Blinding Arc

[fdcmiami]

This in interesting. I have never had an issue with my helmet flashing me like that. I have even been able to tig razor blades at 10 amps. I have this helmet:

http://www.northerntool.com/shop/too...6894_200416894

i own two of the northern's, picked up the second one around christmas, on sale. the first one i have had for three years it works great and it has not been gently handled. i spray painted both of them black because i did not care for the graphics. before them i had a jackson that i paid 300 dollars for, it never worked properly and one day it went off a second story balcony and that was the end of it. the northern helmet is an excellent helmet, i also have two fixed lens helmets, one huntsman that is collecting dust and another that is set up with a hard hat, just in case.


hmmmm this post is lacking in negativity. ok, never mind i'll think of something and get back to you.

[KSmith]

I bought one of these online, after my cheapo starting acting up. Has worked well for several months of heavy use. Good controls for sensitivity, and shade. Can be locked at #4 shade for plasma cutting. Not expensive, but working well for tig, mig, stick.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/new-top-hhhh...ht_2574wt_1448

[Cippee]

The miller digital elite is awesome. I am very happy with the helmet. The nice thing is it has shade 3 light and down to 8 dark. Cutting and grinding modes and x mode. It has an electromagnetic sensor for low amp tig and outdoor use.

[KSmith]

I am new to tig welding but I think I am getting pretty good. I can already weld aluminum pretty well. However one thing I can not figure out. Sometimes when I am welding the arc gets very bright. So bright it blinds me inside the helmet that I can not see past the flash to see the puddle. Is it contamination burning on the tungsten or the arc coming up the side on the tungsten? I would be very grateful of what in the heck this is. I have noticed it mostly on steel and in particular stainless.

I have noticed this a few times with tig, steel. It has happened in two ways. First, at initial start using the torch switch...and I think it is related to the inrush of argon at the very beginning, and also with too much arc length initially. My argon line from flowmeter to machine is about 6 feet long. I thought that could be the cause. If I tap the torch switch to release air for a split second before starting the arc, the problem is not noticed.

Also, I have noticed a much brighter arc when encountering contamination during the tig weld process.

ken

[posixPilot]

I was working on steel in DC when mine happened. However, my helmet works for a about 10 sec after the arc initiates, then starts randomly flashing. I'm going to invest in a air dryer ... who knows, maybe condensation in the Ar line might be related? I also ground my tungsten under dubious circumstances, so contamination is a definite possibility.

Cheers
Mike

[Cippee]

My orginal helmet was turning on and off. The arc was to dim to keep the helmet dark. That is why I got the miller dig elite. Since I got the new helmet I haven't gotten flashed once. posixPilot what you described it what my helmet did exactly.

[SimpleSimon]

Strangely enough...my cheap Blue Harbor Freight one seems to work just fine for TIG and Plasma work. Although, I will likely buy a better one in the future. One thing I've noticed is that I get a lot of crap on the lense so replaceable parts are essential. I think my Harbor Freight blue flamed one is replaceable itself at about $40.

[posixPilot]

Ok, so I found that my cheap-o helmet actually has a sensitivity setting, and some how I rationalized that I should be using the low setting. I switched it over to the high setting, and I no longer get flashed.

Cheers
Mike

[Rambozo]

Well at the risk of making a shameless plug for another product. here goes...
Attachment 5149 Attachment 5150
...If anyone is interested I have a few in stock and will give a price break, and free shipping if you mention the forum. Retail on the unit shown is $380 and comes in Red, Blue and Silver.

I know this post is a little old, but I was wondering if any blue ones are still available? Also can you tell me if there are provisions for installing a magnifier lens?

[ShaneJackson]

Im wondering if I should return my cheap HF $35 helmet and get a $40 one since I plan on doing TIG/Plasma...

[Winky]

Unless I missed it …I didn’t catch any mention of Everlast helmets. I’ve been using a Jackson for about six years and I really like it but it is strictly for welding. I noticed the Everlast Fabricator is rated for grinding and plasma … how does this one stack up? Will it take a cheater lens?

[everlastsupport]

Im wondering if I should return my cheap HF $35 helmet and get a $40 one since I plan on doing TIG/Plasma...

Keep the $35 one for gawkers. What does the $40 have the $35 does not have?

Unless I missed it …I didn’t catch any mention of Everlast helmets. I’ve been using a Jackson for about six years and I really like it but it is strictly for welding. I noticed the Everlast Fabricator is rated for grinding and plasma … how does this one stack up? Will it take a cheater lens?

Jackson is good. I have an old one. I have use the new ones. I do have a fabricator, works well, but the weight oh the helmet, I normally flip to #5 shades. So it is a nice feature, but not always used by me unless it is a quick cut (forgot about that part) in the middle of welding, that never happenes.

[Winky]

Keep the $35 one for gawkers. What does the $40 have the $35 does not have?



Jackson is good. I have an old one. I have use the new ones. I do have a fabricator, works well, but the weight oh the helmet, I normally flip to #5 shades. So it is a nice feature, but not always used by me unless it is a quick cut (forgot about that part) in the middle of welding, that never happenes.

I agree Jackson is a good helmet, mine has never given me any trouble …the only issue I have with it is the range of shade … would like it to go a little lower than #9 that’s why I was asking about the fabricator. Since I wear bifocals I have my Jackson set up with a magnifier ... works really well for all types of welding. As far as for plasma I would to find a better solution … thanks for the info on the Fabricator.

[ShaneJackson]

Keep the $35 one for gawkers. What does the $40 have the $35 does not have?

I actually already returned the $35 one. The $40 helmet has sensitivity adjustment and speed. The $35 does not. Also the $35 says not to be used with TIG where as the $40 says it can with 10amps minimal. I have had it flash me a few times but that has been on 20 amp or less when I hit the tungsten with the filler rod or dip the tungsten..... hopefully with more practice that wont happen anymore....

I was thinking of taking the $40 helmet apart and seeing if I could add 2 more sensors..... figured that would be a good mod if it wasn't too hard.....

[jakeru]

I have a Jackson Truesight W60 on order, which should get here tomorrow. Am looking forward to trying it out.

[Winky]

I have a Jackson Truesight W60 on order, which should get here tomorrow. Am looking forward to trying it out.

You’ll like the Jackson … it is a good company with a solid reputation. I don’t remember which model mine is I’ve had it for quite a while but works well for stick, mig or tig.

[Winky]

I actually already returned the $35 one. The $40 helmet has sensitivity adjustment and speed. The $35 does not. Also the $35 says not to be used with TIG where as the $40 says it can with 10amps minimal. I have had it flash me a few times but that has been on 20 amp or less when I hit the tungsten with the filler rod or dip the tungsten..... hopefully with more practice that wont happen anymore....

I was thinking of taking the $40 helmet apart and seeing if I could add 2 more sensors..... figured that would be a good mod if it wasn't too hard.....

You’ll occasionally bump things together or dip your wick even after you’ve been Tigging for a while … that’s just nature of the beast. My biggest problem is with only one eye I have no depth perception and I’ll sometimes be closer or further away than I think I am … sometimes I’ll be a full inch away from the work piece when I press the pedal … it’s amazing how well the high frequency start works with my 200DX.

[cbmkr]

I have used an old Jackson with the 4 x 5 lens that i bought in the early 1980's it has served me well , I recently purchased an Auto Darkening HF Hood Item #67854 for $39.95 w/a 40.00 off coupon at the local HF store in Shawnee Kansas to say the least sometimes it did not work i returned it.After a talk the store manager let me take the replacement out to the parking and try it on sunlight flashes in a mirror it worked fine and has performed very well to say the least.I have used the new hood down to 45 amps on some thin aluminum repair and it does a good job.

[Rambozo]

My favorite helmet before autodarkening, was the Bilsom Vision. It is a unique design that I have never seen duplicated. It is specifically for TIG only as it is not made to take spatter. I can't find any good pictures of it on the web so I might have to take some of mine. I guess they are pretty rare, but I just found some parts on ebay so I should grab some while I can. They use a very large shade #5 mirrored area that covers most of the front of the face and some side coverage as well. Then positioned behind that is a small 2" x 4" adjustable position filter that combined with the other filter yields a #10. So you can look around the inset filter to see your work position then just look up a little to get full filtering. There is no need to flip the visor up or down, so it's easy on your neck, and it's super light. The front protective cover is held on by little posts so you can set the helmet face down, and it won't scratch the face. The one drawback for me now, is that it doesn't lend itself to cheater lenses. So I used to just wear stronger reading glasses under it. When my vision was still good, I really loved this helmet.

[everlastsupport]

I have used an old Jackson with the 4 x 5 lens that i bought in the early 1980's it has served me well

I still have one too, do not use it. I have the one with the gold mirror shade. What I like is everything is black and white, not green and white. The shade is OK for MIG but to light for TIG, and with all the auto helmets, it sort if sits now. In its day it was a great helmet.