darkness through mask ?

[grandads_shed]

ok i have a autodarkening mask, it seems to me to be very dark whilst welding, i can use it on number 9 whilst welding for quite some time with out getting ark-eye,

i have found a picture that shows how it looks by each number setting, but i find that #9 0n my mask seems to be darker than #13 in the picture.

i have been doing mig welding on power settings 1-low and 2-low i find it can help to see through the mask if i cover the back of my head and mask to cut out the light from reflecting inside the mask.

is my mask rubbish or are the pictures showing wrong?

 

[bigbadbugga]

I find that lighting the work area helps a lot, something nice and bright lighting from above but with the source out of direct vision.

 

[pedrobedro]

You will not get arc eye through a mask even on fail safe setting as it blocks the harmful UV radiation. You may get a bright spot in front of your eyes for a while but this is not going to burn you. Arc eye or flash is like grit in your eyes when you close them and is like sunburn on your conjunctiva, you will feel it worst at bedtime.

 

[Seano]

Arc eye or flash is like grit in your eyes when you close them and is like sunburn on your conjunctiva, you will feel it worst at bedtime.

Swiftly followed by the application of copious amounts of used cold Tea bags....

 

[hotrodder]

is my mask rubbish or are the pictures showing wrong?

Don't know about your mask but those pics aren't normal, far too bright to see the actual puddle. May well have been digitally altered to give a better pic for marketing

Have a look at the 'tutorial' section of the site, some vids there that show a more realistic view through the lens

 

[Hitch]

Id agree with hotrodder.... thoose pictueres are far from right.
A bit of extra light might help you.

 

[grandads_shed]

thanks m8s
i thought that my mask may have been faulty. you have given me peace of mind on this

 

[Wombat]

Can I come in on this - I have the same problem - with my mask set on 9 it is about as dark as 13 above. I can't see the join I'm supposed to be welding. Just came in from doing some work part way through in utter frustration as I was 1/4" off course.

The lens works as when looking at a fluro light and turning the knob it goes from light to dark - in fact the darkest setting with the fluro is about as light as #9 when welding - black as

Changing the setting from high to low sensitivity gets no response with the fluro light but still as dark while welding.

Getting fed up.

 

[Alistair]

do you mind me asking what helmets you guys are wearing?

 

[grandads_shed]

do you mind me asking what helmets you guys are wearing?

not at all m8,
i use a autodarkening mask from a company called "TOOLZONE" its cheap but seems to work as it should, no arc-eye yet after many hours of use

 

[hotrodder]

Wombat,
The pic Grandad posted is NOT a realistic view through the lens, it's been manipulated digitally or set up with lighting. There's a vid in the tutorial section of the site that's a bit more realistic (link in my last post). More here but quality varies a lot. The beginning of this vid is the most realistic lens view i've seen.

Sensitivity won't effect how dark it goes, just the light (or IR, whatever it reacts to) levels required before it switches. 'Delay' settings (if there is one) effect the time it takes to lighten at the end of a weld- prevent flickering when tacking for example

As has been said, ambient lighting makes a big difference. A mate of mine recently went through a similar thing (nice weld but nowhere near the joint!), after watching him hold a newspaper at arms length it was suggested he visit an optician. Fixed his welding problems too...

Some of the cheapies have pretty horrible optical qualities (by the time you add the cover lenses an auto lens means your looking through a lot of 'layers') that can result in eye strain when used for long periods or the shade varies across the lens but i've never come across one that was too dark to see what i'm doing personally.

 

[Wombat]

Thanks for the reply - I've since thought of two issues not yet put to the test - first if the fluro light is darkening the lens I wonder if it is adding to the level of shade and secondly the mask is about 6 inches away as like you said my arms aren't long enough otherwise