Mig Wire Feed Trouble Shooting - Unimig VIPER Operating Manual

MIG WIRE FEED TROUBLE SHOOTING

The following chart addresses some of the common WIRE FEED problems during MIG welding. In all cases of equipment malfunction, the manufacturer's
recommendations should be strictly adhered to and followed.
1: No wire feed
Possible Reason
Wrong mode selected
Wrong torch selector switch
2: Inconsistent / interrupted wire feed
Possible Reason
Adjusting wrong dial
Wrong polarity selected
Incorrect wire speed setting
Voltage setting incorrect
MIG torch lead too long
MIG torch lead kinked or too sharp angle
being held
Contact tip worn, wrong size, wrong type
Liner worn or clogged (the most common
causes of bad feeding)
Wrong size liner
Blocked or worn inlet guide tube
Wire misaligned in drive roller groove
Incorrect drive roller size
Wrong type of drive roller selected
Worn drive rollers
Drive roller pressure too high
Too much tension on wire spool hub
Wire crossed over on the spool or tangled
Contaminated MIG wire
Suggested Remedy
Check that the TIG/MMA/MIG selector switch set to MIG position
Check that the STANDARD/SPOOL GUN selector switch is set to STANDARD position for MIG
welding and SPOOL GUN when using the spool gun
Suggested Remedy
Be sure to adjust the WIRE FEED and VOLTAGE dials for MIG welding.
The AMPERAGE dial is for STICK and TIG welding mode
Select the correct polarity for the wire being used - see machine setup guide
Adjust the wire feed speed
Adjust the voltage setting
Small diameter wires and soft wires like aluminium don't feed well through long torch leads - replace
the torch with a lesser length torch
Remove the kink, reduce the angle or bend
Replace the tip with correct size and type
Try to clear the liner by blowing out with compressed air as a temporary cure,
it is recommended to replace the liner
Install the correct size liner
Clear or replace the inlet guide tube
Locate the wire into the groove of the drive roller
Fit the correct size drive roller e.g.; 0.8mm wire requires 0.8mm drive roller
Fit the correct type roller (e.g. knurled rollers needed for flux cored wires)
Replace the drive rollers
Can flatten the wire electrode causing it to lodge in the contact tip - reduce the drive roller pressure
Reduce the spool hub brake tension
Remove the spool untangle the wire or replace the wire
Use clean dry rust free wire. Do not lubricate the wire with oil, grease etc
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