I'll admit it is hard to get used to those things if you're not very trusting of electronic items. I still reflexively blink the moment before I start the arc just by habit, because I would never trust something like that to work all the time. But even if the electronics fail completely, those hoods block 100% of the UV at all times. The auto-darkening is a separate filter behind the UV shield. Maybe he had removed the UV filter or had a really, really old model?

If you're doing any type of flux or mig welding, you'll find out very quickly why welders wear leather aprons and caps. I just burned a few nice holes in my coveralls and T-shirt, with matching burns underneath each one. When you're laying under a car with a hot spark down your shirt, there's not a whole lot you can do but wait for it to cool. My friend was laughing at me because I probably looked like a fish flopping around on the ground trying to get the spark away from my skin.