lens magnifier and jacket ?'s

[slow50]

im gona get my dad a lens magnifier for his welding helmet for christmas but what diopter would you guys recomend? his eyes arent too bad. also could you guys recomend a decen welding jacket that protects from the uv rays but it still kinda light so you wont get all hot and sweaty. thanks.

[shovelon]

im gona get my dad a lens magnifier for his welding helmet for christmas but what diopter would you guys recomend? his eyes arent too bad. also could you guys recomend a decen welding jacket that protects from the uv rays but it still kinda light so you wont get all hot and sweaty. thanks.

I assume he does not have one yet so I would recommend a #1 diopter. It magnifies a tad, but not too much that it would be a shock.

As for the jacket I use a Cape sleeve with a snap on bib. The back is completely open and the bib keeps his shirt clean. Miller makes some good stuff and I would recommend the color black, as it reflects the least UV ray up under the hood.

[monte55]

If he wears reading glasses, look for the diopter strength. We have no idea how good his eyes are.

[BD1]

how old is he ? Some magnifiers did go by age .

[slow50]

thanks for the input he's 55 ive seen him wear reading glasses once he said he used them for the bifocals but i think they belonged to my step mom. he's always complaining about not being able to see the weld as he's welding so i thought the magnifier would be good.

[shovelon]

thanks for the input he's 55 ive seen him wear reading glasses once he said he used them for the bifocals but i think they belonged to my step mom. he's always complaining about not being able to see the weld as he's welding so i thought the magnifier would be good.

Perhaps you should think about buying him a visit to the optometrist. I use a #2 and on some occasions double up with a #2 reading glasses. I am 56.

[Goodhand]

Suggest you start by determining what power to put in your dad's helmut by dragging him to a store that has a variety of readers, so he can try them before purchasing the lens. This way your dad can see what power is best at his normal working distance when welding. I prefer a stronger power when tigging, compared to mig and stick. At the age of 55 years your dad, most likely, will benefit by using at least a +2.50 add. I use a +3.50 for tig. The "add" is the power of lens used in addition to the distance correction.

[Meltedmetal]

His age is not a reliable indicator of what strength of magnifier is appropriate. I'll be 60 soon and have only recently graduated to a +1.5 from a +1.25. And too strong is not better than not strong enough. You need to get him to check out the magnifier eye glass tree at the local store.
Good Luck.-Meltedmetal