Inuit style Snow Goggles

[Wayland]

You all know I like "old school" solutions and kit so I couldn't resist having a go at making a pair of these.

The principle is sound of course, reducing the glare by restricting the light path, much like the use of an iris in a camera lens.

In this case the light path is restricted to a horizontal slit which allows a decent side to side field of view but does tend to limit the field of view vertically somewhat.

Of course for life on the ice this may be quite functional giving a clear view of the horizon while cutting glare from the snow in front of you or the sky above.

Certainly modern glasses or goggles give a better vertical field of vision but they are interesting though and similar ones could be improvised quickly out of birch bark in an emergency so as a project I think they have been fun to do and well worth while.

 

[Retired Member southey]

Brilliant matey, how did you find the slot making? lots of test and adjust?

 

[Aragorn]

thay look great gary, arn't you going to model them for us

 

[bilmo-p5]

In this case the light path is restricted to a horizontal slit which allows a decent side to side field of view but does tend to limit the field of view vertically somewhat.

It doesn't take long to get used to moving your head instead of just your eyes. Ask anyone who wears varifocal glasses.

 

[Wayland]

Brilliant matey, how did you find the slot making? lots of test and adjust?

Debs came up with the master plan for sorting out the position.

I made the basic shape and hollowed out the eye sockets and them made a paper mask the same shape. Holding that to my face I could see light through it so I used a pen to make spots in the centre and edges of my field of vision.

I then drew in the best line to join the dots, cut a slot in the paper and used that to mark the slot position on the goggles.

To cut the actual slot I used a small saw and cut across the surface which was just deep enough to hit the carved eye sockets. Once I had the cut through in the centre I used a broken off piece of junior hacksaw blade to open up the rest of the slots.

Simples...

 

[Wayland]

It doesn't take long to get used to moving your head instead of just your eyes. Ask anyone who wears varifocal glasses.

I have noticed an interesting optical effect.

My arm is starting to get a little short for reading these days but the increased depth of field that I get from the restricted light path is almost as good as reading glasses.

 

[Mesquite]

Lovely bit of work there Gary

Any chance of seeing the back of them?

 

[RonW]

Now that's a great piece of carving!

Another one on my "gotta have a go at this"list...

Thanks!

 

[Wayland]

Lovely bit of work there Gary

Any chance of seeing the back of them?

Sure thing, the thong here is just temporary until I come up with a better solution to fastening it on.

 

[SimonM]

Nice work...but we to see an "action" shot of you wearing them!

Go on, you know you want to!

Simon

 

[Mesquite]

Sure thing, the thong here is just temporary until I come up with a better solution to fastening it on.

They look even better from the back. That's a lovely bit of wood you chose to make them from

Nice work...but we to see an "action" shot of you wearing them!

Go on, you know you want to!

Simon

Got to be with the new hat and snow smock to make the complete picture

 

[John Fenna]

I have noticed an interesting optical effect.

My arm is starting to get a little short for reading these days but the increased depth of field that I get from the restricted light path is almost as good as reading glasses.

That is interesting - carve your own opticals
Lovely bit of work!

 

[Wayland]

They look even better from the back. That's a lovely bit of wood you chose to make them from

It was a block of beech I had knocking around in the workshop. I used most of the spalted bits for other projects.

Got to be with the new hat and snow smock to make the complete picture

I'll melt if I put that lot on at the moment, it'll have to wait till it cools down a bit.

 

[Toddy]

Very neat They look 'right'


As an aside, that's how pinhole specs work too, and they are supposed to sort of encourage the eye muscles to work. Don't see how though since the issue is age related hardening of the lens....its like an onion growing in rings and the inside gets hard over time and doesn't flex as it used to, said my optician when I complained my arms were too short to do the crossword. The pinhole specs though do let me read, and see the computer screen too. Irritating to sew while using them though, but in a pinch good to know that even if there aren't specs, just narrowing the area of vision seems to increase the range

cheers,
M, who is now wearing specs for anything close up

 

[Wayland]

I'm not sure about the making the muscles work bit but optically it's all about circles of confusion.

Light passing through a lens which is not quite in sharp focus is resolved into disks or "circles of confusion" instead of points on a plane surface (think retina or film). Smaller pinholes or apertures in lenses cause these circles to be smaller too, which makes them appear sharper.

This is why a smaller aperture in a camera lens increases the apparent distance in front and behind an object that is rendered sharp too. This is known as the depth of field.

 

[Galemys]

Sure thing, the thong here is just temporary until I come up with a better solution to fastening it on.

Beautiful work Wayland and a stunningly coloured piece of wood!

I made similar goggles out of coconut shell last winter:
http://www.bushcraftuk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=66209&highlight=

The three-hole-thingy, that I also made out of coconut shell, works great for adjusting the cord, maybe it is a solution for your thong as well.

Cheers,

Tom

 

[Wayland]

I was lucky with the wood I guess, the coconut shell is great too.

I'll look into the slider idea, thanks.

 

[Bodge]

Hi Gary,
Would a fishermans knot give you the adjustment you require?

I have used this kind of knot for similar things and use it now to hold my hat on with the chin strap at the back of my head. As long as you tie it so that the knots never meet it makes a great adjustable strap.
hth

 

[Wayland]

Ive got fishermans knots on it at the moment and they are sort of ok.
The real problem is that I have a bit more hair than most and it just gets tangled up in most things.

 

[Wayland]

Nice work...but we to see an "action" shot of you wearing them! <snip

Snip> Got to be with the new hat and snow smock to make the complete picture

I'm going to say... "They made me do it...."