Opinions on Helmets,,,Insurance

[Heavy D]

I've had a Nex-Gen for close to four years now and like it just as much now as the day I got it. Actually more, because I put it in a new Halo-X hood and it's a lot lighter than my old Shadow hood. Has an auto, weld, grind and cut mode so it is a very versatile lens and more adjustment than a Speedglas for sensitivity and delay. Also has four sensors so very, very rarely blinks. I highly recommend it, you won't be disapointed.

The halo X hood is really nice and the jackson hood is the way to go I think. I stared welding alot about a year ago when I went to get a new hood my local supplier had this to say ( the best (jackson) you only have one pair if eyes are you willing to chance injory) and they sold me several blue welders in the past and will again if I ever need one

[Jetmekdc-10]

Thanks for the input guys, I think I will give the Nex-gen a try. Thanks anyways for your offer Mike. ,,Adam

[MD Welding]

I can't even give it away!

[migman69]

i know a few guys that weld for a living and they all swear by the jackson hoods and lenses. my welding instructor who has a bunch of aws certs said jackson is what he reccomends to all his students. some hoods might be flashy and cool looking but the jacksons do one thing right protect your eyes.

[welder_one]

i use the miller elite and in my opinion, it is a very good hood. i have not had any problems with tig and the lens giving me any flash at low or high amperage. it is lighter than the nex gen, and for me that was one of the great selling points, being that i usually have to wear it for 10 hours straight 6 days a week, and that don't include any side work that i do. as for insurance, best thing i can say is to start calling and be prepared to pay alot out, it aint easy or cheap following the rules.

[mikeswelding]

I had the same problem when I opened my own shop three years ago. I wasn't even going bother, until some high-profit jobs required it.
So first, go to an independent agency and let them do the legwork.
Next, stay away from mentioning that you might work on high-risk jobs like hitches, tanks, hoists, etc. Decorative work does not raise as many flags. Mention safety aspects of shop (fire extinguishers and anything else you can think of). Once I got these figured out, I have had no trouble.

[Jetmekdc-10]

Mike, I have an independent agent working on it. He is as frustrated as I am. I asked a few of the locals who they are using and none of them are insured. My LLC came in yesterday and I am applying for my license with the county tommorrow. I really wanted to put on my ad's that I was insured but its not looking too good. I had one insurance company consider me. They did want to know what types of things I would be welding. I told them I was just going to do trailer repairs. We'll see what happens, Thanks for the input, Adam

[calweld]

Everybody else here has talked about hoods,,, a few suggestions about insurance.

Maybe it's too late, but whatever your business name, don't put "welding" in it. Call it "fabrications", "repairs", "enterprises", etc., but not welding. Depending on the nature of your work, sometimes a good agent can reclassify you as something else, which could make it easier and cheaper. As long as there's no fraud involved, and you're not doing something specifically excluded in the policy, you're covered. Theoretically, you could open a flower shop, and do a little minor welding out back, and still be covered.

Most "name" insurance companies won't even consider you until you have a couple years insurance history, and the "loss runs" to back it up. Your agent may have to research some lower grade companies, even possibly the off-shore ones. This is what I did years ago when starting out, had no idea if I was really covered, just wrote it up as part of a necessary business investment.

My business is 100% commercial, when I need to find a company or agent I don't talk to other welders, I ask around with other business owners, certain agents are very good with commercial lines, most aren't. The big money and volume is with life, health, auto, and homeowners, easy money, just fill in the forms, very few agents have the connections, ambition, work ethic, and knowledge to properly take care of some of the riskier commercial stuff.

"Decorative" is not necessarily considered lower-risk. As soon as hand-rails, deck-railing, patio furniture, etc. starts being mentioned, liability starts going up, especially if anything is being done above-grade. Use caution here.

Just to establish my credentials .... I've been in business now for twenty-some years, buying insurance the whole while. Also, my wife works for a major insurance company, commercial division, has helped me fill in the blanks about how it works. Unfortunately, when we first met, she told me "Two things we don't like, roofers and welders." So she's no help at all to me ....

[Miller Helmet]

While I don't have any advice on insurance, I can provide a little information about welding helmets.

First, the reason that Miller Electric Mfg. uses green as the shade for the lens is that green is picked up by the human eye better than any other color. This green produces the best possible condition for a welder to see their surroundings and also the weld due to the color of the light reaching the eye.

We also have our outside lenses curved in our helmets to help reduce the chance that spatter gets lodged on the lens if you are welding out of position. As you can see, there are as many opinions as there are welders, but we have heard from a lot of welders that like the curved cover plate because it reduces glare. As with anything, everyone's eyes are different and are susceptable to different conditions.

Our line of helmets features a light state of 3 with shade ranges from 8-13 to offer the clarity that many welders require. We are confident that our clarity is among the best in the auto-darkeing market, but if possible, I would try a couple helmets out at your local distributor so that you can compare them side to side.

If you have any other questions, please post them and I will respond as soon as I can. Good luck in your search for a helmet!

Thank You,
MillerHelmet

[calweld]

Millerhelmet, while I can see your rational for the curved cover lens, I have to admit, I also use the Nextgen filter ... big reason is the standard cover plates are available everywhere, I work in California, Oregon, and Nevada, anywhere I go I can find cover plates, don't have to worry about what dealer or brand it is. Cost also is a factor, standard/common = cheap. And on my daily driver, space is at a premium, the standard flat cover plates I buy fifty to a box, easy to put the whole box in the truck, stores away very nicely. Just giving you another viewpoint here .......