Careers / Tool Grinders, Filers, and Sharpeners
Tool Grinders, Filers, and Sharpeners — Career Decision Dashboard
United States
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Report generated from official BLS OEWS and O*NET data — United States.
Median annual wage
$50,060
United States, 2025
Employment
5,600
United States, 2025
Typical education
Not recorded
Job Zone 2
Skills identified
35
10 related careers
Career overview
Perform precision smoothing, sharpening, polishing, or grinding of metal objects.
- O*NET code
- 51-4194.00
- Job zone
- 2
- Experience required
- Over 6 months, up to and including 1 year
Typical tasks
- Monitor machine operations to determine whether adjustments are necessary, stopping machines when problems occur.
- Select and mount grinding wheels on machines, according to specifications, using hand tools and applying knowledge of abrasives and grinding procedures.
- Set up and operate grinding or polishing machines to grind metal workpieces, such as dies, parts, and tools.
- Inspect, feel, and measure workpieces to ensure that surfaces and dimensions meet specifications.
- Perform basic maintenance, such as cleaning and lubricating machine parts.
- Remove finished workpieces from machines and place them in boxes or on racks, setting aside pieces that are defective.
- Study blueprints or layouts of metal workpieces to determine grinding procedures, and to plan machine setups and operational sequences.
- Dress grinding wheels, according to specifications.
Choose a location
Salary analysis — United States
10th percentile
$35,350
25th percentile
$40,800
75th percentile
$62,150
90th percentile
$77,170
Most important skills
- Operation and Control3.9
- Operations Monitoring3.6
- Monitoring3.1
- Equipment Maintenance3.1
- Troubleshooting3.1
- Repairing3.1
- Quality Control Analysis3.0
- Critical Thinking3.0
- Equipment Selection3.0
- Speaking2.9
- Active Listening2.9
- Time Management2.9
What skills do you need?
Select the skills you already have
Skills listed are those O*NET rates at importance 3.0 or above for this occupation. Set your own level on the same 0–7 O*NET scale.
Skill coverage
0%
0 of 9 identified skills
Matched
0
Missing
9
Your selected skills cover approximately 0% of the skills identified for this occupation in O*NET. This is a coverage measure of listed skills only — it is not a qualification, hiring or interview outcome.
Skills to develop
| Skill | Importance | Required level | Your level | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Operation and Control | 3.9 | 3.8 | Not selected | 3.8 |
| Operations Monitoring | 3.6 | 3.6 | Not selected | 3.6 |
| Equipment Maintenance | 3.1 | 3.3 | Not selected | 3.3 |
| Troubleshooting | 3.1 | 3.1 | Not selected | 3.1 |
| Repairing | 3.1 | 3.1 | Not selected | 3.1 |
| Monitoring | 3.1 | 2.9 | Not selected | 2.9 |
| Quality Control Analysis | 3.0 | 2.9 | Not selected | 2.9 |
| Critical Thinking | 3.0 | 2.8 | Not selected | 2.8 |
| Equipment Selection | 3.0 | 2.6 | Not selected | 2.6 |
Ordered by required level gap multiplied by O*NET importance. No prediction or recommendation is implied.
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Compare with Tool Grinders, Filers, and SharpenersHow salary varies by location
| Location | Median | Employment | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Seattle, WA | $102,390 | 170 | 2025 |
| Eugene, OR | $75,630 | 50 | 2025 |
| WA | $75,190 | 410 | 2025 |
| Dayton, OH | $64,350 | 30 | 2025 |
| Sacramento, CA | $62,890 | 30 | 2025 |
| Minneapolis, MN | $62,790 | 40 | 2025 |
| Houston, TX | $62,300 | — | 2025 |
| Longview, WA | $61,820 | 40 | 2025 |
| St. Louis, MO | $61,550 | 100 | 2025 |
| Portland, OR | $60,760 | 220 | 2025 |
| OR | $60,760 | 430 | 2025 |
| ID | $59,250 | 100 | 2025 |
| OH | $56,690 | 190 | 2025 |
| MA | $56,600 | 40 | 2025 |
| LA | $56,380 | 40 | 2025 |
| MS | $55,510 | 50 | 2025 |
| Atlanta, GA | $55,100 | 30 | 2025 |
| KS | $54,100 | — | 2025 |
| San Francisco, CA | $53,340 | 30 | 2025 |
| MO | $52,540 | 150 | 2025 |
Career transition paths
Compare the skills of a career you hold today with Tool Grinders, Filers, and Sharpeners to see shared skills, target-only skills and skill overlap.
Build a transition comparisonCareer and skills data: O*NET 31.0.
Salary and employment data: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS, 2025 (May 2025 release).
Figures are periodic published survey snapshots, not real-time market rates.