Numa Tactical -- The Unbreakable Shades :: August 02, 2007

The story goes that, in 2002, the founder of Numa Tactical became fed up after busting too much eyewear while outdoors and in the field. So he sought out a new flexible (but sturdy) fiber material that could be used in the manufacture of a glasses frame, one that could take all the knocks of the great outdoors, as well as military, S.W.A.T., firefighting, and other extreme pursuits.

The result is Numa Tactical’s line of four sunglasses models, which sell for $99 and up. They have interchangeable polycarbonate lenses, polarized and non, in orange, tan, and clear lens colors.

But the real intrigue is in the company’s (www.numatactical.com) “memory fiber frames,” which are so flexible that you can tie them in a knot. Then they’ll pop back into shape the moment they’re untangled.

I tested it out, and, lo, this is a funky material. It bends and flexes, yet shows no sign of stress. I’d not make a habit of tying my eyewear in knots, but for general outdoors use—and even the occasional butt-sitting incident—these sunglasses have the potential to hold up like no others.

Numa’s frames comes in tan, olive green, and black.

The company offers the glasses in some prescriptions, though unfortunately my Rx was not among them. Bummer.

Numa warrants that under normal wear and tear, the frames will not break. What is “normal wear and tear”? The company says: “Normal wear and tear includes, but is not limited to, scaling a cliff face, downhill mountain biking or skiing, parachuting, hiking rugged terrain, dropping your Numas on a hard surface, accidentally stepping or sitting on them, and even letting your toddler play with them.”

I tried several of the aforementioned acts above, and let’s just say these sunglasses are still fine and sitting on my face.