Last updated 22nd February, 2018 by cacatman.

I'm interested to know about Ruby Lenses. If you have any information about them, please post below.

What's the big fuss about Ruby lenses? Why are they so desired?
- For some, it re-ignites their attraction to the X-Men hero Cyclops's visor and blinkered sunglasses he wears, to prevent the rays from his eyes burning through all they cast their gaze on. Others, just love the deep, rich red (aided by blue.....) and it's almost mesmerising 'shimmer' of different elements of colour........one minute it appears to be red, then a purple....then a deeper red, a pink and so on.... (@Funky-Trixtar)

Spectrum of Ruby Lenses (in Order)
+Red, early Ruby, OO RIP, Prizm Baseball, Ruby, early Fire, Fruby, late Fire, 24k (thanks @Carrera1963)

What are the difference between colours, Ruby, Fruby, +ive Red, OO Red, Torch, Baseball Prizm, New Prizm Ruby?
@Funky-Trixtar - You wrote, "as far I know the Ruby only has a blue inner coating". Vision through the lens will look bluish when looking at a bright light source.
@kronin323 explains it this way - The base coat without the iridium is actually grey but it is the iridium coating that makes it look blue when looking through the lens.
- Earliest generation Fire has a brutal red with deep brown tones (@Funky-Trixtar)

Variations Are Expected
- a true Ruby lens, should never consist of yellow or orange, within the centre or the mid lens, possibly on the periphery (the very edges of the lens). (@Funky-Trixtar)
- Some fire look almost like 24k, some like rubies and others like, well, fire (@Carrera1963)
- That the early lenses were all good is a bit of a myth, there was variability even back then. The chances of them being a better hue were higher but some later batches are very good ruby too - I have some OEM replacement lenses made in 2015 that are a strong red. I have seen speculation here that the process was shortened for ruby, which led to them becoming more inconsistent. (@Carrera1963)
- Many Oakley lenses can vary from batch to batch, but this does seem to plague ruby more than any other. (@Carrera1963)
- You can’t really discuss early ruby without mentioning early fire either. Those lenses tended to be more orange than today, but sometimes with a lot of red in too and less yellow than today. The strongest fires can be redder than the worst of today’s rubies. The blues, on the other hand, seemed to be consistent right from the word go, with the exception of the green/blue and purple/blue Ichiro lenses off the top of my head. (@Carrera1963)
- Fruby refers to Ruby that looks like Fire, not Fire that looks like Ruby (@kronin323)

X-Men Juliets
What is so special about the ruby lenses in the X-man released X-metal coloured Juliets serialled 1-4,999?

Were the "good" ruby lenses only found in those numbers? Or can you "get lucky"?

Availability as Aftermarket OEM Lens Kits?
Juliet replacement Ruby lenses were only available non-polar. My Ruby polar in my Mars were cut from Big Taco (@kronin323). There were others also.

Other OEM Fruby Lenses
I know there were OTT Ruby lenses but were ruby lenses released in other (cuttable) lens shapes?
Ruby OTT lens from @Funky-Trixtar's collection
Ruby Lenses 101 - 2562-1416521764-5c1088534d612213b77073e57e6af4c0.jpg

How can I tell a genuine Ruby lens when I see one in the wild?
- Go OUT in the sunlight with no or as few objects surrounding the lens as possible. You really don't want any obstructions to change/hinder the final colours reflected by the lenses (@Funky-Trixtar)

Different Other Ruby-ish Lenses and How to Tell the Difference
- Ikon lenses that are ruby have a grey base tint (@NuttyOAK13Y, @Jon the Don)
- OEM Fire lenses have a contrast base; some describe it a greenish but it's more brownish IMO (@kronin323)
- OEM Torch lenses have a lighter blue base tint (@kronin323) and have a grey base (@NoFair)
- Fuse Lenses are thinner (@SolarOracle)
- Premium red linegear lenses have an etch on the edge of the lens (@Linegear Japan)
- OEM Fruby also has a blue base tint but looks like fire from the outside (@Funky-Trixtar)
- The difference between old Ruby and old Fire lenses are the tones of colour used. For Fire, mainly Red with a minor Brown base tint and for Ruby, mainly Red with a minor Blue base.
- Prizm Ruby has more purple in the lens like the older Ruby lenses everyone likes. The Ruby Polarized has more orange in it or as we call it "Fruby" because it looks like a mix of Fire and Ruby lenses with less purple and more orange (@Jontoad) (see his picture below)
Ruby Lenses 101 - 20170602_164703.jpg Ruby Lenses 101 - 20170602_164453.jpg

Picture stolen from @jdd32
Ruby Lenses 101 - PhotoGrid_1504061530088.jpg

Iridium Coating - Can it Affect the Base Tint? (@kronin323)
Can the iridium coating affect the base tint appearance?

Ruby Lenses in Films
- X-Men
- Black Hawk Down - Eric Bana's character, Hoot (@Funky-Trixtar)

Best Way To Photograph Ruby Lenses (When Buying/Selling) (@Funky-Trixtar)
When looking to buy a Ruby pair, always, always insist on seeing them out in natural light. Because electric light(no matter how much daylight simulation they're claimed to be)can and will hide tones/distort the end perception. When they are taken, ask to have them free of as much surrounding matter as possible: have them photograph them on a white or grey neutral back ground, probably best with grey, there'll be less glare.
The shape of the frame can dictate the tone of Ruby which is seen also. The larger the size of the lens, the less likely the end colours will be like Ruby.

THANKS...

The early Ruby colour really sparks my synesthesia!

I can taste it. Tastes like - Turkish delight mixed with Refreshers!