Eyewear for Airsoft

To play the sport of airsoft, one critical piece of equipment is absolutely required. Nope, not a airsoft gun even... it's eye protection! Yeah yeah, we know, you can squint really good and duck pretty fast. It doesn't matter, you still need something between your peepers and incoming plastic bb's.

Goggles: Ok, so they don't look that sexy. We all gotta wear em, deal. Besides, while eye patches look cool for pirates, it screws up your depth perception a heck of a lot if you only have one eye, which makes hitting your target a lot harder.

Most people use full seal goggles, though others will use a full face mask of some type. Let's start with goggles since they are most common. Cheap safety goggles might work, but most players will use a goggle designed specificity to be hit repeatedly by something like a paintball or bb. These should conform to the ASTM F 1776-01, ANSI 87.1 2003 (civilian), or MIL-V-43511C (military) standards for impact resistance. These standards are usually printed on the goggle packaging, and if you are buying at a local airsoft store you can ask if they are rated for airsoft play. Most sold there will be. A lot of standard safety goggles for construction work are not rated to take a hit repeatedly in the same location game after game, so if you are going to use these, check them!

Shooting glasses do not fully seal to the face, so a bb can easily come in from the side or deflect off your cheek and strike the eye. This would suck, you don't want this. Make sure the goggles you are looking at fully contact the face all the way around your eyes. If you can, ask to try on a pair. If you are shopping online, look for “full seal” in the description. Usually, the edge of full seal goggles is soft foam rubber so it will conform to the shape of your face. Some are just rubber, the choice of which one is best for you is easiest to make after you have worn a few pairs, so if you can ask your friends to borrow theirs for a while and try em out.

The big complaint on goggles is usually fogging. There are a bunch of ways to deal with fogging that all work decently. None are perfect in every situation. Chemical anti-fog wipes are a cheap, basic way to help keep your goggles fog free. The work pretty well, even in warm humid weather. Just follow the directions on the package and go for it. When you take a break, try not to wear your goggles on top of your head too. That can easily transfer sweat from your hair to the inside of your goggle lenses. Either drop them down around your neck, or take them completely off until its game on time again.

A more advanced goggle may have specially designed vents to help air move through the goggle and carry away moisture and humidity. A good example of these are FlackJacks. These goggles work pretty well, and combined with anti-fog wipes are effective for most people. If that isn't enough though, you can get goggles with built in fans or after market add on fans to blow air through the vents on your goggles. These are usually powered with a small battery, so if you have one of these units, make sure you have extra batteries with you. Having your fan cut out when you really need it blows. Or doesn't in this case.

Goggles can cost from as little as 10 dollars up to several hundred for some really special, x-ray specs. Ok, probably not x-ray. Are the 200 dollar goggles any better than the 25 dollar ones? Probably not. They might look cooler, but they likely have very similar lenses in them. A good, basic pair will cost you about 25 bucks, and will work just fine. But, goggles only cover your eyes... what happens if you get hit in the cheek or tooth? Well, it hurts. Want to not get shot in the face? Then let's talk about....

Full face masks (including paintball masks). These masks are designed to offer both good eye protection and facial coverage, while allowing easy breathing and minimal fogging. Some are better for paintball than airsoft though, as their vent slits are big enough to allow a bb to enter the mask and hit you on skin.  Look at them carefully when buying to see if it looks like the slits or holes might be larger than 6mm.  Most paintball masks also have a slight brim over the eyes, so it can help to keep the sun out of your eyes while you are playing.  If you are playing in really bright areas, you can also often swap out the lens for one with a smoke tint, or a yellow tint for hazy days.

Some paintball masks also cover the ears, which can be nice if you do not wear a scarf or other wrap, just in case of an ear hit.  Be aware that most ear protection will also reduce your hearing somewhat though.

So in closing, decide if you want just goggles or a full face mask, do some research and wear friends gear if you can to see what works for you.  Don't wear your protection on top of your head, take care of the eyewear with chemical wipes to prevent fogging, and get out and play!

Over and out!