How To Become A Tool Grinder: What It Is and Career Path

What is a tool grinder and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

2 min read

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a tool grinder. For example, did you know that they make an average of $19.7 an hour? That's $40,984 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 1% and produce 3,900 job opportunities across the U.S.

ScoreTool GrinderUS Average

Salary

3.2

Avg. Salary $40,984

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

5.6

Growth rate 1%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

7.2

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.80%

Asian 6.64%

Black or African American 8.84%

Hispanic or Latino 13.66%

Unknown 4.16%

White 65.91%

Gender

female 5.56%

male 94.44%

Age - 46

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 46

Stress level

5.6

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level

7.7

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

4.7

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a tool grinder

Explore tool grinder education requirements

Most common tool grinder degrees

High School Diploma

45.3 %

Associate

31.4 %

Bachelor's

9.3 %

Start to develop specific tool grinder skills

Skills	Percentages
Grinders	18.17%
Hand Tools	10.13%
Micrometers	9.64%
Grinding Machines	9.02%
CNC Machines	6.97%

Complete relevant tool grinder training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New tool grinders learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a tool grinder based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real tool grinder resumes.

Research tool grinder duties and responsibilities

Sharpen metalworking tooling, manufacture job specific form tooling operating CNC and conventional equipment.
Install bearings and rebuild precision turning spindles.
Mount and position tools in machine checks, spindles, or other tool holding devices.
Train in Hazmat cleanup and MSDS.

Prepare your tool grinder resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your tool grinder resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a tool grinder resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable tool grinder resume templates

Build a professional tool grinder resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your tool grinder resume.