How to hire tool and die makers
A job description you can copy, interview questions tied to the real work, and what to pay. Free.
Job description template
Copy it, fill in the brackets, and remove anything that does not fit your job. Keep only must-haves you would really turn someone away for.
[Job title] at [Company name] [City, State] · [Full-time / Part-time] · [Pay range] About the role [Two or three sentences about your team, the work and why it matters.] What you will do • Fit and assemble parts to make, repair, or modify dies, jigs, gauges, and tools, using machine tools, hand tools, or welders. • Inspect finished dies for smoothness, contour conformity, and defects. • Lift, position, and secure machined parts on surface plates or worktables, using hoists, vises, v-blocks, or angle plates. • Select metals to be used from a range of metals and alloys, based on properties such as hardness or heat tolerance. • Set up and operate conventional or computer numerically controlled machine tools such as lathes, milling machines, or grinders to cut, bore, grind, or otherwise shape parts to prescribed dimensions and finishes. • Study blueprints, sketches, models, or specifications to plan sequences of operations for fabricating tools, dies, or assemblies. • Verify dimensions, alignments, and clearances of finished parts for conformance to specifications, using measuring instruments such as calipers, gauge blocks, micrometers, or dial indicators. • Visualize and compute dimensions, sizes, shapes, and tolerances of assemblies, based on specifications. What you bring • [Required license, certification or years of experience, if any] • [Education, only if you truly need it. Typical to start in this job: Postsecondary nondegree award] • Strong critical thinking, monitoring, active learning and active listening skills • Working knowledge of mechanical and mathematics • [Anything else you would really turn someone away for] Pay and benefits [Pay range]. For reference, the U.S. median for this job is $30.79 an hour ($64,050 a year). [Benefits, schedule and anything else candidates should know.] How to apply [Apply on JAI Bot. Every applicant hears back.]
Interview questions for tool and die makers
Ask every candidate the same questions, in the same order, and write down what they say. Questions about past work show what someone has actually done.
- Tell me about a time you had to fit and assemble parts to make, repair, or modify dies, jigs, gauges, and tools, using machine tools, hand tools, or welders. What did you do, and how did it turn out?
- Tell me about a time you had to inspect finished dies for smoothness, contour conformity, and defects. What did you do, and how did it turn out?
- Tell me about a time you had to lift, position, and secure machined parts on surface plates or worktables, using hoists, vises, v-blocks, or angle plates. What did you do, and how did it turn out?
- Tell me about a time you had to select metals to be used from a range of metals and alloys, based on properties such as hardness or heat tolerance. What did you do, and how did it turn out?
- Describe a decision at work where the obvious answer was wrong. How did you work out the better choice?
- How do you keep track of your own work quality during a busy shift or week? Give an example of catching a problem early.
- Tell me about something new you had to learn quickly for work. How did you learn it?
- Why this job, and why now? What would make you stay here for the long term?
Good answers name a real situation, what the person did themselves and what happened. Avoid questions about age, family plans, religion, health, national origin or anything else unrelated to the job.
What tool and die makers do
- Fit and assemble parts to make, repair, or modify dies, jigs, gauges, and tools, using machine tools, hand tools, or welders.
- Inspect finished dies for smoothness, contour conformity, and defects.
- Lift, position, and secure machined parts on surface plates or worktables, using hoists, vises, v-blocks, or angle plates.
- Select metals to be used from a range of metals and alloys, based on properties such as hardness or heat tolerance.
- Set up and operate conventional or computer numerically controlled machine tools such as lathes, milling machines, or grinders to cut, bore, grind, or otherwise shape parts to prescribed dimensions and finishes.
- Study blueprints, sketches, models, or specifications to plan sequences of operations for fabricating tools, dies, or assemblies.
- Verify dimensions, alignments, and clearances of finished parts for conformance to specifications, using measuring instruments such as calipers, gauge blocks, micrometers, or dial indicators.
- Visualize and compute dimensions, sizes, shapes, and tolerances of assemblies, based on specifications.
Skills that matter most
Education, experience and outlook for tool and die makers
- Typical education to start: Postsecondary nondegree award (BLS)
- Related work experience most have: 2 to 4 years (O*NET)
- Training on the job: Long-term on-the-job training (BLS)
- Job outlook: -9.2% over ten years, declining · about 4,300 openings a year (BLS)
What to pay tool and die makers
Pay depends a lot on where the job is. Highest and lowest median yearly pay by state:
| State | Median yearly pay |
|---|---|
| Washington | $109,390 |
| Kansas | $83,890 |
| Connecticut | $77,540 |
| California | $77,030 |
| New Jersey | $74,460 |
| Tennessee | $60,760 |
| Georgia | $60,020 |
| Texas | $55,470 |
See tool and die makers pay in every state
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Post a job freePay by areaJob duties and skills: O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license; O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. JAI Bot has modified this information; USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. Pay: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS, May 2025. Interview questions and the job description template: JAI Bot, based on the duties and skills above.