Foakley, Fakley, Fokley, whatever you want to call them, they are not the real deal. Fake Oakley sunglasses fill the black markets, from shops in metro stations in Shanghai, to street stalls in Mazatlán, to car trunks on Canal Street-they're all over the world. Chances are, when you're buying off the street or can bargain on the price, you know what you're getting into.
But what if you're after genuine Oakley sunglasses?
Some of these counterfeits are good and only getting better, and they're all over the internet. Before you drop your hard-earned money on a new pair of Oakleys or on replacement lenses that you're expecting to fit into your "Oakleys," here’s how to tell if Oakley sunglasses are real:
1. Check the Price
If it seems too good to be true . . . you know how this ends.
Whether you're shopping for Oakley Sliver XL or Oakley Feedback sunglasses, an authentic pair of Oakleys is typically going to cost you at least $50.00, and that’s if they’re used, old, and probably a little worse for the wear. Anything brand new, straight out of the box is far more likely to be at least in the $80-$100+ range. Granted, this does depend on the model (and also whether the seller came by the sunglasses honestly). It’s always good to check against the retail price and what other frames of the same condition are going for.
If you decide to go for it anyway, here are some other identifiers to be aware of:
2. Look at the Finish
Many of Oakley’s plastic frames are formed with pre-dyed plastic, meaning the plastic pellets used to form the sunglasses are injected with dye, so the plastic is the same color throughout. If you were to snap your frames in half, the inner color of the plastic should be the same as the outer. This isn’t true of all Oakleys, especially those featuring designs or metal frames. Those that are painted feature a high-quality finish that should withstand normal wear and tear for a while.
A fake pair often has the color painted on and lacks a heavy-duty top coat to seal it in. If you fold your stems in and look at the hinge area, you'll likely see a color discrepancy. Also, the paint often chips, scratches, or flakes easily.
3. Beware of an “O” on the Lens
With limited editions such as the Tour de France, MLB, or Ferrari models, there are some Oakley lenses that will have something other than “Polarized” or “Prizm” etched into the lens. You can also get some custom etching from Oakley. Some shield lenses, like lenses for the M Frames, will have “Oakley” etched into the top of the lens, above the nose bridge.
But if the Oakley icon, either the rounded “O” or the square one is printed on the lens, they’re big, fat fakes.
Please note, this applies to non-prescription lenses. Authentic Oakley prescription lenses may have the Oakley "O" etched into the lower corner of the lens. Ballistic and Industrial lenses will also have a small "O" etched into the lens.
4. Bogus SKU
The SKU (pronounced “sk-yew”) is an identification that is often alphanumeric. In older Oakleys, the SKU typically is a sequence of 2 numbers, a dash, and then 3 numbers. An example of a SKU for a pair of Half Jackets is 03-609.
More recent editions are longer and start with a double "O"-the letter, not a zero. 4 numbers, a dash, and then 2 more numbers. An example of this is the Tron Legacy Gascans, which have the SKU OO9143-03.
There are some exceptions, as some Asian Fit models will follow the same format of the 5 number sequence (i.e., 03-609) and then include a “J” at the end.
If you see a SKU with random letters, or a longer string of numbers than what's been identified above, they may be fake Oakley sunglasses. It's a good idea to plug your SKU into a search engine and see what pops up. Some forgers are putting real Oakley SKUs on their knock-offs, but those authentic SKUs rarely match up with the model they're printed on. For example, if you purchased a pair of Holbrooks, but the SKU on them comes up with results for Oakley Straight Jackets, you've most likely got a fake pair on your hands.
On used models, the SKU may have rubbed off, so if there isn’t one, don’t be too alarmed—unless the seller claims they’re new, and then you might want to rethink that purchase, because new Oakleys should still have a SKU. On wire models, sometimes the SKU is located underneath an ear sock.
5. Logo Placement
A lot of fake sunglasses slap "Oakley" on the frames and call it good-not paying attention to whether the model they're faking actually has the Oakley logo in the same place. This is especially common over the nose bridge. If the ones on Oakley's site don't have "Oakley" over the nose bridge, and yours do, then what you've got are phonies. Life-style frames such as Holbrooks and Frogskins are popular knock-offs, and the fakes often feature a misplaced logo.
6. Frame Material
There are some sunglass styles that come in multiple frame materials. For example, the Jupiter line has Jupiter Carbon, which are metal, and Jupiter Squared, which are plastic. The shape of each of these frames is identical, so if you have a metal Jupiter, it doesn’t necessarily mean it’s fake. You can read more about identifying Oakley Jupiters here.
However, there are some styles that only come in one material. If you come across a pair of metal Oil Rigs, they’re 100% fake Oakleys. If you come across a pair of plastic Juliets, they’re also inauthentic.
7. Raised Seams
Counterfeit Oakleys often have imperfect finishing, and the plastic frames may have raised lines from the molding process. On Genuine Oakleys, this seam is almost imperceptible. You can pick it out with your eye, but if you run your finger along it, you shouldn’t be able to feel it.
8. Stickers
More recent Oakleys with polarized lenses will come with a static cling stylized “P.” But they’ll never have a tacky, adhesive sticker that will leave residue when it’s pulled off.
9. Never Made by Oakley
This might seem pretty basic, but not everyone knows the whole line-up of Oakley. They see a pair of sunglasses they like the look of, see it has the Oakley logo, and assume it's real. Die-hard Oakley fans who like to frequent forums call one style, in particular, the "Fandango." Oakley has some pretty interesting sunglass styles, but if you feel like the style is just a little too out there, run an image search and see what comes up. If they don't pop up on any legitimate sites, they're fake sunglasses.
10. Made in USA
The "Made in USA" stamp used to be the go-to indicator as to whether you were dealing with authentic Oakley sunglasses or some fakes.
This is no longer the case, because not all Oakley sunglasses are made in the USA.
Feel free to verify this on Oakley's FAQ .
Hopefully, these tips will help you determine how to spot fake Oakleys. And remember, if you have the originals, a scratched lens doesn't mean you're out the $100-plus you spent on your sunglasses. Find out more about how to replace Oakley lenses.
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