Best 8 Welding Jackets Review & Buyer Guide

Welding is a nice profession as well as a sustaining hobby. Those who have a knack for it will love to do it for the rest o f their lives. However, this process makes one come to close contact with the harsh and harmful UV rays, which can burn the skin with over exposure. Not only that, there are more associated dangers. The splatter and excessive heat can also cause various accidents.

Good welding helmets, wearing gloves, mask and boot are not enough, as jacket is as important an item to be worn at the time of welding. In fact jacket covers the most part of body while welding, so it works like a shield between you and the splatters and slag.

The jacket is the element which can help you while working or make an obstacle. You must be aware of the look, style and weight of the jacket that does not restrict your movements.

8 Best Welding Jackets for the Money 

There are great varieties of welding jacket that you can get in the market. Options like full leather to flame proof cotton to mixed material jackets for welding you can get from different shops and online stores. In this article we will try to sort you out the best 8 welding jackets along with a buyer guide.

QueeLink Leather Welding Jacket

This is one of the top rated welding jackets in the market. It may make you feel hot while you are welding or while you are out in the sun, but the protection it offers is full- fledged. QueeLink is a factory that specializes in producing leather goods since 1990. The product quality is always maintained at a high. They keep the customer requirement as their first priority.

Features:

• This is a leather jacket which is made from split cowhide leather. Strong Kevlar stitching makes it a durable one.
• The heavy duty leather will keep you fireproof and reduce the tension of getting into an accident at the time of welding.
• There is not undone seam or open joint which can expose your body part to the heat and splatter of welding. The Kevlar stitching ensures great finish.
• There are multiple pockets in this jacket which can be used to keep the tools and consumables handy at the time of welding. There are three pockets for tools, two pencil pockets and one more pocket for cell phone.
• The brand offers a full refund if you are not satisfied with their product.
• This is for sure a heavy duty jacket.
• The collar and cuffs are adjustable so you can make them fit to your choice. The jacket comes with stand up collar which can effectively cover your neck from the sparks and rays.
• The buttons of this jacket are made of premium heavy duty metal which is again heat resistant.
• These jackets are multi functional, you can use them for welding purpose as well as blacksmith’s job, steel mills, manufacturing, gas welding, torch work, woodworking and shipyards.

Lincoln Electric K2989 Leather welding jacket

This is another superb jacket for the welding job. You can count on it when doing some really risky welding job.

Features:

• The material is flame retardant leather. The use of split cowhide at the front and at the sides is enough to protect your body from the heat and flame.
• During splatter and arcs you will be protected thoroughly while wearing this jacket, even if you are out of position.
• The back of the jacket is made of flame retardant cotton, which is ASTM D 643 compliant. It improves the air flow at the back and thus does not feel suffocating. This is a really good addition from the side of manufacturers as working under sun or in a heated condition makes one uncomfortable.
• The sleeves are ergonomically designed. A two part armpit improves the arm movement and that is more efficient at the time of welding than the traditional leather sleeve design.
• Professionals love to wear this jacket as it has been designed in a most comfortable and utilitarian way.
• The buttons come with three layers of splatter guard. They are totally shielded by leather, fabric and Velcro so there will be no gap to get a spark inside.
• The neck of the jacket can be covered and tightened by Velcro so the gap between the mask or helmet and jacket is totally covered.
• This jacket should not be washed in washing machine and is preferred to be hand washed.
• The look is pretty stylish and not the dull type regular looking welding jacket.
• The cuffs are shut in the same way. The chrome snaps do the same job as Velcro in the cuffs.
• There is an internal pocket which is used to keep the essentials safely.

Miller Electric 2241909 Welding Jacket

This one is a relief from the high priced jackets mentioned earlier, a moderately priced one which will offer you much safety and protection from the splatter and sparks.

Features:

• This one comes with a perfect design for the welding job. The different aspects of this jacket prove this point over and again.
• The stand up collar of the jacket adorns the neck area. This offers total shielding of neck from the external heat and rays.
• Snap buttons of this jacket offers firm closing, and thus the body will not get in touch with any heat or flying sparks during welding. You can be assured of getting full protection as there will be no chance of getting affected by the splatter and sparks.
• The cuffs come with fold in snaps. The end of the sleeve is adjusted with the snaps and it ensures the safety and protection during the job.
• The material used for this jacket is durable and it can withstand much tears and tensions.
• The navy colour makes it look dashing and thus the wearer will look great.
• There is an inside pocket where you can keep keys, mobile, purse or other essentials. As the pocket is inside the jacket, it will not get damaged by the flying sparks.
• The stitches are great and you do not have to complain about a loose thread coming out of the apparel. The seams are all well merged and smoothened.
• Flame resistant chemical is added to the shirt so it is completely safe to wear at the time of welding.
• It is built for bigger people, and with a chest of 50 inches one can wear it comfortably
• This jacket is 30 inches long which ensures most body part is covered by it.

Black Stallion Leather Welding Jacket

This Black Stallion JL1030 BB Jacket is not the best in quality, but it can be counted as the second best category.

Features:

• This is a heavy duty welding jacket and it looks good too.
• The material is split cowhide leather and it is entirely made of that material, no different patching at the back or sides.
• There is a satin lining on the shoulders so it is easier to slide on and off.
• The collar is adjustable and provides extra protection in time of welding.
• There will be no chance of mishap from the splatter shoots and scalding blobs, as it fully covers your body.
• It is a heavy jacket and as it is totally made of leather, there will be a problem regarding ventilation, especially under sun.
• During Plasma cutting sheet your forearms will be protected as in this type of welding there are many chances of getting touched by the hot edge at the area just above the glove. The long sleeves make sure that you do not get into such accidents.
• This jacket will serve you greatly if you are welding overhead, as it offers full protection for welding under the car or stick welding.
• There are no buttons but all snap closures which ensures that there is no chance of getting the sparks crawling inside the jacket.
• There is no adjustment facility in the cuffs. So that way you may find it faulty.
• The price is great, and anyone can buy it within a shoe string budget.
• You can wear it on winter and under the sun, and it will give you a cool look.
• There are tool pockets to keep the items handy at the time of job. There are internal pockets as well as external scribe holders.
• The Kevlar stitches made it a well finished product.

West Chester Ironcat 7005 welding jacket

This is a nice multipurpose jacket for welding which will allow you to work freely and with full concentration. You can handle various types of welding job while wearing this one.

Features:

• It is suited for all circumstances that may arise at the time of welding. During torch work or gas welding, automotives, manufacturing or shipyards and even for steel mills, this jacket will serve each and every purpose.
• The jacket is armed with black anodized rivets and snaps at the crucial and sensitive points. The black anodized parts never give up when it comes to corrosion or flashes from welding.
• This jacket is much long lasting thanks to the rivets and snaps, as this one is completely protected against the sparks and fire.
• There are a few stress points in the jacket which are prone to accidents. These parts and points are covered by the rivets and thus you get full support and concentration while working on welding.
• The jacket has been manufactured with Kevlar thread sewing. This thread is much durable, tough and industrial graded. This is one of the reasons to trust this garment for the risky welding situations. It will never tear up all of a sudden, exposing you to the danger of fire sparks and UV rays.
• The jacket comes with a tanning which saves you from the grave heat that is caused during the time of welding.
• The cuff can be adjusted which is a great point for any welding jacket, as it helps to modify the dress according to your need.
• No worry about shatters and sparks, the jacket covers the full body of the wearer along with cuff and neck.
• There are quite a few pockets allocated in this jacket where you can keep the essentials, the tools and other things, all safe and handy. There is a hip side pocket and a soapstone storage pocket in each sleeve too.
• The fit of this jacket is great and as expected. Thus you will be comfortable while wearing it.
• As it reflects the heat, the interior of the jacket remains comparatively cooler and thus saves you from the suffocating situation.

Steiner 1260-L Weldlite Welding Coat

We like the design most about this Steiner Weldlite jacket. This one is called coat by its manufacturer, and it looks pretty similar to one.

Features:

• This jacket is well designed and will be suitable for everyone. It has been tailored in a stylish way.
• The cowhide leather arms along with the flame resistant cotton body make it a safe option for the welding technicians.
• The collar is not a great aspect of this jacket, as it does not provide full coverage to the neck area.
• The pockets are not too many, only one internal and one external pocket so you need to keep only the important items with you at the time of welding.
• This is not great for the overhead welding.
• It can protect you during the welding, as the spatter will not land up on your arms or any exposed of your body.
• This is much durable for its price, and also is hard one so keeps the sparks off your body.
• For flux core welding or stick MIG, this jacket is suited the best.
• This one fits nicely and comfortably.
• This is a popular buy within budget so many technicians find it interesting and useful.

Caiman 3029-5 Black Boarhide welding jacket

This is another leather jacket, but not of cowhide, but a boarhide one. Pigskin is supposed to provide better protection than a cowhide but it weighs less. So the jacket is much more flexible than the cowhide ones.

Features:

• As mentioned earlier, this one is much more lightweight and flexible than the regular cowhide leather jackets. In a job like welding, carrying a heavy jacket is always a bother. So if you lay your hands on something more suitable then it must be grabbed.
• The design is great. It comes with some interior pockets which are wide enough to reach inside.
• There is a vent on the underarms and that keeps the interior of the jacket cool. There is no chance of accumulated heat suffocating you while working.
• However, this ventilation does not hamper the protection. Also you do not feel exposed before the slag of welding, neither do you feel cold in the winter with this jacket on.
• This one is also a great looking jacket, even it can be called stylish. It can be safely worn to any casual get together if not for any formal occasion.
• The collar of this jacket is not something great or very effective in terms of protection. It looks and works like regular jacket collar but does not provide enough protection for the welding job.
• The elastic present in the jacket offers much more mobility.
• Not buttons but snaps are used to protect the users’ body safe from any kind of spark and slug.
• The great cut and abrasion makes it a popular choice among the youth section of welding technicians.
• This one comes in large size and yet it fits most of the people comfortably.

Gotega  Heat and Flame resistant Welding coat

This one has been made keeping the less is more concept in mind. This one is an interesting addition to our list. Let’s probe into the reasons.

Features:

• This one can be called a hybrid jacket which one comes somewhere in between a jacket and an apron.
• This one covers most part of the body. It comes down about mid thigh or upto knee, and the back is totally open. The backside is held by two straps and Velcro, thus quite comfortable in terms of ventilation.
• This one comes at a very affordable price as this one does not need much cloth or hide to get made. In fact the material needed for this jacket is half of a regular jacket.
• A high collar is present there to provide protection to your neck. This is also comfortable in fitting.
• The sleeves are baggy but that helps in the movement.
• The material is cowhide and that means it offers much more strength and great protection from the sparks and slug.
• The design, as already mentioned, is an ergonomic one. The design fits one and all and thus it is a very convenient product to buy.
• As this can be used as an apron, it becomes a multipurpose item which can be used for carpenter’s job, blacksmith or a gardener’s job.
• This is definitely fire retardant and that is the most important part of this jacket.
• The straps, however, are not very trustworthy. They wear off with time and that position creates a weak link which holds the apron or jacket at the back.
• This is much easy to put on.
• There will be no size issue with this jacket cum apron.
• Cowhide offers much durability.

Buyer’s guide:

We would now suggest you a few techniques which will help you to evaluate the jackets and choose the best one for you.

Heat resistance– as we are discussing the welding jackets, it must be heat and spatter resistant. If the jacket is not flame and heat resistant it will soon get torn and holes will appear everywhere. The purpose of wearing a jacket is keeping your body safe while welding, thus you must find the flame resistant ones for your use.  Overhead welding, stick welding or galve welding produces lots of sparks which can cause an accident if you are not wearing a spatter and heat resistant jacket. Leather ones or the flame resistant cotton ones will do the job.

Weight– as welding is a serious job and needs much concentration. You must search for something which will be lightweight. The mobility is a great issue in time of welding job. Cotton ones or the mix of cotton and leather one are the lightweight ones.

Quality – leather jackets do not come cheap. When you are investing a hefty sum on something, you must make sure that the product is long lasting.                  Cotton and mixed quality jackets are usually not that durable. Leather jackets are trustworthy in terms of durability. However, if the cotton leather mixed ones are well made then you will get a good product which will be comfortable and yet long lasting. Some brand gets their jackets sprayed with anti-static and anti-mildew chemicals that makes even the cotton jacket last longer.

Conclusion:

To evaluate a welding jacket, you must be aware of the criteria that we have already mentioned above. Also look for the stylish finish and fit. The feel is another important aspect as an ill fitted coarse feeling jacket would not be of much use to you. The budget is always an important parameter too. Hope you will choose the right welding jacket from the list of 8 best welding jackets we have provided and thus will be helped by this article in many ways.