Core maker vs foundry molder

The differences between core makers and foundry molders can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a core maker has an average salary of $49,119, which is higher than the $48,086 average annual salary of a foundry molder.

The top three skills for a core maker include hand tools, sand molds and aluminum castings. The most important skills for a foundry molder are aluminum, , and .

Core maker vs foundry molder overview

	Core Maker	Foundry Molder
Yearly salary	$49,119	$48,086
Hourly rate	$23.61	$23.12
Growth rate	-5%	-5%
Number of jobs	7,168	639
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 49%	High School Diploma, 75%
Average age	45	45
Years of experience	-	-

Core maker vs foundry molder salary

Core makers and foundry molders have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Core Maker	Foundry Molder
Average salary	$49,119	$48,086
Salary range	Between $28,000 And $83,000	Between $29,000 And $78,000
Highest paying City	-	-
Highest paying state	-	-
Best paying company	-	-
Best paying industry	-	-

Differences between core maker and foundry molder education

There are a few differences between a core maker and a foundry molder in terms of educational background:

	Core Maker	Foundry Molder
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 49%	High School Diploma, 75%
Most common major	General Studies	General Studies
Most common college	-	-

Core maker vs foundry molder demographics

Here are the differences between core makers' and foundry molders' demographics:

	Core Maker	Foundry Molder
Average age	45	45
Gender ratio	Male, 81.8% Female, 18.2%	Male, 95.5% Female, 4.5%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 8.4% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 13.6% Asian, 6.9% White, 65.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%	Black or African American, 10.6% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 18.4% Asian, 6.7% White, 59.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	3%	3%

Differences between core maker and foundry molder duties and responsibilities

Core maker example responsibilities.

Program machine to its specific instructions written on process sheets for the jobs being run.
Certify power truck operator responsible for moving racks of finish cores throughout the foundry.
Rotate sweep boards around spindles in order to make symmetrical molds for convex impressions.
Set up machine to run required job, read instruction, store finish cores in box
Set cores into a Disa mechanical machine for preparation of auto parts to be mold and then assemble.
Fabricate and assemble aerospace test vehicles, support flight tests, conventional machining, use hand and power tools.

Foundry molder example responsibilities.

experience achieving A1 finishes in various soft and harden tool steels.
Polish casting experience in steel foundry environment.
Experience in small brass, aluminum and copper molds, and manifold and valve body sand molds.

Core maker vs foundry molder skills

Common core maker skills

Hand Tools, 38%
Sand Molds, 11%
Aluminum Castings, 9%
Core Boxes, 6%
Sift, 6%
Fork Trucks, 5%

Common foundry molder skills

Aluminum, 100%

Updated January 8, 2025

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