Experience with semi-automatic welding helps you find your way in a session, but “semi-automatic” does not identify a particular process. Moving between 135 and 136 requires understanding consumable differences, reading the exercise documentation and checking your actions separately. A useful question for the instructor is: which skills are already consistent, and which need further practice?
The following approach helps you prepare for that conversation and record learning observations. It supports planning instructor-led practice. Machine settings, wire selection and conditions for making a production joint belong to the documentation for the particular work.
What 135 and 136 mean
In the commonly used classification, 135 refers to solid-wire MAG welding and 136 to flux-cored MAG welding. Both use an active shielding gas. The basic distinctions appear in TWI’s process classification.
The wire acts as a consumable electrode and enters the welding area through a feeding system. However, the distinction between solid and flux-cored wire matters for a learning task. Process 136 is not simply another name for 135, and you cannot substitute one consumable for another without checking its suitability.
Flux-cored wire is used in different processes. External gas shielding remains part of 136. “Flux-cored means no gas” is therefore incorrect. Take the exact process number, wire designation and shielding requirements from the documentation rather than infer them from one word on a package.
Skills that may be shared
Understanding the task, organising the workplace, preparing parts and reading a WPS are useful in both directions. A WPS describes the conditions for welding. During a session, finding the document is only a start: you should be able to explain its relationship to the particular joint and equipment.
Checking designations, observing your actions and asking for clarification before an exercise may also be shared habits. This is especially useful for someone with experience: a familiar torch can make the entire task feel familiar. Yet the consumable, position or sequence of operations may be different.
Skill transfer should be checked through the result rather than assumed from years of work. If you previously made only one type of joint, explain that clearly. An instructor needs to know the processes, materials, positions and operations you have actually encountered, alongside your length of experience.
What to discuss before the first exercise
Ask for the exercise’s purpose to be expressed in one checkable sentence. For example: independently finding the necessary information in the documentation and carrying out an agreed learning task followed by a review. This is an editorial example of a goal, not a promise about a particular course.
Before practice, understand which process is specified, which wire is required and whether the prepared joint matches the documentation. Clarify safe workstation organisation and equipment handling separately. If a consumable’s designation does not match the task, do not try to choose a replacement yourself.
Agree in advance which actions the instructor will observe. These might include steady torch control, following the sequence, preparation between stages and noticing deviations. The exercise determines the particular set. Assessing everything at once is harder than addressing one identified gap.
Why the processes need separate practice
Practice should connect your actions with the particular task. When a consumable changes, do not automatically transfer every familiar technique and setting. Check wire handling, weld runs and cleaning requirements against the applicable documentation and manufacturer’s recommendations.
During the exercise, notice when difficulty appears. It may relate to an awkward position, a restricted view, misunderstanding the sequence or trying to correct several actions simultaneously. Your own diagnosis that “the machine is wrong” does not replace a joint review.
Afterwards, separate what you observed from your explanation of the cause. “I stopped here” is an observation. “The wire is definitely the cause” is a hypothesis that still needs checking. This distinction helps the instructor choose the next exercise without randomly changing conditions.
A comparison card for two learning tasks
The following worksheet is a fictional example of organising feedback. It does not specify a welding procedure or replace the centre’s assessment records.
| What to record | Exercise using 135 | Exercise using 136 |
|---|---|---|
| Goal | What exactly was checked | What exactly was checked |
| Documentation | Task designation and WPS | Task designation and WPS |
| Preparation | What was checked before starting | What was checked before starting |
| Actions | Where a prompt was needed | Where a prompt was needed |
| Result | Observation and assessment criterion | Observation and assessment criterion |
| Next attempt | One agreed learning goal | One agreed learning goal |
Suppose Sergei prepares parts confidently for a familiar 135 task, but loses the action sequence after stopping in a new exercise using 136. This is a hypothetical situation, not a customer case. “I need to learn more 136” is too broad. “Review restarting the task and check the sequence with the instructor” defines the next step more precisely.
Comparison is useful when the conditions of each task are known. Two different test pieces are not a pure competition between processes. The difference in results may relate to the joint, position, preparation or previous experience rather than only the process number.
Discussing the result beyond appearance
Weld appearance provides information but does not confirm every property of a joint. In a session, understand the applicable criteria and checking method. If an instructor points out a nonconformity, ask them to connect it with a specific observation and the exercise’s purpose.
Useful feedback answers three questions: what worked, where was the deviation, and what should the next attempt check? It does not always come down to changing settings. Sometimes the next step is better joint preparation, understanding a document or restoring the action sequence.
An enquiry could say: “I have used 135 for these types of joints. My next task involves 136. I want to compare my existing skills with the task requirements and understand the practice I need.” Add known materials, positions and your preferred teaching language. Clarify assessment conditions and documents separately.
Frequently asked questions
Can process 136 be used without shielding gas?
136 identifies a process with external active gas shielding. Do not apply a description of self-shielded flux-cored wire to it. Check the process number and consumable in the documentation for the particular work.
Will the same settings suit 135 and 136?
You cannot assume that. Conditions depend on the task, equipment and materials. During training, review settings with an instructor using the documentation; a universal internet table does not replace that check.
Does an attractive weld prove readiness for work?
Appearance is only part of assessment. Established criteria and the appropriate checking method are needed. Success in a learning exercise also does not automatically extend the scope of a welder qualification document.
What should I choose after a break from welding?
Describe your previous operations, the length of the break and the future task. Ask how your current skills compare with the programme outcomes. Years of experience alone cannot determine the practice needed or justify promising readiness for a test.