Wire size for Hobart 140

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I recently purchased a Hobart 140 MIG.  115 volt with gas attachment.  It came with a small spool of .030 flux core wire.  I would like to continue with the flux core wire as I do most of my welding outside.  It has the capacity to hold an 8" spool of wire.  I ordered a spool of .035, when I bought the machine, and then realized when I got if home that the contact tips are only .030.   I have about 4 tips in the .030 and have not picked up the .035 wire spool yet.  Which size would be better for general welding?  Most of the work would be on material less than 1/4".  1.5" Pipe for gates around the farm.  What are the advantages and disadvantages of the two different sized wires?Lincoln 225 AC/DC, Hobart 140 Mig. Oxy/propane Victor torch.(2) Makita 5" angle grinders  one with zip disk, 14" chop saw.  and just about every other tool you can think of. Whoever has the most toys when he die's ..... Wins!
Reply:Those two sizes are very close. It will be easier to run the smaller .030. I would keep the .030 in the machine until you get tips and rollers to match .035. The gun liner should be sized for the .035, you can fit the smaller wire through the larger liner, but may have trouble the other way, so check to see if the larger wire slides through the liner you have. Keep the smaller tips, you'll need them again! Check the roller size at the feeder. That HAS to match the wire size you use. There is a small difference in roller types meant for solid and cored wire, some rollers have small striations perpendicular to wire travel direction for traction, these are meant for solid wire and should be avoided for cored wire as it can damage the wire, most rollers are going to be smooth, so no trouble.City of L.A. Structural; Manual & Semi-Automatic;"Surely there is a mine for silver, and a place where gold is refined. Iron is taken from the earth, and copper is smelted from ore."Job 28:1,2Lincoln, Miller, Victor & ISV BibleDanny
Reply:According to the instructions on the machine, the feed roller is "multi use" wire size.  Same groove for .030 and .035.  If I flip the feed roll around I can use the small solid wires.  I think .020... not sure what the other size is. Both grooves in the feed roller are smooth.  One other question I forgot to ask.  Is the thread size on the contact tips an "industry Standard" or do different makes of machines use different thread sizes for contact tips?Lincoln 225 AC/DC, Hobart 140 Mig. Oxy/propane Victor torch.(2) Makita 5" angle grinders  one with zip disk, 14" chop saw.  and just about every other tool you can think of. Whoever has the most toys when he die's ..... Wins!
Reply:Originally Posted by PackratAccording to the instructions on the machine, the feed roller is "multi use" wire size.  Same groove for .030 and .035.  If I flip the feed roll around I can use the small solid wires.  I think .020... not sure what the other size is. Both grooves in the feed roller are smooth.  One other question I forgot to ask.  Is the thread size on the contact tips an "industry Standard" or do different makes of machines use different thread sizes for contact tips?
Reply:I have a 175 class machine and actually like the .030 for general purpose and 1/8th & down. There seems to be a price penalty for the .030 vs .035 tho and .035 is more common in the 8" spools so that's seems like what I have most of the time.
Reply:The tip threads aren't quite universal. The tips on the lincoln and tweco can be made to go into the hobart and some do that. I don't.
Reply:.030 costs more  because its harder to make.  Your machine will probably work best with .030.  Buy lots of tips, you will use them in time.DavidReal world weldin.  When I grow up I want to be a tig weldor.