Rudy Project Cutline

£169.99

Weight

36g

The Cutline sunglasses are Rudy Project’s answer to the Oakely Sutros and the current trend for ever bigger shades.

They have a modular design – pretty much every part can be removed and replaced, from arms to rubber bumpers to the lens itself. Different temple tips and nose pad inserts can even be swapped in to refine the fit.

The lens I tested is the Multilaser Orange, which has a mirror finish and a visible light transmission rating of 12.6%. It also has four vents cut into the top to improve airflow and reduce fogging.

It felt much darker than the VLT rating of 12.6% would suggest. I couldn’t ride with them on cloudy winter days, but when the sun shone brightly they did a great job cutting out the glare and increasing contrast.

Coverage feels spot-on – wide, but not overly so. As a result, the bumpers framing the lens are unobtrusive, causing no distractions and hardly featuring in my field of vision.

The anti-fog cut-outs did a good job. Stationary on cool days after working hard, condensation would start to build, but it only took a few seconds of riding for them to clear again.

I struggled with the fit. The adjustable nose piece almost had too much adjustment, providing more scope for getting it wrong rather than allowing the user to perfect the fit. I also found the Cutlines had a tendency to rattle and slip about on rougher terrain.

At £169.99, these glasses are expensive. At half the price, the Salice 022 glasses offer a great fit, good optics and a stylish design – they also share the chic of an Italian brand. But they are very much at the opposite end of the scale when it comes to adjustability.

Halfway between these two are Rapha’s Pro Team Full Frame sunglasses, which impressed with a secure fit, great coverage and good ventilation. At £120, they are cheaper too.

Stefan Abram www.rudyproject.com 7