearing a diving mask with glasses underneath...
Matt Knepley
"No thanks, a third of a gopher would merely arouse my appetite..."
"No thanks, a third of a gopher would merely arouse my appetite..."
#8
Michael Wolfe
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- Board of Directors
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- North Georgia, Oconee River Drainage
Posted 10 June 2013 - 06:17 PM
Matt
You have seen my thick specs. For just a little more you can buy a mask with prescription lens(es). I think mine only cost $100.
You order them to the nearest .5 diopter I think and ignore any astigmatism. And although I wear bifocals now (line less I have some vanity left). I didn't worry about it for my mask. Most of the fish stay beyond arms length.
Look around in the Internet. You will find several options.
You have seen my thick specs. For just a little more you can buy a mask with prescription lens(es). I think mine only cost $100.
You order them to the nearest .5 diopter I think and ignore any astigmatism. And although I wear bifocals now (line less I have some vanity left). I didn't worry about it for my mask. Most of the fish stay beyond arms length.
Look around in the Internet. You will find several options.
Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing. - Benjamin Franklin
#10
Guest_walklong_*
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Posted 08 September 2013 - 05:58 PM
What do you guys use for anti-fog? I have a new goggles, and they fit me great, but they can get foggy. Any suggestions on what works well?
Best bet is to get the goggles close to water temp, use a little saliva on the inside of lens and rinse. Dunk the noggin before donning the glasses. I've been a diver for 40 years - experience counts for something.
Sent from my MB860 using Tapatalk 2
Edited by walklong, 08 September 2013 - 06:00 PM.
#11
Guest_Casper_*
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Posted 08 September 2013 - 07:44 PM
Sometimes new masks have a production residue coating on them.
Take a toothbrush and toothpaste and work them over real well.
I did this once on a mask and ruined it. Well it was worthless to start with being acrylic. Always insure tempered glass. Beware of the brand Joe Boxer.
Take a toothbrush and toothpaste and work them over real well.
I did this once on a mask and ruined it. Well it was worthless to start with being acrylic. Always insure tempered glass. Beware of the brand Joe Boxer.
#13
Michael Wolfe
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- Board of Directors
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- North Georgia, Oconee River Drainage
Posted 10 September 2013 - 04:06 PM
Josh,
I have pretty consistent fogging problems... but usually as the mask gets older and gets a few scratches... but anyway... agree with some of the above advice... get the mask cold... get your face cold... and keep the inside surface as clean as you can... these three things seem to help me the most.
I have pretty consistent fogging problems... but usually as the mask gets older and gets a few scratches... but anyway... agree with some of the above advice... get the mask cold... get your face cold... and keep the inside surface as clean as you can... these three things seem to help me the most.
Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing. - Benjamin Franklin
#15
Guest_Kanus_*
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Posted 10 September 2013 - 08:37 PM
I've been doing a lot of snorkeling lately and have gotten pretty good at keeping the fog away (and I'm in trout streams). I use regular store-bought anti-fog solution before getting in the water, rinse it out and you're good to go. I have my mask on and off many times over the rest of the day and I simply spit inside the mask and rub the lens with my saliva, rinse, and am good to go. If you don't have anti fog stuff handy, I think just saliva works pretty well (but anti fog solution is no more than $10 a bottle and lasts forever). I've used toothpaste before as well and that works just fine in a pinch, but you have to rinse the hell out of the mask before donning it since eyeballs are not meant to be minty fresh.
I've not heard of the potato trick until now though. I have a sneaking suspicion also that "anti-fog solution" is really just saliva from child laborers in other countries. It looks pretty much like bottled spit
I've not heard of the potato trick until now though. I have a sneaking suspicion also that "anti-fog solution" is really just saliva from child laborers in other countries. It looks pretty much like bottled spit
#16
Guest_Skipjack_*
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Posted 10 September 2013 - 09:45 PM
Yeah, after hearing about the potato thing, I googled it today. Seems that it is the real deal. People even use it on car windshields. I hope somebody tries it and gives it a report.
I hate to think of antifog as Malaysian child spit. Makes me think of the movie Zoolander. Mugatu anti-fog.
I hate to think of antifog as Malaysian child spit. Makes me think of the movie Zoolander. Mugatu anti-fog.
#18
Guest_Casper_*
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Posted 13 September 2013 - 04:38 PM
I don't think the brand matters too much. Snorkel Boss Jim spends all night filling up the bottles... so he tells everyone!
You do need to note and do what i said about gently scrubbing off the manufacturing residue with toothpaste and a soft toothbrush. I have encountered that problem each time with a new mask.
One thing i discovered this year is that your spit will vary with what you have recently eaten, kinda obvious... as a fatty hotdog or oily corn chips do not produce the proper spit composition. It ain't funny! I was getting frustrated with my mask continually fogging after lunch and questioned Jeremy and Dave about my theory and they agreed adding that eating an orange or apple afterwards helps, the acid in the fruit cuts the fatty oil. An apple a day goes in my snorkel kit now. A potato... hum? Not tots, fries nor baked i presume.
Clean your mask and eat an apple.
You do need to note and do what i said about gently scrubbing off the manufacturing residue with toothpaste and a soft toothbrush. I have encountered that problem each time with a new mask.
One thing i discovered this year is that your spit will vary with what you have recently eaten, kinda obvious... as a fatty hotdog or oily corn chips do not produce the proper spit composition. It ain't funny! I was getting frustrated with my mask continually fogging after lunch and questioned Jeremy and Dave about my theory and they agreed adding that eating an orange or apple afterwards helps, the acid in the fruit cuts the fatty oil. An apple a day goes in my snorkel kit now. A potato... hum? Not tots, fries nor baked i presume.
Clean your mask and eat an apple.
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