Patent ID: 7946523

Claim:
A welding wire configuration comprising: a coil of welding wire defining an inner diameter of the wire coil; and a self-adjusting payoff core disposed in the wire coil, said core comprising: a wall section disposed about a central axis to define a vertical length and circumference of the core, the wall section having a gap between one edge of the wall section and another edge of the wall section, the wall section engaging the inner diameter of the wire coil at a plurality of contact points, the contact between the inner diameter and the wall section not being consistent along the circumference; and at least one strap bridging said gap and coupled to said wall section on each side of said gap, the core having a self-adjusting cross-section that adjusts with a change in the inner diameter of the wire coil, the self-adjusting cross-section deflecting and rebounding in response to the change in the inner diameter of the wire coil to continually apply pressure against the inner diameter of the wire coil such that the coil of wire does not vertically fall relative to the core.