Optrel vegaview 2.5

[Richard.]

Reliability from accidents isn't a deal breaker for me. Optical clarity is, nice fitting head gear is. I'll spend top dollar for those. Which will break and which won't doesn't bother me. My new tech and my 9002x are both over 10 years old and have been to hell and back coming out with nothing more than battle scars and missing decals. Take your cheap lid put it on and look through the top or bottom corner and try to weld. The vision is much darker and distorted more than likely. I have to do this some times. Ok if your always looking straight ahead.nothing wrong with cheap lids and some are very surprising as to how good they are. Parweld been one of the better ones for the cash IMO.

 

[Richard.]

Kent your point is valid and it's right you don't need such things. But not everything purchased in business has to make you more money. Ppe often doesn't. We pay more for it because of a number of reasons but like you an expensive lid won't add value to work I do. It will be crystal clear at 5 amps to 300 amps no matter where I'm looking through the viewing area. The head gear will be comfortable and well fitting. It will be light and flexible. I'm sure yours is gonna do everything you need but I'm the type of person who will pay for life's luxury and get the best of what I can afford. It's the same with your fishing gear. That pin you have is just so much nicer, lighter better built smoother than a 30 quid product yet neither one is gonna hook any more fish than the other in capable hands.

 

[Kent]

I think your talking about hobbies and graft as one and the same
I went out of my way to not make my hobbies become my job
30 amps? Thats no use to me and what I do fairly confident in saying my cheap parweld mightier me trouble with that. If I was on 1mm material tigin I suppose I should look elsewhere
PPE? It don't make you money it saves you money. Injury or illness has a cost which is not limited to your health. Best thing that's happened in my time away from the job is employers actually paying it more than scant regard.

 

[Richard.]

I wasn't been specific as to whether it's a hobby or not but my purchases of equipment are done around the same thought. I buy the best I can afford. That doesn't mean I buy the best nor does it mean the best is always the most expensive but what it means is if I can afford to pay more for something better I will. I wouldn't buy a 40 quid mask. I've used them they are ok but they are not comparable to 200 quid masks. I purchase in the same way with the same thoughts about my fishing gear and my tools and my motor bikes, leathers etc etc. Most of these items are not going to make me any better at welding, fishing or riding but they are much nicer to wear, hold, use they perform better they are lighter stronger than cheaper alternatives I could go on. Point being there is very good reason to buy the best you can afford especially when it's Ppe.

 

[ukracer]

View attachment 76793 My new tech has outer controls. It's a stunning lid but this is one of its down falls IMO. My next one what ever it may be will be required to be as good optically as the new tech but with internal controls.

I think I need to buy your old one

 

[Chris Stevens]

My cheap ESAB helmet is fine for MIG, but headgear isnt that good, optical clarity not that great, and its hopeless for low amp TIG, as its not sensitive enough. Cheap helmets are perfect for MIG monkeys, or for anyone where helmet damage, or maybe theft is distinctly possible. Visibility isnt as good as quality helmets though, not as comfortable, and no good for low amp TIG. Those things matter to me, so ESAB is very rarely ever used, and I guess only ever would be for maybe rough positional MIG under a car.

 

[Richard.]

I think I need to buy your old one

I don't think I could bring myself to sell that one. It's been my favourite for years. Don't get me wrong I do like my 9002x speedglas and it has lots of advantages over the esab new tech but I'd sell the 9002x first simply down to the optics been inferior.

 

[Richard.]

Between my 2 there isn't much in it but you can see clearly how the optics compare when both are switched on but not activated.
Top pic is through my new tech. It's simply crystal clear to view through.
The bottom pic is my 9002x. It's very good and I do love more features on it than the new tec but it's optics don't compete. A perfect lid for me would be a 9002 with the new tech clarity. Just before anyone asks they were done within 5 mins of each other in day light.

 

[Kent]

I wasn't been specific as to whether it's a hobby or not but my purchases of equipment are done around the same thought. I buy the best I can afford. That doesn't mean I buy the best nor does it mean the best is always the most expensive but what it means is if I can afford to pay more for something better I will. I wouldn't buy a 40 quid mask. I've used them they are ok but they are not comparable to 200 quid masks. I purchase in the same way with the same thoughts about my fishing gear and my tools and my motor bikes, leathers etc etc. Most of these items are not going to make me any better at welding, fishing or riding but they are much nicer to wear, hold, use they perform better they are lighter stronger than cheaper alternatives I could go on. Point being there is very good reason to buy the best you can afford especially when it's Ppe.

If a buisness just bought the best it could afford it will very soon not afford anything

I do get the whole low amp tig thing but the greatest aid to my welding of recent years was a fresh eye test and a new prescription

 

[MichaelV]

I'll second Kent's comment on the specs... When I awoke to the benefits of varifocals, it helped no end. I'll post a coupla pics through the vega view lid later tonight.
Michael

 

[Chris Stevens]

If you have poor eyesight a magnifying lens in most cases works very well.

 

[Richard.]

I'll second Kent's comment on the specs... When I awoke to the benefits of varifocals, it helped no end. I'll post a coupla pics through the vega view lid later tonight.
Michael

They look cool lids I often thought about optrel but they seem to all be fitted with small compact veiwing areas.

 

[MichaelV]

 

[Richard.]

That's CLEAR.

nice.

 

[MichaelV]

There's a coupla pics... Great colour and the 2.5 shade is very helpful, especially to a non-expert like myself. I find the field of view is wide enough, and there is space for me to wear a rigid 3M mask. My heed is a brave size as well.
Michael

 

[MichaelV]

Between my 2 there isn't much in it but you can see clearly how the optics compare when both are switched on but not activated.
Top pic is through my new tech. It's simply crystal clear to view through. View attachment 76810 View attachment 76809
The bottom pic is my 9002x. It's very good and I do love more features on it than the new tec but it's optics don't compete. A perfect lid for me would be a 9002 with the new tech clarity. Just before anyone asks they were done within 5 mins of each other in day light.

The new tech looks lovely, Richard; very crisp.

 

[daleyd]

If a buisness just bought the best it could afford it will very soon not afford anything

What a ridiculous thing to say! Businesses will more often than not buy "the best they can afford" because they will reap the benefits from things that high end welders, helmets or whatever can offer them.

Things like in production situations saving guys seconds in getting set up due to optical clarity being better - to the average user in his shed this probably means nothing but to a welder on a a production run those seconds add up over days/weeks. In the big scheme of things for a business a couple of hundred quid on a decent lid would probably be considered a drop in the ocean compared to its expected lifespan.

 

[Kent]

What a ridiculous thing to say! Businesses will more often than not buy "the best they can afford" because they will reap the benefits from things that high end welders, helmets or whatever can offer them.

Things like in production situations saving guys seconds in getting set up due to optical clarity being better - to the average user in his shed this probably means nothing but to a welder on a a production run those seconds add up over days/weeks. In the big scheme of things for a business a couple of hundred quid on a decent lid would probably be considered a drop in the ocean compared to its expected lifespan.

As someone who has been in buisness for over 25 yrs I reserve the right to disagree. Without being so rude as to say your comments are ridiculous just take a look inside a few fab shops or even into a welding supplies place at numbers and types of lids they hold in stock

 

[daleyd]

As someone who has been in buisness for over 25 yrs I reserve the right to disagree. Without being so rude as to say your comments are ridiculous just take a look inside a few fab shops or even into a welding supplies place at numbers and types of lids they hold in stock

I wasn't disagreeing about the wide range of lids available, but rather at your comment that....

If a buisness just bought the best it could afford it will very soon not afford anything

Which I still think is plain wrong , not only in relation to lids but lots of gear that businesses buy. Businesses can and often (though not always) do buy the best - it's the reason Miller/lorch/ Fronius etc sell thousands of machines to businesses, the reason electricians choose to buy fluke testers, the reason garages choose snap on tools etc etc

With regards to lids I'm with Richard - over the lifespan of a decent helmet the cost of even a quite expensive make is fairly insignificant. If I was welding day in day out and earning my living from it a decent lid would be top of my list, thats not to say a cheaper one wouldn't do the job but why would you bother skimping on a decent lid if you didn't have to?

 

[Richard.]

As someone who has been in buisness for over 25 yrs I reserve the right to disagree. Without being so rude as to say your comments are ridiculous just take a look inside a few fab shops or even into a welding supplies place at numbers and types of lids they hold in stock

That's not a good point Kent. I go through loads of fab shops on a weekly basis and the lids given/bought for the guys are predominantly speedglas. Sometimes other brands pop up but the fact remains in this country the helmet market is heavily dominated by speedglas and it's certainly not hobby users creating that domination.