Oakley X-Metal ‘X-Squared’ Polished Carbon/Black Iridium Polarized

By the mid-90s Oakley had established themselves as an industry leader of innovative eyewear but founder Jim Jannard believed it was time to develop what would be known as the ultimate sunglasses, setting Oakley aside from all competitors. This is the concept that birthed X-Metal, a special Titanium alloy that would become the foundation of Oakley’s most sought-after line of frames. Jim Jannard stated in an interview with O-Forum: “I was a big fan of titanium and no one had done Ti eyewear. I thought that combining Ti with sculpture would be a really great thing. There were no factories doing what we wanted so we bought a golf club casting company in Nevada and converted it to manufacturing Ti eyewear. We were told by many that what we wanted to do was impossible. The idea of casting long and narrow parts (like the ear stems) was next to impossible. We ignored the warnings”.

Launched in late 2009, the X-Squared was the model that revived the X-Metal line after the disappointing launch of the Half-X a year prior. The design takes direct inspiration from the beloved original frames with a larger squared juliet-style lens and protruding hammerstems with a unique ‘O’ vent embedded. They had a very limited production run,due to the X-metal line being completely scrapped just a few years after the initial launch of the X-Squared, but they undoubtedly recaptured the love of collectors and turned new eyes onto Oakley once again. 

Great condition with very minor signs of wear - comes with original microfibre bag.