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Weld symbols are one of the most critical elements for technical documentation and communication with the welder. Reading and understanding weld symbols the right way is essential to do a great welding job in [year].
When I saw some weld symbols for the first time, I had no clue at all. And it took me some effort to find complete and useful information. Thus I created this massive collection to make things easier for you guys.
In this article, you will find the most basic weld symbols. Moreover, I will show you the difference between weld symbols and welding symbols. Of course, you will learn the differences between terms like “arrow side” and “other side”.
Table of Contents
Difference between weld symbol and welding symbol
Many people think a weld symbol is the same thing as a welding symbol. But it isn’t. In fact, there is a difference between the terms “weld symbol” and “welding symbol”.
The welding symbol describes the “whole thing”, while the weld symbol can be part of the welding symbol.
The welding symbol consists at least of a horizontal reference line, has an arrow line pointing to the joint area and can have a tail with additional information for the welding process.
The weld symbol gives you information of the type of weld and is usually a part of the welding symbol. The weld symbol is placed above the reference line of the welding symbol.
back to menu ↑Basic weld symbols
In the following chart you can see the basic AWS weld symbols, groove symbols and also supplementary weld symbols.
For further reference you can also check the handout on AWS here.
back to menu ↑How to draw a welding symbol?
A welding symbol consists at least of a horizontal reference line, has an arrow line pointing to the joint area and can have a tail with additional information for the welding process.
Weld information for the “arrow side” can be read below the reference line. Weld information for the “other side” is placed above the reference line.
Welding symbol – example
If you – for example – would like to create a not further specified T-joint you can define a fillet weld with the following welding symbol:
Orientation
There are multiple orientations of the arrow possible, however the reference line must be oriented horizontally. In the following image you can see examples of how welding symbols can be arranged, but there are even more combinations possible.
back to menu ↑Difference between arrow side and other side
Now, take a look at the image below. The position of the weld symbol clearly tells the welder where the weld seam should be.
The side at which the arrow is pointing at is called “arrow side“. The opposite side is the “other side“.
Overall, there are three different possible positions for a weld symbol in the welding symbol:
- If the weld symbol is on the bottom side, the desired weld seam must be placed on the arrow side.
- If the weld symbol is on the top side, weld seam has to be placed on the other side.
- If the weld symbol is on both, on the top and on the bottom side of the reference line, the weld seam must be placed on both sides.
Weld all-around symbol
A circle around the intersection between the reference line and arrow line symbolizes to weld completely around something.
Weld all around example
In the following image you can see an example of what it could look like when you use the weld-all-around symbol.
But in many cases, you don’t just want to weld around completely but define a specific length and width of a weld seam.
back to menu ↑Defining the length and width of a weld seam
If you would like to further specify the length and the width of a weld seam, you can do it the following way:
This symbol requires a 1/4 inch fillet weld with a length of 5 inch.
Example
The following example shows a 1/4 inch fillet weld with a length of 3 placed on the arrow side.
back to menu ↑Welding symbol for intermittent and staggered welds
Intermittent welds or also called skip welds are weld seams with unwelded spaces in between.
In addition to the length, you also note the pitch of the segments.
Intermittent weld – example
In the following image, you see an example of an intermittent weld with 1/8 inch weld thickness, weld length of 5 inch and a pitch of 10 inch.
Staggered weld – example
If you would like to have a staggered weld, you misalign the weld symbols inside the welding symbol.
back to menu ↑Abbreviations for weld/cut processes
According to AWS, you can use the following process letters in the weld symbol tail to further define the desired process. If you for example place the letters GMAW next to the tail it is clear that the weld seam has to be done using the GMAW process e.g. using a MIG welder.
Process | Abbreviation letter | |
---|---|---|
Brazing | ||
Torch brazing | TB | |
Twin carbon-arc brazing | TCAB | |
Furnace brazing | FB | |
Induction brazing | IB | |
Resistance brazing | RB | |
Dip brazing | DB | |
Block brazing | BB | |
Flow brazing | FLB | |
Flow welding | FLOW | |
Resistance welding | ||
Flash welding | FW | |
Upset welding | UW | |
Percussion welding | PEW | |
Induction welding | IW | |
Arc welding | ||
Bare metal arc welding | BMAW | |
Stud welding | SW | |
Gas shielded stud welding | GSSW | |
Submerged arc welding | SAW | |
Gas tungsten-arc welding | GTAW | |
Gas metal-arc welding | GMAW | |
Atomic hyddrogen welding | AHW | |
Shielded metal-arc welding | SMAW | |
Twin carbon-arc welding | TCAW | |
Carbon-arc welding | CAW | |
Gas carbon-arc welding | GCAW | |
Shielded carbon-arc welding | SCAW | |
Flux cored-arc welding | FCAW | |
Thermit welding | ||
Nonpressure thermit welding | NTW | |
Pressure thermit welding | PTW | |
Gas welding | ||
pressure gas welding | PGW | |
Oxyhydrogen welding | OHW | |
Oxyacetylene welding | OAW | |
Air-Acetylene welding | AAW | |
Forge welding | ||
Roll welding | RW | |
Die welding | DW | |
Hammer welding | HW | |
Other welding | ||
Electron beam welding | EBW | |
Electroslag welding | ESW | |
Induction welding | IW | |
Laser beam welding | LBW | |
Ulatrasonic welding | USW | |
Arc cutting | AC | |
Air-carbon-arc cutting | AAC | |
Carbon-arc cutting | CAC | |
Metal-arc cutting | MAC | |
Oxygen cutting | OC | |
Chemical flux cutting | FOC | |
Metal powder cutting | POC | |
Arc-oxygen cutting | AOC | |
Suffixes to indicate method | ||
Automatic welding | AU | |
Machine welding | ME | |
Manual welding | MA | |
Semi-automatic welding | SA |
“handout on AWS ” it from 1998
Is there any changes ?
If I want to give the options of Stud or Fillet welds in a Welding symbol, how would I show that?