Welding Tips and Tricks

Hello all.
I am a machinist by trade, I have also been fabricating for a while now. Mostly MIG and Stick welding. I am trying to take on some TIG welding practice and am having a hard time visually acquiring my weld puddle. I am Blind in my left eye and nearsighted in my right. (I was born this way).
What options are out there as far as helmets and other tools that i can use to help me improve? Ive never been one to let my vision deter me from anything but this one is frustrating to say the least. I use cheater lenses already.
Thanks in Advance.

Lynn

I don't own one (yet) but every review of the Optrel Crystal 2.0 hoods says they might be the best as far as clarity and light transmission. They offer cheaters that fit in the hood so you don't have to worry about the headgear over your glasses.

They aren't cheap, but everyone just raves about them!

I have one of those expensive optrel hoods and I really like it. I’m not admitting to having impaired vision in any way but the one I have goes over the bridge of my nose and might get in the way of glasses. Jackson safety has a similar technology in some of their large flat lenses that may work better for someone with glasses. At times I wonder if I’d like one of those better. They are also less expensive than the optrel.


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In large part, more $ = better visibility. Some helmets may offer a little more visibility / $, but for the most part I'd say they go hand in hand.

Go to a local store with the best and brightest flashlight you can get your hands on, and go try on various helmets to see which one you see best with. Shine the light straight at you and check out what you see. In the really good ones will see stuff that just isn't visible in the others. Also take note of colors you can see, and are they well defined.

Most any helmet made today will have a track in which you can put a cheater lens. You can buy them for under $5 in whatever prescription you prefer. It's much nicer that way vs having yet another pair of glasses on.

I personally don't ever use auto dark helmets any more. I own a few, but they collect dust. That's not to say they're not a great choice for other folks, but they wore out their welcome here.

After my last post in this thread I tried my optrel hood on with safety glasses on. I didn’t have any problems. Made a few welds that way. I think a reasonable sized pair of glasses would fit under the optrel CLX 2.0 just fine. Hopefully this helps someone.


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