LE Mig Pak 10 no good on gas

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Hi all, am new to this forum.  Looking forward to some insight on a puzzling problem.I picked up a Lincoln Electric Mig Pak 10 from my father in law.  He had BARELY used it with flux core only, and I mean barely.  Once I got, it BARELY used it with flux core too, so the unit is literally "like new".With the fux core, the unit welds GREAT!  Last night I tried it with gas (both argon and C02) while having set the welder up properly and it won't weld worth a darn.What's it doing?  It'll lat a bead for about a quarter of an inch, then it's almost like it surges or over powers and gets drippy and won't keep a good arc for a nice bead.  So you have to stop, try to start over, and after about a quarter of an inch, the same thing.  So, thinking that something was messed up, I flipped it all back to flux core to check out the unit and voila, it works perfect.  Flip it all back for gas, and it pukes again.  The gas is good, the gas is flowing, polarity is right and wire feed and voltage is good.Really stumped.  This unit is outside of warranty so I am stuck, but with such little use, it should work flawlessly.Ideas?Thanks for your help.
Reply:You say you "flipped it". Are you saying you changed the polarity when you switched from FC to solid wire/gas? You need to be sure that you switch the leads and reverse the polarity when changing from FC to solidwire/gas..No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth! Ronald Reagan
Reply:Hey there, yes, I did switch the leads inside the box, but you say "and reverse the polarity"??  Am I missing a step?  Dumb question I know, but I have to ask.
Reply:Nope. If you switched the leads, you did whats needed on most machines. 90% of the time guys forget when changing over and thats the problem.List as much info as possible on your settings for both processes. Machine, material thicknesss (I'm assuming steel), wire size, heat (voltage) and wire speed, what gas and flow,  and so on and we can try and give you some pointers on whats wrong. Picts of the good and bad welds would help alot also. The more info the better we can help.Good luck..No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth! Ronald Reagan
Reply:Lincoln Electric Mig Pak 10. D voltage setting, 8 wire speed setting, 3" exhaust pipe, argon and C02.  Flow was tried at various rates from 10 - 20 cfm.  Also tried different voltage and wire feed settings to no avail.It's almost like the melted wire would ball up all of a sudden, like no penetration.  Had to stop, when started would arc and bead good, then ball up.  Really weird.
Reply:Thanks for the help BTW, really appreciate it.
Reply:Originally Posted by Kalsc  Last night I tried it with gas (both argon and C02) while having set the welder up properly and it won't weld worth a darn.
Reply:Sorry, yes, tried both with the argon being 100% argon (my bad) and the other being 100% C02 which should have been good as per the manual.  As for the settings, various voltage and wire feed settings were tried when trying to figure out why it wasn't working.I have a pic that I can email to you to take a look at.  Feel free to PM it to me if you like and I will forward the pic.  I don't have anywhere to host the picture in order to link it to this thread.
Reply:In looking at the pics it reminds me of what soldering without flux looks like on coated or dirty metal, yet the metal where trying to weld was ground clean.  AND, we tried a Miller unit on the same piece of metal and it welded just fine.  Suggests something up with my LE.
Reply:Pm sent. You can upload the pict direct here from your computer, just be sure to resize it 1st. Under reply go down near the bottom where it says manage attachments and upload the pict you want to post. Just click on browse and select your resized pict and then hit upload. You can then attach them in the thread with the paperclip above the ype box, or it will automatically attach at the end when you submit the post..No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth! Ronald Reagan
Reply:Just a thought, I "feel" that the flux core spool is much lighter than the solid wire spool.  Although both spools are loose on the shaft, is it possible that if the solid wire spool somehow started dragging that it might cause this issue?As you can see, it is brutal.  I can upload a pic of the flux core bead and there is no way you'd think it's the same machine.Here are the pics: Attached Images
Reply:That would be simple enough to check. Unspool say 10 feet of wire and cut it off from the spool and see how it runs..No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth! Ronald Reagan
Reply:For sure. However, just thinking about it, to be more specific, I guess it didn't really start to run a good bead right away, it just starts to blob up.
Reply:Did you get the instruction booklet with your  welder?- Change polarity to DC+ ?- Change or switch orientation of the drive rolls to run solid wire?- Replace the liner for the new wire size?- Remove the gasless nozzle and replace with a gas nozzle?Somehow I suspect a drive problem with the wheels and/or tension adjustment.Gordie -- "I believe you understand what you think I said, but I'm not sure you realize that what you heard is not what I meant."