Welding Lens Shade Selection Chart
Start With The Correct Shade Range
A welding lens shade chart helps you choose the filter darkness needed to protect your eyes from arc, flame, UV, and IR exposure. Higher shade numbers are darker. The right setting depends on the welding or cutting process, current range, and material thickness.
Safety check: Treat minimum shade values as the floor. If the arc is uncomfortable or too bright, start darker and adjust only after verifying the process, amperage, helmet, and site safety requirements.
Gas Welding & Cutting
| Operation | Thickness / Range | Minimum Shade | Practical Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Torch Soldering | General soldering work | 2 | Use proper side and face protection for the work area. |
| Torch Brazing | General brazing work | 3-4 | Shade 3 or 4 is a common starting range. |
| Gas Welding - Light | Up to 1/8 in. (3.2 mm) | 4-5 | Light gas welding usually needs a lighter filter than arc welding. |
| Gas Welding - Medium | 1/8 to 1/2 in. (3.2-12.7 mm) | 5-6 | Move darker as puddle brightness and heat increase. |
| Gas Welding - Heavy | Over 1/2 in. (12.7 mm) | 6-8 | Heavy gas welding can need a noticeably darker shade. |
| Oxygen Cutting - Light | Up to 1 in. (25 mm) | 3-4 | Good fit for light oxy-fuel cutting and trimming. |
| Oxygen Cutting - Medium | 1 to 6 in. (25-150 mm) | 4-5 | Use the darker end if the cut face is too bright. |
| Oxygen Cutting - Heavy | Over 6 in. (150 mm) | 5-6 | Heavy plate cutting generally needs a darker filter. |
Arc Welding Shade Reference
| Process | Electrode / Setup | Arc Current | Minimum Shade | Practical Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stick / SMAW | Less than 3/32 in. | Less than 60A | 7 | Small electrodes and low current can usually use a lighter filter. |
| Stick / SMAW | 3/32 to 5/32 in. | 60-160A | 8-10 | Shade 10 is a common fixed-lens starting point. |
| Stick / SMAW | 5/32 to 1/4 in. | 160-250A | 10-12 | Use the darker end when the arc feels washed out or harsh. |
| Stick / SMAW | Over 1/4 in. | 250-550A | 12-14 | High-amperage stick work often needs the darkest settings. |
| MIG / GMAW | Solid wire | Less than 60A | 7 | Useful for low-current sheet-metal work. |
| MIG / GMAW | Solid wire | 60-160A | 10-11 | Common range for many light and medium MIG jobs. |
| MIG / GMAW | Solid wire | 160-250A | 12 | Move up as wire size and travel speed increase. |
| MIG / GMAW | Solid wire | 250-500A | 14 | Heavy MIG work usually needs a dark filter. |
| Flux-Core / FCAW | Self-shielded or gas-shielded wire | Use matching MIG current range | 7-14 | Flux-core arcs can be bright; choose by current and comfort. |
| TIG / GTAW | Tungsten arc | Less than 50A | 8-9 | Low-amp TIG often needs visibility as much as darkness. |
| TIG / GTAW | Tungsten arc | 50-150A | 10-12 | Common manual TIG range for steel, stainless, and aluminum. |
| TIG / GTAW | Tungsten arc | 150-500A | 12-14 | High-amperage TIG and reflective aluminum work often need darker settings. |
Plasma, Carbon Arc, And Arc Cutting
| Operation | Range | Minimum Shade | Practical Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plasma Arc Welding | Less than 20A | 6-8 | Set by visibility and arc brightness. |
| Plasma Arc Welding | 20-100A | 8-12 | Use darker settings as current increases. |
| Plasma Arc Welding | 100-400A | 10-12 | Good starting range for medium-current plasma arc work. |
| Plasma Arc Welding | 400-800A | 11-14 | High-current plasma arc work needs very dark filtering. |
| Plasma Cutting - Light | Less than 300A | 8-9 | Common light plasma cutting shade range. |
| Plasma Cutting - Medium | 300-400A | 9-12 | Darker settings help when the cut face is bright. |
| Plasma Cutting - Heavy | 400-800A | 10-14 | Heavy plasma cutting needs the darker end of the chart. |
| Carbon Arc Gouging / Cutting | Light | 10-12 | Use a dark shade and proper full-face protection. |
| Carbon Arc Gouging / Cutting | Heavy | 11-14 | Heavy gouging throws intense light and debris. |
| Carbon Arc Welding | General | 14 | Use the darkest fixed shade listed for carbon arc welding. |
Reference-style starting points based on OSHA 1926.102 eye and face protection shade guidance and common ANSI/AWS-style welding shade charts. Verify the final lens setting against your helmet manual, worksite safety program, WPS, and the actual arc brightness.
Open Helmet Parts By Brand
After choosing a shade range, open the helmet brand or model page to match the correct cover lens, headgear, battery, cartridge, or helmet purchase path.
Miller Helmets
Digital Elite, Classic, Infinity, Performance, T94, Titanium, and Weld-Mask paths.
Lincoln Viking Helmets
Viking Passive, 1840, 2450, 2450D, 3250D FGS, and 3350 support pages.
ESAB Helmets
Sentinel A50, Sentinel A60, Savage A40, and Savage A40 PAPR paths.
Hobart Helmets
Creator, Pillar, Inventor, and Impact helmet support pages.
Weld-Cote / ArcOne
Weld-Cote Klear View, Kwik View, Ultra View, and ArcOne lens paths.
Helmet Lenses
Find cover lenses, inside lenses, and replacement lens paths.
All Helmet Brands
Start with the helmet brand or family before ordering parts.
Helmet Flickering
Check cover lens condition, sensors, batteries, and shade settings.
ArcOne Replacement Lens
ArcOne lens support and replacement path.
Legacy Shade Page
Older shade reference page kept available for continuity.
Miller Helmet Lens and Accessory Lookup
Jump directly to cover lenses, hard-hat adapters, Weld-Mask ClearLight, and helmet accessory part-number tables.