Both have their uses. Tiny stuff, weld testing, and a few other places I'll use an auto. For the bulk of it, tinted glass has never let me down. For a while, the special clear lenses kept me away from autos. They are making them more universal now, though.
One thing worth noting is that a $4 shade 11 green lens will a lot of the time be clearer than a $100 auto darkening lens. My Miller T94i PAPR was super expensive, and the Forney lens I started my career with lets me see more. I guess sometimes it's apples to oranges.
Got the same miller unit,it's too heavy(1st thing)than it's really clean but everything over 100amps stick or Tig and you need to be at shade 12-13 or mid week after 30h welding you can't watch TV or walk on daylight comfortable,got sentinel a60 as well and it's much darker on shade 3 but same clarity and brightnes all the way thrrough all shades.the price between two speak itself I think.me personally actually looking to do some DIY on sentinel,with adapting motorbike helmet lens as outer lens
You should learn to use a fixed shade lens sometime you’ll know how to use the basics. Like learning to drive a standard shift transmission. You have some kind of experience of basic things. Just think if you never drove a manual and all the sudden you had to.
I dont know about the prices in america but where I live you get real cheap auto darkening helmets for 30 bucks and for 60 bucks you can get into true color helmets from some known companys (still lower quality but they are OK to good from what I have heard). Also I am not a ful time welder just hobbyist so I havnt get to know many helmets and the diffrences...
@@WesternWeldingAcademy The helmet I have, you would probably throw away. I just bought one of the cheapest. But I am thinking about upgrading to a real color. Any other boxes a helmet should tick? But keep in mind, I am no professional, I am still learning but I want to have some OK equipment.
I started with fixed lenses but after I was able to afford my first auto, I don’t think I’d ever go back unless like you said, hard to reach spots where the sensors don’t go off. I’ve been rocking a weldcote true-arc auto welding lens for a while now, crisp and clean clarity, no eye fatigue, and the battery is still going strong after having it for a while now.
put the sensitivity up higher and wear some sort of tinted glasses so the short time in between when its not dark and it going dark your eyes don't get hit. for fixed shade have the tightness on your hood looser so you don't have to force it down because for everything except tig my hands move a little
@@cconfay6399 I keep the shade at max and sensitivity high. More often than not it’ll work well, but not always. I’m wondering if maybe I just need a better auto darkening helmet
@@GaryLiseo sometimes replacing the front screen helps too. but what helmet do you have? I have the Lincoln Viking 3350 and haven't had a problem with it and my friend has a miller. if you do stuff outside then id recommend the millers with the x-mode because it doesn't randomly go off on you mid weld. maybe also could be needing new batteries. if you get a new helmet get one that has a rating of 1/1/1/1and is a bit expensive so it has higher quality components.
@@cconfay6399 I'll be honest in that I got a Vulcan from harbor freight. I was on a budget when getting into welding. I did have to replace the batteries once so far and have been thinking of replacing them again to see if it makes any difference. The main thing is them getting dark at the start
its better to free hand stick because you can use your other hand to prop yourself up and stay more stable and also if you need to hold something in place while you tack it.
Both have their uses. Tiny stuff, weld testing, and a few other places I'll use an auto. For the bulk of it, tinted glass has never let me down. For a while, the special clear lenses kept me away from autos. They are making them more universal now, though.
True that
I just always run a fixed shade 10. No delay issues like with auto and i just like it better. To each their own just keep welding 👨🏭
That's cool! Running a fixed shade 10 sounds like it works well for you. Happy welding!
@@WesternWeldingAcademy thank you!
One thing worth noting is that a $4 shade 11 green lens will a lot of the time be clearer than a $100 auto darkening lens. My Miller T94i PAPR was super expensive, and the Forney lens I started my career with lets me see more.
I guess sometimes it's apples to oranges.
Maybe, but to each their own.
Got the same miller unit,it's too heavy(1st thing)than it's really clean but everything over 100amps stick or Tig and you need to be at shade 12-13 or mid week after 30h welding you can't watch TV or walk on daylight comfortable,got sentinel a60 as well and it's much darker on shade 3 but same clarity and brightnes all the way thrrough all shades.the price between two speak itself I think.me personally actually looking to do some DIY on sentinel,with adapting motorbike helmet lens as outer lens
There is no automatic lens that can match the clarity and quality of a good fixed shade lens .
As a beginner stick welder what would you recommend🤔
Auto darkening, shorter learning curve
We'd recommend testing them out if you can to see which one you prefer
You should learn to use a fixed shade lens sometime you’ll know how to use the basics. Like learning to drive a standard shift transmission. You have some kind of experience of basic things. Just think if you never drove a manual and all the sudden you had to.
@@D3rron08 I have a fixed shade rn but it’s kind of hard to
@@josephherr4828 I have a fixed shade rn and it’s kind of hard but I just don’t want to get a auto darkening
I dont know about the prices in america but where I live you get real cheap auto darkening helmets for 30 bucks and for 60 bucks you can get into true color helmets from some known companys (still lower quality but they are OK to good from what I have heard). Also I am not a ful time welder just hobbyist so I havnt get to know many helmets and the diffrences...
Gotcha! Prices can vary a lot depending on where you are. Sounds like you've found some decent deals on helmets.
@@WesternWeldingAcademy The helmet I have, you would probably throw away. I just bought one of the cheapest. But I am thinking about upgrading to a real color. Any other boxes a helmet should tick? But keep in mind, I am no professional, I am still learning but I want to have some OK equipment.
I started with fixed lenses but after I was able to afford my first auto, I don’t think I’d ever go back unless like you said, hard to reach spots where the sensors don’t go off.
I’ve been rocking a weldcote true-arc auto welding lens for a while now, crisp and clean clarity, no eye fatigue, and the battery is still going strong after having it for a while now.
I use a AO Weld Cool. Shade 12 if am outside running 6010, 7018 i use a 10.
Bet you paid a pretty penny for tht
@@chauncey5962 No i've these lenses since new.
I see I see
I’ve only ever used auto darkening. Been curious to try fixed so I don’t need to worry about batteries or the shade not darkening when you want
put the sensitivity up higher and wear some sort of tinted glasses so the short time in between when its not dark and it going dark your eyes don't get hit. for fixed shade have the tightness on your hood looser so you don't have to force it down because for everything except tig my hands move a little
@@cconfay6399 I keep the shade at max and sensitivity high. More often than not it’ll work well, but not always. I’m wondering if maybe I just need a better auto darkening helmet
@@GaryLiseo sometimes replacing the front screen helps too. but what helmet do you have? I have the Lincoln Viking 3350 and haven't had a problem with it and my friend has a miller. if you do stuff outside then id recommend the millers with the x-mode because it doesn't randomly go off on you mid weld. maybe also could be needing new batteries. if you get a new helmet get one that has a rating of 1/1/1/1and is a bit expensive so it has higher quality components.
@@cconfay6399 I'll be honest in that I got a Vulcan from harbor freight. I was on a budget when getting into welding.
I did have to replace the batteries once so far and have been thinking of replacing them again to see if it makes any difference. The main thing is them getting dark at the start
@@GaryLiseo what helmet do you have
I learned how to stick weld in high school. Had to use a fixed shade with no strap so i welded one handed alot
Why didn't you get a proper hood?
@@WesternWeldingAcademy we used what the school provided and I was too poor to get a new one at the time
its better to free hand stick because you can use your other hand to prop yourself up and stay more stable and also if you need to hold something in place while you tack it.
is there any difference between the plastic and glass lenes, and will i see better with one over the other?
My dad used to tell me, "I can still drive with an auto darkening lens, but not with a fixed shade."
I do not recommend
To each their own!
if you have your auto dark set sensitive enough the headlights will trigger it and then you wont be able to see
I learned to weld with a fixed lens and always used fixed lenses so I never cared much for the auto darkening lenses
But have you tried them?