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  #11  
Old 01-28-2019, 07:04 PM
crystallographic crystallographic is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by metal manny View Post
Another maker of gas welding glasses is Philips / Phillips. Don't know if they're still around though

Legal issues might have caught up, there.
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  #12  
Old 01-28-2019, 07:26 PM
crystallographic crystallographic is offline
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Default cobalt blue, glaucoma, plastic

Cobalt blue welding lenses, glass, mfgd by AO, (American Optical.)
I have some in original boxes.
During my years of research on the "aluminum gas welding lens" topic which culminated with a patent on what we call the "TM2000" - the "cobalt blue lens" issue came up, large.
"Glass blowers' glaucoma" is the fancy term for eye problems associated with using eyewear without good spectrum safety (blue light, infra-red and ultraviolet - particularly ultraviolet). Eyestrain in poor light -while seeing at the low ends of the eye visible curve (a Bell curve, with IR and UV anchoring the lowest parts of visibility, with yellow, green and orange at the high point - best visibility) coupled with good doses of UV seem to be ideal for causing glaucoma, according to several eye doctors I interviewed.
Glaucoma became so associated with the old cobalts that AO disavowed ever having made or sold any.
Yes, plastic lenses in blue and green are being sold now, 30 years later and back when I spoke to the two major U.S. manufacturers of plastic safely eyewear, I asked them to replicate my glass TM2000 lenses in plastic.
"NO can do" sayeth both company heads, to me, in person, at the 1990 AWS International Welding Show.

- Since I got both of them together for a confab at the same time, the answers were interestingly discussive, with unanimous consent being:
1) my patented spectrum not available precisely in either green or blue.
2) the plastic will not hold its spectrum in the presence of strong light for more than a few years, while glass can easily hold for decades.
3) plastics not nearly as durable as glass - shop environments - even with coatings.
This is why TMTech has not bothered to sell the $30-$60 plastic lenses. It would be SO easy to market them, knowing what I do.

My eyes are still 20/20, and I have been using my lens exclusively, in proto versions and in production versions, for 37 years. I do not trust the inexpensive plastic safety lenses that much. Sorry, but it is a personal thing.

I don't buy cheap sunglasses, either. I like Smiths coated gold lenses for bright sun on snowfields, and for mountain and desert driving.
Above all, I enjoy my vision, and I work to keep it from deteriorating.
This is why I worked so long to develop this lens, and is also why I am so happy while using it.

I only patented and sold it to help others metal guys. And then that one product forced me to bring out all this other necessary junk to sell: booklets, DVD's, fluxes, torch, tips, hoses, and on and on.



-end-
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Last edited by crystallographic; 01-28-2019 at 07:40 PM.
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  #13  
Old 01-29-2019, 07:03 AM
RockHillWill RockHillWill is offline
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I do not know much about being a scientist, but I do know one thing. I want to continue to have my eyesight! How can you rationalize making a decision on the cost of an item that would save your vision? I have tried a large number of lenses, and aside from the clear safety advantage of Kent's lenses, I personally found them to provide the best and clearest vision while welding. This should be 'no-brainer' aside from the cost! Your eyes deserve the BEST that you can give them.
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  #14  
Old 01-29-2019, 11:18 PM
Marc Bourget Marc Bourget is offline
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Diogenes of Sinope's search for the ethical man would have ended quickly had he lived near Nevada City, CA!
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  #15  
Old 01-31-2019, 05:42 PM
sblack sblack is offline
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Love my TM lenses. Never regretted the expense. I really like them for 4130 chromoly as well as aluminum.
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  #16  
Old 02-01-2019, 08:22 AM
David Ward David Ward is offline
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I’m buying one of Kent’s lenses soon, just wish I could get it in a prescription!
Dave
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  #17  
Old 02-01-2019, 09:23 AM
Marc Bourget Marc Bourget is offline
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I have a set of Kent's googles that fit over my prescription glasses.


They are a bit heavier but only the infirm would find that amount of weight a detriment.


Finally, I might inquire into obtaining blanks and sending them to an optical lab.


FWIW
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Old 02-01-2019, 09:26 AM
toreadorxlt toreadorxlt is offline
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i have a TM2000 but i wish there was a lighter version for Hydrogen
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  #19  
Old 02-01-2019, 05:18 PM
crystallographic crystallographic is offline
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Default Prescription safety welding glasses

Quote:
Originally Posted by David Ward View Post
I’m buying one of Kent’s lenses soon, just wish I could get it in a prescription!
Dave

We had meniscus blanks made of the TM2000 glass, and then we had them ground on the convex to a +3 diopter. Nice product, with Titmus safety frames.
So we sent the nice new spectacles out for safety testing and all went well until the one inch steel ball dropped from a 50inch height smacked into the lenses and broke 2 out of 5. With that added cost making the product about equal to high-end laser safety glasses, we abandoned that product. Sorry.
I use +2 magnifier lenses inside my goggles, which help with the shade 5 darkness. And I add lighting for some of my welding.
Why?

Human eyes need double the light after age 40.
Double again after age 50.
And again, at age 60.
When you are pushing 70 or 80 you need lighting added to just about everything you do. Sure was nice to have new eyes 50 years ago, when I started doing metalwork.
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  #20  
Old 02-01-2019, 07:16 PM
norson norson is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by crystallographic View Post
We had meniscus blanks made of the TM2000 glass, and then we had them ground on the convex to a +3 diopter. Nice product, with Titmus safety frames.
So we sent the nice new spectacles out for safety testing and all went well until the one inch steel ball dropped from a 50inch height smacked into the lenses and broke 2 out of 5. With that added cost making the product about equal to high-end laser safety glasses, we abandoned that product. Sorry.
I use +2 magnifier lenses inside my goggles, which help with the shade 5 darkness. And I add lighting for some of my welding.
Why?

Human eyes need double the light after age 40.
Double again after age 50.
And again, at age 60.
When you are pushing 70 or 80 you need lighting added to just about everything you do. Sure was nice to have new eyes 50 years ago, when I started doing metalwork.
I can identify with the age thing. A lot of information for aluminum welding, what safeguards can you share for steel (gas and tig).
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