Lincoln SA 200

[dhermesc]

Anyone own one of these?

Are they really as good as people claim they are?

 

[Mike(NEOhio)]

I worked at Lincoln. Those were a mainstay for many years. They were discontinued for a time in the 80s I believe but were brought back due to customer demand. A gentleman who posts here rebuilds them. His handle escapes me just now.

 

[westga]

l like mine.

Wasn't it a guy name carvell mine ????? Didn't he pass away?

 

[Gene Davis (Ga.)]

I made a living with one for a lot of years. it is an almost bulletproof machine. The greatest draw back was the auxiliary power was D.C. power, not A.C.

 

[mjsnodgrass]

I bought a new one in early seventies. mine has 4 cyl gas continental engine. the only downside to the welder is the power plug produces dc power, so choosing power tools is important. switch needs to be rated for dc. had to wait a while to for delivery as most of them were going to the Alaskan pipeline they told me. i'm the only person to use mine. they are great welders, but welding rod selection also factors in. seems my welder prefers Lincoln code-arc, and welds even better with eutectic low hydrogen. I assume the newer ones are still wound with copper.

 

[rustred]

yes, Carvel Minnie farmer is gone. he restored some.

 

[JMOR]

(quoted from post at 22:07:44 09/23/19) I made a living with one for a lot of years. it is an almost bulletproof machine. The greatest draw back was the auxiliary power was D.C. power, not A.C.

itto

 

[john in la]

It depends on what year it is.

Pre 1973 and it will have copper windings.
After 73 it could have aluminum windings and is still good but not as desirable.

 

[johnlobb]

I had a '53 with the copper windings. I welded in the nuclear powerhouses around Michigan, so I have some experience welding. I never found another machine to put down a slicker weld than a SA 200...

 

[dhermesc]

My son is taking welding classes at the local Vo Tec and his instructors as 2 younger guys (under 30) that have quit pipe line welding but seem to know what they are talking about. I just find it hard to believe that the height of welding technology and skill involves a 35+ year old welder. After doing some looking around it appears there is an entire cottage industry in keeping these old welders running.

 

[504]

Plug in a dc to ac inverter for 115 v .

 

[newhollandnut]

I have no idea the model but our local gas company has a guy probably in his early 50?s that does all of their welding. It is a Lincoln but looks like it was used to weld the hull of the titanic. Usually when they come out to do work around us it?s not a good thing but I love hearing it fire up and run. Not sure what the engine is but it sounds identical to my grandpas farmall m?s and super m?s. The sound brings back a lot of memories when it starts up

 

[ditchwitch]

Lord yes. That what i learned to weld with . My super was a pipeline welder. He is one of my Heros taught me a lot when i was a young man.The welder was a great welder easy to work on and service also. Man those were some great days.

 

[sotxbill]

(quoted from post at 05:11:59 09/24/19) It depends on what year it is.

Pre 1973 and it will have copper windings.
After 73 it could have aluminum windings and is still good but not as desirable.

I was told only the exciter windings were aluminum, the high current (output) side is still copper... So its not as much of a problem as it made up to be... And the exciter windings can easily be changed if the welder is ever gone into...

Can someone verify??

 

[rlp in Co.]

The DC power shouldn't be much of a problem. Tools with brushes work fine on DC.

 

[john in la]

From what I have heard all of the exciter windings are aluminum in the SA200.
Even the machines they call all copper.

In the mid 70's to about 90 Lincoln changed the windings in the main generator to aluminum.
Even the generator outer barrel was changed from a smooth round to a octagonal shape because the larger aluminum windings would not fit into the smaller round housing. But the smaller copper windings will fit in the octagonal shape barrel. You may also hear red face black face side lugs and several other things. But today the only fact you can be sure of is these machines were built 40 to 60 years ago so determining exactly what you have can only be done by taking it apart and actually looking at it.

 

[sotxbill]

(quoted from post at 12:42:06 09/26/19) From what I have heard all of the exciter windings are aluminum in the SA200.
Even the machines they call all copper.

In the mid 70's to about 90 Lincoln changed the windings in the main generator to aluminum.
Even the generator outer barrel was changed from a smooth round to a octagonal shape because the larger aluminum windings would not fit into the smaller round housing. But the smaller copper windings will fit in the octagonal shape barrel. You may also hear red face black face side lugs and several other things. But today the only fact you can be sure of is these machines were built 40 to 60 years ago so determining exactly what you have can only be done by taking it apart and actually looking at it.

Thanks John,,, I have a black face, probably a 63???+- model and am told its a copper output but aluminum exciter... where the prior red face models were copper over copper... Was told the octagon did reflect the exciter change, but who knows... Mine is a great welder, and probably will go to my kids... And yes the 110 volt dc accessory plug is hard on grinders, especially with variable speed switches. But I picked up 5 of the harbor freight grinders at 11 bucks each last month. That will take me down the road a couple of years at least. This welder came with champion plugs and was a pig,, changed it to autolite plugs, and it became a princess.

 

[rlp in Co.]

I bought a couple of those cheap grinders
too. They both only lasted about a month. I
bought two of the more expensive grinders
from Harbour Freight and they have lasted
two or three years now with hard use. They
were around $29 if I remember correctly.
The cords wear out, but that's easily
fixed. I use one for grinding and the other
for cutting.