Maybe you should leave the thing alone for your own safety until you can get someone there to show you a little about it. I'm not tellin you this to be a smart fart, but you could get hurt.
It's probably a stick welder. But give me a little bit better description of the machine--is shaped like a box--or a torpedoe--what for dials do you have on it and how are they set up--or do you have just one dial that locks into different settings-- how are the numbers set up with the dials--most important,somewhere on that machine there should be a small plate on that plate you will find the size of the machine duty cycle whether or not it's an AC welder, a DC welder, or both. This is all stuff we got to know if you want someone to help you. Someone that knows what they are doing should be there anyway to get you started with it. Check out a bookstore for that textbook I was telling you about earlier, that will help you too. J Krout