CWI Part B practice test: replicas, tool kit and a timed plan

Want to know where you stand before you read on? Take the free 10-question check. It's scored by domain, takes no signup, and shows which Part B domains to fix first. When you're ready for the full prep, the Part B course gives you specification drills for finding the right clause, table or annex in the Book of Specifications fast, a lesson for every exam subject, worked calculations, two full-length timed practice exams, and a worked explanation with every answer.

If you're still mapping out the whole route, start with the Fillet Gauge overview. Wondering where the exam happens? See CWI testing centers and locations for Part B sites and Prometric centers.

Part B at a glance

46 questions in 120 minutes is about 2.6 minutes each: time to measure carefully, but not to measure everything twice.

Where the points are

AWS publishes five domains with a minimum share of questions for each. The Part B information guide and AWS B5.1:2025 give the same weights under slightly different names, so both are shown.

*Each minimum applied to 46 questions and rounded up. AWS doesn't publish per-domain counts for a given form. The minimums total 86%, so about six questions can come from any domain.

Inspecting welds and checking qualification documents carry about three-fifths of the exam, so fix those first. For the inspection side, the weld discontinuities guide shows each type in an original drawing with how to recognize and measure it.

What AWS hands you on the day

Every candidate gets the same four sets of materials:

Looking for "Part B replicas"? The exam replica set is confidential, so nobody can sell you the replicas you'll be graded on. What you can do is learn the tools on real welds or on practice replicas from a course. AWS's own Part B seminar trains on plastic weld replicas (pipe, T-joint, bend test and groove plate) with a visual inspection tool kit. For a home routine built around that, read CWI Part B replicas and how to practice. To tick off every tool in the kit, print the Part B tool kit checklist.

The Book of Specifications

The English edition for US and Canada exams is a free PDF from AWS, dated 2017. A metric English edition is for English exams outside the US and Canada, and other language editions are linked from the AWS CWI page. Download it straight from AWS so you have the current file.

You get a copy at the exam, so the point of downloading it is to know it cold beforehand. Here's how it's laid out:

• Section 1.0: general requirements, which apply to all three applications.
• Sections 2.0, 3.0 and 4.0: workmanship and visual acceptance criteria for three applications: structural steel, pipeline and pressure piping. Before using any criterion, check which application the question puts you in.
• Section 5.0: procedure qualification (WPS requirements, variables, tests, acceptance and documentation).
• Section 6.0: performance (welder) qualification, in the same order.
• Annexes I to III: A-number, F-number, base metal specification and M-number tables.
• Annex IV: bend specimen preparation.
• Annexes V to X: formulas and conversions, pipe schedules, blank WPS, PQR and WQTR forms, and industry terms.

The book's foreword warns that it only looks like a real code, so answer from what it says, not from your memory of D1.1 or another code. That's the trap candidates warn each other about. The foreword also says the replicas are plastic, so seams, pinholes and color differences from molding are not part of the answer. You're expected to know how to use and zero every instrument in the kit, and to do your calculations in the exam booklet, not in the Book of Specifications.

A plan for the 120 minutes

This pacing gives the first pass about 2 minutes per question (90 minutes for 46), faster than the 2.6-minute average, so about 25 minutes remain for marked questions and the answer sheet check. Tune it after a timed practice run.

Three habits make the plan work:

1. Measure once, then decide. Write the reading and units next to the question before you open the book. Re-measuring later costs more time than the lookup.
2. Find the criterion before judging. Decide which application (structural, pipeline or pressure piping) and which section applies, then compare. Checking a document means comparing the exhibit with Section 5.0 or 6.0 and the annex tables, line by line.
3. Protect the last 10 minutes. There are no scheduled breaks once the exam starts, and no extra time for an unscheduled one.

How to practice before exam day

• Tools: for each item on the kit list, practice the reading it gives, how to zero it and its units, on real welds or practice replicas. The fillet weld calculator checks your leg and throat arithmetic. The weld gauge reading trainer drills fillet gauge and V-WAC readings on generated cases.
• Documents: fill in the book's blank WPS, PQR and WQTR forms (Annexes VII to IX) with invented data, then check them against Sections 5.0 and 6.0 and the annex tables. Change one variable at a time and decide whether requalification follows.
• Drawings: the Utilization of Specifications and Drawings domain expects you to read welding symbols; the guide to reading welding symbols on drawings works through arrow side, other side, tail and dimensions with invented examples, and the welding symbols chart shows every mark and where each number sits on one printable page.
• Navigation: time yourself finding a named section, table or annex from a cold start. Know which section holds a topic before you open the book.
• Timed runs: do at least one full 120-minute session at a table, in the same block order as the plan above.

Practice like Part B

Three original items in the Part B style. Work each one the way you would at the table: find the rule, take the reading, then decide.

1. Book of Specifications lookup. An exhibit PQR lists one base metal, and the WPS you're checking is written for a different base metal. You need to know whether the WPS is still covered by that PQR. Where do you look first?

• A. The workmanship criteria in Sections 2.0 to 4.0
• B. The procedure qualification section (5.0) and the base metal tables in the annexes
• C. The performance qualification section (6.0) only
• D. The bend specimen annex

Answer: B. Whether a change in base metal needs requalification is a procedure qualification question, so you read the variables in Section 5.0 and group the metals with the annex tables. Sections 2.0 to 4.0 judge finished welds, Section 6.0 covers welders, and the bend annex only prepares specimens.

2. Fillet gauge reading. On a T-joint replica, the 5/16 in. blade of a fillet gauge sits flush against both plates at the toes, and the 3/8 in. blade shows a gap. The drawing calls for a 5/16 in. minimum leg. What is the call on leg size?

• A. Undersize, because the 3/8 in. blade doesn't fit
• B. Meets the minimum, because the leg is at least 5/16 in. and less than 3/8 in.
• C. Oversize, because it's over 5/16 in.
• D. Can't tell without measuring throat

Answer: B. The blade that fits tells you the leg is at least 5/16 in., and the blade that doesn't fit tells you it's under 3/8 in. A 5/16 in. minimum is met, and nothing says the weld is oversize.

3. Visual discontinuity call. On a groove weld replica, a 1.5 in. stretch of the weld face sits below the surface of the adjacent plate. The toes are smooth and the plate edge isn't melted away. What is this?

• A. Undercut
• B. Overlap
• C. Underfill
• D. Porosity

Answer: C. Underfill is a face that sits below the adjacent plate surface. Undercut is a groove melted into the base metal at the toe, overlap is weld metal rolled onto plate it didn't fuse to, and porosity shows as gas holes. Name the discontinuity first, then compare its size to the acceptance criteria for the application the question gives you. To drill the look-alike pairs on drawings, run the weld discontinuities quiz.

Want more reps like these, scored by domain? Take the free 10-question check for Part B.

Booking and exam day

• Where and when: AWS runs Part B itself at locations where its seminars are held, and in the US applications close six weeks before the Part B date. The CWI exam dates tool lists upcoming sessions by city.
• After Part B: you book Parts A and C at Prometric once your Part B confirmation letter arrives, because it carries your eligibility codes. The Part A guide walks through that Prometric exam day step by step.
• Start times: AWS runs Part B in group sessions, and your confirmation letter shows your group, date and time. Doors close at the end of your check-in window and late arrivals can't join another group, so arrive 30 to 45 minutes early.
• Bring: a valid government-issued ID, your printed AWS confirmation letter, No. 2 pencils and an approved calculator (four-function, construction or non-programmable scientific). Calculators are inspected at check-in.
• Leave behind: scratch pads and sticky notes, phones, recording devices, non-medical wearables, bulky or hooded jackets, hats and sunglasses (other than religious apparel), food and drink. Bags and other personal items stay out of the room.
• Confidentiality: you sign a Candidate Attestation Agreement before you start. Sharing real Part B questions breaks it, which is why every practice question here is original.

If Part B doesn't go your way, the retest guide covers attempt limits and paperwork, and the cost guide lists the fees.

Take the free 10-question check for Part B

Take the free 10-question check for Part B. It's scored by domain, takes no signup, and shows which Part B domains to fix first. The Part B course then gives you specification drills, two full-length timed practice exams and a worked explanation with every answer.

FAQ

How many questions are on CWI Part B?

Part B has 46 questions in a maximum of 120 minutes, about 2.6 minutes each, and the passing score is 72%.

Is CWI Part B open book?

Yes. The reference is the Part B Examination Book of Specifications, which AWS hands you on the day and also offers as a free PDF, so learn its layout before the exam.

Can you buy the CWI Part B replicas?

No. The exam replica set is confidential, so nobody can sell you the replicas you'll be graded on. Learn the tools on real welds or on practice replicas from a course.

What do you bring to CWI Part B?

A valid government-issued ID, your printed AWS confirmation letter, No. 2 pencils and a four-function, construction or non-programmable scientific calculator. AWS supplies the Book of Specifications, the exhibits booklet, the replica set and the inspection tool kit.

Do you take CWI Part B first?

Yes. Part B comes before Parts A and C, and its confirmation letter carries the eligibility codes you use to book Parts A and C at Prometric.

Sources

Show the list

• CWI Part B Practical Examination Information, American Welding Society, Rev. 03.01.2024. Retrieved 20 Oct 2026.
• CWI Examination User Guide, American Welding Society, revision 09.04.2026. Retrieved 20 Oct 2026.
• AWS B5.1:2025, Specification for the Qualification of Welding Inspectors, American Welding Society, Table 8.1. Retrieved 20 Oct 2026.
• Certified Welding Inspector program page and CWI Part B seminar, American Welding Society. Retrieved 20 Oct 2026.