H30 Tsunami Sport Glasses Review
As a youth I spent most of my summers fishing for smallmouth bass in rock-strewn shallow water flats. Some of my favourite moments were from those times when there wasn’t a breeze in the air and the sun was high allowing an angler such as me the chance to get a look at what was under the surface. The caveat there is that you would also have to make sure you were in a position that minimized glare in the area you were trying to survey. When I was 15 I finally got a pair of (ugly) polarized sunglasses. That purchase changed my life on the water; it was like having an entire new world revealed! I remember vividly one occasion when I was over a rocky flat in about 3’ of water and caught the shadow of large bass cruising along. I dropped a nymph imitation about 10’ in front of the fish – enough time for the hook to drop down right into view. As it dropped the bass slowly accelerated towards where my line was. I could see it all: the rush, the fish tilting down, the gill flare as it sucked up the hook, and then it was on! That was a gorgeous fish that would have been missed completely if I didn’t have polarized glasses on.
That story depicts just one of the many advantages of using polarized sunglasses. Aside from spotting fish you can also see structure/features under the water that will help you fish (and for that matter, wade) a piece of water better. The other major benefit is the reduction in glare/eye strain along with UV protection (the latter being provided by any good set of glasses).
Over the past season I had the chance to try out the H3O Tsunami Sunglasses. The first thing I noticed after trying the glasses on was how light they felt and how complete the lens coverage for my field of vision was. Many sports oriented sunglasses use a wraparound style however, they often leave gaps where light comes in through the bottom, side or top. Another issue I’ve had with other glasses is having my FOV limited by the solid frames on wraparound glasses. The H3O Tsunami glasses do not suffer from either of those issues – that scores big points in my book. The glasses are very stable on the face staying exactly where you set them thanks to the great nose pads included with the glasses.
The package comes complete with 3 interchangeable polarized lenses. The lens colours are as follows:
Polarized Dark Gray: Maximum light filtering with natural color representation. Excellent in extreme bright conditions and deep water off shore fishing.
Polarized Amber: Greatly increases contrast and color separation without harsh distortion of colors The perfect lens in overcast, bright fog or snowy conditions and especially good in any shallow water sight fishing situations.
Polarized Twilight Yellow: High contrast polarization. Excellent low light lens.
The Amber lenses no doubt saw the most use this season. They are by far the best colour of lens for general fishing purposes as it provides a lot of contrast allowing features/shadows/etc. to show up more distinctly (i.e. increases your ability to differentiate objects under the water). For low-light situations the yellow lenses were ideal and allowed me to follow my line into the evening. Swapping lenses was a quick and simple task – just don’t drop them into the water (something I almost did)!
Also included in the package is a protective case for the glasses (and spare lenses) along with a cloth for cleaning the glasses.
Pros:
- lightweight
- excellent lens wrap ( doesn’t allow much light in through the sides or bottom
- sits lightly, yet stays in place on your nose – some glasses will slip requiring adjustment from time-to-time\
- ability to adjust lenses before or during an outing!
- lens cleans easily
- free of optical distortion – one test I often use when evaluating glasses is to hold them away from my face and move them up and down to see how movement distorts straight edged items. Some glasses will have a very noticeable effect. This can cause discomfort for the eyes.
- Scratch resistant lens – some other glasses I’ve used scratch easily. I’m not talking about scratching due to dragging them across a rock or something, rather, I’m talking about the general use situations where they are on your car seat, cleaning, in-and-out of the case etc. The Tsunami lenses are standing up very well after a season of use.
Cons:
- nose pads can be lost
(H3O will send a free replacement set if you have this problem)
- thicker frame in nose area is bothersome at first. This became less of an issue for me as I got used to them (as with any pair of glasses) – but I prefer a thin frame in that area as it is less visually distracting.
If you have polarized glasses then you already know the advantages – if you don’t then you should seriously consider a pair. The H3O Tsunami Angler package is a great set of glasses. The interchangeable lenses are an amazing feature – it removes the issue of choosing that one perfect all-purpose lens colour and instead provides you with the option of customizing your glasses to fit the conditions.
