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Lincoln 180T DOA....

5K views 42 replies 14 participants last post by  JoshF 
#1 ·
I went out and got a new Lincoln Mig 180T. Brought it home, took it out of the
box, assembled and then nothing. Nada, zero, zip, and zilch. The brand new
welder that I had just purchased was dead. So, if that wasn't bad enough I ended up having to take this brand new welder 45 miles away to get it serviced and I hadn't even had the chance to throw sparks with it yet. As it turns out there was a wire internally that was not affixed properly. I ended up writing Lincoln and telling them about the situation and my dissatisfaction of the whole process. Hopefully, I will hear back from them and they will at least try to make it right. I know that things happen, it's just a nuisance when they do.....
 
#3 ·
Steel said:
I went out and got a new Lincoln Mig 180T. Brought it home, took it out of the
box, assembled and then nothing. Nada, zero, zip, and zilch. The brand new
welder that I had just purchased was dead. So, if that wasn't bad enough I ended up having to take this brand new welder 45 miles away to get it serviced and I hadn't even had the chance to throw sparks with it yet. As it turns out there was a wire internally that was not affixed properly. I ended up writing Lincoln and telling them about the situation and my dissatisfaction of the whole process. Hopefully, I will hear back from them and they will at least try to make it right. I know that things happen, it's just a nuisance when they do.....
try to make it "right"

what do you mean by that?

you bought a new welder, it didnt work, now it was fixed. did you have to pay to get it fixed.

what do you do for a career?
 
#4 ·
What I mean is not only did I have to purchase this welder, but then I had to take time out of my schedule and drive a total of 180 miles to have it repaired for what should have been good in the first place. I'm not sure how much gas is where you live but here it's about $4.00 a gallon, so why should I have to eat the cost of gas on something that should have been right to begin with? We're talking about 180 frickin miles, 2 trips there are back. It wouldn't have been an issue with me if I had been using this machine for a couple of years, but I just pulled it out of the box and still don't have it back yet. To me if you spend $600 and some change on something it should be right, and if it's not the purchaser shouldn't have to go out of their way to make sure it's right, that is up to the Company that is backing their product. I guess what I'm saying is that I should not have to incur additional charges(gas and time) to get the welder that I was supposed to have already purchased.

I don't understand what my career choice has to do with anything but since you asked. I am laid off from Chrysler, and currently attending school full-time in the Electrical field.
 
#6 ·
because the welder is fixed thats why.

being a former chrysler employee... when chrysler had a recall do you think as an employee involved in improper assembly of the recalled part should have shouldered the recall?

i dont see what the problem is. when my cars go in for warranty work, im not paid time, gas, or depreciation.

just my .02
 
#7 ·
mcinfantry.....just my .02 worth also.....but man you have a strange way of looking at things. I don't blame Steel one bit, sure Lincoln probably won't give him a gas mileage check but they sure as hell could send him a few rolls of wire or something just for his time, gas and good customer relations. Too much competition in the welding equipment bizz to treat customers badly.
 
#9 ·
You guys are assuming that Lincoln is not going to do anything. Steel: How long has it been since you communicated with them? If they do come up with some way to tell you they're sorry and compensate you in some way, I hope you post again and tell what they did.

mcinfantry: All Steel was doing was venting about the situation. He is right that the welder should have been tested at the factory that built it. As someone who lives a long distance from almost everything, I can appreciate his frustration. Yes, it's good that the welder is now fixed, but that doesn't mean it's not frustrating to have to get a brand new welder fixed 180 miles away.
 
#10 ·
I sent off the e-mail on Thursday, and if they respond either way I'll most definitely post their response. I'm sure they'll take care of it, like you said the worst is the frustration of the whole situation. Life goes on, and it'll get better when I drive back up to get the welder and I can finally throw some sparks......
 
#11 ·
Can I make a suggestion? I'm sure they get thousands of e-mails. Call them on the phone, and ask for Customer Service. Just calmly explain your situation, and tell them you'd really appreciate anything they can do for you. If they won't help you, ask to talk to someone higher up on the food chain, and keep after it until someone takes care of you. I used to do a lot of customer service work, and I can tell you that good companies want you to be happy. They will also stop listening if you yell at them, so handle them the same way you handled mcinfantry. Good luck.
 
#13 ·
I have had a similar issue with my Syncrowave 180 it went through a set of points and a transformer on two seperate ocations both in warrenty and after talking with Miller they took care of it and I have not had any other issues with it so far. My point is this was a 1500.00 welder and the first time it broke it was only 6 months old so they all can have issues but they will help you out if you scream loud enough.
 
#14 ·
thats why this country is faltering.

his welder WAS FIXED. they honored the warranty!

why should he, you, me or anyone get something else for free?

does the warranty say 6 months parts and labor plus some wire, and consumables? no... my gosh its unbelievable.

you know the internet is why we have no dealers stocking anything locally. your LOCAL welding supply house will give knick knacks away, but when you keep buying online your local welding supply closes.......
 
#15 · (Edited)
mcinfantry said:
thats why this country is faltering.

his welder WAS FIXED. they honored the warranty!

why should he, you, me or anyone get something else for free?

does the warranty say 6 months parts and labor plus some wire, and consumables? no... my gosh its unbelievable.

you know the internet is why we have no dealers stocking anything locally. your LOCAL welding supply house will give knick knacks away, but when you keep buying online your local welding supply closes.......

Lincoln makes the same money whether or not they sell through an online store or local shop.


Maybe if the machine had failed some time into it's use it would be a different story..but there is no company that advertises as being an "industry leader" that should let a machine out the factory door with such a simple problem....A 30 second operational test at the end of the assembly line would have avoided this problem.

I'd want a t shirt or something for my trouble. I buy locally when ever I can and have a plasma torch and 2 mig welders that I bought locally at the welding supply that I've had an account at since 1989. I do understand that things go wrong, but a company like Lincoln can afford to make their customers feel better about the service they get. It is not getting something for "free", .. that cost of doing business and honoring a warranty is built into every Lincoln welder that gets sold...

If it was a HF or some ebay machine I'd see your point, but it was a Lincoln. Top of the line stuff and priced accordingly.

One of the problems with this country today is that when someone works hard for their money and buys top of the line stuff because they think it will be properly built, but then has to invest even more time and money to get it right, and it is only because of greed and corner cutting on the part of the manufacturer....

You tell me with a straight face that doing business like that is making America great, and it is the consumers burden to bear all of the extra costs when simple, preventable things go wrong.







Later, mikey
 
#17 ·
mcinfantry said:
thats why this country is faltering.
...............
you know the internet is why we have no dealers stocking anything locally. your LOCAL welding supply house will give knick knacks away, but when you keep buying online your local welding supply closes.......
I absolutely agree with that. Anybody buys stuff mail order or on-line gives up the local service part of the deal, I don't care who makes it or who fixes it. If you buy something at a local store, you can take it back. If you have something shipped to you, it's up to you to ship it back---or drive it back. You make the choice when buying it. If you don't live near a local dealer for an item, that's not the manufactures problem.

tom
 
#18 ·
Well, I purchased my unit from a Authorized Lincoln Dealer that normally deals in the larger machines, but they are not an authorized Lincoln Service Department and was told that since they don't normally carry the smaller welders that I would have to contact Lincoln for the tech service and service department. Maybe next time I will purchase my welder from an online source, at least then I won't be able to blame anyone but myself right!! The bottom line is I spent the extra cash and bought as local as I can get, and we can see where that got me. So tell me, how would it have been any different if I had purchased a unit online. The worst thing is that I found this same welder online after my purchase for about $100 less than I paid for mine locally. So I should just fork out more of my money to support the guy at the local AGA make more money?

I'm all for keeping it local, but I can see why people buy online. The savings alone is enough for most to do it. I guess the best advise is for the local shops be a little more competitive on the price of the small stuff that way people don't feel like they are getting raped when they walk out of the store.

Anyways this is getting way off topic, I didn't purchase my machine from online so it doesn't matter. The only thing that matters now is how good Lincoln's customer service is.
 
#19 ·
mcinfantry said:
thats why this country is faltering.

his welder WAS FIXED. they honored the warranty!

why should he, you, me or anyone get something else for free?

does the warranty say 6 months parts and labor plus some wire, and consumables? no... my gosh its unbelievable.

you know the internet is why we have no dealers stocking anything locally. your LOCAL welding supply house will give knick knacks away, but when you keep buying online your local welding supply closes.......
So they are giving away free gas now??? And what about the hassle and my time?? It's not worth anything??

So if you were to be in the same situation, you can honestly say with a straight face that you'd just smile and act as if it doesn't bother you to spend an additional $40 in fuel and the 4-5 hours it takes to travel with your welder to get it fixed when you never even had the chance to use it???

And you're talking about people ruining the local store buy making purchases online???? It's that very same customer service attitude that you employ that is driving people to buy online. :mwink:
 
#20 · (Edited)
Somebody buys something at our parts store and there is a problem, we fix it, no problem. Or attitude. Somebody buys something on-line or mail order, it's between them and the company. Does the company HAVE to reimburse any travel time and cost. Probably not. I would guess that they have a return policy stating how any problems would be handled. If the return was not done by their rules, they aren't obligated to cover anything. SHOULD they do something to cover the cost? That's up to them.

After re-reading the original post, I see that the welder was bought at a store. It's up to the store to make things right with the customer. Yes, I think some sort of effort should be made to help cover the costs incurred by the customer. Perhaps a store gift card. Any problems beyond that are between the store and the supplier.

tom
 
#21 ·
Quote..."Well, I purchased my unit from a Authorized Lincoln Dealer that normally deals in the larger machines, but they are not an authorized Lincoln Service Department and was told that since they don't normally carry the smaller welders that I would have to contact Lincoln for the tech service and service department."

This is the part that bugs me.....These guys are the ones that should have dealt with the problem. If they are not an "authorized Lincoln Service Department", they should have shipped it to one.....They sold it to the customer..........That is part of being an "Authorized Lincoln Dealer".........Of course, that would likely take a lot more time than it did.
 
#22 ·
I buy everything I can locally, from local merchants, but the nearest "larger" town is 18 miles from me, and the population is about 4000. Needless to say, they almost never have what I need, or a wide selection. The internet has been a big help to me because it takes me less time to research and find something. If what I order isn't right I send it back. If there's something wrong with it, they pick it up by UPS. If I ordered wrong or it's not what I expected, I pay to ship it back and I gladly accept that concept in exchange for the time I saved in the first place. IMHO, bacause of the circumstances, Steel needs some compensation of some kind, and a smart company will do something for him.
 
#23 ·
machine shop tom said:
Somebody buys something at our parts store and there is a problem, we fix it, no problem. Or attitude.
I fix things, like fabric that fails prematurely, and my customer doesn't pay a nickle. I can get free replacement fabric most of the time, but I don't charge the customer regardless if I have to pay for it or not. To me, it's worth having a happy satisfied customer who will tell their friends " you won't believe this, but I got my .........fill in the blank....... fixed for nothing". Word of mouth advertising like that is worth its weight in gold, not to mention referrals and repeat business. "Ye reap what ye sow".

I also make small repairs (" can you sew this seam for me") all the time, and rarely charge for it. Generally, the person will leave me more than I would have asked for in the first place, and a lot of larger dollar business has come my way from this policy. Of course, I live in a small town, so maybe I'm just naive.
 
#24 ·
DanTwoLakes said:
I fix things, like fabric that fails prematurely, and my customer doesn't pay a nickle. I can get free replacement fabric most of the time, but I don't charge the customer regardless if I have to pay for it or not. To me, it's worth having a happy satisfied customer who will tell their friends " you won't believe this, but I got my .........fill in the blank....... fixed for nothing". Word of mouth advertising like that is worth its weight in gold, not to mention referrals and repeat business. "Ye reap what ye sow".

I also make small repairs (" can you sew this seam for me") all the time, and rarely charge for it. Generally, the person will leave me more than I would have asked for in the first place, and a lot of larger dollar business has come my way from this policy. Of course, I live in a small town, so maybe I'm just naive.
Didn't PT Barnum have something to say about guys like you?, something about one being born every minute?................ :D

Kidding....You are right.........Good relations with customers is worth its weight.................... :thumbup:
 
#25 ·
You're right, there is one born every minute, and I'm it!!

Seriously, I just want to believe in my fellow man. If that makes me a sucker, so be it.

I also never charge to repair an American flag, or sew a name tag on a fireman's turnout gear. Or ANYTHING for a service man or woman.
 
#26 ·
Dan, first I must say that you are a stand up guy, it's rare to find someone that feels the way you do. But I agree 100%....

On another note, Lincoln just e-mailed me and this is what they had to say:

We apologize for the inconvenience you have had with your welder. Our warranty policy covers only the cost of correcting the defect of a Lincoln product.

For your inconvenience, we can offer to send some wire at no charge to use with your welder and extra contact tips.

Please let us know what wire you require for use with your welder.

If you have any other question or comments, please do not hesitate to contact
us.

Regards,

LE Customer Service


Now that was fast being that I know they don't work on the weekends. Pretty good of them to do that. Hell I'm happy that they acknowledged the problem and took care of it.....
 
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