Pilla Prescription Insert Failure

[Daz W]

Decided to bite the bullet and splash out on a 3 lens set of X6 Outlaws, and as my eyesight is on par with an average mole, a prescription insert and lenses. All in all £775. This was on the 15th October. Not going to mention the retailer as yet, as they haven't had chance to respond to my email. 7 weeks later, and due to lockdown 2.0, I've only shot three 100 bird shoots since the purchase, which the glasses performed amazingly well.   Went shooting yesterday, on the second peg, just about to pull the trigger, next thing I know my right hand lens in now on my cheek.  The prescription insert has snapped. Looking at them more closely there seems to be 2 other areas where the inset is about to fail as well. Not impressed. If I'd abused the insert somehow, then fair enough, but these have been used in the field hardly at all, and have only been swapped between coloured lenses probably a dozen times. So much for a premium set of shooting glasses!!!

 

[donna]

It could be due to the company that done the insert prescription? Hubby and I have the same glasses and inserts,  no problems at the moment!  

 

[ColinD]

Just as Donna has pointed out who did the inserts, as if they are oversized that could  cause your problem. But looking at them they don't seem very thick for something that is designed to be changed over from one lens to another, possibly quite often

 

[Daz W]

Can I ask if your prescription insert looks exactly like mine? There seems to be another version with an additional bridge (pictured below). Wondering if I have been supplied with an different design. The ones in the pic below look to be a more substantial design.

 

[donna]

I think it depends on what range you have, I tried the Panthers but didn’t get on with them, the Outlaw inserts were better for me. I have the outlaw 7 and hubby has the outlaw 6 and both inserts are slightly different 

 

[Daz W]

Are the insert on your husbands X6 Outlaws the same design as my broken set, or do they have the "nose bridge" like the picture I recently posted? 

 

[Simbo]

I just don’t get it..........3 lenses and an insert that looks like it’s been pulled from a cracker.

One all round coloured lens (two if you must) with full prescription.

Pilla 580’s from Ed Lyons 

https://www.ed-lyons.com/about-pilla-performance-eye-wear/

 

[Daz W]

I just don’t get it..........3 lenses and an insert that looks like it’s been pulled from a cracker.

One all round coloured lens (two if you must) with full prescription.

Pilla 580’s from Ed Lyons 

https://www.ed-lyons.com/about-pilla-performance-eye-wear/

Depends upon how often your prescription changes. If it's rock solid, then I agree, 580's all the way. If it's not, then I only have to change the lenses in the insert, not every coloured lens I own. Plus X6 lenses, arms, even the prescription insert carrier all have a high second hand value on a certain well known auction site, if I ever feel the need to sell them. 580 lenses, not so much

 

[donna]

Can I ask if your prescription insert looks exactly like mine? There seems to be another version with an additional bridge (pictured). Wondering if I have been supplied with an older design which there may have been a recognised design flaw, so Pilla strengthened them up.

Can I ask if your prescription insert looks exactly like mine? There seems to be another version with an additional bridge (pictured). Wondering if I have been supplied with an older design which there may have been a recognised design flaw, so Pilla strengthened them up.

View attachment 8474

I’ve just checked and both ours are exactly the same as yours above. 

 

[ColinD]

removed

 

[Daz W]

Had some comms with the guys at Pilla today, including Philip Pilla. Turns out both style of inserts are for the X6 Outlaws. The one with the nose bridge is the original design, but according to one of the Pilla peons, there was some negative feedback about the nose bridge part obscuring some peoples vision. The latest version is the one I have, without the nose bridge.  Poor design IMO, as they've sacrificed structural strength for a minimal increase in overall vision, that most people won't even notice. Fine if you've only got the one coloured lens and don't remove it, but if you're a lens swapper, sooner or later I'll wager you're going to be disappointed. 4th trip out with them in my case.

Words direct from the email I received from Philip Pilla "We've done 1000's of these, and we don't see failures".  I'm reading that as every broken set we're going to blame on the user not fitting them properly, not a design flaw. Even the video on the Pilla website shows the fitting of the old insert being fitted to the coloured lens by applying pressure to the nose bridge. New insert design isn't mentioned anywhere. Now the nose bridge has been removed the only way to fit them is to apply pressure to the top bar. Getting them out? Who knows.

 

[Freddypip]

I expect it's injection moulded polycarbonate.

There will be a weak point at some point - whatever the design. The additional bridge section won't have changed the failure point in your case and in fact its rigidity might move the stresses to another part of the frame. It looks to me as though the force has been up and down and the plastic fails at a curve where it is weakest.

Two points,

• As mentioned above if the lenses is oversize that would explain the up & down pressure. Its all too easy to heat the frame slightly to get the lenses in. The other lense is just about to fail . . . .
  
• The frames does not look very clear but it is diffcult to see if this is due to poor moulding or the fitting of the lenses.
  

Looking at the two designs they change the centre of the lense height - Pilla's comments make senses assuming they assessed any strength consequences of the design change.

 

[tpd1309]

Before I switched to Pilla I had a set of Wiley sabors with an insert similar to the Pilla one . They cracked exactly the same , was nothing to do with the design, is was the solution 20 lense cleaner, optition showed me the strange chemical reaction it had with park of the cracked frame.

 

[Daz W]

Another genius design! Make a glasses frame which is destroyed by lens cleaner!  (Un)fortunately, depending upon which way you look at it, my lenses were that new that they hadn't needed cleaning, and they still broke. Thanks for the info, from doing a bit of reading, it appears polycarbonate reacts with alcohol. Most plastic glasses frames are polycarbonate, and most lens cleaners contain alcohol.  I shall stick to soapy water if they ever do require a good clean. Maybe Pilla and Wiley should put cleaning instructions and safe cleaners that can be used on their website? I'm surprised Pilla don't sell their own lens cleaning solution. Which would obviously be at least £100 per bottle! 

 

[RJD]

If it helps Zeiss make cleaner solution and wipes which are cheap on Amazon. The cleaner is much better than the wipes.

 

[Daz W]

If it helps Zeiss make cleaner solution and wipes which are cheap on Amazon. The cleaner is much better than the wipes.

Don't the wipes still contain alcohol?

 

[Lloyd]

Don't the wipes still contain alcohol?

Ahh... So that’s the reason I was subconsciously sucking them

 

[coatesy75]

Prescription Insert Pilla have now gone up my lens has cracked. it's well over priced for what it is  come on Pilla  its plastic.  not GOLD  

 

[Will Hewland]

Prescription Insert Pilla have now gone up my lens has cracked. it's well over priced for what it is  come on Pilla  its plastic.  not GOLD  

It’s as obvious as nuts on a dog that Pilla charge what they can to people who fear that they must have them, or be disadvantaged. It’s a bit like how some sponge and icing costs 10x the amount once you call it wedding cake.