Recommend Welding Helmet

[BUCKEYE4X4]

Looking to upgrade to auto darkening

What is the best helmet?

What is the best helmet for the money?

Application is for limited use working on my rig, not daily all day.

thanks

Karl

[snowcruiser]

I have a Miller auto-dimming helmet that I love. It comes with a bag and a bunch of extra plastic shields for the front to replace as they get pitted over time. The one I got was the last one in the shop about a year ago and they were carrying another brand so I am not sure if this one is made any more but it is the shiattt. I've also used a Huntsman and it was pretty nice also.

[honk]

I've got two autodarkening helmets - one a Miller XLii (I think it's called) and the other I got at Harbor Frieght, made by some company called "Arc One".

The HF one is solar powered and always ready for use. I've never been flashed by forgetting to turn it on and after a year and a half it's working fine. It keeps on being the one I grab when I go to weld. I never have to worry about it getting binged up because it was $49. on sale.

But it's max darkening number is 11, and I thought I'd sometimes want to have the full level 13 and I bought the Miller. The Miller is slightly more comfortable because it came with this nice pad for the headgear. It turns on with a little button inside and it has a little knob to adjust 'sensitivity' that I can't push or turn with gloves on, and it'll turn itself off after a while so it needs to be checked to see if it's on all the time. It does go to 13 and it seems a little bit lighter when there's no arc to look at but I think that overall it's a PITA so it stays in it's bag in a drawer. I think I don't want to mess it up because it cost around $200.

Something else about the Miller that I don't like. If you need accessories, like maybe a magnifying lens, you have to find Miller parts or be prepared to cut, file, or otherwise modify generic pieces. This is true in most Miller equipment I think - they make their stuff a little different so you have to buy their proprietary products at their usually higher prices. It means that the hardware store won't have anything to help you use a Miller product on a Sunday in a pinch.

[e rock]

I'm far from any kind of expert, but I have to say that buying a $50 (half-price sale - normally $100) Harbor Freight auto hood has made the biggest improvement in my welding happiness to date. Works great, every time. What more do you need? OK, the headband is kind of clunky to adjust with gloves on and not the most comfortable, but I don't wear it all day either.

[theo]

I spent a lot of time on forums like this one, http://www.weldingweb.com/, reading about the pros and cons of cheap helmets. I bought an Optrel Satellite after agonizing for weeks. Local dealer came down to the lowest internet price without much persuasion. Still spendy, though.

[Gumby]

I have a cheapo solar auto darkening. After about 7 years of pretty hard not-every-day use, it is getting old. The top band is broken. The pad is all nasty. I guess I better break out with another $50.

There have been many situations where something is blocking the solar cells and it doesn't turn as it should.

[45Kevin]

I recently got a 3M helmet with a battery operated auto-darkening. It is #3 when off and #11 when on, I think. It has a replacable screen saver. It was the first time I used a AD helmet and what a dream. I don't think it would be easy to forget to turn on, the lens is really quite dark when the helmet is not turned on and I would know something was not right. It cost about $200 CDN.

[informationjunky]

FYI the harbor one is on sale for $49 and if your on their e-mail list they are now sending out 20% off coupons for 1 item (even sale items).

$40 I might have to buy another one....if it didn't cost me $20 in gas to drive over.

[honk]

Originally Posted by 45Kevin

I recently got a 3M helmet with a battery operated auto-darkening. It is #3 when off and #11 when on, I think. It has a replacable screen saver. It was the first time I used a AD helmet and what a dream. I don't think it would be easy to forget to turn on, the lens is really quite dark when the helmet is not turned on and I would know something was not right. It cost about $200 CDN.

Huh?
#3 is lighter than #11

[Cube Dweller]

I have a std Huntsman w/ a retrofit std size auto darkening lens, goes from #3 to #10. Don't recall the brand of the lens. The clear polycarb lenses are std since it's a Huntsman. The flip action on Huntsman's just works well. The autodarken feature works fine, the 2 AAA batteries lasted 8 years, first two I was welding 20 hours a week, the last 6 rarely.

With #10 if I was stick or Tig welding for any period of time I would wear Raybans behind the hood.

The HF one seems like a deal, but I just can't get past I'm trusting my vision to the people that sell the rest of the cheap stuff they carry. It's prob. fine though.

[AZkick-n40]

Newb to welding - 1st class tonight at the CC where we actaully get to light the torch.

Why is there such a big difference in the cost of a helmet?

For someone who is a limited weekend warrior welder, what are the important features to get in a helmet vs those that would be needed more for a professional?

I'll buy the best helmet that I need to, but don't want to overbuy.

[Planet_X]

Originally Posted by AZkick-n40

Newb to welding - 1st class tonight at the CC where we actaully get to light the torch.

Why is there such a big difference in the cost of a helmet?

For someone who is a limited weekend warrior welder, what are the important features to get in a helmet vs those that would be needed more for a professional?

I'll buy the best helmet that I need to, but don't want to overbuy.

The 'Galaxy' , use the same headgear as the more expensive 'sattilite' model, that fact and its light weight - low price, make it THE budget lid.
http://www.envirosafetyproducts.com/html/Optrel.htm

It is not auto-darkening however, and for those wishing to spend the dough the satilite is a pretty decent auto dark lid.

[honk]

Originally Posted by AZkick-n40

Newb to welding - 1st class tonight at the CC where we actaully get to light the torch.

Why is there such a big difference in the cost of a helmet?

For someone who is a limited weekend warrior welder, what are the important features to get in a helmet vs those that would be needed more for a professional?

I'll buy the best helmet that I need to, but don't want to overbuy.

Don't worry too much about helmets for now.

The thing is......you don't HAVE to have an auto-darkening helmet. Weldors have done fine without them for years before they were invented and many still haven't crossed the line into buying one, some because they don't trust them, some because they feel fine without one, and some because they're just cheap of course.
As a beginner not sure really how much welding I'd do or maybe not even sure that I wanted to invest in the ability to weld at all I didn't buy an AD helmet. I went to my first class without one and found that they had plenty of non AD helmets for students to use. So I used theirs. I found that it's only a little more to learn in placing the electrodes when starting a weld and a little more inconvenient to have to on and off the glass each time the arc isn't arcing.

[Robad]

Originally Posted by sactocruiser

The HF one seems like a deal, but I just can't get past I'm trusting my vision to the people that sell the rest of the cheap stuff they carry. It's prob. fine though.

It's your vision but flash burns suck.

I use a Fibre-Metal auto darkening helmet and love it. Expensive but worth it to me. 3M (Hornell) also makes very high quality ADF "Auto Darkening Filter" welding helmets. All ADF helmets will darken within a few miliseconds, the real difference is in the time it takes to go back to the light state after the arc goes out.
Another important factor, and the one that makes a good helmet more expensive, is the optical clarity of the lens. The better the clarity of the lens the easier it is to see your weld pool.
You should also consider the ease of obtaining replacement parts for the welding helmet you buy; things like coverplates, headgear, sweatbands, etc.

Rob