A welding technique in which a series of tack welds are made at intervals a few inches apart. The operator welds the first interval, skips to the fourth, then to the seventh, continuing this sequence until the end of the joint is reached. Then the welder goes back to the second, fifth, eighth, and so on. This method allows the welding to be done on a comparatively cool area of the workpiece, and the distortion caused by expansion and contraction is greatly reduced. See INTERMITTENT WELD.