Got to try a new Jackson helmet...

Goodmorning everyone!!

So, I recently got a nice Christmas present from the good folks at
Kimberly-Clark, they found my YouTube channel and sent me
the new helmet that they've just launched!! I was really thrilled,
and felt very honored that I, of all people, ended up with it.

Its the Jackson Balder WH70 BH3.

And it looks like something out of Star Wars, its a beautiful
creation for sure....

I opened up the box, and checked it out. The first thing I noticed
about this helmet is just how light it is... Feels like it weights
about half of what my Jackson BOSS does, you can actually forget
you're wearing it...

It comes with the standard yet very nice Jackson 370 Headgear,
and has three adjustable controls, the standard Shade,
Sensitivity, and Delay... Which have large, thin-glove-friendly
knobs inside the helmet...

And the outer lens is curved. Its the first Jackson I've used that
DOESNT use standard sized lenses, but on a positive note it
DOES seem to deflect spatter better than a regular flat clear lens.
I was worried about how much its going to cost to use this thing
and all, but I found and ordered a whole pack of clears for $18
shipped from Cyberweld. Not bad, at all.

But whats best about this helmet? Not the little things. I put it on
and looked through the lens, and noticed that the optics are
crystal clear, they're honestly as good as the glass fixed shade
hoods I've used. But they're green... WTF? Jackson said they were
blue....

Ahhhha, there we go. In the helmets light shade, the display is
green, but as soon as it kicks on everything turns this beautiful
blue color... I'd never used a "blue" helmet before, but man was it
beautiful!! Its VERY easy on your eyes, and blue is my favorite
color to begin with... I got it setup over my camera, and shot the
welding footage in the video

So, overall I REALLY like this helmet.

What DONT I like? Well...

1) It never really turns off... Its solar powered, so its one of those
deals where its always "ON". Honestly not a bad thing, but its
completly different than what Im used too, I bet I'll get really
comfortable with this setup. It means its idiotproof, never again
will I pick up a helmet, forget to turn it on, and get flashed. Or
my favorite, think you have it turned on but the "push" of the
button didnt register because you're wearing gloves.

2) There are only two arc sensors... Not a big deal for me, don't
get me wrong, but I know some people demand more than that.

3) For some reason, it reads 9-13 on the "SHADE" knob. It will go
a "click" below that, and a "click" above it, too. I tried it plasma
cutting last night, and it was awesome!!

Okay, fine, I'm nitt-picking. I think this is a great helmet, its
lightweight, has a beautiful color, crystal clear optics and
idiotproof controls at the end of the day. I really like it so far. I'm
sure it'll be in a LOT of videos to come, and once I have some
real time in with it, I'll make a full review.

Thanks for reading guys, I hope y'all have a great weekend





video1
<object width="560" height="315"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/_NFQGpyzxRM?hl=en_US&version=3"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/_NFQGpyzxRM?hl=en_US&version=3" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="560" height="315" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object>

Thanks for the cool video. I am thinking about going to welding school. I am trying to learn about
welding / helmets etc. Cyberweld wants $363.25
for this helmet.

Nice. Just a note to others, the biggest problem we see with auto helmets is people will lay them down face down, and then will they get splatter or grinding sparks on the inside of the module. It can turn your new $300.00 helmet into a face shield real quick. I had a customer call back to the shop and complain that the new helmet I had just delivered was junk(they have twenty of them) When I showed them the ser. number on the helmet was not the same as the one on the ticket I had delivered, they just shut up about the warranty! It had welding splatter all over the inside.

Do you get a discount on tools/equipment through
your welding school ?

No, that I do not. The school has a store that sells brand name gloves, hand tools, clear lenses, etc pretty cheap tho. I've never bought anything there yet, however....

anyone else besides me feel that Lanse will be going far in this world? Bill

Ever hear, "Don't bite the hand that feeds you'?
Ever read a BAD car review in Road and Track magazine? You did good, put the bad in the "nitpicking" like you really didn't care about that item.

Lanse I wonder if the shade control knob works like my Miller helmet.

The shade control knob will lock below the bottom range for grinding. That way the sparks will not make it darken.

The notch above the top shade locks it dark for using it like a regular non adjusting helmet. I have used this in heavy bridge welding. Where you did not want it to lighten.

Lance,

I did not even think of looking at a new Jackson when I bought my new Esab helmet for my Christmas present, but I probably should have. My long time auto helmet of over 20 years is a Jackson and as I recall it was about $300 back then (close to when they first came out). That early model uses 2 AA batteries which last a long time, but they add to the weight. The ESAB is an incredible helmet, but I do believe the Jackson has the longest reputation for quality helmets. It would be fun to put the new Jackson side by side and compare optics and features with the new ESAB. Like you said, a lot of things are different than our older models, and they'll take some getting used to. The new ESAB has 3 sensors near the top, and backs up the solar power with 2 button batteries. The ESAB is shaped differently with a "bubble" shape in the mouth and nose area. I do not know if this will get in the way of some welding positions I need to take while repairing stuff, but the design is supposed to help get your exhaled breath out the front bottom and greatly reduce the fogging of the lens in cold conditions. My old Jackson would frequently fog up from my exhaled breath.

But You got yours FREE! And that beats any feature mine might have.

Have a Good New Year!

Paul in MN

Are you sure it doesn't use a battery(s)? Most helmets with a sensitivity adjustment and/or variable shade use batteries. That "new" Jackson looks a lot like a 3M Speedglas helmet.