Welding helmet problem

I am fairly new to welding. I have an HF auto welding helmet. When I MIG weld I turn the helmet to lowest setting, #9, but I can barely see the weld site and the wire before I begin the weld. Hence I often miss the target until the arc starts and I can see the weld. I tried putting a bright light on the weld but that made it worse.

Reply to
John Janes
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It sounds like it's staying dark all the time which would probably mean it's defective. I suppose it could be the batteries but they usually fail in the off mode when that happens. If it's solar try placing it in the sun for a few hours to charge the batteries and see if that helps.

It could also be that there is a protective cover over the lens that needs to be removed. If it looks kind of blurry that's probably your problem. Many autodark filters have a thin sheet of plastic kind of like a big piece of transparent tape on them when they're new.

Best Regards, Keith Marshall snipped-for-privacy@progressivelogic.com

"I'm not grown up enough to be so old!"

Reply to
Keith Marshall

First, I'm assuming you bought one of the models where the helmet is supposed to start out relatively light (shade 4) and then automatically darken.

If it is their solar rechargeable one, be sure to set it in the sun or a bright light for a few hours to charge the battery. Fresh out of the box, they have little to no charge. Alternatively, if it's a regular battery make sure that the battery is in good shape or even try another battery.

Do not sh>I am fairly new to welding. I have an HF auto welding helmet. When I

Reply to
George

Some choices:

  1. Take off the protective coating if you haven't already.
  2. Put a new battery(s) in it.
  3. Take it back and get another one.
  4. REALLY take it back and buy a good one.

Steve

Reply to
SteveB

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