Is anyone using an adaptive shade auto darkening helmet?

[Jack Ryan]

Are they useful?
Do they solve what was a problem?

Here is an example of the technology: https://optrel.com/en/en/technology/shadetronic/

Thanks
Jack

 

[Mark 2]

It's an absolute must for any modern day welder, I read.

 

[BrokenBiker]

Here we go again...

 

[addjunkie]

It's an absolute must for any modern day welder, I read.

Engineering types keep improving products, sales types keep selling engineery types new products….without constant improvments, they wouldnt sell much and probably go bump.

A fixed shade mask still works, as does an auto mask…..its all just called progress…..to keep the economy turning

 

[Jack Ryan]

Well, that's why I asked. Is there a material benefit?

Is there a case where this technology really helps?

Jack

 

[Mark 2]

Well, that's why I asked. Is there a material benefit?

Is there a case where this technology really helps?

Jack

I should imagine it does but it's new and aimed at those who want to spend on it.
I suspect a lot on here will wait til that technology has bedded in .

 

[Jack Ryan]

I should imagine it does but it's new and aimed at those who want to spend on it.
I suspect a lot on here will wait til that technology has bedded in .

Thanks.

I don't have one and I have no plans to get one. I just wondered if some people were using them and had found them worthy.

Jack

 

[hotponyshoes]

There are a few useful features on the optrel helmets (and other brands have the same sort of thing)

One is the autopilot/shadetronic
Put the helmet in 'auto'
Do a tig weld at 80a and adjust the shade to exactly the darkness you like.
Then, it keeps the helmet at that shade all the time.
So if you then swap to a mig weld at 250a or a really small tig weld at 10a, or go to work in a dark corner, or in bright sunshine outside, the darkness level stays exactly the same and you never have to adjust it.

If you do a variety of jobs and don't want to spend a few seconds adjusting the helmet it's useful. If you are doing repeat production work at a bench it's pointless.
In real life I find it handy when you are doing something like tacking up with the tig then fully welding with mig.
Or if you are welding something that has various material thickness. You still have to change the welder output as you go along but the helmet shade is one less thing to mess about with.


Another feature optrel offer is 'shadetronic' That splits the lense into sections (32?) and darkens them individually. So, the 4 sections around the arc will go dark and the others will remain progressively lighter giving you a good view of the surrounding area. Handy if you are doing something like thin stainless or a bicycle frame in a jig where you want to keep an eye on distortion and make sure nothing is moving during the weld. Or, if you have something else you want to look at like a purge monitor or a written welding sequence.

Then there is stuff like the swiss-air breathing system. I've heard plenty of people say it's overpriced flimsy rubbish and nothing beats a 3m adflow but once you have used one for an extended period of time you won't go back. Although, it takes half an hour to originally adjust it and 5-10mjns to put it on each time so if you are not wearing it all day the 3m will probably suit you better.

The other manufacturers have some funky features as well.
Esab have 'x-mode' which detects the arc electronically (via emf?) rather than using uv sensors. That's really good for low amp tig welding, pipe/tube work, really dirty environments where the traditional sensors get covered in dust, and everyday stuff like welding the exhaust on your car.

Then 3m have got things like Bluetooth added so you can change the color of the lens from your phone...

The downside of this stuff (apart from the cost) is the helmets are also coming with things like micro usb sockets to charge them. Obviously something that's not suitable for an industrial environment.
The average user is not going to be repairing one when it breaks either.
When I buy one I divide the cost by the warranty period and then decide if I am happy to run one at £115/year or whatever.

Like anything in life, there are things with niche features at a premium price. If you don't have the use for them then they are a waste of money (and you are unnecessarily sacrificing reliability).
Then some people will buy them and sing the virtues just because they like to have the 'best' of everything.

I like things that make the job easier and save me time. If you are running flat out and can save 3 minutes a week by not adjusting the shade on a helmet that's 7hrs over the 3yr life of the helmet and if you have the work to fill that time with paying jobs you have doubled your money on the cost of the helmet so it's a worthwhile investment.
If you have a fixed budget that money may be better spent on kit with a higher/faster return.