Hobart 140 welder problem

[jeepfreak1020]

So Ive got the Hobart 140, and something wrong. I put a new tip on it and it will weld great for about 6 3" welds. Then it like bogs down and the arc gets really small and the wire welds itself to the tip. So I pull it out with plyers, pull the wire out snip it and on we go again. Does the same thing. So I clean the tip really good and still. I have replaced the tip 3 or 4 times and it still does the same thing. Also slag is building up really quick and bad, more then normal. Im using flux core so Im use to slag, but this isent normal. Whats wrong? Im using 030 wire and an 030 tip.

Could my drive rollers be going bad or what do you guys think?

 

[souske]

Is the wire old? We would have problems with the flux core getting sticky after 3 years or so

 

[2stix]

sounds like the feed speed is slowing down. are the tips you are useing the same ones youve been useing for a while? ive gotten cheap HF ones that i had to buy on a weekend, and they were not drilled to the correct size. once they started heating up, they would expand and the wire would stick. if you have any tip reamers, try to ream them out a bit, or you can use a small drill bit. also, whenever welding over head the slag will drop into the cup and clog it up quickly. plus the wire speed should be turned up a bit for over head or the wire will tend to burn back into the tip.

 

[SparksWI]

Could also be the wire binding in the whip, this would happen if you are welding in a position that kinks the whip or puts it at a sharp angle. The wire might have also jumped from the .030 groove in the drive roller, or the tension on the drive roller or wire spool might be set incorrectly.

You can check this by opening the welder and depressing the trigger. Watch the spool and drive rollers and look to see if the rollers seem to be slipping, if so increase the tension on the drive roll using the pressure adjustment knob, or decrease the tension on the wire spool. Also check to make sure the wire is running in the correct .030 groove on the drive roller.

 

[jcshaney]

I know you probably do not want to hear this but my Hobart done this i took it to the welding supply shop i bought it from and they said the board that controls the drive rollers was bad. They also told me the board was something like 3-400 dollars i only give 500 for the thing.The reason they said it was so much was because Hobart is owned by miller but built over seas and that was where all the parts had to come from. Traded it in for a miller 251x best tool in my shop hands down.