Prescription Glasses for Welding

[Wamsutta]

I'm trying to figure out what kind of glasses to get for welding. I have single vision prescription reading glasses and single vision prescription distance glasses. I use the single vision prescription distance glasses for driving a car and that's the only time I use them, unless for some reason I want to see something a long ways off.

I also have a pair of bifocals with a tiny sliver of reading area at the bottom of the lens and distance area at the top of the lens. Those bifocals are pretty much useless for welding because the little sliver of reading area at the bottom of the lens doesn't give me enough field of view while welding closeup. The top portion of the bifocal lens with the distance area is too strong for short distances such as seeing across the shop. So I'm thinking what I need is LARGER lenses for welding which has more area for closeup distances and possibly have the top portion of the lens being regular with no prescription. Either that or have a pair of glasses setup with three viewing areas such as [closeup/regular/closeup] for welding overhead.

Cheater lenses in diopter 1.0 work ok for me, but they cut down on the side to side viewing area and don't give me as much field of view as reading glasses do. And on top of that, cheater lenses pretty much ruin any advantage of having a large window hood. I would think a cheater lens would be better suited for a small 2 x 4 lens hood. I'm wanting to use a large window hood if possible.

[cornchip]

do you mind if i ask how long you been welding ? dont take this the wrong way but it seems you may be fairly new to the welding game.
i know you said you want a large veiwing filter but you might regret that decision if your wearing it more than a few minutes at a time. those large filters add significant weight.
several years back i used a miller infinity for several hours at a time on a regular bases. nice helmet but i realized a couple things. it was extremely heavy and hurt my neck and i would of been just fine with a much smaller view area. to be honest i found no value at all in a viewing area that large. im watching my weld , not 6" ahead

heres the weight of some of the helmets

miller infinity 652g
esab a60 644g
lincoln 3350 595g
speedglas 9100xxi 585g
miller elite 510g

[Wamsutta]

do you mind if i ask how long you been welding ? dont take this the wrong way but it seems you may be fairly new to the welding game.

60 hours per week for two years at the Fresno Community College welding program. 5 semesters total.
Received certificates 3G up to 2 inches steel plate SMAW; and certificates 3G, 4G, up to 2 inch steel plate FCAW.

3 months at the Union Ironworkers welding program. Got my 4G SMAW 2 inch steel plate certificate there.

6 weeks on the job at Fresno Fab Tech Inc. Welded up some brackets that go on 3/4 inch thick steel I-beams to be shipped out to a job site.
Process was FCAW NR311 nickel 7/64'' wire. I don't remember the exact machine setting, but I think it was right around 30 volts at 300 IPM.

That all took place 20 years ago when I had perfect 20/20 vision. Now I'm trying to get back in the game and trying to figure out what to do with my eyes.

Reading Glasses:

RIGHT
SPHERE 1.25
CYL 0.00
AXIS 0

LEFT
SPHERE 1.50
CYL -0.50
AXIS 160

PD/Decentration Right:
DIST. 28.70
NEAR 0.00

PD/Decentration Left:
DIST. 28.70
NEAR 0.00

[MinnesotaDave]

I use in-helmet cheaters for stick and mig.

I add cheaters on my face too for tig.

I find this the easiest combination for me.

[SweetMK]

I was early for a DR appointment today,, there was a Goodwill nearby.

Well, someone had given them an entire glasses rack with women's sunglasses on one side, and reading glasses on the other.

I am pretty blind without my glasses (nearsighted) but, I tried on several of the reading glasses.

I narrowed it down to either 2.0 or 2.25 as the power I need.
I could easily weld without my normal glasses, only using the reading glasses,, I am positive.
The rack had no 2.00 readers, so I will look elsewhere.

The glasses were priced at $2 a pair,,

I never weld with my normal "street" glasses, as I am afraid to ruin them with weld spatter..

Try the readers, you might be surprised...

[CAVEMANN]

A good optometrist can get you into a pair of glasses that will focus at the distance you use for welding, you can play with different reading glasses of different diopter also or try cheater lenses in your hood. My wife works for an optometrist and he set me up with a pair of glasses that focus at the distance I needed, you may need to be careful with different lenses than what you normally wear, I stagger like I'm drunk if I forget them before I get up & walk. The problem with getting a prescription is the fact that your eyes will probably change, that's where I'm fortunate, I get everything at cost and free exams, sometimes they're even bartered, same with my daily glasses.

[Wamsutta]

My wife works for an optometrist and he set me up with a pair of glasses that focus at the distance I needed

That's just it: I don't know what the focal distance should be. Back 20 years ago when I had perfect vision, everything was clear at any focal distance. One thing I notice when I get an updated prescription for reading glasses, is that the focal distance is always shorter with the new glasses. So before I ask an optometrist to set me up with a pair of welding glasses, I'm going to have to figure out my focal distance. I don't know how I'm going to figure out what my focal distance without actually welding something.

[farmersammm]

I used cheap reading glasses as my eyesight grew worse. When that failed, I had cataract surgery.

If you really don't know the required focal length..................go to Wally World, get some 1.25 readers...........if they don't work..........get some 1.5's...................see where I'm going? It' sucks to get old, but there's ways around it. But, the readers will tell you if you really need scrip glasses at this point in your life. Readers just might do the trick.

[farmersammm]

And...........................you don't scare the dog, when you start to curse, after you drop something on those expensive prescription glasses.

[idacal]

I have worn prescription glasses since I was 15 when I first put them on I couldn't believe there was individual blades of grass. I rarely do anything without them on, reading at night maybe, I would guess most people weld 16- 24" from the arc but everyone is different one of my brothers kept melting the rubber glass seal out of his helmet he was that close. I quit burning them up when I went to plastic lenses from glass, just get scratched to hell. I usually buy couple pairs a year through zenni optical. the nice thing about them you can play with your prescription a little bit and its 40 dollars a pair so if they don't work its not a 300 dollar pair of glasses getting thrown away.

[Wamsutta]

The problem with using my prescription reading glasses is when I'm done with a weld pass and raise my hood up, I can't see anything at a reasonable distance. If I wanted to grind something, I'd have to take the readers off and replace them with safety glasses. I can hear the employer complaining already about all the time I'm wasting.

[farmersammm]

The problem with using my prescription reading glasses is when I'm done with a weld pass and raise my hood up, I can't see anything at a reasonable distance. If I wanted to grind something, I'd have to take the readers off and replace them with safety glasses. I can hear the employer complaining already about all the time I'm wasting.

Fk 'em. It's not a lot of time. If you're any good, they need ya. Don't worry about a few seconds.

I couldn't see good when I got done, but got used to it. The brain will adapt to poor eyesight. I can walk with my readers, grind with my readers, and do most things. You'll get used to it. Screw the other folks.

[Freebirdwelds]

I wear these in the full glass, they also have bifocal types too. No need for a cheater lens in my helmet and I always have safety glasses on. The have various Diopter sizes.

https://www.northernsafety.com/Produ...Safety-Glasses

[CAVEMANN]

That's just it: I don't know what the focal distance should be. Back 20 years ago when I had perfect vision, everything was clear at any focal distance. One thing I notice when I get an updated prescription for reading glasses, is that the focal distance is always shorter with the new glasses. So before I ask an optometrist to set me up with a pair of welding glasses, I'm going to have to figure out my focal distance. I don't know how I'm going to figure out what my focal distance without actually welding something.

Your focal distance would be the distance where you are comfortable, basically the point that is comfortable for your body, arms and neck, probably 18" to 2 feet.

[TimmyTIG]

You aren't going to be welding past where you can reach. Tell the eye doctor you need to be able to focus in between reading glasses and the end of your arm. Welding and grinding are both going to be at the same distance. It's just walking around when you need to change.

[CAVEMANN]

The problem with using my prescription reading glasses is when I'm done with a weld pass and raise my hood up, I can't see anything at a reasonable distance. If I wanted to grind something, I'd have to take the readers off and replace them with safety glasses. I can hear the employer complaining already about all the time I'm wasting.

If your employer has a half a brain they'll understand your need to swap glasses, it's a safety issue, they may want you to try to get a script that will allow what you need in one pair of glasses. An accident is quite costly and employers want to avoid & prevent them, if they don't then they're fools. Accidents can have a huge effect on their workmen's comp insurance rates.

[whtbaron]

I have the same issue walking around with readers, and often just pull them down enough to look over them. I've been thinking about prescription glasses just for welding... what if they were a "tall bi-focul" with the lower half focused for the 18 to 24" necessary to see the puddle, with the top half being window pane or at least very weak lenses for walking around. My first set of readers weren't very strong, but I have astigmatism and they were a thousand times more comfortable to read with than cheap readers. I'm thinking it might be worth the extra cost of professional lenses...

[Wamsutta]

Your focal distance would be the distance where you are comfortable, basically the point that is comfortable for your body, arms and neck, probably 18" to 2 feet.

That's good to know. I measured the distance from my eyes to the computer screen as I write this and it comes to about 27 inches. That's with using my old readers. The new readers are more powerful and I have to bring the screen closer to my face if I'm going to use those, but I don't want to. I like having the computer's keyboard at about arms length.

You aren't going to be welding past where you can reach. Tell the eye doctor you need to be able to focus in between reading glasses and the end of your arm. Welding and grinding are both going to be at the same distance. It's just walking around when you need to change.

That's some high quality information right there. That makes perfect sense like you say, my focal length is not going to be further away than I can reach with my hands. Thank you for that. That gives me something I can work with.

If your employer has a half a brain they'll understand your need to swap glasses, it's a safety issue, they may want you to try to get a script that will allow what you need in one pair of glasses. An accident is quite costly and employers want to avoid & prevent them, if they don't then they're fools. Accidents can have a huge effect on their workmen's comp insurance rates.

I'm thinking maybe some bifocals with readers on the bottom and no prescription on the upper half. The bifocals I have now I rarely use because they are biassed towards the distance part by having very little readers area on the lower half of the lens.

I have the same issue walking around with readers, and often just pull them down enough to look over them. I've been thinking about prescription glasses just for welding... what if they were a "tall bi-focul" with the lower half focused for the 18 to 24" necessary to see the puddle, with the top half being window pane or at least very weak lenses for walking around. My first set of readers weren't very strong, but I have astigmatism and they were a thousand times more comfortable to read with than cheap readers. I'm thinking it might be worth the extra cost of professional lenses...

That's exactly what I was thinking. A tall bifocal with the lower half giving me a longer-short distance like you say at about 18 to 24'' while having the upper half just plain clear glass.

[cwby]

I wear these in the full glass, they also have bifocal types too. No need for a cheater lens in my helmet and I always have safety glasses on. The have various Diopter sizes.

Ordered some of those. That is an impressive source, lot of stuff!

[Freebirdwelds]

Ordered some of those. That is an impressive source, lot of stuff!

Yes they do, Kinda pricey tho, but if you need to make compliance they are the place to shop.

[psacustomcreations]

I wear these in the full glass, they also have bifocal types too. No need for a cheater lens in my helmet and I always have safety glasses on. The have various Diopter sizes.

https://www.northernsafety.com/Produ...Safety-Glasses

I wear the same Pyramex full lens magnifiers all the time. I have them in the 1.5, 2.0 and 2.5 diopter.
I have had pieces of metal dug out of my eye a couple times when I just wore smaller reading glasses or tried to grind with no protection

I choose the Pyramex 1.5 for normal wear around the shop and doing work at a reader glass distance such as grinding or set up.
I wear the Pyramex 2.0 or the 2.5 when MIG and TIG welding at closer distances.
I also wear the Pyramex 2.5 and some cheap 3.0 large readers from Walmart when doing really close work such as engraving.
The larger viewing area is great. The more eye protection has paid for itself several times when a random piece of metal bounces off them.

Sent from my SM-G996U using Tapatalk

[Lis2323]

Ordered some of those. That is an impressive source, lot of stuff!

I just looked too. I can clearly see it would be a safe place to shop.

[shovelon]

The problem with using my prescription reading glasses is when I'm done with a weld pass and raise my hood up, I can't see anything at a reasonable distance. If I wanted to grind something, I'd have to take the readers off and replace them with safety glasses. I can hear the employer complaining already about all the time I'm wasting.

I wear prescription readers amber tint, #2 diopter on my face, and a #1,2, or 3 cheater lens in different hoods depending on the magnification I need. Sometimes at arms length I use my amber driving glasses under a #1 cheater.