I know I want an auto darkening one. What brands/models should I be looking at. I know tools, cars, etc when someone says "you get what you pay for." Is it necessary to spend $200-$300 like I've been seeing for a decent helmet?

 

I have a speedglas.2000x series i think.

 

Harbor Freight has a decent auto-dark one for like $60. I just use a std. flip helmet. If I start missing my target with my welder by just flipping my helmet, I might as well hang it up.

 

Head over to your local welding supply shop-store. Most of them only carry the ones that will hold up and are not POS,s. I would think you could find a good one for around 150.00 or so. The cost really depends on the lense size. Be it the smaller lense or the full face type of style. For home use the small lense works great for me. I could see if you were behind it for full days on end, then the large on would be a must.

 

I just wanted to pass some info on I got from my local supplier. He was saying that he went to a convention on the auto darkening helmets and the data was pretty scary. He said after seeing how unprotective they really are, he won't wear one, and won't sell one. I'm not going to go into the specifics because I would just be trying to pass on second hand info, but his argument was enough for me to stick with my ole school helmet. See if you can find something on the internet. Doesn't hurt to be an informed consumer.

 

I use a Miller Elite helmet I really like it i mostly use it for GTAW proceses, I use a standard flip down helmet for SMAW and mostly over head. Also the elite has 4 independent sensors. Make sure whatever helmet you get has a good shade time rating. The elite has a shade time of one 25thousands of a second and is underated. Also the NexGen helmets are good. I wouldnt run a foreign auto change helmet as well,better to get one from a reputalbe company its your eyes. If you plan on SMAW welding overhead you shouldnt use a Auto change helmet.

 

If you want the largest viewing auto darkening go with a Jackson or Miller Elite. I got the Miller Elite (Black) on sale for $150, they retail for $300. Don't get a fancy helmets because the splatter will make it look like after a couple of uses, unless you are strickly using it for TIG welding.

 

i wear a huntsman flip down hood, made from coated card board. i am a pipefitter and weld every thing from 2-1/2''gas lines to 24'' steam lines. i like the auto dark hoods for TIG welding but for all others i prefer manual because you cant grind with an auto dark hood. you could always wear safety glasses under your hood to grind or trade it for a face shield but its kind of a hassle.just depends on your type of welding.i mostly stick weld.

 

i have this helmet:
http://www.weldingmart.com/Qstore/p002766.htm

and i love it.....it's a little bulkier than the speedglas helmets, so it's not always great for tights spots, but overall i like it better......they've got versions that take AAA battery, some also have solar assist to help with battery life.....you can wear this while grinding as well, it has a mode for that and for burning....

i use it for every position, every process, and it is fine......if your concerned about how pretty it stays, then yeah, buy a cheap helmet for overhead welding, but i just get extra replaceable plastic shields and replace those every now and then......with some of the cheap helmets you have to watch it because some of the controls will be on the outside, exposed to heat and hot spatter....

as far as eye problems with the auto-darkening helmets, the worst flash problems still come from catching periphrial flashes.......i got more flash when i used a flip down helmet(oops, the shield was up again) then i ever have with an auto-dark helmet.....maybe the safety issue has some merit, but for the time being i'm good with it....

 

Thanks for all the input! This is definitely what I was wanting to hear...There's hope for a quality helmet at a good price.

 

WELL, in theory at least they should all protect you to at least a minimum standard, everything, single shade, auto darkening (even in it’s lighter shade mode, like if it failed) are supposed to protect you from UV (and I believe IR also) the same as a shade 16, all the time.

That being said, I’ve found that I have problems with auto darkening helmets, I can actually see the arc flash that they’re reacting to and then I get the spots in my vision (like if you were looking at the weld without a shield or staring at a camera flash) from that so I can’t see the weld anyway, even when they are set at maximum sensitivity and the faster of the 2 basic designs.

Most people don’t see that flash, but with a lot of welding it’s not uncommon for people to start getting headaches with them that has been blamed on one of 2 things, either people subconsciously seeing the flash but not reacting fast enough to actually notice it or from the distortion of the extra layer in the filter (if you look an auto darkening helmet is never _quite_ as clear as a single shade).

Another thing to think about is that Lincoln, who sells their own auto darkening helmets got rid of all of them on their own assembly line.

FWIW, for about 90% of what I do I use my old, cheap, CH, large port single shade. I do keep an auto darkening helmet around for welding in tight spots (like frame work under a car…) or really delicate stuff like some TIG welding where flipping down just won’t work. In those cases I just close my eyes for a second when I’m about to strike the arc.

 

which autodarkening helmet do you use? on my helmet the maximum sensitivity basically makes it a single shade, and when it's off it protects to a 14 shade.......my eyes are very sensitive to light, i've had a history of major headaches from youth(before i ever welded), and i've never had an issue with either my speedglas or jackson......watching the puddle is harder on my eyes than any initial flash, i usually set my shade so that i can just barely make it(the puddle) out......

basically only prolonged, unfiltered exposure to a welding arc will cause any long term damage, and that is documented......most eye damage that occurs from welding arc is from people catching it out of the corner of their eye for long periods of time....

i worry more about the fumes than the light....

 

exactly.

 

I’ve used probably a dozen different ones with all the same results… everything from the speedglass and Jackson higher end ones to the cheap HF ones. Oh, and too be honest, I couldn’t tell the difference in actual performance, some of the cheaper ones didn’t have as many controls, but otherwise they worked the same, it’s more a question of the actual helmet fit and controls (I have one with an external **** for shade selection that I hate, somehow, and I haven’t figured out when I do it, I always manage to move the ****, at least it always goes to a darker shade).

As far as going dark on max sensitivity, a lot of that depends on lighting, most will if you do some grinding in front of it or if you look into a light, which can be quite annoying. Some have a “grinding” setting to prevent that.

 

i have a miller big window elite with the stars and stripes decal.i paid like $225 and have welded tig and mig the graphics dont seem to get that bad with mig but the removable spatter gaskets do get dirty but they are cheap and only take a couple mins to switch out. The helmet comes with a few when you buy it also.