I used to have a Jackson shadow. it was an ok good helmet. I was welding inside a door arch on a water leak at a steel mill I use to work at with a heat of steel in the furnace. I reached up to flip the hood down and it was so hot in there my fingers went through the plastic........ that was a hot job.:usa then for a while I had a fibremetal 2006 with a little leather apron on it. that was not bad because it was small and I could stick my head in small spots. it had the small window though and that sucked. then somebody piled welding leads on top of it and smashed it down and now it is permanently narrow and tries to shear my ears off every time I raise and lower it. at all my jobs we had sort of a community speedglass auto tint that the company bought. since everybody used it (and they all loved it and used the s#$%t out of it) it got real beat up. every time I wanted to use it I had to put batteries in it and a new clear lens and I just finally gave up on it. the community one we have at work now seems to me to be broken through rough handling and I can't see crap through it anymore. I don't know what is wrong with it but I just can't see the weld. tried going up and down with the tint to no avail.A guy my mom was dateing left some old 1980's helmet at her house one time with a gold lens. he split and it got added to my collection. it was the sort of helmet where the window flips open so you can grind and use it as a face shield. It was ok but it was heavy. that gold lens was AWESOME! best picture ever! it was like watching a black and white tv my whole life then all the sudden welding was in color! but then the gold tint got scratched and everything was double. like a weld right beside a weld and I had to ditch it. so for the last 5 or 6 years I have been using a bargain store 20$ Jackson look alike. plain jane green GLASS lens in it. it's ok but the headgear is cheap and it tends to not stay adjusted and falls down. so I am toying with the idea of a new helmet. I may try another speedglass of my own that I can take care of but I never felt like it had a good picture like the gold lens did. I like to really be able to see good when I am welding. I'm not that crazy about the auto tint helmets. I guess I have been using a regular helmet for so long that it just doesn't bother me and they are not as durable. wow that turned into a long story and I didn't even answer my own question.:Banghead
I have a low end auto-darkening helmet I use for tacking up and jobs with a lot of trigger stitching. If I'm doing any fabrication or production type welding I have a fairly light helmet with the big porthole window and a gold lens. Won't fit in tight spots, but it's comfortable to wear and great visibility. I have heard that not everybody gets the same picture through the gold lenses but like you, the first time I tried one, I was hooked. By the way, helmets are cheap and you only get one pair of eyes from the factory, so get the best helmet(s) you can afford and keep good clean scratch free lenses in them. Cheers.
3M Speedglas 9100xx. I've been told it's "too nice for SMAW" welding. best helmet on the market, coming from a Jackson fan.
I weld a lot and had speedglass and nexgen hoods...I now have a cheap rural king special flip up lens.I was able to heat up edges and form the helmet to cut back light to near zero...I use 2x4 solar auto lens with 150 cheater in flip up and a 150 cheater in the hood...the high dollar autos eat betteries and get water damaged to easy, let in backlight too much, and are difficult to switch from welding to grinding. the rural king cheapy is light and $12.95...I also replaced the plastic hood flip down pins with 1/4 -20s with locking nut so it stays adjusted for 3 months at a time. I am at the top of my game with a custom hood for less than $100.
I have a 'collection' of around 20-25 hoods.A few years ago a friend turned me on to "Accustrike" hoods from cherokee mfg.They're the ones that have a chin operated window.It takes a little getting used to,but when you do you'll love it.No batteries to mess with,good american made quality hoods.It really doesn't take much chin movement at all,you can adjust the amount of window opening on the chin strap.It's pretty slick.After I got my first one,I bought 2 more-they're that good,at least I think so. I always wanted an Optrel or Speedglass,but couldn't bring myself to spend that kind of money. I guess Matco tools used sell them,maybe they still do.I got mine from their website.I think they're around a hundred bucks or so.I highly reccomend them!
Curb Guy wow ...looks like a cool hood....I would have problem with it not being standard 2x4 size lenses that contractors provide...and then there's the cheater situation 1/2 the power when grinding all the power when welding is perfect...and the the back light issue is real important to control...sometimes I want to lock hood to look up 45 degrees, I like the fact that it stays were I put it but its not to tight that I pull it off my head when I move it. I do a lot of difficult position welds with obstacles stick and tig. no frustration is important because it can be a pain. oh ya and they want it mounted on a hard hat too.
I've always run flip hood helmets, the bigger lens's in them, they are cheaper to use, and actually I've never worn one out, can't tell you the manufacturer of them though, whatever my welder supply shop sells, I've got about four of them. I've tried the auto darkening helmets on the market and I can't handle them, no matter how fast you set the setting to, I get a headache using them after even a hour of use. I've tried those smaller flip versions where the helmet stays down and you flip up the window, didn't like those either, tried those chin flip one's too, and just never got used to them, so I took it back. I use the larger window flip helmets in them with either a clean lens only to grind with, and a lighter shade in one for when I'm using a cutting torch too, that's why I have so many of them, two to weld with, one for grinding, one for cutting torch use, that's how much I like them.
Kids bought me one from Harbor freight a few years back, it is the auto darken type, works great. Before that had old ones that I'd have to move back and forth to get the jobs done.
I've been using the same jackson "big lens" for 7 or 8 years. I think it retailed for an astonishing $35. Before that i had an old school "pipeliner" hood with a 2x4 flip lens. I probably put down a mile worth of bead with that untill the headgear wore out. As far as auto darkening i love the miller elite. By far my favorite hood for light mig and tig but my respirator fits under the jackson much better, which is important for me for FCAW and dual shield.
I had an old Speedglas I used for tacking and stitching, and a large window helmet....I think is a Fibremetal.......with a gold lens for any serious work. My Speedglas finally bit the bullet after 15 years, so I was looking around for a new auto helmet to replace it. Turns out, while I was at the welding distributor shooting the bull with a friend of mine who happens to be the road salesman, the Miller rep arrived. I don't know what he said to him, or how he pulled it off, but my friend got me a free Miller Elite helmet. I haven't even had a chance to try it out yet, but hope to soon. I don't even live in that area anymore, and was just back home visiting....talk about good timing.
Miller Digital Elite is the helmet I use and i like it we have jackson around the shop and they seem heavy beside my miller! Just my 2 bits! Jerry
I went and checked, my non electronic helmet is actually a Sellstrom.....oops.
I bought a snap onYA4606 about a year ago it is auto darkening and I love it has a grind lockout and is solar powered I use it every day $250 cash on the truck I think it listed for $349. Some people hate the tool trucks but they have to drive 12 miles down a rock road to get to my shop and they come every week so I support them as much as I can.
miller digital elite for an auto dark or the old huntsman big window for a regular lense.
I like my speedglas for small work , hard to set up welds, but hate the headband setup, for something you pay a LOT for you think that would not be soo cheep. still have my huntsman and jacksons.
The version I have is the one having the headband and pivot parts stocked in the welding supply house: when mine breaks I want to fix it and not have to buy a new one 'cuz we don't make that model anymore'. Huntsman fiber shell, looks like it was hand fabricated, has Al frame for lens. No lens flip up. Shake your head and it drops into position, final position is adjustable. * Air Gas (Radnor brand) sells gold lens for about $10.
Optrel Satellite- Had it for 8 years http://www.amazon.com/Uvex-UVXK601-Optrel-Satellite-Welding/dp/B001SMNILC
I favor the Fibre Metal Model 990.
miller elite? auto dark and then an old as dirt fixed shade lincoln. pigpen
have a speedglass auto-dark, its good but why dont they make it so the cover comes under your chin, like all the old hoods, and keeps some of the smoke away, said this to speedglass and they tried to sell me a air fed unit at savage eruos, probadly just answer my own quesion there,do most of my welding outside using LN 25 of a Vantage 500 and 233 wire and it gives of a lot ****,
One of the issues with the hoods that go under your chin like that is they are awkward in tight places and when you're looking down for some people. Hence the smaller profile of the newer style helmets. You can take one of the older style hoods and buy an autodarkening lens for it too if you want to try that. Now the respirator setup is a very good idea to have, really saves your lungs no matter what you are welding. Unfortunately they aren't cheap but they are worth the money and will save you big $$$ on doctor bills...
I would love to have one with the respirator but they are out of my price range. When I was in the navy I had to do lot of tig welding. With only a navy stock system issued helmet. It weighed a ton and looked straight out of the 1940’s. I had trouble with arc flash coming up under my chin and burning my neck. I would wear a bandana around my neck. I just bought a Hobart hood. Cheap. The head gear is junk. Wouldn’t stay up right off the bat. Kept tightening the screws. After about 3 hours of welding they stripped. They were about 1/2 as big in diameter as all my other hoods. I drilled it all out and heated up 10-32 brass screws and melted them right into the stubs, then melted brass nuts into the knobs. Added a friction washer into it and It’s actually pretty nice now.
I've used a lot of different hoods, but my go to hood is a Jackson "big plate" with a gold filter. I don't see why anyone would want to use anything other than a gold lense, that's how much I like mine. As for head bands, mine has the adapters to attach it to a hard hat. Nathan
optrel e680 is what I like
Boss jackson
I have tried 3 different auto darkening helmets and have had bad results with all 3. Battery's go dead to often and the auto shade doesn't always work. Had lots of eye burn over the years and don't like it. The biggest issue that I find with the auto shade units is cold weather. A lot of my work is outside or inside but with no heated shop in the winter. The auto shades just don't like cold. I will stick with my "old school" flip helmet with gold lens. if anyone does know of a auto shade that will work in could weather then i sure would like to try one.
I have a Jackson with a gold lens is my go to. I bought a Weldcote ultraview auto darkening. Beautiful helmet, beautiful view, light weight, but after 3 months it wouldn't darken all the time. occasionally it would flutter on and off while i was welding. I haven't had a chance to change the battery, but I know it has a 3 year manufacturer warranty in the event the battery isn't the issue. It's a solar lens and I think the battery is mostly for the memory settings, but the troubleshooting in the manual suggests changing the battery. In any event, I paid like 40 bucks for the tribal designed Jackson over 10 years ago and it is still my favorite.
2 guys I used to work with swear by these, they are both welder/fabricators full time. I can't justify the expense for occasional welding and repair jobs.
I use old school flip helmets only, with cheap generic reading glasses underneath. Mostly I stick weld, sometimes flux core. When I fabricate, it seems that anything that isn't rugged gets destroyed one way or another. I don't want anything fancy.
Miller Elite. Got the magnifier lens, and I like that the lens is a bit bigger that the old 2 x 4 style of which I have too many.Nice lid, but not enough room for a respirator.
Miller has some respirators that fit under helmets. https://www.millerwelds.com/safety/respiratory/half-mask-respirators-m00469 https://www.millerwelds.com/-/media/miller-electric/imported-mam-assets/spec-sheets/f/0/b/ay4-5.pdf
I have a solar auto-darkening welding helmet , the UV protection is 16 levels, the shade range is DIN 4 / 9-13. It works well.
Welcome to HEF, Harris ! What is the brand name of the helmet ?
Esab sential a50. The headgear is comfortable lense is clear and front shield changes out fast.
Miller digital elite... Beside optical light sensors, it has an electronic sensor that detects the arc. Using tig or obstructed stick I wasn't always getting the dark switch. The electronic sensor nails it every time. Downside, besides the $$$ ... the thing is HEAVY.
I have some of the older high end miller’s And one Jackson I love the Jackson it’s all I’ve been using lately
The Lincolns are generally less money than Millers. There are several other good helmets that aren't household names that are reasonably priced. Arc One is one of them. Looking at new lens technology what you want is 4 arc sensors and 1,1,1,1 clarity for the lens. The biggest viewing area is also very beneficial. Also check on the cost of replacement inner and outer lenses and make sure the batteries for the auto lens are easily replaceable. Optrel makes a very good helmet but their earlier models were sealed and you couldn't replace the battery(s). A new replacement lens was the only option but only about $50 to $60 less than a complete new helmet. Lastly try helmets on and get one that is comfortable for you. Not every helmet suits every welder. I think some helmets have an accessory to make them fit extra large heads.
I've found the autodarkers that only have solar charging start cutting out if you do a full day of welding. Now I make sure I have battery backup. I'm having good luck with SnapOn's fancy hood
Some solar helmets say to place them in the sun for several hours to charge the solar cell.