Let's chat about visibility during welding.
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You can learn to weld. I'll show you exactly what to do in my affordable online welding courses at courses.timwelds.com.
Look I watched a bunch of your videos and the day after I was able to make nice welds with no undercut
When I've started hobby welding, I bought a mig welder and an automatic helmet. After few hours of trying to glue pieces of steel together, I've found out I haven't removed protective film. Whoa... much better. Few months and few hobby projects later I've found out there was protective film on the inside as well. Now I can actually weld stuff.
Obviously, you are not reading manuals before getting excited to start welding like me.
@@balloney2175 Turns out you can't learn everything just by watching youtube videos.
@@neplatnyudaj110 In one video I just watched, the guy removed the protective film. I learned what he showed me.
funny
@@figg9417 yep, really funny when you cannot see cuz the protective film is still there
I've been a fabricator/welder for just a little less than 50 years, just retired about the time you posted this video. I've used a auto-darkening hood for quite a few years. A couple of things that I've found to increase the life of my inner and outer cover lenses are, put your hood back in the box it came in and close it when not in use and blow the cover lenses off before you wipe them. The first keeps grit and dust accumulation down and the second will remove most of the dust and grit that does. I usually use a damp microfiber towel to wipe them off only when I need to.
Another thing I do is to use a plastic bag to slip the hood in when I'm grinding or something where I have to remove my hood for a while. Aluminum welding seems to be particularly hard on the outside cover lens as splatters tend to stick to the clear plastic more than steel splatters do.
Only 50 years? You noob
I find the smoke gets in the way sometimes. I found it best to inhale all the smoke to prevent it from blocking the sight path. You will need to cut off the bottom half of your welding hood. And don't mind the smell of burning beard.
😂
Ok,I now wear bi focals. After 35 plus years of welding or painting, I have a very hard time seeing to run a straight bead. Anybody have the answer? I know in my 20s I would laugh at my coworkers at Allis Chalmers but now don't find it laughable. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks
Ordinary classroom Chalk in orange colour. If you're having trouble seeing then run a line or 2 of orange chalk either where the weld will be or next to it. Orange chalkboard chalk works well for people who can't see. I hope this helps someone.
That actually helps a lot. I find I often run off centre line because I’m following the seam which starts to disappear when you begin welding. Having another line to follow would be very helpful.
One major problem I have is lighting. I do a lot of body panel work and often find myself in weird positions, especially when working on cabs, floorpans, firewalls, etc... I mounted a small picatinny rail on the top of my welding hood (like you would use on a AR15 rail) and mounted a Surefire rifle light to it. Works amazingly well.
Sounds right!!! 👍🏼
A frequent occurrence. Corner welds usually work, but butt joints sometimes end up with a nice bead going cross country. A more expensive helmet helped a little. Welding in the sunlight works if there is no wind. What I want is a super bright led light that attaches to the gun and illuminates an area the size of a silver dollar, ideally surrounding the pool. It also needs a roll of spatter shield.
Thanks for all the reminders to get optimal view of the arc and weld pool. You nailed it on keeping clean lenses inside and outside the helmet view panel. You are clear, concise and easy to understand. Keep up the great videos.
These are old videos of yours that I'm watching but my gosh I'm happy to have discovered your channel. Thanks for explaining so clearly and concisely, especially for us garage shop hacks. You've got a new sub.
I'm a weekend welder/novice. I use a HF auto darkening helmet ( love it) , I ended up screwing a 2000 lumen headlamp to the top of my helmet. It works great although adds more weight and can get in the way in tight quarters. I'm just a beginner but really enjoy building stuff with metal. Nice video , thanks for posting.👍👍
Yes I have fitted one of these to my helmet and it makes a big difference.
I love my harder fate helmet too but since starting MIG welding, smoke is a new problem. I'm thinking I can cut a hole in the chin, and fit a headlamp into it, with a piece of replaceable plexi or lexan in front for spark shielding. I'll put it upside down so the switch is on the bottom.
I've bounced around to different optics and ideas, so far Optrel Panoramaxx for 2022 blows the doors off of others for visibility of the weld puddle and the area outside of it. I still need some aux light to help brighten the item i'm welding on sometimes.
@@garychandler4296 If you were willing to spend more than horrible freight, then i'd say the solution is a positive pressure ventilation system from somebody like PAPR, preferrably built into the helmet. 🤷♂
Fastening a good quality head torch to your welding hood is a great idea too. I saw another KZheadr do this. Seems like an ideal solution. Thank you for sharing.
I always preferred either a blue or gold lense. Gold in particular gives all surrounding surfaces a nice white tent and you can see everything perfectly.
Great video. Personally lighting is the key for me. I use a cheap led drop light and place as close as possible to what I'm welding. Such a huge help if your not out in sunlight
Yep, for me that's the first tip to follow. Haven't welded in decades (used the old flip helmet) but for me it was all about the additional lighting that made it easier.
I found this to help when doing stuff under shaded area or inside. A strong portable lamp beam works well.
First thing I thought ... ambient light.
I have posted much the same, that was before I read any of the post. I 100% agree with you
Same here, adding more light from an 'angle-poise' lamp was the game-changer; getting it as close to weld as possible. Surprisingly it still helps when it's fairly sunny. Also, if using FCAW, a fan to blow away fumes is a great help. Welding well is so hard!, but magical too.
I am a new hobby welder and really appreciate your videos. Very glad I came across your channel.
Just came across your channel a week ago. You do a really good job. Clear and concise. Thanks
I'm really enjoying your videos,I've been welding for a few years and most was gas weld,I took a summer course at medina Ohio joint vocational school. It helped but I find your videos very intuitive. I wanted to thank you
After watching a few of your vids, I went ahead with making fender brackets and stick welding them to my boat trailer. Your clear, concise tips and instructions really improved my welding results. Thanks so much and keep up the great work!
@TimWelds I just wanted to show some appreciation man.. I only started welding today, I was struggling a lot & my welding rod would always stick.. but just after soaking up some of the info you give on your channel, I quickly learnt how to strike an arc & things were looking promising Again thanks so much bro.. My name is Jean-Claude or just JC for short, All the way from South Africa
I was having massive trouble seeing my welds. Turned out the problem was due to my cheap hood. I spent $200 on a good quality welding hood and the improvement was profound.
$200 is baller bro I'm glad it worked out for ya
@@RaphaelLaloo Thanks fella. Yeah, money well spent. Definitely worth trying an upgrade if you get the chance.
What hood did you go with?
🙌
@@Livinoutdoors_ Weldclass Promax 500. Not sure if you'll have them where you are... I noticed the difference even just looking through the visor in the shop. The cheaper ones are blurry as hell even when they're not darkened.
Thank you for such a great instructional video. This is the first one I clicked on. I worked as a utility maintenance man for 2 years for a beverage warehouse where I helped the shop mechanic weld steel plates to the walls of the semi truck trailers. I handled a torch for the 1st time then and wondered how you can see what you're doing. It was a mystey at the time. You should record these videos and include them as how to vids with the welding set ups. Watch this disc before starting any work. You sound like a great instructor. Thanks...
Thanks Tim for the very helpful tips,I messaged you some time ago as I couldn't see my welding line and kept going off the actual weld area.Your reply suggested making a chalk line where you actually wanted to weld,that has been a big help and it worked for me,thanks again Tim for your excellent videos. (England UK)
Yes, I have the same problem sometimes. I wondered about a chalk line, I was worried the chalk might interfere with the weld but I'll try it. Maybe chalk to one side of the weld line. In the past I have used 300 or 500 watt work lamps which I found helped a lot though there's a lot of heat from the lamps. Perhaps these days LED alternatives are available
@@johnswimcat use soapstone marking stick
I just started mig welding and your channel has help me tremendously. Thank you Sir
Awesome, thanks for sharing! I've been 'playing' with TIG for the last few years but don't do much and find it really hard to see the puddle. I came in search of 'extra lighting' and from what you said it should help. Yay!!! Thanks again!
Good video. In the past I have used 300 or 500 watt works lamps which help a lot. They're hot so perhaps these days LED alternatives are available. Also I like to use a fan to blow away welding fumes.
Great video! Not sure if others mentioned it but it's worth checking your battery before you do much else if you're having trouble seeing things and think something might be wrong. It's an easy thing to forget and, on my helmets, it's not that easy to check.
Love your straight forward answers and solutions to everyday problems for us beginners.
Great content. A big thing that helped me improve was wearing a cloth hood, duct taped around the side and covering the back of my helmet. I used to get lots of ambient light reflecting off the inside of my helmet and lens. Having the hood ensures the only light comes through the lens, and makes a HUGE difference. When I clean my outer lens cover, I start with running it under a warm tap to remove the bulk of the dust, metal shavings etc. This allows you clean effectively and to not scratch the plastic. I then use an old cloth saturated in degreaser concentrate ( or cheapo dish-detergent) to wipe the plastic down, leaving a very light film of degreaser on the plastic to minimise fogging on cold mornings.
I tried to get started welding about a year ago, with a fixed #10 shaded helmet. I was never able to see anything until the weld actually started, which was useless for finding the correct starting point. I tried affixing a hood to cover the back - this did not help at all. I tried lighter shades and burned my retinas every time I tried to make a weld. Finally I threw down $50 on a cheap auto-darkener from Harbor Freight and it's just fantastic. I set the darkest shade to #9 (I can go clear down to #6 or up to #11 I think) and it's perfect for all conditions. Auto-darkening is just plain the only way to go.
Andrew I've never tried the degreaser thing in all my years. But I will this Monday. Thanks. Here is a question you may have the answer to,when you are welding a long time and the gauges freeze up. I hang a drop light over the gauges thinking the heat helps. What do you think?Thanks.
@@johnsellers2999 it won’t be just the gauges freezing up, it would be through the piping in general, and is a consequence of the liquid fuel as it gasifies at the surface inside the tank. An oft quoted ‘trick’ for people running forges (etcetera) is to stand your tanks in buckets of hot water, but I don’t see how that would overcome the cooling effect of the evaporation at the top of the tank, unless nearly the entire tank were submerged. The ‘refrigeration’ process would also very quickly chill the water in the bucket unless some heat source were applied ( say, a sous-vide cooking element). The ‘easiest’ way is to run multiple cylinders, through a manifold, splitting the demand between the cylinders, reducing the gas evaporation rate, or using a more squat tank with a larger surface area. If you are really confident as to the surface of the level of the liquid in your cylinder, I don’t see why you couldn’t tilt the cylinders, ensuring the liquid fuel is significantly lower than the mouth, and can’t enter the regulator. This would increase the surface area, dissipating the chill, much like opening a pressurised coke bottle while tilting it to minimise boil-over.
Thanks for reply. Yep my best option is use two tanks. It's the easiest. Thanks again. Take care
Same , yeah be aware of where the overhead light is coming from or cover the back of your helmet, makes a big difference.
Great video I have this problem myself with my mig welder and you just helped me figure out why thanks a lot for sharing this
Thanks for the tips. I'm very amateur and just weld to fix things basically and don't do it very much. I truly thought there might be something wrong with me because I have difficulty seeing what I'm doing. Of course, the last thing I did was actually repair a oil dipstick on an old engine that I was trying to put back together quickly so I could get a reading rather than wait 2 weeks for a new one. It's a bit hard to keep everything lined up on such a tiny strip of metal. Anyway, thanks.
12 hour shifts with a 30 minute break night shifts, eye fatigue is common later into the morning but your video helped a lot and I wear a new prescription frame to weld now under my hood which helps a lot, more veteran welders have commented positively on my improvement which is nice, I just want to learn and make nice work for people, could do without the insane pressure of targets though just don't have the qualification. Build on experience 💪
Picked up a mig welder for the first time last week, my welds are terrible visibility very poor and not a clue how to set up after a couple of your videos there is a significant improvement yet still a long way of acceptable welds. Practicing your techniques and hoping for the best. Thank you for your knowledge and easy to understand teaching
Great video. Very useful. I discovered it was time to get glasses when I was on a gas welding course. I just couldn't get the welds straight until someone said " hey, try these reading glasses". Wow what a difference! You can ask your optician to set the focal length to the distance you normally weld at as that's usually further away than you would read a book.
I'm myopic - nearsighted - and discovered that you can buy different strength prescription lenses that fit into your helmet, similar to generic eyeglasses you can find at any Walgreens. That made a big difference for me, since I wear contacts 24/7; I used to put on a pair of reading glasses when welding, which essentially did the same thing, but was simply a hassle. The inserts made it all better.
One thing that I learned is to not have a bright light shining into the back of the welding helmet. I also found out that having a light shining onto the work area is helpful. It did take me a while to get used to the autodarkening helmets.
Cateract surgery, after 55 years of welding I couldn’t see, my cateracts that were not bothering me in everyday life would glow inside my eyes and obscure my view when I tried to weld, Cateract surgery in both eyes cured that problem completly. I also have an LCD strap on battery headlamp Velcroed to my welding helmet to increase ambient lighting around the weld for low light conditions. Still welding with a pacemaker, stinger and ground wires twisted together as far as possible, arc at arms length, limited to 150 amps, no high frequency.
Man, you deserve a medal for courage. Or something. I think you meant LED? (not LCD). I have one on the way from Amazon. My problem sometime is seeing BEFORE I weld, because the place of the weld is in the shadows from the lights.
Great tip with the headlamp! Thanks!
Dang, I assume you were using shades not auto darkening? Which shade and how long ago? Old shades had glass protective screens, now we have plastic. The plastic actually stops all UV and its just bright light. I keep my auto on shade 13 permanently
@@danl.4743 I dropped the original comment, but something I do, especially welding in the dark, is, I scratch an arc, then pull off making a larger oxidative arc, which lights up the area momentarily, so I can see my target. It's kind of like sighting off your muzzle flash shooting a pistol. I come back and clean up the spittle with a grinder, if necessary.
The
Adding extra light right over the weld was the ticket, game changer thank you so much!!!
Something I recently did that really helped to see the seam is put a small headlight on my helmet. I took off strap and used velcro to hold it on. It's adjustable up and down so I can point it right where I need it. Wish I would of did this years ago!
I resolved a big part of my problem by using a spot light at weld level and next to no ambient light. It stops the light from glaring off the back of the lens. If that can't be done a cloth hood works as well.
On the subject of ambient light I found that adding a torch to your helmet increased its weight and I couldn't always get the light to go where I wanted. I now have an Ikea articulated desk light that I removed the large lamp and replaced it with a LED BBQ light. It has a great range of movement and with the pin I welded to the base can be moved to different locations on the bench if needled.
Great review, thanks for taking the time. Vision is a BIG issue me me as a part time hacker welder!
I too have had trouble seeing and only weld occasionally. What I have done is to set up a 'spot' light that drastically increases the light on the area of where I'm going to weld. This allows me to keep track of the weld path.
The thing that helped me the most seeing the weld is bright lites on the metal/weld
I use a magnifying lens in my mask and what also works for me is having a piece of fire retardant material covering the back of my mask to stop light from entering from behind me. And it stops the sparks from going down the back of my neck.
Magnifying lenses are awesome! I'm only a newbie welder, but wear progressive lens glasses. When welding, the focal distance is outside of the optimal range for my glasses. I bought a magnifying lens for my helmet and its a game changer! I've also set up an LED floodlight right above my welding bench - good results from that too.
I can see the pool easy but when dragging g, csnt see the seem. I run a nice weld only to find I've wandered way off to the side.
Thanks for all your videos, I'm forced to do my own welding to save money and you're really helping me out.
Thanks for the Saturday morning welding videos from "the Shop". Always an inspiration to get off my butt and spark up.
Thanks Craig!
Great video Tim. I started out using similar to the one you started with only with the small flip shade on the helmet. Most of the welding I was doing at that time was out in bright sun working on cattle yards and ended up getting some pretty heavy welding flash. Not fun. Years later I finally got a cheap auto darkening which I've been through a couple of in just a few years. Recently upgraded and got a true view one and it's made a massive difference to my welding. So to for me is having good glasses with the right script. I'm a reasonable welder with stick welding which is what I've had most to do with. Getting up to speed with mig and only attempted Tig once yet though I now have a Tig welder of my own just have not gotten to use it yet. The Tig I did was on small parts that needed to be held precisely in the right place and using mig or stick would have caused them to move just in getting the arc going. Got them done and a couple experienced Tig welders said it was pretty good considering I'd never done tig before. Yes need lots more practice but it worked for the job I had 🙂
Thank you for thetips.I have been having a rough time seeing theweld. I didn't think of the glare scratches or dust can have.
Great video. Im turning 60 on the 25th. I just bought my first welder - a cheaper flux core wire welder. I guess I got into this later in life.. Your videos are very helpful!
I’m 70, took my first lesson last week. My utility trailer needs a bunch of welds. I’m going to do it.
@@jimcox7054 Nice!
you know what they say old dogs new tricks I just hit 59 and started a couple of years ago you"ll have fun.
I solved my problem of not being able to see what I was welding in my home workshop. I was frustrated once I retired that I could not see what I was trying to weld, frustration was very high. I tried everything, changed auto tint glasses for plain, tried reading glasses only (which was a pain), purchased expensive auto welding mask to no avail and got nowhere. After a frustrating 6 years I had an idea and it worked. I purchased a 240v 10w LED portable light with a tall tripod stand. I illuminated the area I wanted to weld with said light and all of a sudden I could see the seam I was welding along and everything else I needed to see. I was so full of joy at eventually being able to do what I had never found difficult at work to do before. I can only assume that my work place had much better lighting than our home workshops. I have what I thought was ample fluorescent tube lights in my workshop but it was not enough. I arc welded before and have now learnt to TIG weld and all thanks to my light. Before you purchase, go outside in full sunlight and see if that resolves you problem, if yo can see outdoors to weld then the LED light will work for you inside. I hope this helps someone as much as it helped me.
So glad i watched your video. Welding was impossible with my new helmet all i could see is miller miller miller. I felt like Ricky Bobby and his Fig Newton windshield sticker.
Lots of good info here going to give it a try tomorrow tig welding is new to me and I see I am adjusting to dark thanks for sharing.
When I can, I use welding glasses and then a headlamp for lighting. A good headlamp lights up the piece real well. I use a #10 shade and I still see great.
I do a lot of mig welding and need to use glasses in my day to day life using vari focus glasses but I found come the winter your eyes get sweaty with cold it looked like I had three stick outs, I changed my glasses to single vision reading type set up to slightly further away work well also a torch we tried at work had a led in the bend of the gun came on when you pulled the trigger brilliant
Use a sliver sharpie marker. Makes cutting and welding on a line a bit easier.
Hey Tim, thnx for the great information, I'm sure it'll help me alot! God Bless you and keep you safe!👍
This did help a lot, I have antimetropia which means I'm near sighted in my left eye and far sighted in my right. But also because my right eye is lazy too I can really see out of my left eye when with both eyes open. So I really needed help making sure my shade setting is good for me. Although also I work 3rd shift, so there is good lighting all around the shop, but sometimes at each individual reweld table the lights above either aren't the best or won't stay in the right position. And sometimes I don't realize I have a little bit of eye strain from having to look at my phn too long (even though I do have the brightness setting always on less than half because otherwise it's too darn bright. I will just have to play around and adjust my shade setting until I find a spot that works for me; even though in my shop they currently only do MIG welding. Thank you so much for this informative video.
I can't tell you how many welds I have made where I trail off into no mans land because I couldn't see what I was welding. I am going to have to try the LED taped to my helmet, that sounds like a great idea as I usually don't have problems outside in the sunlight, just indoors.
Carl Schmidt..I sure can relate to getting a good weld, only to find it's not where I needed it 🤣 I have this great little welder that I have done a hell of a lot of work with. I retired (not as a welder) and didn't use the welder for 5 or 6 years, then when I went to do a few little jobs, my welding was atrocious. I tried a LED torch positioned on my welding area and it helped greatly. I will have to buy something suitable to attach to my helmet too.
@@steiny3353 I've tried so many different lights/flashlights and found that two of them actually trigger my auto-darkening helmet! It's so irritating but at least I know what *not* works!
Yep, plenty of light on your work area helps. I have a small led torch that I gaffer tape to the top of my helmet. One that can focus light to a tight beam or a wide spread. Works well. As you get older your pupils don't dilate as well as when you were young. As a result less light gets to your retina, making it harder to see in darker areas.
Awesome tip! thanks brother.
And I thought it was cataracts at my age too so I just had my eyes checked and I'm good, no cataracts. So it's just age.
Hi Michael!. Just Curious whether you live in or have ever lived in New Mexico?.
Yyy you g u😅
@@thelebronbandwagon2382 say what?????
One thing that helped me tremendously was I stopped wearing my multi-focal (graded-lens) eyeglasses when welding and wore my fixed-focal-length plain reading glasses. Took that extra layer of guesswork out of trying to move your head to get that "sweet spot" of correct focus for that distance. Also, as a lifelong glasses wearer, and former pro photographer, I would say never use paper towels or tissues to clean any kind of lens or glass. Paper is abrasive and leaves tiny scratches. Better to use a clean soft cloth, and wash or air-blow the dust off the lens/glass first. Great video and really helpful info on the angle of view to keep track of how the puddle is doing instead of looking ahead where I want to go. Thanks for that!
The auto darkening welding helmets are great but like all equipment, it can fail even if the battery is replaced or solar helmet does not change properly. I have changed several newly purchased big batteries for my head light and the batteries failed within 5 minutes after install. I used a major name brand batteries and they had more than a year shelf life left. I like the passive welding helmet approach and I will be purchasing this variety in the near future with at least #11 shade lense. I will be wearing polarized sunglasses as well to protect my sight while welding. Thank you for sharing. Have a great day!
Great video, I use a small little 10w LED spot light on a tripod which shines directly onto the area where I'm welding. Im doing stick welding
HOLY CRAP! Just put in the new plastic "consumables" in my Miller helmet...WOW. I forgot how nice it WAS....thought I was just getting old. thanks.
One thing l might add is getting one of those helmet bibs that Lincoln sells. It blots out most of the bright reflected light and really helps avoid the eye fatigue. Cheers.
In welding school we used a oil free cleaner spray for both cleaning metal and for cleaning our lenses. Just a few sprays on the lens and a wipe with a old t-shirt rag and I only changed my lens once or twice after 2 years of school
learned alot. i'm new to welding and everything is new to me. thanks!
As I got older I had problems with backlighting, plus I needed reading glasses. I bought a pancake shield auto lens and cheaters and it was a real game changer.
Some great tips. I took the cheater lens out of my mask and wear +2 safety glasses underneath so I can still see and grind when the hood is raised. Also discovered how beneficial additional lighting is. Still working on a head torch solution that does not get in the way or cause shaddow. Another safety concern is the flux and metal fumes from welding. I wear an fp2 mask under my hood. Adds more clutter with the glasses but feel the benefit. Your safety video is well worth a watch 👍
Great video. I learned I have to have a 300w shop light pointed toward the weld area to be able to see it clearly
Thank you for sharing your knowledge.
A big thumbs up. The width and depth of the information is really good. I learned a lot. The presentation is good. Although he talks a little bit too fast, I could follow. Thank you!
Thank you Sir. This is my main problem welding .
Hi Tim, thanks for your very informative videos. I have a tip for those that occasionally weld in dark areas,, rather than get someone to hold a torch for me, I've glued a cheapie rechargeable LED headlamp to my hood which I purchased from a China Mart. As for the reflections on the inside lens at certain angles where the light is behind me, I have cut off a large piece of denim from an old pair of jeans. This I've glued to the inside edge of the hood using a glue gun. This denim hoodie serves to save my head from spatter and the reflections from the light behind me.
Great tips! Thanks!
Yes this is a good idea , I've use this often.
use velcro instead of tape, quick to get light out of your way in tight place
I still struggle keeping straight on a joint. I have tried everything you mentioned. Most of the stuff in the comments. Better helmets. Cheater lens. Cloth over the back. All sorts. The only time I can keep neat is in the middle of a paddock in bright sun. For me all about the light.
Thank you for your contribution. Very helpful and much appreciated!
I've always had trouble seeing my weld line, mostly because the intense white light emanating from the arc. I discovered there is a special kind of lens that erases the white light - the Gold Lens. With the gold lens, I can see everything really clear, and the weld puddle glows a reddish color enabling me to see the pool edges really clear. I'll never use auto-darkening again - or standard green lenses.
Where have you buy your gold lens?
Any recommendations? I'm about due for a new mask.
And I wont neither because i don't like them mines auto crap wasn't working as it should have so the cheap dark glass worked best for me
3m speedglas welding helmets have 3 different colour darkening modes. Game changer for me
Light... light on your work is very helpful... yet if the light is behind me it can causes reflection on the plastic screen which compromise the out side hood light.. using a thin cloth over the back of the hood resolves this condition especially in sun light ....
Another handy tip, avoid lighting behind you when welding. Light reflects from the inside of the mask thus causing the pupils to constrict and therefore allowing less light to enter the eye. The only light you want is that coming through the mask lens. You need good contrast to see well. Many professional (coded) welders working outdoors in daylight, or those working around a lot of aluminium or stainless will often have some sort of hood to cover the top of mask and over the back of head for this very reason. They need to see what they are doing and what the weld puddle is doing, else they risk a failed weld inspection. Sometimes one can weld by feel and sound, but not when welding an incoloy reactor vessel for example.
I had this same problem while in welding school. I couldn't see the weld from the light in the booth coming in from behind my welding helmet. I ended up getting with my mother and grandmother and they ended up making me a hoodie to block out the light from behind me. Boy, it was like night and day. lol
A pancake has no light comming in, i use one on outdoor pipelines.
Interesting, My grandfather steam-fit welded at the Pickering an Darlington Power Plants in Ontario, CDN.
The darkness of the welding hood makes your pupils widen, and that make close focusing harder. I wear glasses anyway, but have recently installed a cheater and it makes a great difference! I also have a HF 500 lumen rechargeble folding light on my cart now (with some extra batteries). The mag base and bright light make it a great tool to help my old eyes to see the work better.
I used to add a floodlight bulb to a drop light with the cover removed, it worked great to keep my eyes adjusted correctly to see the metal flowing.
Guy is amazing in explaining things out. Thanks I enjoyed the video..
Great vid, you have confirmed alot of things I have been thinking about !!
Great tips. But suggest always use the darkest shade you can while still being to able to properly see your puddle. Running too light a shade over extended periods can and will damage your eyes, especially blue eyes. Protective covers are cheap or clean them often. Working in shipyard , not uncommon to clean or change out 2-3 times a day depending where your at. But being able to see the puddle clearly is key to becoming a better welder. And your tips are a great ways to do that. 👍👍
I never seem to be able to see my puddle properly. I have it set as low as my helmet will go (9 I think) I would like to go lower but I also have blue eyes. Maybe I need to focus on getting more light on the job.
@@DodgyBrothersEngineering running lower shade doesn't damage eyes. Whoever told you that is a fool, UV and IR is what damages eyes and these are blocked even without shade lenses.
@@AS-ug2vq good to know.
Fantastic video, please keep doing these videos!
You might also add that using a gold coated lens offers more protection under less darkening of your lens which makes it way easier to see.
I was having trouble seeing my welds, and then one day, I realized I wear glasses that darken when there is light. No matter what adjustment I made with the hood, it made non to very little difference. It took me days to figure this out, but I laugh at myself for not learning this sooner.
I wear transition glasses also! I never thought of that, lol. Now I'm laughing at myself...
I wear glasses that darken to light, although l don’t use them for reading, or close up work such as welding. I have poor eyesight and l have to use my reading glasses when l’m welding. The lenses in the reading glasses “don’t darken”. The very first time l wore them when welding, was a “godsend”. At last l could see really good. My welding prowess improved “out of sight”. (Pun intended) 😊
I've had issues with seeing the weld pool and the area around it so far. I've tried an ADF from ESAB and now have a pricey one from Optrel, hoping I won't be disappointed.
@@brianwalker1933, I also use readers and will try them on my next project. Thanks for sharing.
keeping it clean is important also I used to have the glare coming through the back side of my hood!! Great video Tim
Thanks a ton!
I think most people have issues with ambient or backlight reflecting backwards from inner lens. I cut up an old pair of jeans and opened a leg up to make a cape at the back of the welding helmet blocking all the light from behind. It can get a bit warm but it works for me.
Great video Tim, but my problem in line of sight. In otherwords I can't see the path that I'm welding so my welds tend to be crooked or off path.
I had a big problem trying to see when welding but I took the helmet to a friend who is more advanced in his learning to weld. The problem was something I didn't even know was that there was a battery in it and when a friend took out the battery it was corroded. My friend knew I hadn't the helmet and showed me the battery and told me the company put a cheap cheap battery in the helmet which caused the problem as well as me not knowing the helmet had a battery. I bought Duracell good batteries and replaced the battery after cleaning the battery housing and re adjusting the other adjustment buttons that I didn't understand what they do. Now the helmet works really great but you just gave me a great idea. Take a photo of the button positions and I can learn from there safely twisting the buttons to find out what their functions are and I will have the photo to see where they go back to thanks Tim great video
The forst few months of teaching myself how to tig weld were awful. Ended up being the helmet I had. I was literally welding in the dark. I bought a decent one from harbor freight and my welds immediately improved.
Someone need to design a VR based hood that uses a camera that uses a computer program to squeeze brightness and adjust in real time. The elimination of certain light wave color temperature is already commonplace. The trick is bringing down the brightness and increasing light levels in the darkness. Let’s go inventors!
I've always thought the same thing, using a protected micro cam with high intensity LEDs on the helmet. All with protection lenses.
Something thats triggered when you strike the first arc!
Great video, learned more than i was looking for! Thanks!
Great info... Figured out last month, it was not charging my helmet every now and again.. world a difference! Lake Havasu ☀️ AZ
That's a great tip! Some have batteries to replace and others benefit from the solar panel sitting out in the sun for a minute. Thanks!
Thanks, very helpful. I’ve found the cheaters to be very helpful, but I am few years older than you :-) and I didn’t realize the cover shield was replaceable-thanks. On the darkness setting, at what point is it a safety issue versus an eye strain over time issue? That is, is it ok to run a slightly lower shade if you are only welding for a short time?
Good stuff. Thanks for sharing your skills.
Another GREAT video with good ideas - Thanks for sharing!
I bought a pair of those cheap 3x magnification glasses, job done!
Thanks for the excellent tutorial video. Found the information very informative and helpful.
I tell my students to get the best hood they can. Optrel crystal is one of the best in my opinion. The hood absolutely makes a massive difference. Having lots of light in your work area. Using your glasses/contacts if you have them or need them. Go to the eye doctor and get checked. Using a magnifier/cheater lens in your hood. And lastly, body positioning. A lot of people do not have a good position for themselves when their welding. Sometimes it is impossible to do that when you have to weld in confined spaces or the like.
Good info. Do you have any trouble with the inside of the lense fogging? I've tried the trick of covering the back of the helmet to keep ambient light from reflecting off the inside, but the more you enclose the helmet the more fogging is a problem. Especially if the shop and helmet are cold.
@@jackcolton1069 take a tiny bit of shaving cream on your fingers and wipe it on the inside lens ! Wipe it on really good and let it dry . When its dry lightly buff off any smudges if any! Poof no more fog! Might have to reapply every so often. Also works for your eyeglasses going from cold outside to warm inside! Your welcome!
@@StonemanRocks Thanks!
Just bought a LED-spotlight yesterday What a game changer 3W could be, at least for me as a tig beginner