The Alpinist Mountain Standards reviews apply Alpinist's tradition of excellence and authenticity to gear reviews by providing unbiased, candid feedback and anecdotal commentary to equipment tested (hard) in the field. Our panel is comprised of climbers who use the gear every day as part of their work and play. Only the gear they would actually buy themselves, at retail price, qualifies for the Alpinist Mountain Standards award. The five-star rating system is as follows: One Star = Piece of junk. Two Stars = Has one or more significant flaws, with some redeeming qualities. Three Stars = Average. This solid piece of gear is middle-of-the-road on the current market. Four Stars = Better than most comparable gear on the market. It has one or two drawbacks, but still 90% positive. Five Stars = Is there such thing as perfection? An Alpinist Mountain Standards award-winner. Review Panel Adam George Caroline George Larry Goldie Blake Herrington John Race Bert Severin Jed Workman The rest of the MS Team |
 Julbo Neve: For the ApproachPosted on: September 5, 2007 
MSRP: $50 I'll admit it: I've got a small head. As a result, I've spent the past few years bouncing between glasses that slide down the bridge of my nose, frames that feel like a loose, dead handshake, and cheapos bought shamefully from the children's aisle. So, when Julbo asked me to pick one pair of mountaineering glasses to test, I chose the Neve, a pair of glasses designed with Alti-Spectron X6 lenses for small heads, and, yes, women. Compared to Julbo's Legend, Nomad and Advance, the Neve pair fit like a glove. No sliding on the bridge, no unnecessary space on the slide of my head and the small slide shields blocked enough light to keep me satisfied. Additionally, with 95% light reduction, 100% UV blocking lenses and a 70% tint, the Neve glasses met my requirements for harsh ray protection. advertisement
Yet, despite the Neve's super fit and bomber UV protection, in less than three weeks, I found they lacked the durability necessary to be a true pair of light mountaineering glasses. Julbo's Polycarbonate lenses, equipped with flash coating and anti-glare protection, function extremely well for blocking out the sun, but they are much more susceptible to scratches, dings and the regular wear and tear of the climbing life. On an easy day of climbing at Cube Point in the Tetons my partner sent down some loose scree from a chossy pitch. Subsequently, my left lens gained a sizeable chip, directly in my line of sight. With scree slides pretty much a given in the Tetons, any plastic lens, regardless of its solid UV credentials, is destined to gain some love marks; if these show up in the wrong places, like mine, the irritation they can cause your eyes offsets any advantages gained by light reduction, tint and UV blockage. The Neve frames are a dream for small-cranium'd men everywhere. For easy hikes, as well as snow and glacier travel, where loose rock and scree are not an issue, the Neve would be a near-perfect choice, and deserving of a much higher rating; however, as an all-around pair of mountaineering glasses, my experience proved the scratch-prone Neve less than ideal.  [Photo] Chris Zajchowski Pros: Exquisite for small heads; great tint, light reduction and UV blockage Cons: Alti-Spectron X6 lenses scratch easily with the regular wear and tear of the climbing life Rating: |
I'd like to see more of this kind of reviews on the mountain standards blog. With every products getting 4 or 5 stars it seems like one more marketing review like in the climbing rags. Everything is perfect except maybe for the token dud. Yet after being around the block buying climbing-related gear I can see that most gear is hit or miss, even from so-called reputed brands. I realize that this blog highlights the "better" products but without contrast the value of the blog is quite limited.
In that light, it is refreshing to see a review like this that is not so positive and highlights real shortcomings and limitations that might cause otherwise interested buyers to pause and reconsider.