Welding Helmet

[rwm]

I am wondering if anyone has this Optrel helmet? It is pricey! Can you recommend or steer clear? I am realizing that some of my welds suck because I cannot see the workpiece, not because of technique. And I need a Christmas present...

Optrel Crystal 2.0 Welding Helmet 1006.900

Optrel® Crystal 2.0 Welding Helmet 1006.900The Optrel® Crystal 2.0 auto-darkening welding hood features shade 2.0 light state that is unmatched in the world for color and clarity. The Crystal 2.0 lens has fully automatic shade 4 to 12 arc brightness detection with Twilight feature to gradually...

store.cyberweld.com

 

[DavidR8]

My perspective might be a bit controversial...
I tried an Optrel Crystal 2.0 back to back with an ESAB Savage A40. The difference in visibility or colour tone was not that apparent to me. The price difference was however.
This is the view of my garden through the ESAB. Guess which one I bought.

 

[erikmannie]

I have 4 welding helmets, including a pricey 3M Speedglass 9100x.

Of all of my welding helmets, my favorite is the Miller Classic with a 2.5X cheater because it is *lightweight*.

My second favorite welding helmet is the extremely cheap Lincoln Electric one that they sell at Home Depot…because it is *lightweight*.

I don’t know how your vision is, but cheaters are revolutionary.

Above a certain weight, I won’t even use the welding helmet. The Speedglass 9100x is beyond that weight. The clarity is amazing, but apparently my head isn’t happy with that much weight on it.

 

[DavidR8]

I have 4 welding helmets, including a pricey 3M Speedglass 9100x.

Of all of my welding helmets, my favorite is the Miller Classic with a 2.5X cheater because it is *lightweight*.

My second favorite welding helmet is the extremely cheap Lincoln Electric one that they sell at Home Depot…because it is *lightweight*.

I don’t know how your vision is, but cheaters are revolutionary.

At a certain weight, I won’t even use the welding helmet. The Speedglass 9100x is beyond that weight. The clarity is amazing, but apparently my head doesn’t want that much weight on it.

I have 2x cheaters in my helmet but often I find it better to wear my safety glasses which have a 2x area at the bottom of the lens because the focal distance works better than the in-helmet cheaters.

 

[GeneT45]

I'm very impressed with the Crystal 2.0 - based on about 120 seconds of playing with one. It's on my 'someday' list.
GsT

 

[rwm]

My current helmet is a Miller Performance Series. I have 1.5 cheaters in it. I love the helmet in terms of weight and arc sensing. I have difficulty seeing the work outlines when I am welding. I see the puddle pretty well but I lose track of where I am on the work and stray off the mark. I was hoping a dynamically variable shade would be helpful. The reviews of the Optrel are a mixed bag.

Gene- did you actually weld with one? Do you feel like work piece visibility would improve?

 

[Cadillac]

I purchased this optrel about a month ago at work. I previously was using a Lincoln at work. It stopped working. I use a Miller elite at home. The optrel shade is the clearest view of any helmet Ive EVER used. I found after wearingmy Other helmets in the upright position that after awhile my neck starts hurting. So I went with the cap style helmet. It has grind and weld mode and I either have it on my head or off it doesn’t flip. I love the new helmet!

 

[Eddyde]

I bought a Lincoln Viking 3350 about a year and a half ago, it has the large "Clear view" type glass. So far I really like it. It definitely is a lot easier to see through than my older Miller automatic hood. I also bought the cheater lenses for it but prefer to simply wear my readers. I don't weld a lot so weight isn't a big concern of mine, though this hood doesn't seem heavy at all. I think it was about $250.

 

[rwm]

I purchased this optrel about a month ago at work. I previously was using a Lincoln at work. It stopped working. I use a Miller elite at home. The optrel shade is the clearest view of any helmet Ive EVER used. I found after wearingmy Other helmets in the upright position that after awhile my neck starts hurting. So I went with the cap style helmet. It has grind and weld mode and I either have it on my head or off it doesn’t flip. I love the new helmet!

It that the Panormax lense in that?

 

[GeneT45]

My current helmet is a Miller Performance Series. I have 1.5 cheaters in it. I love the helmet in terms of weight and arc sensing. I have difficulty seeing the work outlines when I am welding. I see the puddle pretty well but I lose track of where I am on the work and stray off the mark. I was hoping a dynamically variable shade would be helpful. The reviews of the Optrel are a mixed bag.

Gene- did you actually weld with one? Do you feel like work piece visibility would improve?

Yes, I got to weld a quick bead. I should have mentioned that all of my previous experience is with a Speedglas helmet - I have used no others. I don't have cheaters in the helmet, but always wear 'regular' cheaters underneath.

Also worth noting (having recognized the picture) that it was a post by Cadillac that got me looking at Optrel to begin with. Before that I didn't even **know** I needed a new helmet... ;-)

GsT