Unusual sounds coming from my welder!

[chicagojimmyjames]

Hi guys

I'm new to welding, so I don't even know the right vocabulary to describe my question... but basically is this:

There are these occasional "groans" that come from my welder. It's a Lincoln 140 for small projects. Is that sound a signal that the welder is ramping up the voltage? I thought it might be connected to the times when I'm not watching my distance and the wire stickout is longer than it should be.

I'm not worried, because it's a new machine. Just curious.

Great website, I've already learned a few things.

 

[chunkolini]

Might be the nut holding the wire spool on being to tight?

Chunko'.

 

[wyn]

As Chunko' says, it's likely to be coming from the reel of wire rubbing on something.

 

[GrahamGKD]

I get a sort of groaning squeaking noise from my gauges - could it be that?
Graham.

 

[pedrobedro]

There are these occasional "groans" that come from my welder.

Sack him They all seem to develop a character of their own eventually, yours is just an early developer

 

[chicagojimmyjames]

Ha! Ok -- that comment wins.

I checked the tension on the wire feeder as well as the wingnut holding the spool. They both seem fine -- just enough to keep everything together, definitely not too tight.

But it may well be something with the motor feeding the wire. As I'm moving a bead along (and it's going well), there are occasional times when the nice sizzle of steady welding slows down or stops for a second or two. I would've guessed that it's my distance from the weld that changed, or paint or rust that I didn't clean off that sucked up a bit of the heat, but then it gets going again.... if it weren't for that strange sound...

This time I could even feel something funny in the line.

Think it's a motor issue? Should I pull the wire out and clean out the lining with a blast of compressed air?

Thanks to all for the input.

j