[bigjoe]

I'm not sure what to tell you, but I have a 110V welder that I've been using for my project, and I've never had a single problem til today. I was welding some 11ga. I've been welding it for a while now with no problems. Today, it started out fine, then after about a half hour, it seemed to cut out on me. No penetration, the wire didn't want to feed through the tip, and all it did was glob on the surface.(no heat). I cleaned the tip, and it worked fine for about 1/2", then did the same thing. I tried, and tried, but no luck. Same problem. If you know what it is, or need more info, please help, I need my welder.

[CDJr]

What kind of welder is it and whats its duty-cycle?

[weirdbeard]

Sounds like you may have exceeded the duty cycle of your welder. 30 mins continuous is a long time to be welding with a small 110 welder. After a while it shoud work fine again if this is the case. Is it working for you now that it has cooled off?

[30desoto]

bigjoe
You might want to check at the welder where your wire spool is there is an adjustment for the size of wire you are using and could have come loose, you might adjust it a little tighter.Other wise you may have over done the duty-cycle as CDjr has mentioned and may need a cool down period with short welding times.

30dee

[OneMoreTime]

Replace the tip..those are consumable and I have found they will only clean up so much..and then they stick again..

Sam

[Houston54]

Your wire spool may be torqued down a little tight also. Loosen it up a tad. That and the tip replacement should do the job but watch the duty cycle. My Lincoln will throw in the towel once that threshold is reached but after a break it is back up and working just fine. Use some tip gell also to keep the tips cleaner longer.

[oldred]

I don't think this is a case of exceeding the duty cycle since it still tries to weld, sounds more like a bad tip or loss of tension on the drive rollers, at least for the feeding problem but the lack of welding current is a different story. This sounds like it may be a bad ground and if you checked that did you also check the cable where it is attached to the ground clamp? These things tend to get hot and lose continuity over time so you lose the ground to the clamp it self. Quite a few things can cause the problems you describe so if you are still having trouble after checking for the things everyone has mentioned get back to us and we will try something else

[Twisted Minis]

When my last welder would hit the duty cycle it would act up, and really didnt want to weld. But it could be a number of other things. Replace the tip. Then check to see if the tension on your wire is correct. This is a good way to tell. Stick your hand in front of the nose and pull the trigger. When the wire hits your hand it should stop, and the roller should slip. If it does not slip, loosen it. Now put your hand about 4 inches away and pull the trigger again. This time when it hits your hand it should coil up. If it does not coil up, tighten it.

If that doesnt work, pull the liner out and inspect it. If its kinked, buy a new one. They're generally $15 or less. If it looks fine, blow the liner out, and blow out the hose of the gun and put it back together.

[Classix_Lover]

Originally Posted by Twisted Minis

When my last welder would hit the duty cycle it would act up, and really didnt want to weld. But it could be a number of other things. Replace the tip. Then check to see if the tension on your wire is correct. This is a good way to tell. Stick your hand in front of the nose and pull the trigger. When the wire hits your hand it should stop, and the roller should slip. If it does not slip, loosen it. Now put your hand about 4 inches away and pull the trigger again. This time when it hits your hand it should coil up. If it does not coil up, tighten it.

If that doesnt work, pull the liner out and inspect it. If its kinked, buy a new one. They're generally $15 or less. If it looks fine, blow the liner out, and blow out the hose of the gun and put it back together.

Very interesting way to tell to see if it's tight enough. I always just kind of eye ball it and make sure it's not flattening the wire but great suggestion, I should try that out next time.

[bigjoe]

I don't know who was right, but I did everything you guys mentioned, and she's up and running again. Thanks for all the help!!!

[gcrmcc]

This is a good way to tell. Stick your hand in front of the nose and pull the trigger. When the wire hits your hand it should stop, and the roller should slip. If it does not slip, loosen it. Now put your hand about 4 inches away and pull the trigger again. This time when it hits your hand it should coil up. If it does not coil up, tighten it.

I check wire tension in this fashion also except I use a piece of 2x4 wood to run the wire against. Years ago a friend of mine tried it against his hand and ran it through his hand (.023 wire and just cut clean) and went home from work for a few days.

gcrmcc

[oldred]

Gc, You beat me to that one! NEVER and I MEAN NEVER!! run that wire against your hand even if wearing gloves! It does not have to be cut clean because even though nearly every time you stop welding it will leave a tiny ball on the end of the wire sometimes it leaves a point that can be sharp as a needle, this occurs when the molten ball falls off before it cools and and leaves a "stringer" behind it. This can leave a point so thin and sharp that it can shoot right through a leather welding glove and clean through your hand! I have seen this happen several times over the years so I know for a fact that it DOES happen and is not one of those things that MIGHT happen!

[Henry Highrise]

Old Red is right! I cannot believe what I read...that is the biggest no-no that there is in welding. Never run the wire against your hand...use a block of wood.

[Classix_Lover]

Originally Posted by Henry Highrise

Old Red is right! I cannot believe what I read...that is the biggest no-no that there is in welding. Never run the wire against your hand...use a block of wood.

You could've told me that before the wire went through my hand when I tried out what he said!! Heh, I'll use a hard surface to check if the roller needs adjusting if my welder gives me problems like that.

[Twisted Minis]

I'll remember that wood thing from now on. I cut the end of the wire off before doing it generally, but I'll stop that now.

I did once put a hole through my finger. Flipped my hood down and pull the trigger, and nothing happened. Just as I was about to let off I saw a thin line light up, and then pain. I missed my target barely, and eventually the wire skimmed it enough to ground, but keep feeding, and it went directly through my finger...