Nick DV
"That's the only name they ever gave me."
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- "A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away...."
I decided I needed a new welding helmet so with a rough idea of budget and helmet, I looked at the Esab A50 on WSD’s website. I chose this as it had ‘true colour’ and is a popular choice by welders. I also noticed the Tecmen 1000 – not one I had heard of - so I discussed them both with @Tom Orrow L , who said he’d gladly send me one to try.
This arrived the next day.
The instruction booklet it came with was surprisingly good, and it was very simple to install the supplied batteries and set up.
Sorry but I’m not clever enough to get photos whilst welding and excuse the dust on the helmet and lens on the pics in the workshop.
The flip front is excellent, has very positive action and locks firmly in position when flipped up.
I really like the side lenses, and IMHO it makes the helmet feel much more open.
The head band is very comfortable, easy to adjust, and once done, the helmet fits great. It also feels light and well balanced.
The only thing that some may have a grumble about, is accessing the set up buttons as you have to flip the front slightly so that you can get your fingers between the grinding screen and the welding screen. IMHO it’s not bad at all.
As you can see, the helmet can be set up for the three functions and they are straight forward and easy to change. This screen has an auto shut off.
I wear varifocal glasses and with my previous helmet I was having trouble seeing the weld pool clearly, even with a cheater lens. The Tecmen can’t accept a cheater lens, so I hoped this would not be an issue.
Once I started welding, I could see the weld pool clearly and everything around it was so much brighter. I played around with the settings to get the best one for me, but once dialled in, it was great to be able to consistently see every weld that I made with just my normal glasses on. IMHO, the side lenses are a great addition as they make the helmet feel more ‘open’ and I found that I wasn’t making exaggerated head movements to see things when the helmet was down. I really like the idea of the flip up front for grinding, it saves time and hassle. I’ve not used it for cutting yet so I can’t comment on that.
I was and am very impressed with this helmet, and it has certainly exceeded my expectations, especially as far as vision is concerned, so I decided to give Tom a call and by it. On that point, I’d like to thank Tom and WSD once again for his advice and his offer to let me try the helmet without the obligation to buy.
Well, that’s my ‘quick’ review and opinions of this helmet. I’m sure that whilst it suits me it may not suit everyone, but it may help someone who is considering buying this helmet.
This arrived the next day.
The instruction booklet it came with was surprisingly good, and it was very simple to install the supplied batteries and set up.
Sorry but I’m not clever enough to get photos whilst welding and excuse the dust on the helmet and lens on the pics in the workshop.
The flip front is excellent, has very positive action and locks firmly in position when flipped up.
I really like the side lenses, and IMHO it makes the helmet feel much more open.
The head band is very comfortable, easy to adjust, and once done, the helmet fits great. It also feels light and well balanced.
The only thing that some may have a grumble about, is accessing the set up buttons as you have to flip the front slightly so that you can get your fingers between the grinding screen and the welding screen. IMHO it’s not bad at all.
As you can see, the helmet can be set up for the three functions and they are straight forward and easy to change. This screen has an auto shut off.
I wear varifocal glasses and with my previous helmet I was having trouble seeing the weld pool clearly, even with a cheater lens. The Tecmen can’t accept a cheater lens, so I hoped this would not be an issue.
Once I started welding, I could see the weld pool clearly and everything around it was so much brighter. I played around with the settings to get the best one for me, but once dialled in, it was great to be able to consistently see every weld that I made with just my normal glasses on. IMHO, the side lenses are a great addition as they make the helmet feel more ‘open’ and I found that I wasn’t making exaggerated head movements to see things when the helmet was down. I really like the idea of the flip up front for grinding, it saves time and hassle. I’ve not used it for cutting yet so I can’t comment on that.
I was and am very impressed with this helmet, and it has certainly exceeded my expectations, especially as far as vision is concerned, so I decided to give Tom a call and by it. On that point, I’d like to thank Tom and WSD once again for his advice and his offer to let me try the helmet without the obligation to buy.
Well, that’s my ‘quick’ review and opinions of this helmet. I’m sure that whilst it suits me it may not suit everyone, but it may help someone who is considering buying this helmet.