Auto Helmets (Again!!)

[HasBean]

Was (attempting) Tigging a bit of stainless this morning but really couldn't see a thing except the arc (my excuse for the subsequent welds )
Had the overhead light on plus two 500w halogen lights focused onto the area but nope!
My helmet (steady missus) is a SIF one from Weldequip which works a treat but was wondering if at 25amps I need one that goes below shade 9?
There was a little flickering which I expected as it's rated for tig over 50A but I adjusted the sensitivity to get rid of that.
Are there 'special' masks for low amperage tig or do I just need more light on the subject? (mind you any more will be light Blackpool illuminations!! )

Paul

 

[dutchman]

A different head position did the trick for me....

 

[wyn]

Had the same problem.

I bought a helmet that goes from 5 to 13 it was badged BOC but i think it was an optrel. It was a bit on the expnsive side though £200..ish.

Another thing i found was that the tungsten wasn't sharp enough and the arc was too wide making it more difficult to see.

 

[HasBean]

I could see the arc but nothing else

On the plus side I now have a tungsten with a perfectly formed 1/8" ball on the end so if anyone wants to weld some ally.......

Made life a little difficult, talk about a stab in the dark!
I bought the twin halogen lights after I had problems arc welding some brackets, had to turn the shade down to 8 then (had to do it on two masks so that's not the problem)
Can't really increase internal lighting so I guess a different mask then??

 

[snowcat]

A multiprocess lid would certainly help you, as mentioned there not cheep, on me second, no third optrel now...

 

[Paul.]

I could see the arc but nothing else

On the plus side I now have a tungsten with a perfectly formed 1/8" ball on the end so if anyone wants to weld some ally.......

Made life a little difficult, talk about a stab in the dark!
I bought the twin halogen lights after I had problems arc welding some brackets, had to turn the shade down to 8 then (had to do it on two masks so that's not the problem)
Can't really increase internal lighting so I guess a different mask then??

what size tungsten are you using?. and have you got the polarity right on the welder, torch neg. sorry if that seems obvious but you should be able to see what your doing with a shade 9, I sometimes weld at very low amps with DC on .7mm stainless sheet, using a cheap sealey helmet set at 9. on another note it was struggling to see a tig arc that convinced me that I needed to go to specsavers, you tend to be very close to the arc with tig and with a bit of visual distortion from the welding screen coupled with being far sighted can make things difficult

 

[HasBean]

Hi Paul,
T'was a 1.6mm ceriated tungsten, electrode negative, about 25/30 ish amps. Just couldn't see the material, just the arc
Mask was switching a bit when looking up to the lights but adjusted it out.
I'm 'almost' convinced I need another mask.

BTW on another note I'm off for an eye test next month

 

[Paul.]

Hi
Have you got an old fashioned fixed shade helmet you could try, also how clear is the filter of your helmet, a few scratches or a bit of dirt can give a flare that blocks out the view, I would try with less backlighting, if your on shiny stainless the reflections may have an effect on the filter,
regarding specs for welding I have an extra close prescription for tig welding, mig and arc aren't a problem because of the further distance.

 

[HasBean]

Hi Paul,
Yeah, it was heavily backlit, masks virtually unused and no scratches.
Maybe too much lighting