What is Speedglas™ Generation 5?

Since releasing the first auto-darkening welding helmet in 1981, Speedglas has emerged as the leading brand in welder’s PPE: setting the industry benchmark in vision, comfort, safety, and performance.

This has culminated in Generation 5, the latest collection of Speedglas welding helmets that showcase a truly groundbreaking array of never-before-seen features. Each helmet is designed from inception to be uniquely tailored to a specific application, from heavy-duty welding in hard-wearing environments to critical precision TIG work.

However, this is not to say these helmets are rigid in their capabilities. On the contrary, the Generation 5 series has been built on the premise that any high-performance welding helmet should be fully customisable to the preferences of each individual welder.

The result, after extensive input from professional welders, is an elite welding helmet range that manages to be both highly specialised and versatile in equal measure.

Speedglas G5-02: a new world standard in precision viewing

As with past 3M™ Speedglas™ designs, the concept for the Speedglas G5-02 Welding Helmet originated from consulting professional welders. When it came to creating a helmet specifically for TIG welding, the feedback from TIG welders was unanimous: a wide view rated significantly higher than a taller view.

The only way to achieve these exponentially wider views without the compromise of making the helmet wider was to invent a curved welding lens: and now, after dedicating two decades to this goal, Speedglas have delivered the world’s first curved auto-darkening lens!

This groundbreaking new arrival has been designed to follow the shape of your head and maximise your natural range of vision by 100% when compared to a conventional flat lens.

The curved G5-02 lens also provides highly advanced electronics, with four arc sensors that will detect an arc down to an industry-leading 1 Amp. This in turn ensures the lens can reliably react to the extremely stable arcs offered by the latest high-end inverter based TIG machines.

Finally, the Speedglas G5-02 is Bluetooth® enabled, so you can securely pair your smartphone to your welding lens via the 3M™ Connected App. You can then use your phone to program up to four memory modes, each with its own settings for dark shades, sensitivity, and delay. This option, when combined with the more intuitive, user-friendly control panel on the lens itself, means it has never been easier to adjust your lens settings to suit your requirements.

In summary, while designed for TIG welding, the G5-02 is suitable across the entire spectrum of arc welding processes. After all, most welders can appreciate the superior colour and contrast of TrueView optics, a 100% wider scope of vision, a light state of 2.5 and the comfort and mobility of a slimmer, lighter helmet.

Speedglas G5-01: the ultimate in heavy-duty protection

The 2017 IARC reclassification of welding fume as ‘carcinogenic to humans’ simply confirmed what was already known – welding fume is extremely bad for health and workplaces must protect their workers. Excessive exposure to welding fume can cause multiple types of cancer, including lung, larynx, and urinary tract.  There is no known level of safe exposure to welding fume: action is required.

The important point to understand is that, while the risk posed by welding fume is serious, keeping yourself safe can be straightforward. This is where the Speedglas G5-01VC Flip-Up Welding Helmet with Heavy-Duty Adflo™ Powered Air Purifying Respirator (PAPR) comes in.

As one of the most popular respirators of its kind in the world, the award-winning Adflo™ PAPR has become synonymous with effective respiratory protection against carcinogenic welding fume. With the right filters, it can consistently protect against welding fume particles as well as a range of gases and vapours.

The respirator fully complies with the Australian and New Zealand standard for powered air respirators (AS/NZS1716) and offers a Required Minimum Protection Factor (RMPF) of 50, meaning it will supply a minimum 50 times cleaner air than a welder would otherwise breathe unprotected.

What's more, the Speedglas G5-01 comes standard with the Heavy-Duty Adflo PAPR: built to offer up to 12 hours' continuous protection for long shifts in harsh environments. The result is a constant flow of clean air directly into your breathing zone for cooler, cleaner, and more comfortable welding.

In addition to state-of-the-art respiratory protection, the Speedglas G5-01 has a range of unique and fully customisable features to offer. Based on extensive input from welders working at high amperages who need to grind frequently, the helmet has been created to be adaptable to each individual’s needs and situation.

This includes selecting a specific colour tone for your dark state with Variable Colour Technology, adjusting the airflow in your helmet with Climate Control, lighting up your workspace with an optional task light, or adjusting settings remotely via Bluetooth©.

Heavy-duty welders need heavy-duty protection: look no further than the G5-01.