The times when welders worked with welded shields that were held in front of the face with one hand while the other hand needed to cook the part were almost a thing of the past. An ordinary visor can only be seen in small workshops or during infrequent domestic work. For professionals and those who carry out welding work on an ongoing basis, welding masks of new generations, including the Chameleon mask, have long been invented and produced.
It is often an elegant helmet with a built-in light filter, while the latter is fixed in the headband and is not lifting, but can be removable and replaceable. The principle of operation of the filter, which has a welding mask "Chameleon", is based on the use of a complex design of polarizing films, liquid crystal components, complemented by an infrared and ultraviolet filter. Placed under a protective glass when connected to a lithium battery and solar panel, this design automatically produces light shading depending on the lighting conditions. And the light emitted during welding, let’s say, is simply unbearable for the human eye due to its extreme brightness.
The welder's mask "Chameleon" in addition to the main function - optimal light shading - also has the ability to diffuse reflected light, which also positively affects vision. A small design flaw is that light passing through several layers is scattered somewhat, which reduces visibility.
The Chameleon mask has a number of characteristics that must be considered when buying it, including:
- optical class (from 1 to 3), which determines how geometrically clearly visible objects are through a “layered” filter;
- light scattering - an indicator of the turbidity of the filter;
- homogeneity - the degree of uneven shading;
- the degree of shading depending on the viewing angle;
- turn-on time - shows how fast the filter turns on when welding starts. The professional mask "Chameleon" has this indicator no more than 50 microseconds.
The filter of the mask must be certified and qualified for one or another type of work. In the absence of these characteristics, it is better not to buy a mask. It is believed that high-quality filters are produced by companies such as Speedglass, Optrel, Otos, Tekmen, Shine and Balder. They have international certificates that guarantee quality, convenience, ergonomics and reliable vision protection. Sometimes manufacturing companies purchase the above filters for welding masks of their brands, but this does not always guarantee the high quality of the final product. Therefore, it is better to buy the original mask "Otos", "Shine", etc.
For those who cook a lot, the "Chameleon" mask with removable rather than built-in batteries will be the best purchase. their service life is limited to 2-3 thousand work, after which the elements need to be replaced. Agree that replacement is much easier if the design of the welding mask does not need to be opened.