Welding Tips and Tricks

I know this has probably been covered ad nauseam but is a 4" x 4" or more window absolutely necessary these days as the ultimate visual perspective for TIG welding? Reason I ask is, I find the newer style hoods kind of leaky with regard to light getting in around from the outside. I know one welder who added a leather flap at the bottom of his speedglas hood and others who have made other modifications for this condition. I welded with a fibre-metal tigerhood classic for years without a leak issue, but have noticed it more recently while using a Miller passive. I'm always pulling the bottom in a second time and find myself wishing that little bent out portion at the bottom was straight down instead.

I never really noticed the need for a large window while TIG welding, perhaps because it is more of a smaller focus area or something, I don't know, or maybe I was just used to it.

Do any of you still use ugly old welding helmets, or is the aerodynamic looking stylish ones with auto-darkening the only way to go?

I used to use the old ugly ones for years and I could never see squat, but it's what I learned on. I learned how to feel where the weld was going rather than see it, so to this day I still do that even with an auto darkening helmet. I can do mig and stick corner welds without even looking at them now, just go by feel, and they always turn out the best of any.

I wouldn't give up my auto darkening helmet for any money, though. I love that thing! It's kind of a pain when I look up into a bright light to adjust something and it sets it off, but it's more than worth a little aggravation to me.


Other Steve

I use a 4X5 passive shade 10 in a cheapo basic jackson hood (with upgraded headgear).

The main reason for the large lens is the restricted positions I have to jamb in to. Sometimes my hood is jambed in the pipe work, and I can't move, so the extra window gives me more weld before I have to relocate.

That fact, BTW, is strongly motivating me to get an autodark, because sometimes I can't "flip" my hood for the same reason... I have to position myself with my hood down, and grope for the weld location, crack the pedal and use a low-amp arc as a "flashlight" (leaving arc footprints along the way) to find the start point and position my filler. I'd need multiple sensors, though, because often much of the perimeter of the lens will be shadowed, again because of the spaghetti of pipe I'm often stuffed in to.

Steve S

I ended up ordering another fibre metal. Can't hurt to have two anyway. They always had great head gear at least. I had left mine on the back of a boat and it rode 90 miles South. The guy said he would drop it off next time through Tampa but never did. The one thing I liked about it was the monofocal position of a cheater lens when it was needed. The cheater just seems off, at least initially, in the larger window.

Yeah, I get the cheater-lens argument.

I haven't used one since I started see the eye doctor regularly.

I do, however, intentionally order my glasses for work with the bi-focal set very high in the lens to avoid neck strain...

Steve S

I just had cataract surgery a few months ago and after basically not using my right eye for 3 years, it is somewhat sensitive to the light leak around the hood I now have. I noticed before it being a brighter hood inside than my FM helmet was, but more so now, even wearing dark shirts. I figure it may help out where I have hours of continuous welding that are not really needing a large window, with the better bottom and side coverage.

I should add that, cataract surgery is amazing. This is the first time in about 4-5 years I have been able to function without glasses, including driving. Better yet is that my opthamologist is also a welder and is how I met him thru welding. What are the chances of that?

i started with a regular fibre-metal flip front and never gave much thought to switching to auto dark. the only up-grade was to a # 2 cheater when i hit 45 (14 years ago). my main argument with the auto shield besides changing battery's is if the timing on the auto dark feature is off by only a fraction of a second, by the end of the day you got big problems with your eyes. maybe i just don't like change in my declining years so i'll stick with what i know.

Jeff,

My mom was displeased with her cataract surgury. Here's how she put it:

"Before the surgury, my house was CLEAN!"

Steve S

Eye doctor tells elderly Japanese woman, "Ma'am, it appears you have a cataract."

"Cataract? Who need eye doctor now? I drive Rincoln!"

Small world...

My Opthalmologist also welds...

Steve S

tamj; i hope it's the welding he does in his spare time!!

jwmacawful,

I've studied the idea of autodark reaction times, because of the same concerns you expressed. Turns out, even the cheapest harbor-freight hood has a fast enough reaction time, and if there is still concern, one could train himself to blink when striking the arc.

I'm set in my ways, and like my old-school flip-down, but I've come to the conclusion there are times an autodark would be of real benefit, so I've got it in the list. NOT HF, of course...

Steve S

steve;
i'm sure auto dark work's great almost all the time. it's the day my helper drops it and neglects to tell me that i'm concerned about. when my flip front takes a hard knock it's easily apparent, in-expensive and a cinch to fix whether in the shop or out in the boondocks. i'll hang onto my old school flip- front, # 2 cheater and my bifocals with the #11 filter for my last few years till i'm out to pasture.

Don't have any problem with that. Been a flip-hood guy for my entire career. The ONLY reason I'm considering an autodark, is for those places I can't get my head unless my hood is already down. Happens to me occasionally.

One example here, with pics:

http://forum.weldingtipsandtricks.com/v ... f=9&t=2162

Steve S

I use the leather flap on my Lincoln Viking 3350
It is longer than a speedglass but still has some issue with working on some of the stuff in weird positions.

Otto Nobedder wrote:Jeff,

My mom was displeased with her cataract surgury. Here's how she put it:

"Before the surgury, my house was CLEAN!"

Steve S

lol. . .

I'm pretty sure I was a heck of a lot better shot, too. My uncle says no, but since he won't go hunting with me anymore, his opinion really doesn't count.

Yeah, I knew when he came at me with that needle, he was a pro. I was out of there in 15 minutes.

I never had an issue with the view before auto dark. That's why I never got one. The novelty of welding had worn off by then anyway. You may even tell yourself you are gonna get one. . .and you don't. lol

I have fans on me at the shop. I like being out from under the hood. I get more than enough done as it is. They can afford me to flip. lol

Mrkil wrote:I use the leather flap on my Lincoln Viking 3350
It is longer than a speedglass but still has some issue with working on some of the stuff in weird positions.

Yeah, he had a piece of an old set of leathers riveted to his. When he used to flip his hood up, it used to just dangle up there in the breeze like a placenta or something. I think he actually liked that about it.

Just kidding of course, but we used to mess with him about it. Fibre metal classic hood is butt ugly without doing anything to it at all.

Hey,

I have seen speed glas lenses take a hell of a pounding.... When people dont pay for their gear, they are not as gentle with it as a out of pocket owner may be.. I look after mine like it was my own, but have still given it pretty good whacks, and even dropped it about 4 metres on to concrete and it still worked.

Mick

weldin mike 27 wrote:Hey,

I have seen speed glas lenses take a hell of a pounding.... When people dont pay for their gear, they are not as gentle with it as a out of pocket owner may be.. I look after mine like it was my own, but have still given it pretty good whacks, and even dropped it about 4 metres on to concrete and it still worked.

Mick

I have no idea of the quality but I know they have their fans so they must be good. They are certainly popular around here.

I did get my new hood and it's good to have an actual side by side comparison. I notice that with the miller passive hood, the difference being, that by the time you pull the miller down far enough to stop the light leak at the chin, you are not really using the benefit of the larger lens on the lower focal area, which essentially makes each kind of even out. What I am enjoying is how easy it is to change glass, cheater and plastic shields in the fiber-metal hood, which means I will keep it cleaner in use. Also, I have a 50 pack of the 2x4 poly carb shields from the previous one and a few different shades of glass. The other thing being the clarity of the traditional green #10 and 12 shade with regard to welding aluminum. The green for me, really defines the edges somehow better.

Hey,

People who listen to me talk about Speed Glas must think I work for them, I dont. (Maybe one day) I just think they are a pretty good unit. It helps that speedglas was developed by a company that concentrated soley on Auto lenses. Therefore 100% of their effort went into it.
Got my vote for work.... But too dear for home.

Mick

weldin mike 27 wrote:Hey,

People who listen to me talk about Speed Glas must think I work for them, I dont. (Maybe one day) I just think they are a pretty good unit. It helps that speedglas was developed by a company that concentrated soley on Auto lenses. Therefore 100% of their effort went into it.
Got my vote for work.... But too dear for home.

Mick

Nah. . .just as with anything else, preferences are subjective. I don't have any specific brand loyalties that would make my choices better or worse than anyone's. Whatever is satisfactory. Most of us likely don't think twice about someone else's gear on any given day. Even the poorest of welding hoods would not afford an excuse for poor welding, unless you maybe had to hold it to your face manually and feed filler wire with your teeth or something.

Actually, input from other brands in use are welcome.

TamJeff.

I'd be curious to know what type of hood you would come up with if you decided to make one yourself.
Probably not worth your time ... but we spend our freetime doing all sorts of 'rewarding' projects.

Alexa

Alexa wrote:TamJeff.

I'd be curious to know what type of hood you would come up with if you decided to make one yourself.
Probably not worth your time ... but we spend our freetime doing all sorts of 'rewarding' projects.

Alexa

I spend most of my time doing what I consider to be rewarding projects. I'm always making something, even outside of welding. I think welding hoods are pretty much covered, by people who are surely much better welders than I. I like the classics for things such as FCAW overhead.

In the last decade or so, it has occurred to me that a lot of things are designed by lab coats, who must just weld while sitting down in a climate controlled lab. There were many things that were not broken to start with that the powers that be decided needing improvement, that have caused shortfalls or needs for workarounds in other areas.

I know that sounds "dated", but there were a lot of 'awesome' welds being put out with a lot less. For my first 10 years TIG welding aluminum, I never had to fight arc wander. Now, it's the first thing I can expect to have to overcome every time I happen on to a new machine.

I have to agree with Jeff.

With every "step up" in technology come several "bugs" to work out in the next version, which has it's own set of new bugs.

My old-school stuff has never let me down, and the worst that can happen is I drop my hood and crack the glass (yes, I prefer the glass lenses), and I can have a replacement in 15 minutes, paid for by the company. (We don't stock lenses, but Praxair is 500 yards from us, and our secretary/receptionist will jump up and get what I need at whatever urgency I need it.)

I probably have ten days in a year where an auto-hood is a real advantage to me, so I just borrow one when I need it, but I'm kind-of "anal" about how I maintain my hood and safety lenses, and am considering buying my own. I can't justify speedglas for this limited use, and I can't bring myself to buy a harbor-freight cheapo, so I'm looking for a sale or closeout on a Miller unit, or maybe a better Hobart unit (same parent company, I believe).

Steve S