There have been a number of different welding helmets hanging in my shop over the years. Quite frankly, most of them were awful—my relationships with them, rocky. They were a necessary but frustrating piece of equipment. Some let too much light in the back reflecting off the inside of the lens. Some could never be adjusted to flip down with just the right tilt of your head. And others were so bulky or heavy the straps had to be adjusted way too tight to be comfortable. Some issues were remedied with the advent of auto darkening lenses. But I still never found quite the right one for me.
Recently we got a couple new welders to test and, with one of them, ESAB sent a Sentinel A60 helmet to try. I have to say, this might still be the honeymoon phase, but I think I’m in love. I’ve only used it a few times, so it too early to say that? The helmet has all the features I want, plus a couple I hadn’t considered, and they all combine into a helmet I’m hard to find any fault with.
$319.00
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Auto Darkening Filter
At the heart of the Sentinel A60, is the Auto Darkening Filter (ADF), a large 4.6 x 2.8 inch lens that darkens at the first arc flash. I was able to quickly adjust the darkness, sensitivity and delay settings, and save them—the interface for doing so is simple to use. The ADF also has a grind mode, activated by a large button on the outside of the helmet. Pressing the button limits the darkening, so flying sparks from angle grinding won’t fully activate the ADF. This allows the helmet to do double duty, protecting your eyes while welding and grinding.
To protect the ADF from damage, the A60 comes with five lens covers—three amber, and two clear. ESAB also includes two inside lens covers to protect the ADF from dust and scratches.
Futuristic Helmet Body
While the shape of the helmet might seem like it was designed to evoke sci-fi vibes, it appears to me to have some specific benefits. For one, being rounder, less bulky, and closer to your head, it allows less light in from the back—so you get fewer reflections off the lens inside the helmet interfering with your vision. I also found the more svelte design to be lighter than other helmets I’ve tried, and with it closer to your head, it also applies less leverage to the headgear that secures it. And what about that headgear? It was very comfortable, I think in large part, because it didn’t need to be overly tight to keep the helmet in place. Now, with a helmet I’m actually happy with, I’ll actually want to take care of it—to that end, ESAB includes a fleece lined storage bag to keep it clean and protect the lens from getting scratched up, when not in use.