A method and coating material are provided for improving the wear and abrasion resistance of a composite nickel-base hard facing alloy applied to metal substrates comprising the system Ni-Cr-Si-B having dispersed therein particles comprising tungsten carbide, the improvement residing in controlling the average particle size of tungsten carbide to below 10 microns, e.g. 0.1 to 10 microns, preferably an average size ranging from about 2 to 8 microns (such as 2 to 6 microns), at an average interparticle spacing of less than 15 microns, and preferably less than 10 microns, e.g. up to 5 microns, the hard facing coating produced being further characterized in that the coating exhibits metallographically a substantially uniform structure at the surface thereof with respect to said tungsten carbide particles.