Bought my First Welder

Saturday I went to an auction at the local Votech Center. I didn't really intend on buying anything but the wife had given me a liberty-pass from the honey-do list so I said what the heck.

I ended up with a few items as most of it went really cheap.

So I spotted a little 110v welder and the price was right. $100 with the cart.

It's a Lincoln SP-100 Mig with CO2/Argon gas. Not a big unit but something to perfect my welding skills (non-existant...lol) and will work on body panels.

Also with all the MV work I have done, I have needed to transfer fuel from one fuel tank to another. They had a brand new Handy Gas Caddy. The paint wasn't even scratched.

HMC Industries, Inc. - Home

Those welders are very nice for body work and very small jobs. Spend a little time with it and you will be welding like a pro. Very nice find.

See if you can get your hands on a little tub of the anti spatter to dip the nozzle in once in a while to keep debris off the tip.

Nice score on the transfer pump too.

I have used the 220 volt model for almos 20 years.

They are good machines

Nice score Joe looks cool!!!

Very nice score indeed. I never gave it a thought about the Votech schools rotating equipment through and selling off the used / surplus.

Nice score! You can try the fluxcore but will find using the 75/25 or 92/8 gas mix a real charm to work with.

Since the first metals were processed from the earth, man has had the desire to weld. Enjoy it!

Want to save money but still have a better welder? Try Thermadyne
I have all brands and its the only one which runs better, costs less, and fewer breaks. My welders are running at my shop 18 to 20 hours a day too.

O so I know where I can take my projects
I'm joking i have one but great find!! Do like the transfer pump also!!

You got a cylinder of C25 with it too? You might have to go through their gas supplier. Not a real issue, they probably got package deals.

They are easy to learn and great for auto body, just keep the welds short. As in spot short, then let the metal cool or quench with damp towel. Either ER70 S6 or an easy grind variety in 0.023-0.030" diameter, they have good ductility and blend well with 80 grit flap wheel. Knock down the high spots with a solid wheel to within a hair, then blend with the flap.

I'm stuck on TIG but it requires exact fitting on body panels. And the learning curve is steep.

Just and FYI (sell welders as part of our business). It is a very good welder just that parts are getting hard to find for them. Otherwise good find if nothing else the tank is well worth it.

$100 is a hella deal for sure. Nice find, don;t waste your time with flux core go to a straight mild steel wire .024 will be perfect, and a good C25 tank will get the job done. It will be much eaiser for you to learn with out having to look through a big puddle of slag and flux it will be amuch cleaner all around weld no doubt.

Look into uping your duty cycle I would assume it is around 30% at 100 amps, I use all millers at work and in my personal shop but I would assume the Lincoln log welders can be turned up a bit to improve performance

Theres alot of welders on here if you need any help post it up or send me a PM I will help where I can.

In my small Lincoln I use .025 wire with argon mix I love it .030 is to thick it doesn't weld as good... but thats just me. Also my welding cart came from meijer's, haha works perfect

Keith_J said:

You got a cylinder of C25 with it too?

Click to expand...

No bottle, regulator or hose.

I have a couple of helium and oxygen bottles that I don't use any more so I may trade them in.

I have to finish a bunch of honey-dos before I can start playing with it. I did power it on and it was spooling the wire out with the trigger puller. I didn't strike an arc.

I have a stick welder and a Lincoln Mig welder.....the Mig is great for quick light work and can weld thicker stuff if you run it hot and make multiple passes.

I can also gas weld (using oxy-actylene) but don't use that skill very much.

You did good on that score.

I think I have a few extraconversion kits to use gas with that welder. I'll try to look for one in the next couple days.