Old timer in Baton Rouge told me to never trust a brand new welding hood

Met a guy named Big Jim at a shutdown job back in 2012. He saw me unbox a brand new auto-darkening hood and just laughed. Said the cheap lenses in new hoods can flicker or stick open if you're under a hot arc too long. I ignored him for about a week until I got flashed so bad I had spots for two days. Swapped the lens out for a proper shade and a better sensor. Has anyone else had a new hood give them trouble out of the box?

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david_hayes2d ago

Man I learned that same lesson the hard way. I run my own dog grooming shop now but I still weld on the side and I bought a brand new Lincoln hood last year. First time using it on some thick steel the lens just went dark and stayed dark for a solid ten seconds after I stopped. Had to pull it off and tap it to get it to go back. I swapped to a Jackson shade and that fixed everything. The new ones just don't hold up to heavy use right out of the box. What brand ended up working for you after you changed the lens?