What? Another welding question? Yup!

[metalbender]

I'll chime in on the cheater lens, don't get one too strong. +1.25 or 1.5 does wonders. Also being over the hill, I sometimes loose my way on a bead, need plenty of light. Should try to lighten up the shade, why didn't I think of that.

 

[dragoneggs]

I'll chime in on the cheater lens, don't get one too strong. +1.25 or 1.5 does wonders. Also being over the hill, I sometimes loose my way on a bead, need plenty of light. Should try to lighten up the shade, why didn't I think of that.

True, most of us geezers, our eyesight is poorest in low light. Try adjusting your shades if you haven't played with that. Also helps immensely.

 

[ArlyA]

Gee, I had the same problem and brought myself a better helmet. Which one are you using??

I have what a lot of y'all call a toy, the 90Amp HF Flux Wire thing. Does what I have needed so far which is just tacking stuff together, ain't none of which is purdy.

But here's my issue ... I can't see what I'm doing! Once I get the hood on and start arcing, all I see is the arc and the bright orange goop. I can't see the joint to know if the goop is where I want it or not. I have to take the hood off and wait for the goop to cool to see if I'm in the right spot.

Is this typical?

 

[Industrial Toys]

I have an old Speed Shade helmet, my mother bought me for x-mas from Princess Auto, maybe twenty years ago. Can someone say, why helmet optics might be different? Saying one is better than another is somewhat meaningless and yet worth noting for further investigation.

 

[yomax4]

Some of the newer hoods have much better optical quality. Others have high optical quality and are much lighter in the light shade. High Optical Quality gives a fantasticly clear view while welding. You do get a little more for more $. A company called Weldcote Metals has a very high definition hood at a very low cost. Somewhere in that $140 range. Don't remember the model but it's like Kleer View HD or something similar. Remember to keep changing your cover plates. Even new ones can distort your view..Good Luck.

 

[dstig1]

Crappy helmet could be the first issue. If you are serious about welding even for home or farm repairs, try spending at least $100 on a decent one to start.

As for shade, everyone's eyes are different and it can depend on what you are doing. Since I put in a pair of cheaters, I have found I needed to move my shade up from 10 to 11 or i would start seeing spots after a few minutes of welding. Sometimes that makes it harder to see, but a halogen worklight on the weld area will do a lot to fix that. Find what works for you on shade. If you try 11 and can't see diddly, then try 10. Still too dark? Try 9. When you get done welding and start seeing spots, you know you went too low, so bump it up one at least. Then if it is hard to see, try extra light like the halogen i mentioned. It reduces the contrast between the super bright arc and the surrounding area, making it easier to see what is going on.

 

[OkieDave]

I agree with the above suggestions to flood the area with light. Right now, your vision is probably being overpowered by the arc. Put a couple of bright halogen lights on the work, turn the shade up if you need to, and you'll likely find that the arc isn't nearly so bright relative to the work.

 

[4570Man]

I’ve never had a “good” auto dark hood, but I haven’t liked the several I’ve tried. I can see better with my old fashioned glass lens hood. Sometimes I wear the auto dark for a complex tac job, but any welding is essentially by feel with it. I found with enough light you can see through the permanent dark hood before you start welding but after that I didn’t find the light to be of much use.

 

[ArlyA]

In this thread.

https://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/welding/387655-auto-darkening-helmet.html?highlight=helmet

I picked up a Tacklife PAH03D welding helmet which cost in the $70 area. Let me add, I clean the lenses inside and out, with each use.

I should have got a a better helmet years ago! Gee, I can really see again.. The Tacklife PAH03D controls are very nice, easy to use and understand, plus the helmet is quite light. There is a slight green tint when the darkening is not engaged which does not bother me. The only thing I'm not impressed with, as another responder had mentioned, its head gear doesn't appear to be very durable. I'll agree but i don't do all that much welding anyway. I added decals to the helmet, so shop kids don't use or run off with it.