Wear-resistant coatings were prepared on the surface of the Q235 low-carbon steel plate by HVAS with the carbonitride alloying self-shielded flux-cored wire. Detection and analysis on the microstructure and properties of the coatings were carried out by using scanning electron microscope, microhardness tester and wear tester. The forming, the wear resistance and its mechanism of the coatings were studied. The results show that the coatings have good forming, homogeneous microstructure and compact structure. The coatings have good hardness, the average microhardness value reaches 520 HV(0.1), and the highest value is up to about 560 HV(0.1). As a result, the coatings have good abrasive wear performance and adhesion strength. (C) 2011 Elsevier B. V. All rights reserved.