Birdsnest problems Hobart 210 - flux core

[Dadnatron]

I purchased a Hobart 210 MVP and I have been having a lot of birdnest issues at the drive wheels.

Hobart .035 flux core
Orientation is correct.
I've insured I am using the knurled groove.
I've set tension tight, loose, 'appropriate according to manual', 'finger stoppable at gun tip'... all seem to make little difference.

Occurs at all wire speeds I have used over about 30 (which I believe is 300ipm)

Its intermittent. I can weld for 20 min without a problem, and spend the next hour fixing several birdsnests in a row.

I'm liking this little machine less and less. I purchased it at TSC, and I am thinking about taking it back. The other bigger issue for me is the lack of adjustability. I have 7 power settings which don't relate to anything specific that I can tell. I just know up is hotter and down is colder. I'd like to see what V and Amps they actually represent so I can learn what I am doing better.

If I can't get this birdsnest issue fixed, then I will definitely be taking it back.

 

[Shield Arc]

Bird nesting can be a real pain in the azz! Try keeping the Mig gun lead as straight as you can at all times. Also, if possible raise the welder up. Set it on some saw horses if you can.
I personally wouldn't own a tap setting welder. I don't like people telling me what to do. Much less a welder!

 

[KWentling]

Make sure your contact tip is good or better yet try a new one. The other possible cause would be the liner but this sound like a new welder so probably not that. Like Shield Arc said, keep the lead as straight as you can.

 

[JimRB]

I have sloppy feeding if my cable/lead is not kept fairly straight. Not much bird nesting though. I have run 20-30 pounds of solid core versus a pound of flux core wire. Solid wire seems to be less fussy than flux core. I do have frustrations sometimes with flux core sputtering, which I gather is it is slipping on the feed rollers.

I do have packages of spare tips if they get messed up which has a happened a few times.

I have read that sometimes you should remove the contact tip and blow the liner out. It should not be an issue with a new rig though.

Bad work grounds can also cause the wire to wad up. Clean metal and the machine's ground attached to that clean metal. I have had some reason to use a pair of Vise Grips to clamp to the clean metal and attach my ground clamp to my Vise Grips. Welding via the work just laying on the grounded table sometimes causes feed problems. Not so much if you have new clean metal on a clean table.

 

[MinnesotaDaveChalmers]

It's been my experience that frequent bird nesting is often the result of too much tension on the adjuster.

It should be just enough that pinching the wire as it comes out of the gun with your gloved hand can still make the drive rolls slip and the wire stops.

If the tension is too tight, the drive rolls will push the wire into a bird nest instead of slipping.

It's much less tension than smooth rollers with hard wire.

I have the millermatic 210, same taps for voltage. If you want to check the welding voltage just hook your multimeter up and read it while welding. It can be tricky to weld properly without looking to check the weld voltage so some people just record it.

Wire feed speed is your amperage btw, the voltage just gets dialed to run the wire correctly.
Since voltage is the tapped style, fine tuning is with wire feed speed.
Start with the door chart and fine tune from there.

 

[RNeumann]

99% of the time this is a ground issue. Mig is very susceptible to this.

Mig Welding Lesson - Watch Your Stickout and Ground - YouTube

 

[RNeumann]

Mig Welding Basics - YouTube

 

[yomax4]

Even if it's new. I would look at the drive tension and also the liner. maybe has an 030 liner or the liner could have been damaged when installed. Any time you have bird nest issues it's usually the tension, Outlet guide or liner.

 

[Clint S]

My Hobart does the same thing. Keep the lead as straight as possible. If there is a loop in it, or even a tight curve it will jam up every time. I have been conscientious about keeping the lead straight and have had zero issues since. I too thought it was a tension issue and turning up the tension makes it worse.

 

[MinnesotaDaveChalmers]

My Hobart does the same thing. Keep the lead as straight as possible. If there is a loop in it, or even a tight curve it will jam up every time. I have been conscientious about keeping the lead straight and have had zero issues since. I too thought it was a tension issue and turning up the tension makes it worse.

Turning it up does make it worse - it has to be able to slip when needed.

When adjusted properly you don't have to keep the lead straight - I don't even think about it.

 

[woodlandfarms]

I thought i read somewhere that some brands of gasless wire had birdsnesting issues. Like the chinese stuff. Not that it isn't all chinese anymore anyway....

 

[Shield Arc]

A guy on Welding Web bought a roll of Hobart Fabshield XLR-8 T-8 self shielded wire. .072 size. I never heard of this wire, so I picked up a roll too. It wanted to bird nest on me in the worst way! I had to release the drive roll tension on the LN-25 all the way, and start over. I finely got the wire tension correct, no more bird nests!
If you try to run too big of self shielded wire through a regular Mig gun, it will bird nest on you, no matter what you do. I run all self shielded wire through a dedicated self shielded wire gun.

 

[Oldpath05]

My guess is the .035 wire might be a little too big for the liner in the gun, meaning the slightest bend will cause the mig wire to bind, result will be nesting or feed roll slipping. Couple things I would try is .045 contact tip or go down to .030 wire.

Lastly, save the self shielding spattering wire for outside use, and get some 70s6 .023 solid wire for exhaust pipe/car body/16ga welding. For 11 ga. and up use .030 70s6, and use a size bigger contact tip on the wire. Then and only then, if possible, get 95/5 welding gas or 75/25 gas will work and is usually cheaper, but the 95/5 will run solid wire a lot smoother, also the welding cables might need to reversed on solid wire. That's what I would should could might try on any brand mig welding machine.

 

[dfkrug]

When adjusted properly you don't have to keep the lead straight - I don't even think about it.

That's my experience, too, and I can even run aluminum wire.

I have the Hobart Ironman 210 and only run solid wire with gas, .035 for steel and Al, and .030 for stainless.

I am thinking that flux core wire must get distorted by the pinch rollers. My welder does not have
knurled rollers. Can the knurling roughen up the wire's surface?

The only time I have gotten birdnesting is when I was running Al, and trying to make it work. The
key is to not let the flame get too close to the tip, so I have to run a fast wire speed.

I have run a lot of wire thru my liner, and have done nothing to it. Great welder.

 

[MinnesotaDaveChalmers]

That's my experience, too, and I can even run aluminum wire.

I have the Hobart Ironman 210 and only run solid wire with gas, .035 for steel and Al, and .030 for stainless.

I am thinking that flux core wire must get distorted by the pinch rollers. My welder does not have
knurled rollers. Can the knurling roughen up the wire's surface?

The trouble is the knurled roller has excellent traction on the wire and if adjusted too tight it won't slip when it needs to - bam, birds nest.

Secondary problem is the wire is tubular so if the rollers are too tight it can deform the wire causing problems feeding through the properly sized tip.

 

[Dadnatron]

I spent a frustrating weekend, working on a scraper which had a 50yo bushing go out on it a couple weeks ago. I've spent those intervening weekends trying to get it back and running. Finally got everything together, had 2 birdsnest issues, but really had an issue with the welding.

I was welding on a big piece of 3/8-1/2" metal, so I know it was a heat sink. I preheated the area as much as I could. Ran the welder on what I believed was the correct settings per the chart. Didn't get a great looking weld, but I was watching the puddle of the plate, and it seemed to be melting into it decently. It wouldn't be 'road worthy' but building a road, I think it will work.

Anyway, I've decided this little welder just isn't going to cut it for me. It birdsnested me twice in about a 15min welding time. But, I finally got it finished. I did have a bit of trouble with the ground, and reground a new bare spot. Didn't notice much improvement.

I appreciate your help. I think this machine is going back. It sells with the exact same wire I was using. .035 Hobart Flux-core. I just purchased a larger spool than the 'sample' they included with the machine. I tried to keep the cable as straight as possible, but the reality of a 'field repair' isn't one which allows for many changes. I brought out my tractor, put my generator and the welder in the bucket, to try to get them to an optimal position. Still had 2 birdsnests in 15 min. It might be the liner, the gun, the tension, or me. But regardless, the current combination isn't working. That and the controls just aren't working for me.

 

[bspeedy]

I've had wire spools that were somehow criss-crossed and it gave me fits. In other words, the wire was threaded under itself. It would spool off fine for a while and then birdnest for no apparent reason. Threw that spool away and tried a new one and all good.

For the record, I'm happy with my Hobart 187. It's burned a lot of wire and done very well for me.

 

[Arc weld]

Sometimes you can have distorted wire on the roll as well.

 

[Oldpath05]

I've had wire spools that were somehow criss-crossed and it gave me fits. In other words, the wire was threaded under itself. It would spool off fine for a while and then birdnest for no apparent reason. Threw that spool away and tried a new one and all good.

For the record, I'm happy with my Hobart 187. It's burned a lot of wire and done very well for me.

Record noted and reposted, what wire are you using that makes your Hobart work so good? On criss cross wire, sometimes I've loosen the wire roll tension nut up so the wire roll will start to unravel, which helps in letting the wire feed, better-ish.

 

[Oldpath05]

Dadnatron>>>"Anyway, I've decided this little welder just isn't going to cut it for me. It birdsnested me twice in about a 15min welding time. But, I finally got it finished. I did have a bit of trouble with the ground, and reground a new bare spot. Didn't notice much improvement."

So what brand you going to try next, over a dozen to chose from? I think Hobart is an offshoot of the Miller brand.
I have the Miller 211, more pricy, but has one feature I kind off like, Auto Set, turn one dial on the wire size, turn the other dial to the thickness ga. that's being welding and it's auto set.