Smith Optics Pivlock Overdrive sunglasses

Smith might not be a name that immediately springs to mind when choosing a set of cycling gigs, but they do a massive array of glasses and goggles for all sorts of outdoor activities and these Pivlock Overdrive specs are part of their Performance range with features and optics to give better known companies, possibly starting with an O, a run for their not inconsiderable money.

The Pivlocks come inside a padded clamshell case for transporting the glasses and the two extra pairs of lenses you get with them. To fit all that stuff in makes it a bulky case so there's a fabric pouch for carrying just the glasses, and for cleaning the lenses. Either by accident or design the case is just the right size to fit inside a bike helmet, which is handy when compact packing for races or travel.

The Thing with the Pivlock Overdrives is that the frame comes apart to make swapping between the three lenses an easy thing to do. It's a clever process and a strangely satisfying experience too. Hold the frame at the top and bottom of the lens, on the special textured areas, and rotate the arm of the glasses up from the hidden hinge in the temple. This will separate the frame from the top corner of the lens. Pushing the arm of the glasses down a little bit engages this hinge further and opens up the frame a bit more, enough to make removing the lens by pushing from behind a breeze. Putting a new lens back in is a matter of simply reversing the process when it will all click firmly into place.

It's not a perfect system as it doesn't work first time, every time. It can be a bit fiddly lining up a lens with the grooves in the frame when putting it back in, if you're in a ham-fisted mood. It's still a lot less stressy than swapping lenses in other glasses when you're tugging and pushing at very expensive bits of plastic like they might snap.

This Black Neon colour scheme is sufficiently on trend to match all your neon yellow clothing highlights and over-socks but if that's not your thing there are seven other colours to choose from, each coming with a different lens colour combination. The styling of the Pivlock Overdrives isn't so sporty and Euro that they can't be worn off the bike in more casual situations, especially if you choose one of the more subtle frame and lens combinations.

The Black Neon frame comes with mirrored Platinum lenses already fitted and two sets of extra lenses for different light conditions; an Ignitor lens that's pinky coloured and a pair of clears. The Platinum lenses are great for bright bright sunny days, and do a brilliant job of cutting down the glare. The Ignitor lenses are better for the more frequent rides under little fluffy clouds, and aren't so dark that they make tree cover a black hole, but they're probably too dark for wintry overcast days, which is where the clear lenses come in to play. These are also handy when you just need eye protection from flying debris or a stiff north-easterly, or riding at night. A set of yellow lenses for adding definition to low light days would have been a nice choice for perma-grey enduring UK riders.

All the lenses feature TLT, that's Tapered Lens Technology if you hadn't guessed already, it's something that straightens out the incoming light's rays and Smith say that by progressively tapering the lens from the optical center toward the peripheral view refraction is corrected so your eyes aren't going to get strained during a long day in the saddle.

It works. The lens quality is excellent, among the best I've looked through, with no distortion to the sides despite the pronounced curvature of the lenses.

The lenses also have a Hydroleophobic coating that repels moisture, grease, and grime. Water, let's just say rain shall we, beads up and disperses without streaking and day-to-day smudges wipe clean easily.

The fit of the Pivlock Overdrives would suit those with a narrower skull, and their wrap-around style means that they sit close to face both at the cheek and the brow. The arms curve to fit snug around the head so they shouldn't interfere with any bits of your helmet. If they do, or if the arms are a little tight to the temples or ears then the ends can be heated and reshaped so they fit more comfortably, thanks to the TR-90 material that the frames are made of.

To further adjust the fit, the nose pads click between two positions so you can get the Smiths the right distance from your noggin. They're hydrophilic too, as are the ear-pieces, which means they get stickier as they get sweatier so they don't slide off during effort.

With no vents in the lenses or Pivlock frame they can fog up if conditions are right and you're pedalling slowly or stopped. It was an infrequent problem though and cleared quickly with movement or a few added miles an hour.

Despite them being full frame cycling specs, peripheral vision isn't interfered with by a lump of plastic; only if you try really hard can you catch the sides of the frame getting in the way. This will vary according to face shape, but it wasn't a problem with my combination of [devilishly handsome - Ed] features during cycling, and I'm fussy about stuff like that.

Actually I'm fussy about a lot of things when it comes to cycling glasses, when you're wearing something for hours on end the slightest niggle can become a right pain. The fit has to be right with perfect lenses that don't distort the view or scratch and no visual obstructions. The Smith Pivlock Overdrives ticked all these boxes where many others have failed, even glasses from that cooler, better known brand.

Verdict

Quality sporty glasses with a choice of three easily swappable optically excellent lenses to suit the day