Welding Equipment Pre-Use Check
Catch a cut lead, a hot connection or a leaking gas hose before the arc is struck. Faults and servicing go on the back, so the set's history stays with it.
WT-21 2 pages
Workshop and tools · WT-22
Welding Settings and Test Weld Record
A free printable welding settings log: material, joint, volts, amps or wire speed, gas and stick-out for each test weld, what it showed, and the proven settings.
Download Free · no sign-up
2 pages. Choose your paper size — both versions are laid out identically, so neither one gets shrunk to fit.
Print it and write on it
Fill it in type and save
The fillable versions have real form fields — open them in any PDF reader, type into them and save. Printing help.
What this sheet is for
Find the settings that worked last time instead of starting from scratch on every job. Each test weld is written down with what it showed, and the good ones are copied to a table of proven settings overleaf.
Who it is for
Welders, fabricators, students and hobbyists who weld a mix of materials and thicknesses on the same machine.
How to use it
- Write the machine, the wire or rod and the gas at the top.
- Weld a test piece on scrap of the same material and thickness, and record the settings and what the weld looked like.
- Change one setting at a time and give each try its own line.
- When a test weld comes out right, copy its settings to the proven settings table overleaf.
What is on the sheet
2 pages, in this order:
Page 1
Printed under the title: The settings tried for each material, thickness and joint, with what the test weld showed. Once a setting is proven it goes in the table overleaf, so it can be dialled straight in next time.
Start from the maker's chart. No settings are printed. Start from the chart in the machine or the wire or rod maker's data, weld a test piece on scrap of the same material and thickness, and change one setting at a time so you can see what each change did.
Write-on lines: Machine make and model · Process · Wire, rod or tungsten · Size · Shielding gas
Test welds — one line per test piece
Also printed: Settings · What the test weld showed
Table, 12 rows: Date · Material · Joint · Volts · Amps · Gas · Stick-out · Polarity · Bead · Fusion · Defects · Verdict
Page 2
Proven settings — copied from a test weld that came out right
Table, 16 rows: Material · Joint · Wire or rod · Volts · Amps · Gas · Stick-out · Polarity · Notes
What to look at on each test piece
- Bead even in width and height along the run
- Edges blend into the plate, no undercut
- Root fused through where the joint needs it
- Little spatter, no pores or craters
- Weld stops and restarts fused together
- Cut, bend or break a test piece when it matters
Questions
Why are there no recommended settings?
Because the right voltage, wire speed and gas flow depend on the machine, the wire, the gas, the joint and the position, and makers publish charts for their own. Start from the chart for yours and let the test piece tell you what to change.
What goes in the Fusion column?
Whether the weld has fused into both edges of the joint and, where the joint needs it, through the root. Look at the back of the joint, and cut, bend or break a test piece when it matters.
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