MIG Welder Fault — Wire Feed Jam / Birdnest

What This Fault Means

A wire feed fault occurs when the welding wire tangles at the drive roll, inside the liner, or at the contact tip. The wire motor stalls or the wire fails to feed, stopping the weld.

Common Causes

• Contact tip worn or undersized for the wire diameter
• Drive roll tension too high or too low
• Kinked or worn liner in the torch cable
• Wire spool tangled or cross-wound
• Wrong drive roll groove type for the wire (V for solid, U/knurled for flux-core)

Recommended Fix

1. Cut the wire, remove the birdnest from the drive rolls.
2. Replace the contact tip — use the correct size for your wire diameter.
3. Check the liner for kinks — replace if the wire doesn't push through freely.
4. Set drive roll tension: tight enough to feed, loose enough that the wire slips if the tip jams (prevents birdnesting).
5. Verify the wire spool is mounted correctly and the brake tension prevents overrun.