Auto Darkening Helmet

discap · Wed Oct 23, 2019 12:54 pm

I was welding some 3/4" thin wall 4130 tubing the other day and my helmet would "undarken" while welding. It was so bad that I would see spots and had to quit. I assumed that my battery (non replaceable) finally shot craps so I bought another (Harbor Freight). Had the same problems with the new one. I have been using the HF helmets for years and have never had an issue with them.

Any ideas

Bill

noddybrian · Wed Oct 23, 2019 1:36 pm

Solar charged helmets can suffer with lack of available light to keep the battery maintained when stored so it's always worth leaving them out in the sun or under the strongest available light source for a few hours to be certain - it is however far more likely that due to a combination of low amps due to the material size / shape & head position to achieve a clear view of the joint that the helmet is not " seeing " sufficient light intensity to change state - just for things & giggles try running a bead with a few more amps on a flat plate & see if it works normally.

discap · Wed Oct 23, 2019 3:33 pm

Yep I cranked it up on some thick stuff and it worked fine. Is the problem just a cheap helmet or will they all do this at low amps?

JayWal · Wed Oct 23, 2019 4:36 pm

discap wrote:Yep I cranked it up on some thick stuff and it worked fine. Is the problem just a cheap helmet or will they all do this at low amps?

Does your hood have a sensitivity adjustment? I have an old 3M Speedglass hood that I really liked, but couldn’t use for tig because it did not have adjustable sensitivity and I had the same problems you have. Had to switch to my cheaper Miller that I really did not like, but i could set it so it wouldn’t flash me.

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LtBadd · Wed Oct 23, 2019 5:19 pm

Some of the Miller hoods have an "X" mode that doesn't rely on the sensor seeing the arc, it senses the electromagnetic field (I think) or something like that. I have their Digital Elite and it works well.

discap · Wed Oct 23, 2019 5:31 pm

It has the darkness adjustment knob as well as sensitivity switch on the inside of the helmet. Neither seems to make much difference. It will be fine for a while then gets really light (non-dark?)

LtBadd · Wed Oct 23, 2019 8:12 pm

Another consideration is the number of sensors, the more expensive ones have 4, but this feature may be on some lower cost ones as well, with 4 you have a better chance of at least one seeing the arc.

Make sure your outer protective shield is clean, that can help both your eyes and the sensors.

Homemade · Thu Oct 24, 2019 6:22 am

Buy a passive lens for a back up and have no worries.