Lincoln Electric K3034-4 VIKING 3350 Auto Darkening Welding Helmet with 4C Lens Technology, Matte Black, extra large

Excellent hood with great visibility and clarity. I'll start off with my very minor (and I mean very very minor) issue. Even when in doors, having it on high sensitivity causes it to flash on and off constantly. It's a simple solution if just turning down the sensitivity and like I said it's very minor. Everything else is fantastic with this hood! It was an upgrade from my old ArcCapitain and man what a difference! The clarity of the lense is second to none. And with true color it's easy to keep track of the puddle and arc without straining my eyes through a green filter The head gear is amazingly comfortable and while the hood does feel slightly on the heavy side when fully up, it still maintains a comfortable fit and feel around my head. Everything is super easy to pop out and replace or customize when/if needed. Spent about an hour when it was delivered just setting up the head gear for a perfect fit and it was worth it. I got the Mojo skin on the hood and it looks every bit as cool as it did in the pictures from Amazon with no noticable flaws or defects in the design.

I did a lot of research, and results indicate from reviews to not even think about other auto-darkening helmets - and for this helmet, those reviews are spot on (correct). Stay away from Harbor-Freight, YesWelder, even Miller Digital Elite 2.0, etc. I'm not stating this Lincoln is better than Miller Digital Elite 2.0, but rather for the weekend DiYer, this is your go-to helmet for Flux-Core, MiG, etc. As soon as I opened the box, I set the shade to 10 (for thin sheet metal flux core), and set the lag-time for becoming clear (after the arc distinguishes) to short "S", and went to the garage and fired up the new Lincoln 90-iFC flux core welder (110 Volts AC). Before I struck the arc, the lens was very clear. Once I struck an arc, the lens auto-darkened within 1/25,000 seconds, which is 200 times faster than the human "look away" reflex time when accidentally looking at the sun (1/125 second). The look-away reflex is a natural response built into the eye (central nervous system) from preventing retinal burns and burning the eyes out from bright lights. Amazingly, the arc appears very small and is not inflated like cheap lenses will do. The diameter of the visible arc during flux core (0.035 Lincoln flux wire) on 1/8" steel was about 1/8", so very small. As a result I could run a small bead like a micro-surgeon. The color of the arc is a blue-white color, and the small molten bead looks like liquid mercury, so there's no messing up on whether the bead is gluing together both side of the lap or butt being welded. The helmet's very comfortable when tightened around my head with a Lincoln do-rag on - yes, you need a do-rag for flux core, since it's spatter on steroids - everywhere. Be sure to wear long sleeve shirts - no matter how hot it is outside, as well as pants, and full suede gloves. The bright arc releases a lot of UV, which has proven to be a strong carcinogen - we're talking BCC (basal cell carcinomas) and other skin melanomas. Basically, the skin cancers that result in a horrible death - so don't be a fool.

Great quality. Very happy with it.

Two of our three grandsons love these helmets, They find that the color of the welding picture is more true and still protects their eyes! The view out of them is noticeably larger which helps both lay better looking welds !

First off let me say that the true color display is a real game changer for me, being able to see the area and weld pool in more realistic (not just green) colors is fantastic. AND the larger viewing screen area - that's just phenomenal. The new headgear is extremely comfortable and has great adjustability to get the fit just right for you. Scratch covers for the front and inside are super easy to replace and it comes with several of both. The carry bag is nice because now I'm not storing my helmet in a plastic bag anymore and it is easy to carry backpack style if you are going somewhere. I won't say it's made me a better welder but being able to really see what's going on in the weld, around the weld makes it SO MUCH EASIER to correct and keep a good weld going than is has been for me in the past. Technology certainly has improved welding helmets. And I feel like my eyes are protected, super fast switching, NO distorting in the view at all, and adjustable hold times so you are not getting flashed by still red hot metal. Thinking about buying one for our son if he decides he wants to get into welding more.

fit is great, view is great, sure is nice to be able to see clearly when welding

Very well made, great quality, highly recommend!

This is a very nice Helmet very comfortable. There’s so many features making the job a lot easier and faster the auto adjust is very nice the head band is extremely comfortable this is a must have if you don’t already have. Lincoln electric did a very nice job producing this model. On the plus side Amazon had the cheapest price I could find even the company I work for which gets price breaks ordering from company’s like miller and Lincoln couldn’t beat the Amazon price for this helmet I’m very happy