auto-darkening hard to see through when light

[julianf]

Quick question -

I have a cheap (SIP, i think) mask i purchased used some years back.

Aside from the fact that its like some torture device when attached firmly, ive never been able to see well through it before the arc strikes.


As in, i can see the shroud, but not the wire or electrode. So its guess work until the arc fires.

This is in normal daylight or normal indoor lighting. Im sure spotlights would make a difference, but that's another level of inconvenience.



Is this standard? Whenever im around someone else with a helmet, i always forget to check theirs, and its been irritating me enough recently for me to ask here!

 

[BrokenBiker]

you should just have a slight green tinge to the lense when in 'off' mode. I never notice a change to the colour when im welding until I stop the arc then it stays dark for about half a second and clears again. I can see pretty much everything quite clearly with all of my auto dark lids,

 

[hotrodder]

A lot depends on the standby shade some are lighter than others and, generalising, all brands have improved some over the years... shade 3 is fairly common these days, at least on better quality buckets. Some years back IIRC shade 5 was fairly typical and they can darken a bit as they age- an old bucket of mine was supposidly shade 5 standby but was definately darker than a pair of brazing glasses by the time i replaced it. FWIW my Speedglas is shade 3 standby, shade 4 when off and the large lens + shade 5 side windows make it feel airier/lighter than that. Have a look at the videos in the forum tutorials, dunno what lens was used to film them but the TIG vids are nearly as clear and detailed as real life through a decent lens. Might not effect everyone but even decent headgear with padding/sweat pads gives me a headache if 'firmly' attached for any length of time