Lincoln Welder Problem

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Hello… I am a newbie when it comes to welding.  I just purchased on the internet a new Lincoln 175 mig welder.  Once it was set up I realized that the wire only fed out at one speed despite adjusting the control.  I contacted Lincoln about it assuming it was under warranty.  They replied that private internet sales weren’t covered and now I am left repairing it.  I am wondering if this is a easily fixable item or is it something major.  Thanks.
Reply:Call Lincoln again and ask what type of drive controller is used for the wire feed.   If it's just a voltage control, then its probably just the potentiometer.If it's a PWM [Pulse Width Modulation] controller, (which is my bet), then your probably looking at new circuit board.   When PWM drives fail, AND, the motor still turns at a fixed constant speed, then it's usually the occilator IC chip has gone bad.   This chip is most likely soldered directly to the board and might be difficult to replace without causing more damage to the other components.     If you're familar with working on circuit boards and have a replacement IC chip, it's worth a shotStill, you might get lucky and find a loose wire coming to or from the potentiometer.    Have you opened it up yet to see?There are no small projects
Reply:Was going to do that as soon as I get home today and look.  Thanks for the starting point.
Reply:You might want to do a test to make sure it is a motor/drive problem and not something to do with the wire.  You can remove the wire so there is no wire touching the drive wheel.  Then when you press the trigger the drive wheel should spin (keep in mind the gun is hot when you pull the trigger).  With the trigger pulled and the wheel spinning when you turn the speed knob full CCW it should stop and as you turn CW it speeds up pretty fast.  Just FYI.  I am just surprised that it would be bad out of the box.  Most of the ones I see on Ebay come with a warranty.  Did you get it from a private party?Mike
Reply:Private Internet Sale!?!? What kind of bs reply is that? As long as it's within the  warranty period it shouldn't matter where you got it, we've had people bring in machines several times that they didn't purchase from us, Lincoln, Miller, Hobart, TA, Esab it doesn't matter, we'll fix em' all. Sure we would have liked to have had the sale, but we never turn away anybody just because they bought the unit off of Ebay or wherever, the manufacturers reimburse us anyway so it shouldn't matter. Any distributor that refuses to work on your equipment (warranty or not) because you didn't buy it there doesn't deserve your business. _______________________________________________Miller Spoolmate 200Miller S52A Feeder & BoomMiller Spoolmatic 1 gun.
Reply:Roger that, well said SS427!John -  fabricator extraordinaire, car nut!-  bleeding Miller blue! http://www.weldfabzone.com
Reply:I got this response when I talked to people at Lincoln.  I would think they would have honored it.  That is crappy not to stand behind product, but might get different response if took it to an aauthorized shop by my house.  Also I can't imagine the switch being bad out of the box.  Going to check and see if wire loose today still haven't gotten chance yet
Reply:Did you contact the vendor? Was this rig from Ebay? I'd still like to know who (besides Lincoln) won't stand behind this sale.We'd all like to avoid them in the future.Craftsman 230a Buzz-box,  Lincoln 140T & 180T, Century K2789, PUROX W202 O/A14" cheapo chop saw that cuts straight and square!A toolbox of the cheapest Chinese tools money can buy"Real" tools all old reliable Husky/Craftsman/Proto stuff
Reply:do some trouble shooting and let us know what you find, I see the lincoln rep every friday and he is more than willing to help out, I could not ask for better service on product problems and he can come up with some test parts if needed.I will try to visit here more often and await your reply.steve
Reply:It's important to exhaust all possibility of warranty repair before digging into the unit to attempt your own repair.If it comes to that, can you come up with a schematic for the wire feed controller?  It's pretty difficult to communicate about troubleshooting strategies in the absence of a schematic unless you can find someone who already has specific knowledge of the hardware or has a schematic to refer to.  (Sounds like there may be some of those tracking this thread.)Good luck.awright
Reply:Did you try welding with it at different wire speeds? Is there a run in speed adjustment on that machine? if the run in speed is independent of the wire speed it would appear you had no adjustment when you did until you weld with it.
Reply:Hey Captain,Looks like you have 2 threads going on this problem.  I responded to the other one and I'll add my 2 cents worth here too.Lincoln has always been good about warranties.  That's been my experience.  I think all Lincoln 175 amp MIG welders have a 3 year warranty and if the serial number indicates a manufacturing date within that warranty period, shops don't even need to see a proof of purchase.  It just gets covered without question.  The only exceptions I know of involve machines that have been abused in some way.If you want to check the manufacturing date, see my post in your other thread.Good Luck,Bob
Reply:I'd spoken to Lincoln about internet sales previously as there was a unit I was interested in listed as "new" on ebay. I was told that their policy is that if the item was not purchased by me from an authorized Lincoln dealer/distributor then the warranty is not valid. I can understand their thinking on this, they're trying to protect their dealers as well as their customers. When you buy "New" off ebay or other sources who's to say how those units were acquired if they didn't get the products direct from Lincoln? Linclon drop ships for a few ebay sellers. I've seen quite a few of the Lowe's version of the SP135T, Pro MIG 140, and Home Depot's Weld-Pak 3200 HD sold as "new" on ebay. Those units are only supposed to be sold by Lowe's and Home Depot so how'd the other people get them?  Let's say they were legit and they purchased them from Lowe's and/or Home Depot using a discount coupon or something they were entitled to use. Fine, except the warranties state that they cover the original purchaser, which the above buyers were. Now when they sell those welders to others the purchasers are now the second owner and few warranties are transferable to the second owner.Also, someone could buy a welder, abuse and fry it, and then repackage it and sell it on ebay as new leaving the new purchaser to deal with it.  Now if you can get a local shop to fix them for you and Lincoln pays them for the warranty work, cool. But without a receipt from an authorized dealer/distributor you're taking your chances and Lincoln may not cover you.Warning: I have been wrong before!New small workshop, small MIG, oxyacetylene set with a DHC-2000 that I'm learning to use and really like. Life is good!Typos are there for those that look for them. I try to do something for everybody.
Reply:[QUOTE=Visorblue]I've seen quite a few of the Lowe's version of the SP135T, Pro MIG 140, and Home Depot's Weld-Pak 3200 HD sold as "new" on ebay. Those units are only supposed to be sold by Lowe's and Home Depot so how'd the other people get them?  QUOTE]Last year I bought a Pro-MIG 175 off Ebay.  It arrived in an unopened box and works great.   In a conversation with the seller (trying to buy a second unit), she admitted she worked in the tool section at Lowes.     The welder she sold to me was the last one still on the shelf.   Due to the cost, weight, and relative fragility of these welders, Lowes does not want more than necessary on their shelves, so they don't order more until all the current stock is gone.    Being it was the last one, she marked it down 20% (standard practice authorized by Lincoln, but left to the stores discretion) but she hid it back on a shelf, waited two weeks and marked it down again (standard practice again), again hiding it.   Two weeks after that, she had a co-worker buy it for her using the in-store employee discount.      She said that practice is common throughout the Lowes stores for items like welders, compressors, high end table saws, and other expensive items or items that take a lot of space, that they don't sell frequently.There are no small projects
Reply:Originally Posted by imagineerTwo weeks after that, she had a co-worker buy it for her using the in-store employee discount.      She said that practice is common throughout the Lowes stores for items like welders, compressors, high end table saws, and other expensive items or items that take a lot of space, that they don't sell frequently.
Reply:Originally Posted by Captain ScrappyOnce it was set up I realized that the wire only fed out at one speed despite adjusting the control.
Reply:Originally Posted by VisorblueInteresting. Wonder if management knows that? So who's name is on the receipt, Lowe's or hers? Since she had someone else originally buy it using their discount the welder is under warranty to the original purchaser, not even the seller. You're the third owner of it. Now if you can get the seller to send you a Lowe's receipt for it you should be covered.
Reply:Geesh, I need to get a job at Lowes! John -  fabricator extraordinaire, car nut!-  bleeding Miller blue! http://www.weldfabzone.com
Reply:I ended up opening the side of the machine and the one of the wires to the drive motor was a little loose.  After putting the connection a little tighter the machine worked just fine.  It seems kind of crappy that they wouldn't stand behind one of there machines that was brand new in the box and never reqistered for warranty. Oh well guess that makes me want to get a miller the next time I need a welder.  Thanks for everybodys help.
Reply:Originally Posted by Captain ScrappyI ended up opening the side of the machine and the one of the wires to the drive motor was a little loose.  After putting the connection a little tighter the machine worked just fine.
Reply:Originally Posted by Captain ScrappyI contacted Lincoln about it assuming it was under warranty.  They replied that private internet sales weren’t covered and now I am left repairing it.  I am wondering if this is a easily fixable item or is it something major.  Thanks.
Reply:Originally Posted by ss42768Private Internet Sale!?!? What kind of bs reply is that?  Any distributor that refuses to work on your equipment (warranty or not) because you didn't buy it there doesn't deserve your business.