Sunglasses Frame Materials

There are three major categories of materials that are used to make sunglasses. Plastics are the materials of choice in many sunglass frames. Nylon also has a multitude of benefits when formed into sunglass frames. Metals and metal alloys are also used for sunglass material to give a strong frame that will last indefinitely.

There are several varieties of plastic materials that can be used in sunglass frames. A cheap pair of sunglasses will use the C94 type plastic. It is inexpensive and easily molded. You can produce it in almost any color and it lends itself well to embedding designs and attachments to. This plastic, however, is very rigid and prone to breaking with just a little impact or twist. They are usually sold in wholesale catalogs and are what is mostly used in replica sunglasses such as the replica Oakley "M" frame sunglasses.

Polycarbonate plastics are the fashion designers choice for plastic in their high priced, high quality sunglass eyewear. It is light, flexible and durable and can sustain ten times the abuse of ordinary plastic before it breaks.

Nylon is a very popular material for sports sunglasses. It is flexible and a bend or twist will not make it lose its shape. It is good for wrap around styles and will fit your sunglasses snugly to your head. Nautica Pacific sunglass frame parts are often made of nylon.

Metal sunglasses frame materials run the gambit from cheap pot metal in low quality sunglasses to precious metals in the high-end designer sunglass brands. Ray-Ban and Versace both have well known gold frame sunglasses wearing their brands. Silver is also a popular metal for high quality sunglass frames and pewter is not far behind in some of the major designer houses. And you can't beat aluminum for the combination of lightweight and metallic strength in some of the fashion designer's creations.

Metal frames have one extra advantage over the other sunglass frame materials. If you are wearing a pair of prescription sunglasses, you can get the magnetic clip on variety of lenses and avoid having to deal with bulky clips and hooks to keep the clip-ons firmly in place.

One nice advantage to investing in some of the interchangeable lens sunglasses the top brands offer is that if it is the frame that fails, you can import your interchangeable lenses into a replacement frame and save a good bit from not having to replace the entire pair of sunglasses.