Top 5 Best Carbon Fiber Pancake Welding Hoods

If you are looking for the best Pancake welding hood, then this is the ideal guide for you.

As you all know, safety is the number one reason welders use personal protective equipment (PPE) like welding pants, jackets and Pancake welding hoods.

If welding is your hobby or profession, then there’s every need to keep your face and eyes protected all the time.

Because they’re a lot of dangers associated with welding, this makes the use of PPE like Pancake welding hood very essential.

We have reviewed and analyzed the top 5 carbon fibre Pancake welding hoods, and we’ve highlighted their pros and cons below.

We have also discussed what a Pancake welding hood is, the material it’s made of, and why you need to use a pancake welding hood. Let’s quickly look at what is a pancake welding hood.

What is a Pancake Welding Hood?

The name ‘Pancake’ is attributed to the design, style or shape of the welding mask. And as you may have guessed, the front side really assumes the shape of a pancake (fairy thin and round). So, we can say pancake welding hoods took their name from their shape because they actually look like a pancake. But in essence they are head protection gears.

What does the balsa box in a pancake hood do?

Balsa box is a compact size box which usually comes together with the pancake hood. It’s well-designed to surround and protect the face of the welder. Its main purpose is to provide stability between the lens and the eyes by allowing them to come in contact with each other and remain steady. The balsa box is usually handcrafted, and in order to provide comfortability to the user, it must be well designed and structured so it can fit the eyes of the user precisely.

What are pancake welding hoods made of?

Pancake welding hoods are made of balsa wood, pine and a polymer called phenolic. The ‘Balsa wood’ is used to make a box around the eyes to seal-out all the light which otherwise may be reflecting from the shading lens.

While the outer part of the pancake which protects the eyes from Ultraviolet rays is usually made from phenolic. This could be the reason why Pancake welding hoods are the lightest welding helmets. There are also Carbon Fiber Pancake welding hoods, in these types of welding hoods, the outer protective part is made of carbon fiber. This makes them even lighter than the Balsa Pancake welding hoods.

Advantages of a pancake welding hood

Pancake welding hoods are mostly used by pipeline welders, they have a lot of advantages. Pancake welding hoods have a shield side which is designed to protect the face from harmful rays (like UV) and sparks while welding. This is in fact one of the most important advantages of Pancake welding hoods over the rest of the helmets.

Besides the high level of protection, they are also comfortable to use and most importantly efficient. Lastly, the Pancake welding hood and the balsa box greatly help reduce fatigue by making the process a lot easier for welders.

Why use a pancake welding hood?

There’re so many reasons why every serious minded welder should use a Pancake welding hood. Besides protection, they are highly flexible and can be used for both indoor and outdoor projects offering the same levels of efficiency.

They actually have a very good airflow which is very important if you’ll be working in hot weather conditions or when the sun is beaming in the sky. Meanwhile, the sealed balsa box provides the ultimate glare-free vision possible. For these reasons Pancake welding hoods are irreplaceable part of welding equipment to every welder regardless of their welding skills. Lastly, you can find pancake welding hoods in most local stores around you, they are very affordable and sold at significantly lower prices. These and more are the reasons why you need a Pancake welding hood.

Caution: If you have made up your mind to purchase one, buy with caution. You can check out our list of the top 5 Pancake welding hoods below.

 

Top 5 Pancake Welding Hood Reviews

1. Pancake Welding Hood

Last update on 2023-05-10 / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

For maximum protection, acquiring such a magnificent Pancake welding hood like Sarge is more than a choice, it’s a necessity.

This Pancake welding hood guarantees maximum safety for your eyes and face.

This particular Pancake hood boast of achieving 5.8″ X 8″ side shield, making it one of the largest in the welding industry.

In addition to that, it also accommodates standard lens (electronic lens) and cheater that offer extreme quality optical views while still maintaining its primary duty.

This pancake welding hood allows the welder to work effectively regardless of the welding method used.

Another great advantage of this package welding hood is the fact that it’s made of a very lightweight balsa-wood eyepiece with phenolic Formica face and side shield.

Because of its design and the high-quality materials used, this unit is very flexible, and we would recommend it to be used when handling difficult projects that tend to last for more hours. It’s overall a great value for the money.

Things We Like:

• Crafted with attention to quality
• Lightweight balsa wood eyepiece
• Standard lens and cheater
• Great product
• Extremely portable

Things That Could Improve:

• One year warranty

 

2. Sarge’s Pancake Black Welding Hood Helmet

Last update on 2023-05-10 / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

32 order for this unit, it comes fully assembled and ready to weld.

This means you don’t have to go through the stress of putting it together. This pancake welding hood is light in weight and is made of balsa wood eyepiece with phenolic Formica face shield. The face shield and the side shield provides optimal protection to the welder’s eyes and face. This way, rest assured that your face and eyes won’t be exposed to Ultraviolet rays at any time.

The elastic head strap and the fixed shade electronic lens featured in this Pancake welding hood are what make it more special than other pancake welding hood of the same price range. Moreover, the Pancake welding hood comes with a handmade adjustable elastic-strap and a 100 cm sandpaper for custom fitting of the eyepiece.

The handmade adjustable elastic strap allows for easy adjustments. This pancake sits comfortably over the face, enhancing workflow.

Finally, the Sarge’s Pancake Welding Hood is OSHA approved.

Things We Like:

• 5″ adjustable elastic headband
• Miller fixed shade electronic lens
• Lightweight
• Phenolic Formica face & side shield
• Overall good quality

Things That Could Improve:

• Does not come with dark lens
• The strap is not the highest quality; could be upgraded

 

3. Wendy’s Pancake Welding Hood Helmet

Last update on 2023-05-10 / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

If you are looking for a high-quality pancake welding hood that offers the maximum level of protection like no other, then you’ll be glad to know that the Wendy’s Pancake welding hood is your best option.

Regarding safety, this package welding hood is made of lightweight balsa wood eyepiece and phenolic Formica face with additional side shield which provides the optimal level of protection. The Wendy’s Pancake Welding Hood is a spectacular welding helmet that fit nicely on the face and it’s really very affordable.

It has a simple yet elegant design; it also comes with one adjustable elastic headband and 1 sandpaper for custom fitting of the eyepiece.

We found this Pancake welding hood to be one of the very best hoods for the money due to its lightweight, excellent shielding effect and all-round performance.

It does exactly what is expected from a basic pancake welding hood without breaking the bank.

Things We Like:

• Adjustable elastic headband
• The lens holder is great
• Accommodates standard lens
• Lightweight balsa wood eyepiece
• Very well built

Things That Could Improve:

• Ideal for right-handed welders only

 

4. Wendy’s Pancake Welding Hood Helmet

Last update on 2023-05-10 / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

There is no doubt Wendy’s Pancake Welding Hood Helmet is one of the best welding hoods on the market. It’s compact, comfortable to wear and will provide ultimate protection to your face and eyes.

It’s designed with comfort and durability in mind; it’s pretty lightweight as the box is made from balsa wood.

So, this welding hood is a good value and also great if you are going to be welding for longer periods of time. What’s more?

It’s as well highly flexible for a range of applications. The Wendy’s Pancake welding hood is user-friendly as it features adjustable elastic headband which helps keep the hood in position, so it does not slip about.

What makes Wendy standout high above other brands is the fact that all their welding hoods accommodate either the standard lens and cheater or miller-fixed shade electronic lens.

Another great benefit of this hood is the price, it’s relatively cheaper, and you may find it readily available in all local stores.

Things We Like:

• Great setup to hold-in the lens
• Compact
• Relatively low price
• Comfortable to use
• Standard lens and cheater

Things That Could Improve:

• Great for hobbyists but not the most recommended for industrial use

 

5. The Original Pancake Welding Hood Helmet

Last update on 2023-05-10 / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

Last on our list is the Original Pancake welding hood. In 2017 the company that manufactures this hood changed its name from “The Original Pancake Brand Welding Hoods Inc to what it is today (Original Pancake Brand Welding Hoods LLC).

The company have been doing pretty great in the last three decades producing first-class grade welding hoods.

They manufacture top-quality pancake welding hoods which have been accepted worldwide and used extensively in the welding industry.

The quality of their products speaks of them, and the company’s reputation has spread throughout the world among hobbyist, professional welders and welding supply companies.

This time, they present yet another spectacular welding hood that got everyone talking. The hood is hand-crafted from balsa, phenolic and pine woods.

It has a contoured balsa box ready for custom fitting. It is of a one-piece pressure-phenolic faceplate and folded air guard design.

Not only this hood but all models from ‘Original’ accepts cheater lenses. Finally, this model of Original Pancake welding hood is OSHA accepted and ANSI approved.

Things We Like:

• Meets the certification requirements of ANSI
• Accepts cheater lenses
• Adjustable elastic headband
• Extremely lightweight
• Folded ear guard design

Things That Could Improve:

• Quality product but little expensive

 

Conclusion

Thanks a lot for checking out our reviews of these welding hoods.

As we said earlier, “Pancake welding hoods are an important protective headgear especially for pipeline welders, they allow them to work comfortably no matter how long they will be using them and regardless of the difficulty levels of the welding position.

These hoods are readily available in big marketplaces and local stores. You can rest assured that these hoods will protect your face and eyes from arc light, Ultraviolet rays and sunlight reflections.

While the Wendy’s Pancake welding hood is an economical option, which is relatively cheaper and affordable, the top two Pancake welding hoods on the market are definitely ‘Sarge’ and Original Pancake welding hoods.

These hoods tend to be completely round to cover the whole face, and relatively thin to reduce their weight.