[en] To systematically study the effect of niobium on the behavior of Type 304 stainless steel, a low-niobium commercial heat was remelted with varying niobium additions - up to 1000 ppM. A standardized weldability test, the Spot Varestraint, was used to compare the propensity of various heats for hot cracking. The fusion and heat-affected zone cracking behavior of the experimental heats was similar to that of a heat of commercial Type 304, and much superior to that of a commercial heat of Type 347 stainless steel. The superior resistance to fusion zone cracking was attributed to the presence of a small amount of delta ferrite in the microstructure of the weld nugget in the experimental materials. The outstanding heat-affected zone cracking behavior was at least partly attributable to backfilling of grain boundary separations in the experimental heats, as well as in the commercial Type 304