If you are struggling with an old helmet for some time now and still
unable to see clearly what exactly you are doing is just because the field of
view is so small. Don’t wait to replace it as switching to a new helmet may
entirely change your welding experience. It makes no difference whether you are
working in a shop or a home welder to make repair welds on you own car,
motorbike, van or gate, you just need a right equipment to get your job done
with ease and comfort, isn’t it. Not with standing years of experience, an
expert welder with weary eyes and brain can make mistakes with the use of
faulty equipment. In such critical conditions, you need appropriate equipment that
not only facilitate but also guide you, to perform job more precisely in a way
that fits well within time, need and requirements.
Best Welding Helmets
Antra AH6-260-0000 Auto-Darkening Welding Helmet
Good Value for the Price - 3350 Series Lincoln Electric
Good Value for the Price - 3350 Series Lincoln Electric
ANTRA AH6-260-0000
If you need an auto-darkening welding
helmet at an affordable price that just won’t break your budget, then ANTRA
AH6-260-0000 is the one, you have been looking for. No matter, whether you are
a full time welder or just do it a little at your home, it is a best option to
make you feel comfortable. It has large viewing area of size 3.86”X1.73” that
darkens more quickly with the reaction time of 1/25,000 seconds, than the other
expensive hoods. It has fully automatic features, replaceable battery and easy
setup for sensitivity control and delay settings.
This hood is comfortably fit and
works well for MIG, SMAW, TIG and Plasma cutting processes. It has cheater lens
that helps welder to have visible access on smaller areas. The helmet is made
of tough ‘Polyamide Nylon’ material which not only makes it durable but also
light in weight (about 0.5Kg). If you have been reluctant to buy an
auto-darkening helmet just because of its price, you must give it a shot.
Lincoln Electric 3350 series
This hood is a best option for
welders who spend more time on work and looking for an investment to protect
their eyes. Well worth the money, it helps you to improve productivity and
health safety. The viewing area is 3.74in x 3.34in which is quite outstanding
in terms of optical clarity. With 4 arc sensors, it darkens quickly with the
switching speed of 1/25,000 sec, ensuring a good visibility before and after screen
darkening.
The hood is light in weight,
allowing you to weld for a long welding time without any discomfort and
lethargy. It has a wide screen view, long-life solar type battery and grinding mode,
that’s exactly what most people need in a helmet.
What exactly a welding helmet is?
A welding helmet is very
important personal protective equipment which protects user from intense arc
light and sparks. A complete protection of face from sparks, eyes from
ultraviolet & infrared radiations and respiration from hazardous gases is
what makes welding helmet an ideal protective equipment. Although above stated
hazards are bitter pill to swallow but everyone has to be cautious to make one alive
and kicking isn’t it. So if you want to feel on the top of the world make a
right choice for a helmet that can be a great fit for you.
Features to look for
When you are going to buy a
welding helmet, a lot of queries flip through your mind about which one will be
a best fit for you. Especially when there is a great deal of variety available in
products, it’s really hard to make final decision. Following is the list of
some key things that must be kept in mind before making the selection of best welding
helmet.
- What size of lens or viewing area is required?
- Does it provide adequate protection against ultraviolet and infrared radiation?
- Does its build quality and shape provide adequate protection for your face?
- Is the helmet material durable? (E-g. high impact Polyamide Nylon is preferable)
- Does it include a storage case?
- Is it light in weight? – Does it lie in a range that will make you feel comfortable and you don’t notice that you’re wearing it.
- Does it include battery?
- Is battery replaceable and easily available in market when it finally gives out?
- Battery Quality and average life
- Does it meet required safety standards?
- Does it work with ‘automatic switch off’ function?
Comparison between Auto
darkening and conventional helmets
a. Variable
Shade Lens
Using
a common helmet, may not provide complete protection to your eyes, especially
when you work with different weld processes (like TIG, MIG, SMAW etc.) and make
welds on different steel grades with different thicknesses. In this case you
have to deal with varying brightness of arc which can be best adjusted with an
auto-darkening helmet. You can adjust lens shades accordingly when you’re going
to work with high amperage or on a specific job that gives off extremely bright
arc, making an irritation to your eye.
b. Lens
Switch Speed
The
faster a lens switches to darkened shade; the better is your eye protection
against highly intense light. Today helmets are available at different prices
with varying switching speed. So if you spend more time on work you need to
spend more money for a faster lens, in order to provide alleviation to eyes.
c. Light
weight
An
auto-darkening helmet is also light in weight as compared to traditional
helmets; that’s really icing on the cake. Using a light weight helmet will make
you feel less tired and lethargic by the end of day. People who spend more time
on work they must go for lighter one in order to alleviate exhaustion resulting
from work exertion.
d. Sensitivity
Control
Sensitivity
control is another beneficial feature of an auto-darkening helmet which helps
you to work easily with lower amperage welding process such as TIG (Tungsten
Inert gas welding). This feature provides adjustments to the darkening of lens
accordingly to the specific brightness of arc.
e. Darkening
Delay Feature
This
feature includes delaying of lens darkening stage after the arc extinguishes. A
welder can adjust the short or long delay time appropriately to the particular
circumstances. If he is working on higher amperage process, he must go with a
longer delay adjustment while a short delay is more suitable for less bright
arc process. Comparatively a common helmet does not have such feature inside
it.