[TamJeff]

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. . .

Steve S

The manufacturers move on to the next "break-thru", often times without ever correcting the previous issues. It seems to be a symptom of the big 4 (Miller, ESAB, Lincoln and Hobart) tech wars. Square wave technology, for instance, was crammed down our throats, and right about the time they had transformer machines near perfected, outside of some relay and circuit board issues. Machines that could weld equally well in any position for years on end!

I have taught girls, who have never picked up a tig torch to weld pretty pads of beads on aluminum in under two hours with my Miller A/BP. Show them once, watch them for 10 minutes and then walk away. My sons, same thing. Now we have chat forums full of redundant questions revolving around the same technical issues. You just know if you set them in front of your old machine, welding every day metal, they would nail it in a day and likely reproduce the same results from there on out, or at least be able to narrow the issues to user error from lack of practice.

I might would buy the AD hoods, but I also would not aim for cheap stuff either.

[Va Welder]

Im only 29 but im old school. I swear by my Fiber Metal Pipeliner with the 4x2. Dont ever have to worry about it cutting off when you roll the cup. Last shop i was at all the guys would laugh at me and call it my 1912 sheild. But you know what there fancy 2 and 3 hundred dollar shields would break, mess up, blind them. And I kept on truckin. Only thing I didnt like about the Fiber Metal was the headset couldnt keep it up it keep getting loose on me. So I drilled it out to fit a Jackson headset [ in my opinion the best ]. But I do keep a Jackson Shadow 4x5 for tight spots. In my opinion go with the shield you know will work. Plus 40 dollars or 300 dollars? Take your pick.

[TamJeff]

What ended up happening with the new hood I got is the 4x2 glass makes you pull the hood down further to see out of the bottom of the window. I do like how easy it is to pop the lens parts out for cleaning. I have both styles and have pictures of the side-by-side differences in the hood coverage itself. The FM classic does have about an inch more coverage from the ears on down. I can definitely see using an auto for high production environments where you are trying to get as much linear feet of weld down in a day, but for general fab and fit up, I still like flipping the hood up to get out from under it, especially with August here.

The head gear on the FM has always been great from my experience. Not the quick version but the standard. The Miller head gear doesn't want to fine tune between ratchets and it will pop out to the next loose setting in the middle of welds. The FM, still will squish your head into a peanut. I don't have to mess with the setting very often though.

[Braehill]

I have over the years had flip front 2X4 and even a flip front made out a peice of fiber that fit into a burning shield headgear to get into tight places. I now use a couple different auto darkening hoods, one from HF that works just fine and one from Jackson, and still have the others if I want to use them. But I've never had to make my living with just the welding. It's always just been a part of my real job.

I don't see anything wrong with having more than one kind of any tool if it makes your life easier or your work better. He who has the most tools wins is my wife's eplanation for my condition. I'm color blind big time and it's way easier for me to see welding carbon steel with a 10 lens and I can use a 13 for Al. and the auto darkening is just a turn of the dial to change. I still have a flip front set up for each also.

I'm thinking about buying one of the sick looking Save Phace helmits just to scare the little neighbor kids when they come over to watch me work.

Len

[frederick flintstone]

I bought a nice Jackson auto darkening helmet back in 1998 when I bought my first real MIG welder. I worked great until 2009. I was unemployed at the time and ended up with a HF for a replacement. It has really crappy headgear. I took off the crappy flame graphics and put my “welding tips and tricks.com” sticker on it.

Finally when I was at Lincoln for my TIG class, they sell students stuff cheap so I bought a new Lincoln Viking lid. I picked up some cheater lenses as well but find the cheap reading glasses work better for me.

[TamJeff]

I bought a nice Jackson auto darkening helmet back in 1998 when I bought my first real MIG welder. I worked great until 2009. I was unemployed at the time and ended up with a HF for a replacement. It has really crappy headgear. I took off the crappy flame graphics and put my “welding tips and tricks.com” sticker on it.

Finally when I was at Lincoln for my TIG class, they sell students stuff cheap so I bought a new Lincoln Viking lid. I picked up some cheater lenses as well but find the cheap reading glasses work better for me.

Agree about the reading glasses. I used to have to wear those all the time before having cataract removed for the one good eye. Haven't had them on since so it doesn't occur to me to use them for that so thanks for the reminder.

The real reason I don't have an AD hood is because I don't want to buy a cheap one and the novelty surrounding the welding I do has long worn off so I don't find a need for it to improve my situation, which is pretty basic as far as welding goes. I'm still waiting for them to invent a holographic tape measure that not only measures the between fractions, but highlights the increment as needed. Or one that when I say, 18. . .it reminds me that it is actually 19 and that they look a lot alike when in a hurry. A tape measure that measures twice without asking.

[nathan]

I'm still waiting for them to invent a holographic tape measure that not only measures the between fractions, but highlights the increment as needed. Or one that when I say, 18. . .it reminds me that it is actually 19 and that they look a lot alike when in a hurry. A tape measure that measures twice without asking.

Freakin' genius. Quick, somebody find this man a millionaire and a software designer!

[tbonaviso]

I just bought a Lincoln Viking, I have used a fibermetal hood with a 2x4 flip down lens for years. I really don't know how i lived w/o the newer auto darkening hoods all this time, there is more viewing area, and less head and neck fatigue. I guess as i get older i feel the need for comfort instead of playing the part of a hard core welder.

[nathan]

I just bought a Lincoln Viking, I have used a fibermetal hood with a 2x4 flip down lens for years. I really don't know how i lived w/o the newer auto darkening hoods all this time, there is more viewing area, and less head and neck fatigue. I guess as i get older i feel the need for comfort instead of playing the part of a hard core welder.

The way I see it, comfort is pretty important. An uncomfortable worker is a fatigued worker is a less productive worker is a less profitable worker.

[kiwi2wheels]

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 stumbled upon this thread searching under hoods..................the bold quote had me shouting, " Yes, I'm not alone ! "

Anyway, can someone who uses one of those leather pipe welders hoods with the flip up, gas welding style goggles, tell me if shades 9-13 lens are available for TIG use please ? I've Googled , but with no results. I used one some years back for low amperage DC and have a found a source for the hoods but no reference to different shades. I'm in Europe unfortunately, not the US, so I need to have my facts in order.....

[kiwi2wheels]

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 stumbled upon this thread searching under hoods..................the bold quote had me shouting, " Yes, I'm not alone ! "

Anyway, can someone who uses one of those leather pipe welders hoods with the flip up, gas welding style goggles, tell me if shades 9-13 lens are available for TIG use please ? I've Googled , but with no results. I used one some years back for low amperage DC and have a found a source for the hoods but no reference to different shades. I'm in Europe unfortunately, not the US, so I need to have my facts in order.....

[taz]

For round lenses in shades suitable for welding take a look here

http://www.rapidwelding.com/dynamic/Dis ... 199XX&zl=3

http://www.rapidwelding.com/dynamic/Dis ... 19911&zl=3

[kiwi2wheels]

For round lenses in shades suitable for welding take a look here

http://www.rapidwelding.com/dynamic/Dis ... 199XX&zl=3

http://www.rapidwelding.com/dynamic/Dis ... 19911&zl=3

Thank you Taz. That is a useful site and they also have a good range of the leather hoods as well.

Five minutes ago I just found the local engineering supply has them from DIN3 -12 and 9-12 Gold coated ! But they were in the polishing compound page.... on-line catalogs .

[Braehill]

My leather hood takes the standard 2"x 4" lens and they even make an auto darkening lens to fit in it if you're so inclined to buy one.

Len

[kiwi2wheels]

My leather hood takes the standard 2"x 4" lens and they even make an auto darkening lens to fit in it if you're so inclined to buy one.

Len

Thanks Len, that would be ideal.

[Rick_H]

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

This is the same reason I use mine as well, (miller digital elite), However I recently also bought a Save Phace EFP with the small viewing area because the hood itself is smaller and more contoured to my face/head allowing me to fit easier in small spaces, still Auto Dark however.

[RocketSurgeon]

This is what I bought:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00BWA ... UTF8&psc=1

This is what it looks like now:

[AKweldshop]

I bought a jackson boss.

Love this thing.

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