oh and the side panel is permanently off so I can do wot me teacher showed me and wind the wire back so as not to waste any!
Think there could be adjustable burn-back on that which would save you the trouble; tiny little adjuster on the front panel? Burn-back basically, well does what it says, burns the wire back for a split second after you have finished welding, so the wire stick-out is the correct length & doesn't need trimming with pliers.
weldequip