I would be interested to hear from anyone who has had a problem with their Chinese welders and/or plasma cutters. See ebay item: 260711725347
Or the item description cut and pasted below:
Up for auction we have a complete piece of xxxx Lotos 3-in-1 Chinese hunk of junk sold by ebay shyster name removed. I bought this piece on October 24, 2010. I have other welders and my primary intended use was occassional cutting with the plasma cutter function. When I first received the package, I assembled everything and tried it out. I cut a 3/16 IN thick piece of mild steel and the cut was about 3-3/4 inches long. It was a nice clean cut and I was very impressed with the machine so what did I do? I went bragging to all my friends about what a great new tool I had and you gotta come over to see how it works,bla,bla,bla shooting off my big fat mouth. I became very busy with work and I have precious little time for blacksmithing but last Saturday some friends came over and asked to see my Lotos cut. I had not used it since I tested it out but I was eager to cut some iron for a couple of different projects and their visit motivated me to show off my new tool. So my friends are gathered around and I'm rambling on about how I'll never cut with oxy/acet again and I turn on my brand new Lotos and BANG it explodes! Not "hand grenade" explode sending shrapnel everywhere, more like the sound of someone filling a paper lunch bag full of air and then smashing it between their hands.This was accompanied by a bright flash of light and a puff of smoke. So much for my nice new Lotos! Let's do some math! OK, so I paid $410 for this and $410 divided by 3-3/4 inches, carry the 1, is let's see here, $109.33 per inch of cut! Yes sir, a bargain at twice the price! And here's the best part! I get to listen to my friends, who, let's face it, are really just a bunch of retards, constantly tease me about buying cheap Chinese junk from disreputable ebay vendors! Which leads me to the SECOND best part: name removed won't stand behind his product. Well, I can't say I blame him since I wouldn't stand behind exploding Chinese pyrotechnics if I could avoid it. His idea of a solution is that every time the machine explodes, I spend $40 to ship it back to him so he can fix it! How's that for an INGENIOUS solution!!????? Let's do MORE math! Let's say I use the machine once every 2 weeks (I'm just a hobbyist) and every other time I use it, it explodes. So, on average, I get to spend $40 per month sending this warm bucket of elephant xxxx back to the thief that sold it to me! So that's $40 times 12 months, carry the 1, $480 per year! Of course, that's only for the first year because the warranty runs out ! And now, LUCKY YOU, yes, YOU have the opportunity to buy this finely crafted clump of asian precision! Here's what you get: the original new Lotos that has only been used once. The original packing-ALL of it- including the original wrappers, packing peanuts,etc,etc. I only tried the plasma cutter function, which doesn't work now after the explosion. I never tried the tig or arc functions but I can only assume that they will explode too. As a matter of fact, all that other stuff is still in its original wrappers-I didn't even unpack it. JUST MAKE SURE THAT YOUR PLUG IS CIRCUIT BREAKER PROTECTED! Unless of course you are upside down on your mortgage and you have plenty of fire insurance! Want a bargain? Feeling brave? Here's your chance. This beauty is STILL under warranty! And will be until October 24,2011. And ebay vendor name removed (who you will be dealing with for warranty/replacement) is simply a JOY to work with!!!!!! That's 10 months of guaranteed fun kids!! Assuming the machine doesn't kill you first. Good luck bidding!! MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL AND TO ALL A GOOD NIGHT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Thanks.Andy
