Vuarnet Glacier 01 Sunglasses Review

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Glacier glasses are one of those pieces of kit where the gap between adequate and excellent is easy to ignore right up until the moment it matters. Most pairs will keep you from going snow-blind. That’s the floor, and plenty of options clear it for under two hundred dollars.

The Vuarnet Glacier 01 is not trying to clear the floor. It’s a French house that has been grinding its own mineral glass since 1957, and the Glacier shape has been in their catalogue since 1974. What you’re buying is optics, and the price reflects that with no apologies.

I’ve been running these for the last three months alongside the rest of the field for my glacier glasses roundup. Here’s what stood out, and where the money actually goes.

Vuarnet Glacier 01: First Impressions

Vuarnet sets the bar for beauty, craftsmanship, and genuinely good optics. The glasses filter out light so well that I forgot how bright it was when taking these off to get the product shot, which had me squinting at snow-blindness. While all the glasses in my roundup do a good job, these are a cut above in the contrast and quality of how well everything stands out.

The glasses feel like they are a step above with the construction of the frames. Putting them on they sit perfectly, and I could see right away that the optics truly are in a league of their own. Even the leather strap feels nice against the skin. It’s the little details that make the glasses stand out as premium, and add in all of each detail and the difference is truly palpable.

Notable Features of the Vuarnet Glacier 01

Mineral glass lenses. This is the headline. Nearly every other pair in this category uses polycarbonate, which is lighter and shatter-resistant but never quite as optically clean. Vuarnet grinds their own mineral glass, and it shows in the contrast — everything just stands out more sharply than it does through plastic.

Translucent side shields. A big differentiator with these is that the side shields are translucent, rather than an opaque plastic or leather shield that fully blocks out the light. They carry a slightly different tint, and let in just enough light to help you feel some vision in your periphery.

Magnetic, removable everything. The side shields and the leather centrepiece both come off on a magnetic mount. No tools, no fiddling with tiny screws in the cold. It also means one pair covers glacier travel and everyday wear, which is a real part of the value calculation at this price.

Bio-acetate and beta titanium frame. Made in Japan, and it feels it. Beta titanium is the same material good eyeglass frames use because it flexes and returns to shape instead of taking a set. This is a frame built to be adjusted by an optician and worn for years, not replaced every other season.

Removable leather cord. The leather strap will help you keep them safe around the neck when not using. It feels soft against the skin and snaps into place, or can come undone with one hand if you’re wearing a hat (like pictured above) and want to put it away without undoing the hat.

Drawbacks

That quality comes with a price, and these glasses are the most expensive pair I tested by a long shot. There’s no way around it. But it’s the type of glasses that you’ll buy once and wear forever, as long as you take care of them.

The leather blocker on the centerpiece can also get undone pretty easily. I’ve had it fall off in the case on several occasions, so make sure you get it to properly click. Without it, it lets in a fair bit more light than without.

The side shields also feel fragile when putting into place. People with fat fingers and who are rough on gear might not want to be delicate with these, so skip it if you’re the type to break things easily.

Best Uses for the Vuarnet Glacier 01

With the removable shields and centrepiece, you can wear these glasses in town and look like a boss. They’re now a go-to when you want to be a step above in class. Vuarnets are back, baby… with a vengeance.

I have used these out in the field while spring touring, and mountaineering in the summer. I also brought them to my cousin’s 40th birthday at a lawn bowling club where I made the mission perfectly to dress up fancy. That’s the beauty of having the removable shields and centerpiece. They turn into just classy glasses you can wear in town.

Skip If You…

Skip these if the budget is the deciding factor. There are pairs in my roundup that will protect your eyes perfectly well for a fraction of the price, and nobody needs to spend eight hundred dollars to avoid snow blindness. Skip them too if you’re hard on your gear and know it — this is a pair you take care of, not one you toss loose in the lid of your pack.

It’s not the best for skiing fast. in that case I like a full-wrap shield style pair of sunglasses. For that purpose, check out the revew I did for the Best Sunglasses for backcountry skiing and snowboarding.

Final Thoughts

The Vuarnet Glacier 01 is the pair I’d point to if someone asked what the ceiling looks like in this category. The glass is better than anything else I looked through, the frame is built to outlast the trend cycle, and the fact that the shields come off means it isn’t a single-purpose object gathering dust between trips.

If you take care of gear, and want nothing but the best, it’s a buy-once, cry-once type scenario. Yes, it’s expensive, but what isn’t these days? And you really do get what you pay for, and look like a boss. So if you’re rolling in dough, go ahead and you won’t be disappointed. 50 years of tradition is steeped in these glasses, and it’s time to revive them for the next wave of mountaineers.

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