Auto darkening helmet and burning eyes questions PLEASE!!!

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I have two "el-cheapo" welding helmets.  The first is a Harbor Frieght (HF) model and the second is a Northern Tool (NT) model.  With the exception of the blue flame stickers, vs. Orange flame stickers, they are identical in ALMOST every way.I'm assuming they are Chinese JUNK......  Anyway, after a half day of welding, my eyes feel like they are burning ever so slightly no matter which of the two helmets I use.  I must preface that Im not a professional and I'm just an occassional "amatuer lawn-art weekend welder."  My questions are:1)  Are the more expensive auto darkening helmets going to be any better than the cheap ones when it specifically comes to switching into "dark mode" the instant the welding arc lights up?  2)  With the expensive name brand helmets, does anyone here  ever experience that slight burning feeling on the eyes at the end of the day as well?  Or are the expensive helmets so good that you're eyes feel great after long welding jobs all day?3)  Are the big name-brand helmets really that much better when it comes to UV filtering and/or darkening speed/sensitivity?  4)  Would simply just turning up the sensitivity from a "9.5" to maybe an "11" or higher help or do I need to spend the hundreds of dollars on a better helmet to prevent the burning feeling????5) (Last question).... Do you think the burning is due to the fact the lense is not filtering the harmful UV rays at all?  ....OR, is it because the milliseconds it takes to switch to dark mode the moment the arc lights up is just not fast enough to prevent some harmful arc rays to injur my eyes?Thanks in advance for the answers and explaination to this newb welder....Lincoln Power Mig 216Lincoln AC/DC-225/125Miller  625 X-Treme PlasmaMiller 211 Forney 95FI-A 301HF 91110Victor Journeyman O/PMilwaukee DaytonMakita  Baileigh NRA Life Member
Reply:There were a lot of long questions in there, we're naught but humble weldors. Oh yeah, movie quote-itis flaring up,  I have had nothing but good fortune using a Speedglas 9100XX hood. (Thanks Burnit!) I still have my collection of standard hoods that do the job if I ever need a backup. The cheapos are just too expensive to account for if they screw with my vision.  City of L.A. Structural; Manual & Semi-Automatic;"Surely there is a mine for silver, and a place where gold is refined. Iron is taken from the earth, and copper is smelted from ore."Job 28:1,2Lincoln, Miller, Victor & ISV BibleDanny
Reply:There is very little at "HoBo Freight" that works like it should.  I know that times are tough, but your eyes deserve something more expensive.If I am having a "high arc start day" being really busy, I just use an old blue piece of glass.  (Lincoln SuperVisibility)  If it is a lower arc start/ repair day, I'll use a speed glass.-Rhyno07 Fowler 200D65 RedFace04 Miller TB 302, 22hpMiller 12RCMiller HF 251-1Lincoln SP135HyperTherm PM 380and a few others... Originally Posted by RhynoBut, if I "all of a sudden disappear....  ...." hopefully I didn't suffer too much....
Reply:Originally Posted by SuperArc........................I'm assuming they are Chinese JUNK......  Anyway, after a half day of welding, my eyes feel like they are burning ever so slightly no matter which of the two helmets I use.  I must preface that Im not a professional and I'm just an occassional "amatuer lawn-art weekend welder."  My questions are:1)  Are the more expensive auto darkening helmets going to be any better than the cheap ones when it specifically comes to switching into "dark mode" the instant the welding arc lights up?  2)  With the expensive name brand helmets, does anyone here  ever experience that slight burning feeling on the eyes at the end of the day as well?  Or are the expensive helmets so good that you're eyes feel great after long welding jobs all day?3)  Are the big name-brand helmets really that much better when it comes to UV filtering and/or darkening speed/sensitivity?  4)  Would simply just turning up the sensitivity from a "9.5" to maybe an "11" or higher help or do I need to spend the hundreds of dollars on a better helmet to prevent the burning feeling????5) (Last question).... Do you think the burning is due to the fact the lense is not filtering the harmful UV rays at all?  ....OR, is it because the milliseconds it takes to switch to dark mode the moment the arc lights up is just not fast enough to prevent some harmful arc rays to injur my eyes?Thanks in advance for the answers and explaination to this newb welder....
Reply:Great info Rhyno and the guys.......  I appreciate it.  I'll be purchasing a new helmet, turning up the "numbers" of darkness and finally.............. blinking shut at intial arc start up!  Thanks again.Lincoln Power Mig 216Lincoln AC/DC-225/125Miller  625 X-Treme PlasmaMiller 211 Forney 95FI-A 301HF 91110Victor Journeyman O/PMilwaukee DaytonMakita  Baileigh NRA Life Member
Reply:The above is all excellent advice, I would add this,Is the hood covering your face completely? Meaning, Arc light finding its way in?I used two different Speedglas lids, 9002V, 9002X. While optics were awesome, the helmet was two small around chin and jawline for me, my eyes were fatigued after 3 hours of bench welding. My friend then remembered that he used to have leather taped around perimeter to block this light.....Not what I would do to a $300 lid....I just got a Jackson NexGen,in the HSL Helmet, and Ill know after a few hours Tuesday night if it was worth the money.I have an Ol' Harbor Fright AD that is fine for MIG, useless for stick.Im also seeing that welding discipline greatly affects what helmet you should really use. Stick is an erratic arc, so to speak, while MIG is pretty consistent, TIG is just plain bright as hell....So, seeing that Im a SMAW man, Im likely to stick with my #10 Goldie passive for  "high arc start day"Lincoln Power MIG 210 MP ( boat anchor )Lincoln Weld-Pac 100 HDHobart IronMan 230Cutmaster 42Jackson NexGenSumner Ultra ClampsDWM120
Reply:A nice middle of the road hood is the Lincoln Viking.  I've been using it for a few months now, and still haven't had any problems to rant about.A lot of people don't like the solar powered hoods, but this one works well on cloudy as well as sunny days.  I don't weld inside, so I can't speak to that.  However, the arc does recharge the batteries as you're welding.It even survived being left out in the rain for over an hour"Any day above ground is a good day"http://www.farmersamm.com/
Reply:Doh!!!!!!!The original question..............Do you have vision problems?  Very often the strain and burning comes from trying to focus on the puddle, not effects of the protective gear.  Simple eye strain and fatigue.  I get it with either passive or "magical" hoods"Any day above ground is a good day"http://www.farmersamm.com/
Reply:If I am doing fine work with a mig, I find that I am not blinking as often as I should.Makes my eyes feel bad, but seems to happen with whatever type glass I am using.
Reply:The time to go dark should not be that much of a issue. Even in  the clear state they will still block the UV rays. The brightness will just make you see spots, but should not cause any flash burns. At least that is what i have been told and read. This may not be correct in all helmets, but with my NEXTGEN i know it is true.Miller Bobcat 250MillerMatic 250Miller 3080 plasmaVictor O/A setupLinclon AC225
Reply:Try lowering your hood.
Reply:I have a northern tool AD helmet and I have never had a problem with it.  I think the key is to blink at the start, i just do this as a reflex not really sure why haha.  The other thing is as was mentioned before, have the darkness set correctly.  I saw a chart somewhere that recommended darkness vs rod size and amps for stick welding at least.This is just my experience using this helmet for hobby stick welding.  I am far from a pro and the most rod I have ever burned in a day with this helmet is 5lbs of 1/8" 7018
Reply:been using my speedglass 9100xx for a few weeks now, never had eye fatigue or burning... must be from all them video games over the years straining my eyes in the wee hours of the morning."...My pappy was a pistol I'm a son of a gun...""...God is great, beer is good, and people are crazy..."
Reply:If you are a hobby welder and have enough hood time to tire your eyes, then you need to upgrade. Many  welders working home projects will have more hood down time on the project than some pros have during the course of a normal work day and your eyes will be tired at the end of a long day of welding. If you are welding different processes then I recommend a variable shade hood if you can afford it or an AD fixed shade for the most common process (maybe mig) and a cheaper huntsman fixed shade for tig or stick. I agree with the consensus here that harbor freight safety devices cant be counted on to operate correctly.UA Local 598
Reply:I always thought the HF hood was to short, not enough coverage both on the top and bottom of the hood.  Combine the hood being to short with wearing light colored clothes and reflective surfaces and your going to get errant light getting behind the hood.  Since it is something you don't feel right away it always seems to be just a guess at what is causing it.  So for now if your wearing light colored clothes switch to black and may add leather extensions to your hood and see if that helps.
Reply:With most auto-dark hoods, especially the better ones, it's important that the hood be properly adjusted for the task at hand.For instance, setting the shade too dark can cause the headaches you're experiencing because you're inducing "eye strain" trying to see the puddle.  Actually, it can be more of a factor than setting the lens too light.A quality hood will "protect" you eyes even in the light state.  One way to determine if your settings are "too light" is to remove the hood soon after welding and see if you have normal vision or if you're still "seeing stars".  If you're seeing stars, increase the darkness setting.Properly adjusting a hood for different welding situations comes with experience, same as welding.  You're probably not going to get it exactly right the first time.BTW:  There IS a big difference in visual clarity between a quality hood (read several hundred dollars) and a HF/Northern cheapo.  You only get one set of eyes.  Last time I checked, you couldn't "pick up" a second pair at Wal-Mart.Syncro 250 DX Dynasty 200 DXMM 251 w/30A SG XMT 304 w/714 Feeder & Optima PulserHH187Dialarc 250 AC/DCHypertherm PM 1250Smith, Harris, Victor O/ASmith and Thermco Gas MixersAccess to a full fab shop with CNC Plasma, Water Jet, etc.
Reply:When I first started welding I noticed some eye irritation.  Using the same helmet now I don't have any problems.  I think you might get the same eye irritation sitting for a few hours concentrating on looking at the end of a pencil.Other people have mentioned it, but make sure you aren't getting any light around the hood or reflections from behind.  White shirts and light colored walls/objects behind can all be problems.Edit: I just had a thought (amazing huh?).  Has anyone tried putting a light shade fixed glass in their cheap helmet?  I don't know how light of a shade you could find.  I've seen #5 in the LWS.  This might be too dark.  The idea is that you get the protection you need from a quality fixed shade glass, and the cheap autodark just lets your adjust the brightness.  I don't know if the #5 plus the #3 or so of the non-activated autodark will be too dark to see before you strike the arc.Last edited by AndyA; 05-15-2010 at 03:16 PM.Dynasty200DX w/coolmate1MM210MM VintageESAB miniarc161ltsLincoln AC225Victor O/A, Smith AW1ACutmaster 81IR 2475N7.5FPRage3Jancy USA1019" SBAEAD-200LE
Reply:I was told to make sure batteries are good and replace often.
Reply:ive always used a huntsman 911P hood bout 42.00 and the bought a master shade auto lence for about 98.00 never needs batteries and is plenty dark for  most applications  some times when i tig i go to my manual  lens at a shade 13 cause its so bright youy can even get a lincoln hood with a auto lens for 99.00 and they work good as well hope this helpsLincoln Pro Core 125Lincolin sp 100Miller Big 40Lincoln Idealarc SP250miller matic 212http://www.facebook.com/hdwelding?sk=wallwww.hdweldingbeds.com
Reply:Just a side note... I use a fairly "inexpensive" auto dark lid with OK performance... and not very often...but a project I had last year made me notice something...I usually wear darker shades of clothing.... occasionally reds but mostly browns - blacks.Well it was extremely hot out and I was wearing a white t-shirt to reflect some of the suns rays... later that day I realized that I was also getting a lot of reflected weld flash into the helmet off of my white shirt. Eyes were a little irritated the next couple of days. So watch what your wearing and reflections making it past your helmet too...Never argue with an idiot. They drag you down to their level, then beat you with years of experience.
Reply:Originally Posted by pandinusJust a side note... I use a fairly "inexpensive" auto dark lid with OK performance... and not very often...but a project I had last year made me notice something...I usually wear darker shades of clothing.... occasionally reds but mostly browns - blacks.Well it was extremely hot out and I was wearing a white t-shirt to reflect some of the suns rays... later that day I realized that I was also getting a lot of reflected weld flash into the helmet off of my white shirt. Eyes were a little irritated the next couple of days. So watch what your wearing and reflections making it past your helmet too...
Reply:I'm running an Optrel Sattelite...never had a problem with burn or flash.--Wintermute"No man's knowledge here can go beyond his experience." - John Lockewww.improvised-engineering.comManufacturer Agnostic:Blood----------Sweat---------Tears----|------------------|----------------|----Lincoln Red, Miller Blue, Esab Yellow
Reply:Im skeptical of the speed glass, sure its nice. But the way i look at it. Its not faster then god/or whatever you believe in. I just have a regular helmet with a 11 in it. Does the job and doesn't burn my eyes.Drop the Mask... Attack the Task... Miller 250 AC/DC.Red 1983 Camaro z28 305V8, Crossfire Injection. T-tops. Posi.Restoring it.. 383 Stroked.. Daily driver is a 02 Ford F-150 XLT FX4 Ext Cab 4 Door.
Reply:Originally Posted by Shawnz28Im skeptical of the speed glass, sure its nice. But the way i look at it. Its not faster then god/or whatever you believe in. I just have a regular helmet with a 11 in it. Does the job and doesn't burn my eyes.
Reply:Originally Posted by heimbuckweldingive always used a huntsman 911P hood bout 42.00 and the bought a master shade auto lence for about 98.00 never needs batteries and is plenty dark for  most applications  some times when i tig i go to my manual  lens at a shade 13 cause its so bright youy can even get a lincoln hood with a auto lens for 99.00 and they work good as well hope this helps