Quick Question on Auto Dimming Helmets

[Gordo]

Guys,

As you may know, I'm looking at picking up a new (and my first) electrical welder. I'll also be picking up a helmet at the same time.

Brands aside, are these auto-dimmers as safe as a fixed shade (old school) helmet? In particular, after a long day welding with an auto-dimmer, do any of you guys notice eyes watering, seeing dots, etc. due to the delay between the shade being activated after striking the arc? I know the delay is very small... I'm just wondering if it "adds up" over a long day of welding.

I DO realize these auto-dimmers have a lot of advantages and are the current trend. However, I also like my eyes! Most liklely going to pickup the BWE due to it's 1/20,000 delay time.

[ASKANDY]

Good question Gordo.

I do a bunch of welding and when I do shows like the SEMA/AAPEX show or PRI show where I weld from 9 to 6 every day my BWE fits and runs like a glove. No ill effects from welding at length. Just get a good one, not a cheapie.

Andy

[dyn88]

most auto darkenig helmets claim to be safe even withou the full shde. This doesnt answer about fatigue though

[Paul Seaman]

Gordo:
Welcome aboard and I've had an e hood for 6-7 years and will say when I bought the first one my welding got better very quickly. As andy pointed out get a good one and stay away from the bargain basement models, I believe they are an injury looking for a place. Most of the welders around here are using the Speedglas or Optrel satalite but the the miller hoods are great as well, I own a speedglas and a miller and they are very equal arc on, but the style is much better on the miller.

Peace,

[Bendaman]

I've have a couple speedglas helmuts: my favorite is the 9002x. They have
all worked great.

[Paul Seaman]

I also like the speedglas mine is a 9000x, which is a bit older model but I wouldn't trade it for the newest anything. The fact is there are many great models but the magic is the one you choose has to fit and feel good and work right.
Peace,

[fun4now]

B.W.E. S&S

i have the BWE and love it, it fits and feels better than my old school helmit and even though i forgot to turn it on a cuple of times i have never had any ill effects. it might just be the fit but it seems lighter than my fixed shad hood?fatege is less, speed is up. my only problem was getting my hand to stop reaching to lift the hood after the arc it always went clear befor i grabed it to lift and i felt kind of silly like a robot without a program LOL.after i stoped trying to lift the hood and went right to seting up for next bead my speed and quality improved. eys and neck feel beter after a day with the BWE as i can run a darker shade and see better with the BWE.


i think the fact that i dont spend all the time with the hood fliped up it dosent pull on your neck so it feels beter at the end of the day, somthing i havent herd mentioned befor but though you might like to know


it is well werth the $$ you will love it.

[jeffscarstrucks]

Hi, I think that if you are new to this fun an auto-dark will shorten the learning curve considerably. I have a couple of them; my latest is an Optrel and it is very comfortable even after crawling around under something where you couldn't even think about flipping up and down. Good Luck, JEFF

[fun4now]

jeffscarstrucks

yep, i have seen lots of advantages to the auto-dark.i have stoped reaching now and love it. the overal comfort is great and easily noticed.i'm shoure it would be the same with any GOOD auto-helmit as i have herd good things about several brands. just have to stay away from the cheepo's

[Kelly Aitken]

Take it from a guy who fights technology all the way. (indoor plumbing, who knew that would work out so well?) Auto darkening is great. The first time I used one, I didn't like it much. Maybe it was trust issues. I have had flash burn before. No fun at all. Now I use one and can't imagine going back. Like eveyone else says. Spend the bucks and buy a good one.

[Wheat]

It's almost comparing a black and white TV to a color. Embrace the technology. The bad thing about an auto darkening helmet is you can't appreciate it if you have NEVER used a flip down conventional type. Miller, Optrel, Speedglas, it's hard to go wrong with any selection. Mainly all personal preference.

[eric75]

I actually started on the school's bottom of the line auto helmet. They work if you remember to close your eyes when stating. It's actually a good reflex to develop. Now I can't even watch them weld on TV without closing my eyes. Also, some models need to be solar charged before they can be used, otherwise they will take extra long to switch the first time.

This all worked OK for me until I bought my own fixed shade 10. The bigger window is good for when your sitting in a roll cage twisting your neck and bumping your head on a tube. Also the fact that it's my own (doesn't have other peoples scratches in it) makes it nice. I can almost see colors through it. I can tell by the arc color how clean my tungsten is. I can see more details on the base metal. the best part is after a few hours of welding, my eyes aren't sore. If you can't afford a good quality auto helmet, it is far worth the extra hassle of flipping one up and down.
When I teach other students, I start them off on the auto just so there is one less thing to get wrong, but they all know my preference is for the one you can use all day.

[Blown S-10]

i would say the 2 bad things about a/d helmets. the cost, but they are worth it. and the FACT that you actually have to TURN IT ON before it will work well. in the heat of the moment its possible to forget to do this.

if you have not used a good one, you DON'T know what you are missing.

[Leons2003]

I'm still using my OLD hood w/the nominal a/d replacement appliance and
does well w/mig, stick but when I started to learn tig I discovered it would not work well due to not enough flash to run the photo cell, bummer. So I went back to my fixed shade. I'm too stingy to update to the battery powered auto, maybe someday, grin.
The beauty of the auto shade is that when one is welding thin sheet metal such as autobody panels, which as we know is subject to burning though in a hurry, the torch is in the right place for the tacks, likewise for tig or even just stick rod, no searching for the gap. To my notion, the best thing since sliced bread, LOL
Have a good day All,
L*S

[question]

bought a miller

I too had to look into buying an auto hood, i searched around and lurked on some forums and then went to my local welding store . I knew if it was the miller hood i wanted the 4 sensors (learned from lurking on forums). I checked out the speedglass and the miller. The guy at the store recommended the speedglass over the miller as they typically sold more speedglass, however he did say that he wouldn't sell me the speedglass unless i also bought half a dozen replacement windows because he knew i would go through em?? The miller came with extra windows and was a bit cheaper and it was painted stars and stripes -(looked cooler.. hey i'm a sucker). Anyways, I have been very happy that I bought it, works great and response time is fast. I do wish that it had a red led to let you know that it is actually turned on. I typically weld for a few minutes and then take it off and go cut metal or something else , so it would be nice to know if it is still on, I end up just pressing the on button just to be sure. BTW the paint on this hood is great, I was under my chassis welding and a brake line dripped fluid all over it so i grabbed a paper towel and it came off with no damage whatsoever to the clearcoat on the paint. That was good, although after bumping the hood into the chassis numerous times i have figured out that it will get scratched someday, although it has no scratches at this point (surprised to be honest)

anyway I would have bought the speedglass if the miller didn't have the lenses. Just because they spoke so highly of it.

one small complaint about the miller hood is that i find i have to tighten the tension knobs everytime i use it. I would like to set em once and forget about em.

best of luck