Lincoln mig welder fix?

[hard_y_rd]

There is a $700-800 Lincoln mig 140 for sale in my local classifieds. The PO says it has hardly if ever been used. The only problem is that it needs a new transformer he says. I don't know much about fixing a welder but i love the challenge. Is it worth fixing? I did a quick google search and came up empty on transformers. Price is asking $250

 

[2one7 chops]

I've bought a couple broken welders, some were just simple fixes some got parted out. What is the welder doing? How does he know it's a transformer, I thought only old stick welders had those. He may mean it's the capacitor, if your comfortable fixing it buy it at a price you won't be upside down if it costs twice as much as you thought to fix. There's tons of info to diagnose and repair them on welding forums, and you tube.

 

[TwoManyXS1Bs]

When I got my mig long ago, I opened it up, like I tend to do with most things. Found all the lug connections were loose, nuts spun on, not even finger tight.

Had I fired it up, it may have acted like a bad transformer, bad diodes.

Or worse, blown out the transformer and/or diodes.

Given that, you could be looking at simple missassembly, or genuinely blown parts...

 

[hard_y_rd]

Ya, it could be capacitor related. I haven't looked at it yet. Don't wont to spend a ton on parts.

 

[hard_y_rd]

Looks like the PO has it blown apart in the pic. I don't know how he did his diagnosis. I'll have to ask.

 

[2one7 chops]

Price seems high for a broken welder, in my area that's what a working used one goes for. I don't usually pay over $100 for a non working unit.

 

[hard_y_rd]

That's Canadian dollars too don't forget. Still a bit high I agree. There is a way to test the transformer I learned from YouTube. I would say if it is actually transformer related, it may be expensive.