I need some welding helmet advice.

Historically, I am a crappy welder. My welds are full of voids, splatter, and in general look poor. If not for a grinder, I would be ashamed to have anyone see them.

In anticipation of some projects, I decided to put some time into practice. I googled around and found some tips for flux core welding which has already improved what I am doing. Now using some anti-splatter spray too.

However, I found that the helmet that I have leaves a lot to be desired. This helmet came in my Lincoln weld-pak kit. The tint is entirely too dark. I simply can’t see the puddle. I see the spark and everything else is dark. I also have some problem with light coming in from behind my head, reflecting off the inside of the glass, and making it harder to see.

I found another helmet that I had stashed away, looks pretty old and darn near falling apart. Has only a small view window on it and that little 2”x5” or so window flips up too. However, when I tried this helmet, I could see the surrounding metal while welding much, much better. It was sort of a purple-ish tint, where the other is all dark charcoal looking.