Welding helmets

RatLabGuy

RatLabGuy

You look like a monkey and smell like one too
Joined
May 18, 2005
Location
Churchville, MD
I'm learning to weld... just tarted an arc cllass at FTCC.... thus far, pretty good at welding the electrode to the work :beer:.

now this is something I just want to be able to do to help out on repairs, projects etc. Figure i'll pick up MIG next and that'll likely be the way I go.
Anyhow, i need a helmet. Wondering if there's any secret well-known features/ isues that are/ are not worth it for a guy like me that will probably use it only for hobby on rare occasions.
My vision sucks enough, so I'll at least go for a larger visibility screen area, and from my 1 night's experience so far, I can really see the benefit in an auto-darkening feature.
Anything else?
Is there any real difference between a $50 HF unit and something that $200 from a welder's supply?
 
If you are going to go with an auto darkening, go ahead and spend the money on a decent one. You only get one set of eyes.:beer:
 
i have the $99 blue flame HF auto darkening helmet... got it on sale for $70 and bought the warranty... 6 months of hard use and i'm not blind yet... however i do have some leftover eye jelly and percocet's from my last "incident" just inc ase something does arrise....
 
An auto helmet is good for the guy that is welding small parts all day long on the assembly line. For the hobbiest or weekend welder go old school get a jackson helmet for 40$ & learn to drop your head & trust where you have your hands until the light comes up.
 
Jeff B said:
An auto helmet is good for the guy that is welding small parts all day long on the assembly line. For the hobbiest or weekend welder go old school get a jackson helmet for 40$ & learn to drop your head & trust where you have your hands until the light comes up.
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Good advice. I used to work this way, until I got a job welding for a living. Now I use the Miller XLi. I'm very happy with it. It's light and comfortable, and I've had no problems with neck coverage or anything like that. I think if I had spent $325 on a Jackson NexGen, I would have been a little happier, but I like my Miller! If you ever want to try it out, let me know. You're welcome to come by the shop sometime and strike an arc with it.
 
I have both, prefer the auto darkening one. I have a plate in my neck from a cervical fusion, and using my head motion to lower the the shield gets painful after just a few nods of the head. The bigger viewer is very nice, lets you use your eyes instead of your head to see more.

Not to steal thread, but I have an auto darkening unit that quit working, does anyone know where it could be repaired?
 
Jeff B said:
For the hobbiest or weekend welder go old school get a jackson helmet for 40$ & learn to drop your head & trust where you have your hands until the light comes up.
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I couldn't disagree more.

Mine cost about $180 when I bought it.. Hobart XL. From what I've read, the biggest difference between cheap and good is the reaction time... not something you want to skimp on.

It's pretty light, and I really like the adjustable darkening knob on the outside...

Nice deal on a black one.. http://cgi.ebay.com/jet-black-hobar...ryZ46413QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
 
X2, before my auto darkening helmet, I flashed my eyes a few times, especially stick welding. Get you a good quality auto darkening helmet, you won't regret it.
 
Rich said:
I couldn't disagree more.

Mine cost about $180 when I bought it.. Hobart XL. From what I've read, the biggest difference between cheap and good is the reaction time... not something you want to skimp on.
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Agreed, I had a cheap helmet that I feel was slow on reaction time. By the end of the day I would feel like shit. Bought a Miller, problem solved.


I would get some eye protection that wraps around the whole eye. If you get the right kind they will protect you from serious burns caused by the arc. Then if you get flashed your only dealing with short term surface burns.:beer:
 
Oh, worth mentioning.. At least with my hood, (I'd imagine the others are the same) even if you get flashed (i.e. the sensor doesn't pick up the arc because it's behind the tubing you're welding), you're still protected from the UV..
 
Jeff B said:
An auto helmet is good for the guy that is welding small parts all day long on the assembly line. For the hobbiest or weekend welder go old school get a jackson helmet for 40$ & learn to drop your head & trust where you have your hands until the light comes up.
Click to expand...


:beer:

IMO, learning on a traditional helmet is the way to go. I also believe in learning to stick weld before going to MIG...

Learning to weld with the traditional helmet is easy and you will learn faster. If you learn with an auto darken helmet, then the first time you don't have that and only a traditional helmet, you might as well learn all over again.

For the weekend warrior that rarely uses the helmet, the old school type is the best. You'll never get the $$$ back out of the auto darken helmet to make it a worth while investment.

I welded for a living for over 6 years. I learned with a traditional helmet, used an auto darken a couple of times, but currently still use the traditional helmet.

Once you learn welding with the traditional helmet, your coordination will get better and you won't need an auto darken helmet. Learning with the auto darken will never develop this advantagous coordination. OK, get someone who has been using an auto darken for most of their welding career, regardless of welding skill, see how bad they look when they put on a traditional welding helmet (More evident on some welders than others). Its like a fish out of water...

Its somewhat like a good quality stick welder can pick up MIG and TIG welding very well. But its much harder for soemone whos only had experience with a MIG welder to pick up stick or TIG and have the same learning curve as person who stick welds... I'm just going from years of experience of welding with all processes everyday for the last 6-7 years.


Most quality welding shops have the Fiber Metal welding helmets for around $25. They are lightweight and have the large lense for easier viewing. Plus, if you burn it accidently, you aren't out the hundreds of $$$ you would have spent on an auto darken helmet.


But, if you have the $$$ to spend on a QUALITY ($250 min.) auto darken, then by all means, go for it.
 
rockcity said:
Please explain
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I bought 2 hoods when I got my welder.. old skool and auto-dark. Your typical weekend warrior probably won't have the luxury of a shop, specialized clamps to hold things, and helpers should they be required.
When doing my SOA, I found it invaluable to flip the hood down, hold the piece with one hand, the torch with the other, and get it juuust right and then quickly pull the trigger to tack it in place. This typically happened underneath the rig, holding myself up in a crunch position, etc. etc..
I also get more done, especially when you have to move back and forth on things so they don't warp.

This is just coming form a weekend welder

I just don't see the reason to make things harder than they have to be, and I can't understand how it makes you a better welder to not use one. JMHO.
 
Wow I'm glad this thread came up, I've been using an old school helmet for a while now (learned how to weld w/ it) it basically fell apart on me so my bro got me a hobart autodarkening mask from northern for christmas, it was about $100 can't remember the exact model. Anyway I've used it a couple times and every time i finish welding i feel like I still got my eyes messedc up and I was wondering to myself if the autodark feature just wasnt kicking in fast enough. After reading the above posts i guess thats exactly what is happening then? If thats the case then I'll probably take it back to Northern and trade it in to get another helment, is there a autodark helment northern offers thats good quality for about the $100 price tag?

btw i agree with rich on the autodark being well worth it, its awsome to be able to line everything up and not have to worry about getting the helment back down.
 
Wow, had no idea thsi would stir the pot so much.
After the 1 night's experience, I am thinking exactly of the scenerio Rich mentions, welding by myself w/ limited tools. Just dosn't seem like where my hands are when I flip it down, and where they are when the arc is struck are ever the same. I can only assume this improves with experience/skill.

As for the initial flash, what about wearing a set of wrap-aroudn sunglasses under the helmet? How dark is theelmet lens when non-activated?
 
I learned with a "trditional" flip down helmet and I prefer that to an auto dark but in all fairness I have never used a $$$ autodark.

What I like is the large sight window, where just the shade can be tilted up witout having to raise the whole hood. Got it from borthern for ~20-40 bucks really dont remember. The glass is replaceable for 10 if you mess it up (by say laying a hot torch on it, or so I ...um...heard) and you can filp the shade glass up and still have a safety face shield left.
 
Rich has a good point on his explaniation.

I have a few friends that use auto darken all the time. I swap them over to a traditional helmet and they look like they have never welded before...

IMO, its easy to go from the traditional to the auto, but not from the auto to the traditional.

I've found that I did sometimes fawk up holding things while using the traditional helmet, but I now have learned how to be "smooth" with the flip of the shield and don't move the part while tacking.


Hey, its whatever you want to wear. Everyone has their own experiences/opinions.

IMO, buy the cheap one (traditional) and upgrade later, but its only an opinion
 
I have been welding since I was 16 I am now 37 & still welding for a living. If it is comfortable to you do it.
In my opinion, when learning something new if you learn it in it's hardest fashion everything after that in that category is simple.
Something I have learned about auto helmets-- when you finish a weld don't look at the cherry molten steel right away that cherry color will damage your eyes. If you can see it through your hood (when darkened if auto) then it's to bright to look at let it cool then lift the hood & look.
 
I agree with learning on a traditional helmet, but the because I already have a lack of coordination I improved on my welding with the auto. I also CANNOT weld under my jeep with a regular helmet on because when sitting up I cannot lift the helmet up.
 
RatLabGuy said:
As for the initial flash, what about wearing a set of wrap-aroudn sunglasses under the helmet? How dark is theelmet lens when non-activated?
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Well it is tinted slightly when the autodark isnt engaged but not as much as say like shade 5 but probably about as much as a set of sunglasses. I just think the autodark isnt kicking in fast enough

Hey Rich you said you have the hobart auto dark that is adjustable? I think the one I have is the one step down from yours just the non adjustable, have you had any issues with your eyes still getting messed up?
 
i've used both. not for a job or anything, just learning/fabbing my own stuff. i prefer my miller big window elite to a traditional helmet. i love it. i learned to stick weld w/ a traditional helmet and now MIG w/ the auto darkening. i like being able to see where my hands are and not having to worry about if they've moved, the piece moved, etc. so my vote is for a quality auto-darkening. :)
 
Ive used both the high $ auto darkening helmets and the HF. I have the HF now and i have never had a problem with it. Its had about a year of service and no problems, and i do quite a bit of welding. Its just a little slower than the rest but ive learned to work with it. I bought it cause i just couldnt afford a nice hobart hood and i dont regret buying the cheaper one.

Now as far as auto darkening vs. regular, hands down auto darkening. I will never weld with a regular helmet again. I just love being able to see what im welding.
But thats just my .002.
 
Rich said:
I couldn't disagree more.
Mine cost about $180 when I bought it.. Hobart XL. From what I've read, the biggest difference between cheap and good is the reaction time... not something you want to skimp on.
It's pretty light, and I really like the adjustable darkening knob on the outside...
Nice deal on a black one.. http://cgi.ebay.com/jet-black-hobar...ryZ46413QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
Click to expand...


That looks exactly like my Miller XLi, only mine doesn't have the honking big knob on the outside! It's got two or three little knobs on the inside. Shade, sensitivity, and delay. For those of you who felt like crap after using an auto, where did you have the shade adjusted? It needs to be as dark as possible and still let you see the weld.

To the sunglass comment, don't bother. I discussed this with my optometrist, and he said that that 1/20,000 of a second is not enough to do any damage, plus most if not all autos have UV protection even when the lens is off. Set the shade properly and you won't have to worry.

I love my helmet. I can go from high-current MIG operations to a low-current TIG job with the turn of a knob. I don't have to use another helmet or change my glass. I don't bump my workpiece when I drop my hood, and I can turn a part without lifting it. Makes full-round welds a breeze. My fixed-shade now has a #5 (soon to be #7) in it and is my plasma helmet! :huggy:

My final opinion: If you're taking the class so you can go to your buddy's house and tack on some spring perches or borrow a welder for the occasional fix-it job, don't bother with an auto. Use the cheapie to get you through the class, and until you're sure you're cut out to be a welder. Not all of us are! If you plan on buying a good machine and doing a fair amount of fabrication work, then get a good auto. Factor it into the setup cost. The money that you save on labor will pay for the helmet in the long run.
 
One more thing! Try on several to find out what fits your head best. I couldn't use the HF because it was right up on my face and didn't fully cover my beard and neck. Plus, I have used one of the HFs and didn't think the shade adjustment did much at all. :(
 
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