Welding is the skill of joining metal, and it's used to build everything from bridges to bikes. You will learn the safety rules, how welding works, and try some practice welds yourself. It's hands-on work with real tools, always done with a qualified instructor.
Why it's worth it
Bridges, ships, skyscrapers, race cars, and farm equipment all hold together because someone welded them. Welding puts a real trade skill in your hands, with full safety gear and a qualified instructor beside you. You'll learn how heat and metal work together and finish practice welds you can be proud of. Skilled welders are in demand in construction, manufacturing, shipbuilding, and art, and many train in high school or community college programs.
Start this week
- Look around your home, school, or a playground for welded joints, like on bike frames, railings, or trailer hitches, and notice what they look like.
- Ask your Scoutmaster for the name of a Welding counselor, and send them a short message with a parent copied to set up a first meeting.
- Ask your counselor where you'll do hands-on work, such as a high school shop, community college, or trade school.
- Learn the basic safety gear by name: welding helmet, safety glasses, gloves, jacket, and leather boots.
Stay safe
- Weld only with a qualified instructor present and full protective gear, including a proper welding helmet; never look at an arc without the right lens.
- Work in a ventilated area away from anything flammable, and treat all metal as hot until your instructor says it's cool.
Requirements · 7
Every official requirement and part, numbered to match Scouting America, in plain language. Sign off against the official wording (opens in a new tab).
- Requirement 1
Hazards and first aid
Tips for this section: Learn the hazards, like burns, sparks, and bright light, and how you'd treat a burn.
Example for this section: Explain the main hazards and their first aid: burns from hot metal or sparks (cool the burn with water and get help), eye injury from arc light (cover the eyes and see a doctor), and fumes (get to fresh air).
- Requirement 1a
Explain to your counselor the hazards you're most likely to face while welding and how to anticipate, help prevent, and reduce them
- Requirement 1b
Show you know first aid for and prevention of welding injuries and illnesses, including burns, eye injuries, electrical shock, dizziness, fume inhalation, skin irritation, and exposure to hazardous chemicals such as welding gases and filler metals
- Requirement 2
Safety gear and equipment care
Tips for this section: Try on the protective gear with an instructor and learn how gas and equipment are stored safely.
Example for this section: Put on the full gear with your instructor and explain each piece: the helmet's dark lens, flame-resistant clothing with no frayed edges, leather gloves, and boots. Then describe how gas cylinders are chained upright and stored away from heat.
- Requirement 2a
With your counselor, discuss general welding safety precautions and safety data sheets (SDS), and explain why SDS matter
- Requirement 2b
Describe the safety gear and clothing required for welding, then show up properly dressed in protective equipment, clothing, and footwear
- Requirement 2c
Explain and show how to properly look after and store welding tools, equipment, and protective clothing and footwear
- Requirement 3
Explain what welding, electrode, slag, and oxidation mean. Then describe how welding works: how heat is produced, what filler metal (if any) is added, and what shields the molten metal from the air
Tip: Make flash cards of welding terms and ask your instructor to explain how the process works.
- Requirement 4
Name the mechanical and thermal methods of cutting metal. Describe how to use one of them, plus one advantage and one limitation
Tip: Ask an instructor to show you a few ways to cut metal and explain one in detail.
- Requirement 5
Welding processes and setup
Tips for this section: Watch two welding processes, then set one up yourself with your instructor guiding, and have your counselor check your work area.
Example for this section: Compare two processes, like shielded metal arc (stick) welding and gas metal arc (MIG) welding: the equipment each needs, one advantage, and one limitation. Then set one up yourself, step by step, and have your counselor inspect your welding area.
- Requirement 5a
Pick two welding processes, list the equipment components each needs, and discuss one advantage and one limitation of each
- Requirement 5b
Choose one process and set it up, including the work clamps, gas regulators, filler materials, cables, and machine settings, then have your counselor inspect and approve your welding area
- Requirement 6
Practice welds (after finishing 1-5, using your 5b setup)
Tips for this section: Practice welds only with a qualified instructor and full protective gear. Take your time.
Example for this section: Under your instructor's supervision, sketch your initial on a plate and weld a bead along it, cover a small plate with side-by-side beads, then tack and weld a butt joint, a T joint, and a lap joint. Look at each weld afterward and talk about what to improve.
- Requirement 6a
Use a metal scribe or soapstone to sketch your initial on a metal plate, then weld a bead following it
- Requirement 6b
Cover a small plate (about 3 x 3 x 1/4 inches) with weld beads laid side by side
- Requirement 6c
Tack-weld two plates into a square-groove butt joint
- Requirement 6d
Weld both sides of the joint from 6c
- Requirement 6e
Tack two plates into a T joint and get your counselor's inspection, then fillet weld the T joint on both sides
- Requirement 6f
Tack two plates into a lap joint and get your counselor's inspection, then fillet weld the lap joint on both sides
- Requirement 7
Careers and the profession
Tips for this section: Look up welding careers and the American Welding Society to see what jobs and training are out there.
- Requirement 7a
Learn about three welding careers. Pick one, find out the education, training, and experience it needs, and discuss with your counselor why it might interest you
- Requirement 7b
Discuss what the American Welding Society does for the welding profession
Places to visit
Ask an adult to set it up, and go with your family, den, patrol, or crew.
A high school, community college, or trade school welding shop
Instructors can demonstrate several processes and let you practice safely with proper gear.
How: Have your counselor or leader contact the program and ask about a demonstration or hands-on session for your troop.
A fabrication shop or manufacturing plant
You'll see welders building real products and how quality is checked.
How: Have a leader call the shop and ask about a group tour, and confirm any age limits and safety rules ahead of time.
Where it can lead
- Welder or fabricatorBuilds and repairs metal structures and products; training often starts in high school or a trade program.
- Pipefitter or ironworkerSkilled construction trades that weld pipelines and building frames, often through apprenticeships.
- Welding inspectorChecks welds for quality and safety on bridges, buildings, and pipelines.
- Welding engineerDesigns welding processes and materials; usually a college degree.
- Underwater welderCombines commercial diving and welding to repair ships, docks, and platforms.
Ask yourself
- How did it feel to strike your first arc or run your first bead?
- What was the hardest part of making a steady, even weld?
- How did wearing all the safety gear change how you worked?
- Where will you notice welding now that you didn't see before?
- Could you see yourself working in a trade like this, and what would you want to learn next?
Good questions to ask a welding instructor or professional welder
- What kinds of projects have you welded, and which one are you proudest of?
- What makes the difference between a good weld and a bad one?
- What safety habits do you never skip, even on a quick job?
- How did you learn the trade, and how long did it take?
- What kinds of welding jobs are hardest to fill right now?
Helpful reads
- Earning a merit badge, step by step, From picking a badge to getting the final signature: how to find a counselor, set up meetings safely, work the requirements, and keep your progress., Youth · Families · 6 min read
- Contacting counselors, experts, and organizations, Email and phone scripts, who to ask for, how to follow up, and how to say thanks, with a parent copied every time., Youth · Families · 7 min read
- Choosing your next merit badge, How to pick a badge you'll actually finish: start with what you care about, balance Eagle-required and just-for-fun badges, and make the most of camp., Youth · Families · 6 min read
For leaders & parents
- Partner with a high school, trade school, or community college welding program for hands-on sessions.
- Make sure a qualified welding instructor supervises all practice.
People & places that can help
- Merit badge counselor — Talk with them early; they can explain what's expected.
- American Welding Society (opens in a new tab) — Information about welding careers and training.
- Local trade school or community college — Welding programs may host scouts.
- Careers in Welding (opens in a new tab) — The American Welding Society's guide to welding jobs and training.
- OSHA: Welding, Cutting, and Brazing (opens in a new tab) — Workplace safety rules and hazards for welders.
- SkillsUSA (opens in a new tab) — A student organization with welding and trade competitions.
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Tips, examples, and questions are ideas from experienced leaders, not extra requirements. Your unit leader or counselor decides when a requirement is complete.