Fishbladder Woodworking

Does the hood count as a face shield? Will it stop a chunk of wood?

No. Treat it as respiratory protection that happens to cover your face, not as impact protection. It is rated EN 12941 TH3 P R SL, which is a filtration standard and says nothing about impact. For turning or anything that throws, wear a proper face shield.

This matters most to turners, and the honest answer is a flat no.

The rating is EN 12941 TH3 P R SL. That is a respiratory standard describing filtration — at least 99.95% of particulate. It is not an impact standard and it makes no claim about a visor stopping anything solid.

A lathe can throw a bowl blank, a catch can send a tool back at you, and a grinder can throw a wheel fragment. Those are impact hazards, and impact protection is its own certification with its own testing. Do not let a hood that covers your face talk you out of a face shield.

What the hood does do is keep fine dust out of your lungs and off your eyes, all day, without a seal and without fogging. That is a real problem and it solves it.

If your work throws things, wear both, or wear the shield. We would rather tell you this than have you find out at a lathe.

The Breathie Thingy

A powered air-purifying respirator for woodworkers. $499 for the first 30 units of each batch, including a spare filter kit.

See the current batch