Properly Cleaning Goggles!!!

[davkad]

richy... i think that this thread really needs a sticky!
This is taken straight out of Doc's tinkerer's guide... but i think everyone should read this!

"I don't like when people type in all caps on message boards, but sometimes you gotta get a point across.

DO NOT USE ANY CHEMICALS OR SOLVENTS ON PAINTBALL LENSES!!!

This includes, but is not limited to, glass cleaners (Windex), household cleaners, bleach, gasoline, et cetera...

Any strong chemical WILL begin to react with the lens (which, IIRC, isn't Lexan, but a similar polycarbonate plastic...but don't quote me on that). You can't see them, but microscopic cracks will begin to form. Suddenly, that lens isn't strong enough to stop a paintball anymore. You might get away with it for a while, but is it really worth whatever benefit you might get in the short term when you lose an eye later on?

Think of it this way...that lens has been painstakingly engineered (by JT, Scott, BE, or whoever) to absorb the energy of a paintball traveling 300 feet per second...over and over again. Don't you think they know what that lens is capable of? Do you think they put that line that says "NEVER use solvents or harsh cleaners on the lens" in the manual just for the fun of it?

Use warm water. That'll get off any paint or dirt on the lens. If you've got oil or grease on them, use warm water with a little liquid dish soap (and keep your fingers off next time ). I've never had anything on my lenses that wouldn't come off with just water, anyway.

As long as we're on the subject, wash your goggles after every day's play - not the night before your next day. Paint fill acts like a solvent, albeit a weak one. The paint you get on it during a day's play won't hurt it for that short of a time, but if left on, will weaken the lens just like any other solvent. That's why they also say in the manuals that you should replace the lens at least once a year no matter how well you care for it.

Sorry about the rant, everyone, but I don't like to see people taking the chances they do with their eyes. That's just what the sport (and this board) needs... some new players lose eyes, and they say "oh, the people over on the Tinker board told us to use Windex on our lenses..."

Well, that's my 2 cents. Keep the change.

Kenn Mikos"

everyone, keep this in mind!

[Chad51]

How do I get the paint splater out of the part were the lenses and the lense frame meet? I got hit with a ball and it splatered into there and I am still working at getting it out every time I get out my mask!

[Sandman220]

hey uhh........... im really glad i read this because just yesterday i put windex on my mask to clean it cause i got gogged right in the middle. Is there anything i can do to get rid of the windex or clean it off cause i did it so recently. So if you can please help...... do!

[ME]

Dont use anything on your lenses Except WATER get a spray bottle and soft cloth spray the water on the lenses to clean and use soft cloth to dry em
and after getting gogged make sure you do not have any damage to your lense and if you do replace it
NO EXCEPTIONS EXCUSES OR SUBSTITUTIONS EYES ARE PRECIOUS!!!!!!!!!!!

[133+ Player]

Eye glass cleaner is made for GLASSES made of GLASS . Paint ball mask are plastic not glass so if you use earglass cleaner it's doing the same thing. nd unless this to be you DON'T!

[TippyBaller]

Originally Posted by 133+ Player

Eye glass cleaner is made for GLASSES made of GLASS . Paint ball mask are plastic not glass so if you use earglass cleaner it's doing the same thing. nd unless this to be you DON'T!

Ok, i wear glasses and I can tell you for a FACT that all modern corrective lenses are in fact made of plastic NOT GLASS! Next time you post somithing make sure you have your facts right.

[mrcheetos]

Originally Posted by TippyBaller

Ok, i wear glasses and I can tell you for a FACT that all modern corrective lenses are in fact made of plastic NOT GLASS! Next time you post somithing make sure you have your facts right.

But the fact is of what material are lenses on corrective eyewear made of, it's a matter on what's in the chemical. Glass cleaner is okay to use on glasses because frankly, they were made to correct your vision, not stop a paintball!

[bigbobmegadeth]

Originally posted by MeGotzGriffin
ok im confused...2 people said no to eyeglass cleaners and one person said its ok...one th back of the little spray container (which came from LensCrafters) it says "safe on any lense or surface"

still confused...although im thinking im wrong and its time to order a new lense...

what is there to be confused about? just dont use anything but water!

[splatterpunx]

its printed and documented in every magazine and instruction manual for the last 14 year that i have been playing

im scanning one for you as we speak

[splatterpunx]

well better than scanning a whole manual

www.dyeprecision.com

click on invision the data then look at the entire manual


thats one example

[Richy_C]

All posts recomending anything BUT water have to be deleted, sorry guys, using anything but is not only stupid, but ding ding, don't work as well. I wipe my goggles witha soft cloth (CLEAN! Make sure it's motorhellgreasemysterious stan free), and run them under a water fountain, nice andgentle, and clears away that thin layer that never seems to come off. Water, you drink it, you use it for paintball. Magical stuff.

Water works, it's free, and, hey, i said so

[tes slayer]

Originally Posted by Richy_C

All posts recomending anything BUT water have to be deleted, sorry guys, using anything but is not only stupid, but ding ding, don't work as well. I wipe my goggles witha soft cloth (CLEAN! Make sure it's motorhellgreasemysterious stan free), and run them under a water fountain, nice andgentle, and clears away that thin layer that never seems to come off. Water, you drink it, you use it for paintball. Magical stuff.

Water works, it's free, and, hey, i said so

but if u have thermal lenses u dont want 2 run them under a fountain itll get water inside them

[Cheapdog]

What about those commercial anti-fog/cleaners that companies like 32Degrees makes (for goggles)? Those are perfectly safe, or else they wouldn't sell them, right?

[Robbins]

does water also take care of the fogging up on your lense?

[FlyBoyNZ]

I have a JT Alpha 2000 mask, its not special or anything, so i use antifog spray form Walgreens, is that ok?

[jaronervin]

OK... anti-fog should be ok. cleaners have chemicals that are designed to break down anything that it isn't recommended for. anti-fog spray doesn't have that. Water will NOT make the goggles anti-fog, though. Are you trying to use the anti-fog as a cleaner, flyboy? If you are, I wouldn't recommend that, because I don't know how it would work. But it is fine on goggles.

[FlyBoyNZ]

i clean with water, but i cant seem to find my anit-fog bottle

[SgtRauksauff]

Anti-Fog should be OK IF you have a thermal (double) lens.

the anti-fog goes on the INSIDE lens. which never gets hit by the paintball, and is there to prevent fogging primarily, not additional stopping power. The OUTER lens is the one that you should protect with your life. or at least with a clean cloth and water.

If you have a mask with a single lens, you have 2 choices. get a new mask w/ a double lens, or get a double lens for your existing mask.

Am I wrong here? Just my (to me) logical thought processes at work. guaranteed 93% fat free.

--SgtRauksauff

***
Actually, I just got my JT Flex7 IZE on friday, and they said never to use ANYTHING on the inside lens. Not even their own JT-Majik anti-fog. Here's a quote from the User Guide of my goggles, regarding the thermal lens:

THERMAL LENS: Take the Thermal lens out of the goggle dframe and gently dab the lens with a damp JT Microfiber Lens cloth or a soft cotton cloth. NEVER submerge this dual lens in water. NEVER scrub the soft inner lens. NEVER apply any form of fog resistant solution to the inner lens.

[Cheapdog]

I have a question. Is it safe to use a PVA cloth from an auto parts store to help clean your goggles? They are super-absorbant, lint free, and very soft (if not more so than microfiber). I wouldn't scrub the goggles with them, I would just dab them with the PVA cloth after squirting the goggles with water to clean them. If it makes any difference, I have a Proteus w/ a thermal lens.

[DRUMNATURAL]

I don't see why not. I use my 12 months old son wash cloths. They are all sorts of soft and work great. The wife doesn't appreciate it much though.