3M Welding (www.speedglas.com) has introduced a welding helmet and auto-darkening filter that the company says is 25 percent lighter than its current helmet and auto-darkening filter products. The 3M Speedglas SL (Super Light) Welding Helmet has an auto-darkening filter that features a new, liquid crystal cell design and light-weight material. The company says the filter is suitable for use in all arc-welding processes. The filter has four user-selectable sensitivity settings and five dark shades — 8, 9, 10, 11 and 12. A motion detector turns the filter on automatically as the welder picks up the shield, and turns it off automatically within 15 minutes of sensing the last arc or the last time the filter was moved.

The helmet allows a welder to adjust the helmet and filter closer or further away from the face. A user also can adjust the tilt of the shield to a preferred viewing angle. The company redesigned and resized the headband to increase breathing room inside the helmet, to improve comfort and to reduce weigh