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What's important in an auto-dark helmet.

I learned many years ago, that the lightest and simplest hoods my favorites. I have always kept two of the Huntsman fiber board type, one with nothing but a single filter lens, for TIG work only - an another with clear glass on both sides of the filter lens, for everything else.

Simple, lightweight and almost completely disposable.

Problem is, I bought a plasma cutter last spring, and am afraid to use it with just burning glasses. Everyone says I should use a shade 10, but it makes it very difficult to see my layout lines.

Would a auto-dark helmet be much help? If so, what features do you personally find desirable, and what are your thoughts.

What if you drop one, are they easy to kill?

Would I be better off buying a flood light on a stand, to help illuminate the layout lines a regular shade 10 helmet?

Help, I love my new plasma cutter, but I'm afraid it's just something else to cause me to go blind. And I don't want to give up either.

Reply to
Watson
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Our 5-yo auto-darkening helmet (Model is Mach II, but cant remember the brand) has fallen off wherever I've plonked it countless times, has bounced and usually survived. I have replaced the plastic head-band once from bouncing a bit too hard when falling from about 6 feet onto dirt.. It's accidentally been left out in a rain-shower, and been abused in countless other ways. However, every time I press the button, it fires up, and works like a bought one.

They are pretty neat pieces of gear, and if this one eventually dies, I'd buy a couple more before going back to a normal helmet.

A PAR38 floodlight with a compact fluroescant bulb puts out heaps of light, and doesnt get hot. You should be able to see your layout lines.

Cheers,

Rod.

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Rod - Out back

Reply to
Rod Out back

Honestly, I just use the usual O/A (shade 3?) goggles with plasma. Due to the way plasma works, you really have very little visibility of the arc/plasma and mostly just see hot slag spraying away.

Reply to
Pete C.

I have two Harbor Freight auto darkening welding hoods. I like them a lot, and I am not easy on my equipment. They have been dropped, and knocked off of working areas. The first one was a gift from a friend a couple years ago after had fixed his boat trailer for him, and the other I bought a couple months ago because it had a bigger viewing area than the first one.

Sorry, I don't have a plasma cutter so I can't say how well they work with it, but neither one works for using a cutting torch. At their lightest setting they are too dark to safely use the torch.

Reply to
Bob La Londe

I would think you wanna use the darkest lens you can that will still allow you to see your layouts under normal shop lighting. Also, you can use some paint-pens that actually turn white when exposed to heat (easier to see these lines as you cut along them) though that is like trying to drive at 60 while only looking out your rear view mirror.

keep the gun as close to the base mat'l as possible, and look at your layout, not your arc.

close one eye (tongue in cheek)

Reply to
TinLizziedl

Same here, a HF helmet work great for me.

The standard is to use O/A cutting glasses. They cost between $5 and $10.

Reply to
Ignoramus1054

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