When I was a 2nd Class Petty officer at ACB2 in Little Creek I ran the HT (welding/fab) shop. One day Senior Chief walks into the shop and says they are beginning to decommission the USS Saipan a Tarawa class LHA (amphibious assault ship) and he's got a buddy (goat locker) in the HT shop on the Saipan who says we can come aboard take whatever we want from their HT shop back to ACB2. Never being one to look tool giving gift horse in the mouth I promptly rounded up a few firemen and an headed over to Alpha CO to check out an Oshkosh (big ass truck). We roll over to the Saipan and head up the brow, check in on the quarter deck, and make our way to engineering to find the shop. Once there we get the ok to basically clean the place out, his guys help us carry everything down the brow to our awaiting Oshkosh and load it all up. Not wanting to leave any free tools behind I return to make one final sweep of the shop where I find the Senior, coffee cup in hand keenly admiring his workspace now free anything and everything he might have had to do paperwork on save one thing. Bolted down (wheels and cart conspicuously missing) to the main workbench was a Millermatic 300. Not really having much need for a 5th welder in my HT shop or wanting to carry that pig down the brow I hesitantly asked what was up with the welder. To which Senior Chief replied with a very distasteful scowl "that fuckin piece of shit aint ever worked, I took it out of the system and we're gonna deep six it on our way to the shipyard". Then he looked at me said "if you want it, take it. But you better take it home or to the pawn shop cause ITS OUT OF THE SYSTEM AND ITS JUNK!". Then blankly stared at me the way only a Senior Chief can stare at a PO2. "Well you want it or not? I ain't got all fuckin day...". To witch I replied, Aye Senior its as good as gone let me go grab my guys. He smiled sipped his coffee and strolled off. When I returned there were two E3's from the Saipan E gang fervently unbolting it from the work bench, one looks up and says "Senior says to help you get this thing off the ship". I smiled and said thanks guys. We get it into the truck and head off. I tell my guys, we gotta stop by my place before we head back. The three firemen shrug their shoulders and accept there fate as they get to get out of work for a little bit because the LPO wants run personal errands, no skin off their backs. As my wife looks on in skeptical amazement as I back the giant Oshkosh up to my shop (tight squeeze) She comes out the back and says, "what are you dragging home now???". I smirk and say, oh just dropping off some tools I'll explain later. My Guys help me unload the behemoth and set it on the floor in my shop. The firemen stand around for a short while oooing and ahhhing the various bobbers, choppers, and hotrod that inhabited my garage. We make our way back to the Phib to sort and stow our booty. Needless to say quitting time could not come soon enough, I had new toy to play with. I make my way home completely bypassing the wife to make beeline straight for the shop. I affix a cord to my new welder and drag it (still no wheels) over to the 220 outlet. I flip the switch and she buzzes to life. I open the wire feed bay and see a 20lb roll of solid core wire, pleased with myself I grab my hood to do a little test welding. two pieces of scrap metal tossed in my vise, and the moment of truth.... Nothing.... slightly disheartened I take a moment to to asses the situation. I go to the tool box and grab a philips and take the gun apart. Never in my life had I been so happy to broken parts. The gun trigger was busted into about 4 pieces, surly this tiny part cant cost more than $8 I think to myself. Just to be sure I pull the wires off the switch and install a momentary pushbutton i had laying around, viola wire feeding and molten metal pooling! I'll order a switch in the morning I think, better head in for now. Next morning I shoot off a call to Miller tech support to inquire about the part number for a new trigger. To which the gentleman on the other end of the line replies what's your address? I tell him, he says your new trigger assembly should be to your house in the next 4 days... I say, Ok how much do I owe you? His response, well thats a fairly new machine, we'll cover the cost, is there anything else I can help you with. So there you have it, how I got my free welder.