Gear machinist vs lead machinist

The differences between gear machinists and lead machinists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a gear machinist and a lead machinist. Additionally, a lead machinist has an average salary of $51,691, which is higher than the $42,460 average annual salary of a gear machinist.

The top three skills for a gear machinist include grinding machines, calipers and aerospace. The most important skills for a lead machinist are cnc lathes, grinders, and calipers.

Gear machinist vs lead machinist overview

	Gear Machinist	Lead Machinist
Yearly salary	$42,460	$51,691
Hourly rate	$20.41	$24.85
Growth rate	1%	1%
Number of jobs	9,112	10,892
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 50%	High School Diploma, 34%
Average age	48	48
Years of experience	4	4

Gear machinist vs lead machinist salary

Gear machinists and lead machinists have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Gear Machinist	Lead Machinist
Average salary	$42,460	$51,691
Salary range	Between $31,000 And $56,000	Between $39,000 And $68,000
Highest paying City	-	-
Highest paying state	-	-
Best paying company	-	-
Best paying industry	-	-

Differences between gear machinist and lead machinist education

There are a few differences between a gear machinist and a lead machinist in terms of educational background:

	Gear Machinist	Lead Machinist
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 50%	High School Diploma, 34%
Most common major	Business	Precision Metal Working
Most common college	-	-

Gear machinist vs lead machinist demographics

Here are the differences between gear machinists' and lead machinists' demographics:

	Gear Machinist	Lead Machinist
Average age	48	48
Gender ratio	Male, 97.8% Female, 2.2%	Male, 95.6% Female, 4.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 3.1% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 9.9% Asian, 5.6% White, 77.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%	Black or African American, 4.2% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.7% Asian, 6.5% White, 70.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	3%	3%

Differences between gear machinist and lead machinist duties and responsibilities

Gear machinist example responsibilities.

Work closely with management and engineering staff to ensure efficient and safe methods are utilized in producing high quality aerospace components.
Fabricate fixturing used in Kovar ceramic brazing operation.

Lead machinist example responsibilities.

Manage and perform programming of CNC mills, lathes and EDM equipment, instrumentation, data acquisition and control systems.
Experience with cutting different materials (aluminum, titanium, inconel, mild and stainless steels).
Program, edit, and setup of CNC lathe with Fanuc control.
Work machines such as; Haas CNC vertical and horizontal mills and lathes.
Perform gluing, soldering, brazing and gas, arc, welding operations.
Lead setup/ supervisor for a cell of two Haas lathes and two Haas mills.

Gear machinist vs lead machinist skills

Common gear machinist skills

Grinding Machines, 42%
Calipers, 22%
Aerospace, 18%
Grinders, 9%
CMM, 4%
Drill Press, 2%

Common lead machinist skills

CNC Lathes, 9%
Grinders, 8%
Calipers, 8%
Machine Tools, 6%
Aluminum, 6%
Troubleshoot, 5%