A welders protective helmet is provided with a detachable face mask with a handle which allows the welder to detach the same, as desired, and hold the face mask in front of his/her eyes during welding but to easily and quickly move the same to the side for direct viewing. The handle can be provided with a forwardly directed V-shaped trough for holding the extension of the welding torch so that welding proceeds while the users eyes are protected since the users hand is holding both the welding torch in the trough of the handle which is also holding the face mask.
