Debating on the two. Looks like the Speedglas is the Bentley of hoods.

any added insight for me? I am leaning to the SPeedglas

 

i've never used the speedglas but few people at my work say it's lighter(makes me wonder how much lighter is good be) and has better viewing area. Basically they say they like it better than the miller elite. Me, along with most of the people at work use the miller elite because company pays for them new or if we ever need repair and for the speedglas we have to pay out of our own pocket.

 

doesnt that speedglas retail for close to $200 or did i search for the wrong one when the elite is in the $330 range in retail? ive got a elite at work and im getting a prohobby for my house. im not really a diehard miller fan but they have alot of deals at the local shop for them. if the speedglas is in fact alot cheaper/ lighter/ and bigger view i would at least ask to demo it and a elite hood then pick your hood.

 

now that i think about the one i was talking about is the 9002x. Don't know how much that differs from the 9002d

 

i have the 9002x... and wouldnt want anything else...
no experience with the miller though... they dont sell them over here...

 

I've used both, and I prefer the Miller.

Why?
- Cost
- Light weight (about the same but better balanced IMO)
- Comfort. It has a large head band which fells good, and includes a rubber pad. I can weld 9+ hours with no problem.
- auto on
- doesn't bounce around your head
- has a lock down which limits how close it will be to your face.

I use my elite every day, and love it.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by mulisharider11x &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">doesnt that speedglas retail for close to $200 or did i search for the wrong one when the elite is in the $330 range in retail? ive got a elite at work and im getting a prohobby for my house. im not really a diehard miller fan but they have alot of deals at the local shop for them. if the speedglas is in fact alot cheaper/ lighter/ and bigger view i would at least ask to demo it and a elite hood then pick your hood.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Feature to Feature, the speedglass is way more expensive than miller.

Their elite (black) is $244, while the speedglass 9002X is about $320.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Boostwerks.com &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">
I use my elite every day, and love it. </TD></TR></TABLE>

X2

 

I have an elite and speedglass...the elite collects dust...speedglas hands down...

 

Never used the elite, but I<U> LOVE</U> my Speedglas!

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by vtecspeed1320 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I have an elite and speedglass...the elite collects dust...speedglas hands down...</TD></TR></TABLE>

Ship the elite to me!

 

check it

http://www.speedglas.com/start/banners/helmet.html

 

We use Miller welders and Speedglas helmets almost exclusively.


Catch my drift.

 

i love my speedglas but the one thing i hate is how the tension ***** on the side that the hood pivots on always loosen up so the hood can fall to easily. ive had 3 different ones and they all did it.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by dbiker207 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">i love my speedglas but the one thing i hate is how the tension ***** on the side that the hood pivots on always loosen up so the hood can fall to easily. ive had 3 different ones and they all did it.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Thats why the miller uses O rings to keep the tension but doesn't loosen the *****. I'm willing to bet that you'd be able to add some O rings too it to get the same results.

 

Our guys complain about the 9000s and 9002s flashing them during low current arc starts with dynasty inverter welders. Most of them use $28 fixed lens helmets now.

 

I have a lot of hours on both and I would pick an Elite over the speedglass.
It has infinatly variable settings which actually does matter for me. About half the time with the speedglas i get flashed or it never lightens up (we have really good lighting in our shop). The speedglas is a slightly more comfortable hood but not by much at all. The flip down tension does loosen up, thats annoying. Turning it on is not really hard to do, but it is nice to just put the miller on and go. The other guys use the Miller for MIG welding so I tend to pick the speedglas because Im the only one using it. butt welding 18g steel...speedglas is useless. Get an Elite, overall more flexible and better performing and I have never been flashed by it.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Bailhatch &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I have a lot of hours on both and I would pick an Elite over the speedglass.
It has infinatly variable settings which actually does matter for me. About half the time with the speedglas i get flashed or it never lightens up (we have really good lighting in our shop). The speedglas is a slightly more comfortable hood but not by much at all. The flip down tension does loosen up, thats annoying. Turning it on is not really hard to do, but it is nice to just put the miller on and go. The other guys use the Miller for MIG welding so I tend to pick the speedglas because Im the only one using it. butt welding 18g steel...speedglas is useless. Get an Elite, overall more flexible and better performing and I have never been flashed by it.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Agreed. Anyone who welds for a living will say that the auto on feature is to die for. There is nothing more annoying than forgeting to turn your helmet on especially when you start a very important weld.

 

so the miller elite has auto-on but the digital elite has manual-on.... wtf?

 

My old big window elite doens't have the auto-on and it is a real pita sometimes. You end up pushing the button every time you weld or you don't now if the auto-off has turned it off.

auto-off with out auto-on FTMFL


Other than that it has worked perfect, I might even just get a new one here soon for the auto-on feature.

 

i have used both for enough time to make a comparison....my elite doesn't have auto on and i have trained myself to turn it on every time it comes off then back on regardless of how long its been....i like the miller more for the main reason, someone mentioned earlier, it may or may not be lighter but its better balanced, the speedglass seems to be weighted further forward, i use my boss' all the time case i always forget mine but honestly i am not a fan....miller ftw

 

I've logged 1000s of hrs with both and I choose the elite over the speedglass. I had a few probs with the speedglass sensitivity asjustment not being fine enough to ignore the blinking lights on forklifts and not flash me in a tight spot. I think the sensor postitioning on the elite is better. I guess that depends on what positions you weld in and how you tilt your head etc...I also think the elite has more neck coverage.

I really just use a cheap jackson 2x4 flip hood most of the time now that I run cored wire all day. I keep the elite around for tacking things up, extremely tight spots and the occasional tig job.

 

Are you selling your elite then?

 

I prefer my elite over the speed glass i used for a year. Only time i have ever gotten flashed with my elite was in a supper tight spot where i can barely even see the weld anyways. I would get flashed on a daily basis with the speedglass.

The elite was a great buy IMO, would do it all over again. Speed glass is also good but for the work i was doing it didn't work well.

Does anyone know if the miller can detect then the machine is on? There have been times when my work piece is not grounded and there is obviously no spark but the shield still darkens. Maybe this is why i hardly ever get flashed.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by CarTunr22 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

Does anyone know if the miller can detect then the machine is on? There have been times when my work piece is not grounded and there is obviously no spark but the shield still darkens. Maybe this is why i hardly ever get flashed.</TD></TR></TABLE>

lol, I've noticed the same thing with mine. What I "think" is happening though is that it still is arcing but the gap is so large it isn't producing visible light. Somehow it's so sensitive that it can pick up that arc, and still darkens.

Whatever it is though, it still shows how great the helmet works.