welding flash to the eyes

Not sure if it was reflections from something behind me back into the helmet, or if the glass was somehow slid out of position wrong in the helmet, but I was in pretty bad shape for a day or two. It was a helmet we'd used a lot and still do - and I didn't notice anything wrong while I was welding - never really figured out how I got bit, but it has made me extra careful...

Not long after that, I bought a high-dollar autodarkening helmet. It was in the barn on the welding table with the old one.

A tornado came by about 3 months after that and guess what? It left the old one on the table and sucked the new one out the door... I found pieces of it scattered around the barn...

HH

I always keep a two helmets around now because I broke a lens one day and couldn't finish up the job.

Next item on my list is an autodarkening helmet. A buddy is a welder and I borrow his from time to time, sure beats flipping the lid up and down all the time.

1 lost day of work and $50 at the doctor... you are aweful close to the cost of a good autodarkening helmet.

Rick

What worked for me was a 3/4 No.4 colored face shield used for Oxy/Act cutting while tacking. This is a light enough shade that the "fitter" can see to make the fit up but dark enough to stop flash burn. No, you still can't look directly at the tack weld but it will help with the "suprise" flash.

Sorry but if your still flashing yourself as the weldor, you need to practice tacking for a couple hours on scrap metal. This is the only way to train yourself not to look at that instant "start". You will learn to slightly delay opening your eyes after the arc is established.

Mig is the simplest to tack with. Use a long cup with the tip set back into the cup by 1/16" to 1/8". Use a 1/2" electrode stub to find your joint seam then give it a little squirt. The amps need to be turned up about 40amps from where you would normaly use for welding. This makes for a small fairly flat tack.

Tig needs a full welding hood use as you need to see when metal fusion takes place for tacking. No filler rod is used if the joint is preparred correctly.

Stick is also a easy tacking process. Using 6010 or 6011 with about 30amps more than required for welding, place the electrode between your "V" in your glove fingers directly over the joint seam, then poke the rod "quickly" to the joint and hold for a few seconds. That's for a quick tack. Quick tack first then long tack second if needed.

T_Bone

This would have been a great question for the "Tool Forum" as 99% of welding questions are answered/posted there.

Easy for someone to look up the topic in one forum plus the Tool forum moves slower thus the questions get more responses.

T_Bone

Another thing do we know that closing our eye lids protects them from U.V. rays? An eye surgeon pointed out that the lids were not designed to stop flying metal fragments like happen sometimes when pounding a chisel with a hammer.

Hearing protection is another one of those things I wish I would have discovered about 15 years ago when I started running the old 806, 1256, etc... live and learn.

Mahalo,
doogdoog

It works, as we use it or castor oil when we get chemicals that irritate (burn) the eyes here at work in them.

To each his own.