Lincoln SP 175 Plus

[Joker11]

That nozzle is a gas nozzle, you are correct.

I have the fluxcore nozzle if you want it. Let me know.

It's yours for the taking.


A well placed magnet will hold that door closed just fine. But if you want to put a newer latch on, I would like to see it.

Joker

[MarkBall2]

Never thought of a magnet, was at Home Depot today, but didn't see anything that struck my fancy.

The Flux Core Nozzle is longer? If you aren't using it, I could put it to use. The Hobart uses the same one gas or flux-core. And it's just a slip fit, not screwed on like the Lincoln.

What time do you get off work? I'm usually there til around 5 or so.

[Joker11]

I am on call 24-7, my hours vary. But normally 8-5. My daughter and son both have ball tomorrow at 5pm.

I will call ya.


And I guess everyone would be better served if I moved this to a PM from now on.

[MoonRise]

Three advantages to using the Lincoln fluxcore nozzle when running fluxcore:

- Keeps spatter and slag and crud from getting onto/into the gas diffuser;

- It's a smaller diameter than the gas nozzle and lets the contact tip stick out just a little bit, so the torch tip can get into smaller places much easier. Like inside corners and things like that.

- The black fluxcore nozzle is less expensive than the copper gas nozzle. Yes, I've partially melted a fluxcore nozzle.

Notice in the manual that some of the illustrations show the contact tip sticking out a bit and the nozzle 'hugging' the tip but back a bit? That is the way the FCAW nozzle fits and looks. The other illustrations with the contact tip being about even with the end of the nozzle are the GMAW nozzle.

Re: a door latch. The door hinges at the top and just hangs down. When you want to open the door, you just swing it up and open. What do you need a latch for anyway?

Since the electrical connections are there and exposed inside the wire compartment, I don't put small or loose metal things (like wrenches or tips or whatnot) in there. I put them in a small plastic compartment box, this way they are together and contained and not bouncing or sliding around inside the welder. It's your machine and you can put pieces in there if you want, but I choose not to. I don't want to lose a small piece or have a small piece short out the electrical connections or jam into the wire feed mechanism.

Good find and good price on the machine.

F-8 for 0.030 NR211-MP wire on 1/8 inch thick steel? That doesn't sound right at all. I find the Lincoln door-chart setting to usually be very close to the desired settings. And my door chart and the manuals don't list 0.030 NR211, just 0.035 or 0.045 NR211. Using 0.035 NR211, the chart/manual suggests about D-3 on 1/8 steel. For a WAG using 0.030 NR211, I think you have to go higher on the WFS compared to 0.035 wire, so maybe D-8? I think a voltage of F using 0.030 NR211 wire is on the high side. Also, 0.030 FCAW wire is being pushed to about its upper amperage limit to try and run on 1/8 inch thick steel. 0.035 NR211 I think would be a better wire diameter on that thickness of steel.

[MarkBall2]

Your probably right on the wire size, voltage & speed. I just tested it to see if it sparkles, which it did. I originally set it at C-3 as the door chart said. As I described, it was a very weak (soft) arc & I had to wait til it formed a puddle. And not a very big one at that. It was an awful cold bead too. Maybe if I ran a bit more & let the strap heat up a bit more, it would weld at that setting.

When I moved the voltage & wirespeed I just gave them a crank. Didn't try to put them on anything specific, just cranked it up. I figured if I had it cranked all the way up, it would blow through, but F-8 was a pretty solid arc. Still had to wait to form a puddle, but once started it was fine. I only ran about 2" of bead on a piece of strap, so it's not really much of a test.

I'll get some scrap & practice/test on it for a better idea of how it works. I also need to get different wirefeed rollers & get a bigger liner if I step up to 0.35 or 0.45 wire. But for now, I'll just work with the 0.30 size.

[MarkBall2]

Door latch. The new Lincoln ProMig 180 has one, my old Hobart has one. I think it's a good idea to secure the door a bit better than just hanging down. Right now I don't have a cart for it, but that will be fixed soon.

Extra parts won't be stored there for long. When I build the cart, it will have either a box for specific tools or a drawer right under the welders for "stuff". I seem to misplace tips pretty easy, so I figure I better include some storage into the design.

I want to leave space for a tombstone or trailblazer underneath the pair of the MIG's. They will both be facing forward, Hobart on left, Lincoln on right. Then have two bottles of gas behind.

I was thinking something like this

[Joker11]

Slick setup. Got me to thinking.

I still hate that most mig machines have the gun sticking out the front with no support. Most carts don't support em either.

This usually leaves the gun extending out past the edge of the cart, so it's out there like a sore thumb.
At least this cart is a little wider than the units. Nice.

But OMG, did they have to use so much BLUE???????????

[MarkBall2]

Well, I would have to use Red, White & Orange to match my welders.

[duaneb55]

But OMG, did they have to use so much BLUE???????????

That's called 'Miller Camo' Joker.

[Joker11]

That's called 'Miller Camo' Joker.



Ok, well, keep it away from my garage. I don't want any of my machines to catch that!

[mudbugone]

Home Depot has the Lincoln 175 Flux Core nozzle for $2.98 (way less than a mig nozzle) KH726
internet/catalog #933109
store SKU #1000452909

I use them on my Hobarts(haven't bought one for the Lincoln WM-255 yet)...they open up the view while welding and protect the diffuser and you don't burn up the standard mig nozzle...I like them,they make more sense than the options.

[Joker11]

I should report the post for being offensive. Blue machines in a thread titled "Lincoln SP 175Plus"

Clearly a violation of something....


(That's a joke guys and gals)

[MarkBall2]

Well, I don't know how to use Paint to change the colors, nor can I use Photoshop to get rid of that Miller logo on the sides of the welders.

So ignore the color & look at the design. If I were to make it, it would be one shelf, cart would be wide enough to hold both the Hobart & Lincoln side by side with the lead's sticking forward. I would leave enough room on the bottom for either a Tombstone or Thunderbolt, maybe even a Stickmate. Never know where I'll find something cheap & in working order.

I also want to have room for 2 tanks of shielding gas behind the welders. Then a small box to hold a chipping hammer, wire brushes & maybe enough room to hold a grinder or two? I like how the design of this one has lead holders that swing out.

[Joker11]

Well, whoever built it did the best they could with different machines and leads. I think it's probably one of the neatest designs I have seen. I wasn't knocking it. I was just goofing.

It looks very organized. Unlike me, my office, my desk.....my garage. You know.

[Broccoli1]

Your probably right on the wire size, voltage & speed. I just tested it to see if it sparkles, which it did. I originally set it at C-3 as the door chart said. .

Looking at the manual on line:

The Chart is for .035 so that is why it did not work. .030 Fluxcore is more like .023/.025 Solid Wire.

Also with the Plus model you can adjust the Voltage setting while welding

[MarkBall2]

Just double checked the chart in the owners manual. Yep you are correct, it's for 0.35 wire.

I wouldn't think that 0.05 would make that much difference in arc characteristics. But it must. I'll get a small roll of 0.35 Innershield & test it. I think it said I have to change liners & I know I need bigger tips.

Now where to get liners at. Home Depot doesn't carry them. And AirGas is closed by the time I get off work.................. guess I'll have to look online again.

[Broccoli1]

I wouldn't think you have to change liners for .035

[MarkBall2]

I see in the manual 0.23-0.35 liners & 0.35-0.45 liners. So I may be ok with the current liner. I don't think I could use the black nylon liner that I have in the bench. Just a new tip should do it.

Thanks Veggie Man (Broccoli1)

[mendoje1]

Markball2, Regarding the door latch, my same vintage Lincoln SP135 Plus doesn't have one either, so I just stuck one of my 90deg magnets inside and presto, instant "latch".

About the cart, I kinda went that route a couple months ago for my mig cart, here's my version, inspired by a cart in the latest Miller catalog:





The cart can securely hold two bottles.

BTW, in a couple months a Miller 211 is going to replace the 135 Plus, so I kept the cart a "neutral" color!

Jeff

[Joker11]

Mark,
I am out and about around town. If you need something from Airgas.....let me know bro.

[MarkBall2]

Not quite ready for that yet Joker. I'm going to try a small roll of 0.35 wire for my test this weekend. I have 0.30 in both of them now.

I'm going to post something in the marketplace here to see if anyone has extra items they would like to get rid of. No sense in both our toolboxes being empty.

I did put on the fluxcore nozzle. WOW, does that tip stick out a loooooooonnnnnnnngggggggg way!!! Wasn't expecting that, but it fits good & I can see how it would prevent the gas difuser from collecting slag.

Can't wait to play with it this weekend.

[Joker11]

The guy at Airgas was quick to correct me.....it's not a fluxcore nozzle. It's a thread protector.

I guess he's right. It's not really a nozzle. But what the heck......

[Broccoli1]

I'll get some scrap & practice/test on it for a better idea of how it works. I also need to get different wirefeed rollers & get a bigger liner if I step up to 0.35 or 0.45 wire. But for now, I'll just work with the 0.30 size.

The Liner works with .023- up to .035

You only need a new Liner and drive roll when using .045

[MarkBall2]

Ok, today was test day.

First part of the test, I followed Broccoli's advice & got a 2lb roll of 0.35 wire & 0.35 tips for the Lincoln. I had another small project to finish on my bandsaw stand so I used my Hobart for it. Had to make a bracket to hold a chip tray so they don't just drop to the floor.

What can I say, I'm lazy & hate sweeping the garage or the back slab.

Lincoln welder doesn't like to feed the wire. Looked things over & saw the flat braided wire on the work lead had backed out of one side. So I stopped & fixed that. Then tried to weld again. Not much more of a spark & the wire doesn't want to feed very well. Figured I needed a knurled drive roller, but AirGas was closed so couldn't get one.

I had replaced the nylon liner with the spring type liner complete with about 4 kinks that I tried to straighten a little bit. Talking with the guy at WestAir Gas, he said if it's kinked it could cause feeding problems. Oh well, he didn't have one of those either. Guess I'll have to order one.

So I put the nylon liner back in the gun. It ran, but about as good as it did before. As I was feeding the wire, I had to help roll the spool to reel the wire through the gun. When it would feed the wire, it seemed awful slow too. Any pressure on the wire after it left the gun caused it to stop. Watching it, I saw the wing nut I put on the spool tighten up, which increased tension on the spool & stopped it from feeding. (maybe this is the problem?).

The first bead I ran I had a good arc, that just went away. It would quit, feed wire, arc (about the size of a match burning), then flare up with a bigger arc, then slow down, stop & stick the wire to the work. It did this several times before I switched it to the nylon liner. After the liner change I discovered the slow feeding & spool tightening up. I "staked" the wing nut so it wouldn't tighten as the spool rotates & that didn't help much.

I tried to tighten the tension on the wire feed roller & found the wingnut on it would bottom out. So I added a couple of 1/4" washers to the underside of the spring. That didn't help either. At this point I'm thinking I need a knurled wire roller & a new liner.

When I had a good arc, it was hot like the Hobart. I welded on 3/16 strap that I cut into about 1.5" length. Tried to do a lap weld, but it just didn't have the oomph. I tried different wire speeds, different voltage settings, different angle of the gun, nothing helped. I'm convinced it's the wire roller slipping on the wire & not feeding appropriately.

Here are the welds. Settings on the Lincoln D-3 to start, I cranked it all the way up to F-6 with no difference in the arc. Hobart setting was tap 4, wire speed of 40. It welded just like it should & had good welds. I did not change any settings on the Hobart, just followed the chart.

Pic 1 Hobart on our left, Lincoln on our right. Settings: Hobart 4-40, Lincoln D-3
Pic 2 Same as the previous photo
Pic 3 Hobart on our left, Lincoln on our right. New liner in Lincoln, shimmed wire feed spring, Lincoln settings F-6

Maybe someone has a few ideas for me? I think I have listed everything I changed/observed. I also noticed the Hobart didn't have near as much spatter as the Lincoln.

[MarkBall2]

April 20, I ordered a new liner, inert gas flowmeter & gauge and a gas hose for the Lincoln from USA Weld off Evil Bay. I've bought other stuff from them & have good success using them & not too expensive either.

My package was waiting for me this afternoon when I got home from work. Priority Mail got it here in 2 days. Woo Hoo!!!

First off, the liner........... I had to cut off about 6 feet to make it fit my gun. WOW. But it's the correct one now. I installed it & did the "2x4" test to set tension on the wire roller. Max tension & the wire feeds ok. The tension on the spool is just barely enough to keep it from unraveling. I bet there isn't 1 oz of tension holding it in place.

After I got the new liner in it, I shot some pics then grabbed a piece of scrap & tried a bead on it. Arc was hot, kind of drug a time or two, then once I got past the kinks in the wire (not the liner, I hand fed the wire through the gun) it ran steady. Not hot enough with the setting on the door, but steady.

I was just playing with a piece of 1/8" strap, setting was to be D-3. Took forever it seemed to get a puddle started. (must remember I have Dunop's disease & was bending over on the floor) So I stopped & turned the speed to 4. Much better!!! Arc hotter & still steady. I think D-3 would be a good setting for 0.30 wire. I've never run 0.35 wire before, I think it needs a bit more heat.

Grabbed another piece of strap (this time 3/16") & tried a filet weld. It welded it, not much penetration, but it glued those two pieces together. Arc stayed steady, hot & bright. Didn't try to fizzle out either. I did put the pieces welded together in the vice & took a pic. I grabbed the 1/8" piece & bet it away from the 3/16" piece. It broke like I expected. Took a pic of that too.

Here they are, don't critique the welds, I know the weld wasn't hot enough, has no penetration & broke just like a cold weld will do. But I think I've solved my wire feed problem.

Pic 1 = Last weeks initial side by side test
Pic 2 = Test done 30 minutes ago
Pic 3 = Broken weld - see told ya it didn't have any penetration
Pic 4 = Flow Meter & hose
Pic 5 = Spool mod..... Used a nylon self locking nut. Gonna have to get the original type spacer for it though. This thing is barely holding the spool on.

Next time I'll use my tripod to steady my hands & get rid of the blurryness.