Welding reference tables
Ready-made tables of parameters, markings and equivalents — made to print and pin up in the shop.
Tables that get printed and pinned up rather than read once. Each has a print button that strips the navigation and leaves the table and the address of the page.
Current versus electrode diameter is the one that ends up next to the machine. Steel grade equivalents is for the moment the material arrives with a certificate in one system and the drawing was made in another. Tungsten colour codes answers the question every TIG welder asks in front of an unlabelled tube of electrodes.
The section holds more than these three: MIG/MAG, TIG and stick settings charts, the ISO 4063 process numbers, electrode and wire designations, the ISO 6520-1 imperfection numbers, and weight charts for European sections, sheet gauges and American shapes (W beams, channels, HSS, pipe).
Where a table gives a range and you need a number for your case, there is a calculator that applies the corrections — the tables link to them.
- Steel grade equivalents ASTM A569 equivalent: A1011 CS, EN DD11 (1.0332). S355J2 ≈ A572 Gr. 50, 1.4301 = AISI 304. EN, AISI/ASTM, GOST and PN side by side, with substitution rules.
- Current vs electrode diameter Flat position: 2.5 mm — 70–100 A, 3.2 mm — 90–140 A, 4 mm — 130–190 A. Amps for 1.6 to 6 mm electrodes by plate thickness, position and coating; printable.
- MIG/MAG settings chart 5–6 mm plate, MAG: 1.0–1.2 mm wire, 160–220 A, 22–25 V. MIG chart from 0.8 to 12 mm: wire, amps, volts, wire feed speed and gas, plus thin sheet and box section.
- TIG amperage chart 3 mm steel: 90–130 A DC−, 2.0–2.4 mm tungsten, 7–9 l/min argon. TIG chart 0.5–8 mm for steel and stainless, AC amps by tungsten size for aluminium, cup sizes.
- Tungsten electrode colour codes Green WP for aluminium on AC, blue WL-20 and grey WC-20 for steel and stainless, red WT-20 thoriated. Current by diameter: 1.6 mm carries 70–150 A DC−.
- Welding process numbers 135 = MAG with solid wire, 136 = flux-cored, 141 = TIG, 111 = MMA: the wire, gas and use behind each number, how 135, 136 and 138 differ, and the full ISO 4063 table.
- Electrode and wire designations E7018: 490 MPa, all positions, basic low-hydrogen covering. E 42 3 B 32 H5: 420 MPa yield, 47 J at −30 °C. Every digit decoded, with EN ISO 2560 and AWS A5.1 tables.
- Weld imperfection numbers 401 is lack of fusion, 5011 continuous undercut, 2011 an isolated pore: the full ISO 6520-1 table of weld imperfection numbers in six groups, and how to read any number.
- Steel section weights IPE 200 — 22.4 kg/m, HEB 200 — 61.3 kg/m, UPN 100 — 10.6 kg/m. Weight per meter and per 6 m and 12 m bar for every IPE, HEA, HEB, UPN, UPE and angle.
- Sheet metal gauge chart Gauge to mm and inches for steel, galvanized, stainless and aluminium sheet, 3 to 30 gauge: 16 gauge steel is 0.0598 in (1.52 mm), 16 gauge aluminium only 1.29 mm.
- Stick welding amperage chart Amps for E6010, E6011, E6013, E7014, E7018 and E7024 stick electrodes, 3/32 to 1/4 in, from Lincoln, ESAB and Hobart data sheets: a 1/8 in 7018 runs at 90–160 A.
- W beam weight chart All 289 W shapes plus S, HP and M beams: weight per foot and per metre, depth, flange width, web and flange thickness. W8×31 is 31 lb/ft (46.1 kg/m).
- C channel and angle weight chart American Standard C and MC channels and steel angles with weight per foot and per metre: C8×11.5 is 11.5 lb/ft (17.1 kg/m), a 2×2×1/4 angle is 3.19 lb/ft.
- HSS weight chart All 525 square and rectangular HSS sizes with weight per foot and per metre and nominal wall: HSS 4×4×1/4 weighs 12.21 lb/ft (18.2 kg/m), 6×6×3/8 weighs 27.48 lb/ft.
- Steel pipe weight chart Standard, XS and XXS steel pipe from 1/2 to 26 in and round HSS with weight per foot and per metre, OD and wall: 4 in schedule 40 pipe weighs 10.8 lb/ft (16.1 kg/m).
- S235–S460 steel properties S355 up to 16 mm: yield 355 MPa, tensile 470–630; S235: 235 MPa and 360–510. EN 10025-2 tables by thickness, JR–K2 impact, CEV limits and stainless 1.4301, 1.4404.
- Electrode drying Low-hydrogen rods are rebaked at 300–400 °C for 1–2 h (OK 48.00: 350 °C, 2 h; Lincoln E7018: 340–400 °C, 1 h), at most 3 times. Rutile rarely, cellulosic never.
- Pipe schedule chart 2″ Sch 40 pipe: OD 60.3 mm, wall 3.91 mm, 5.44 kg/m. NPS 1/8–24 (DN 6–600) with Sch 10, 40, 80, 160, XXS and STD/XS to ASME B36.10M, plus 5S–80S stainless.
- Metal density chart Steel 7850 kg/m³ (7.85 g/cm³, 0.284 lb/in³), stainless 304 7900, 316 8000, aluminium 2700, copper 8960, brass 8500. Grades, kN/m³ and 1 mm sheet weight.
- 18G2A steel 18G2A (PN-86/H-84018) is closest to S355J2, 1.0577. Composition and Rm from mill cards, CEV max 0.48, ISO/TR 15608 group 1.2, preheat from CET, electrodes and wire.
- 0H18N9 stainless steel 0H18N9 (PN-71/H-86020) is closest to 1.4301, X5CrNi18-10, AISI 304. Composition of both, Rp0.2 and Rm to EN 10088-2, group 8.1, 308L filler, no preheat.
- 16HG steel 16HG is a Polish case-hardening steel, today 16MnCr5 (1.7131) to EN 10084 and ISO 683-3. Composition, CE and CET from its limits, preheat, low-hydrogen filler.
- 12Kh18N10T stainless steel GOST 12Х18Н10Т (12Kh18N10T) is closest to 1.4541, X6CrNiTi18-10 and AISI 321. Composition to GOST and EN, sheet properties, group 8.1, 347 filler, how to weld.
- ASTM A1011 CS and A569 A569 was withdrawn in 2000 and replaced by A1011; commercial steel is now A1011 CS Type B, near EN DD11. Chemistry limits, CE, why no preheat, wire and rods.
- 10CrMo9-10 steel 10CrMo9-10 (1.7380, ASTM P22): composition to EN 10216-2, preheat above 10 mm, interpass range, E CrMo2 B electrode and post-weld heat treatment from datasheets.
Frequently asked questions
Can I print these tables?
Yes — each has a print button, and the print stylesheet drops the navigation and the sidebar so what comes out is the table and the address of the page. They are meant for the workshop wall.
Is an equivalent grade a safe substitute?
Not on the welder's decision. Equivalence tables match strength, not composition, and welding depends on composition. Two grades with the same yield strength can need different preheat. Substitution is a designer's call, made with the certificate of the actual batch.