Machinist in the military?

My son is a senior in high school. He is in the second year of a precision machining course through his vo-tech. He will graduate in June with several NIMS certifications and 2 years of training, but is worried about getting a job without any work experience. He is considering joining the military as a machinist and I am supportive as long as he is smart about it. I want everything in writing. I would like any input that anyone has about the different branches or frankly any other advice for a high school kid. We are located in central PA if that makes any difference in your advice on job prospects.

get the training promise in writing. The thing is they will guarantee the training if it is in writing but... After the training is over he will most likely be placed into a position that the training was made for but no guarantees. He might graduate from machinist school and they need infantry so off he goes into the infantry.
Bill D

In Mechanicsburg PA is a huge Place called Defense Logistics East where I have taught Apprentice classes to High School Students that they recruit that are good in shop classes to be Machine Rebuilders and Machinists. Private message me your or his Name and Email address and I can send it to my contacts there. Also many of the Journeymen there were in the Navy as Machinist mates. Also VettBob a Practical Machinist member was in the Air force where he was a Jet Engine Tech and was a non com when he retired. He is a hell of a good machinist too. I also have his email address and can ask him to email you guys. Rich

Jfoster -

I'll let someone else chime in about job prospects in PA - I'm just North of you but have been retired long enough to make my views on that pretty much worthless.

I'd say have him talk to the Air Force and Navy. Army and Marines do have machinists - and some of the slots are good, work wise. But I would guess being able to actually do more machining work would occur in the Navy or Air Force.

You are correct that he wants to get everything in writing, in the enlistment contract. That is the legal, defining document. But you also have to remember reality. When you stick up your right hand and take the oath you cross a line - and on the other side of that line you have less constitutional rights than a civilian citizen and are subject to risks that others are not. And no matter what your MOS (Military Occupational Specialty, Army for job code) you have some risks - on 9/11 clerks died at the Pentagon.

Having said that - I served 2 years active duty in the Army and had a little over 33 years total (rest in reserve components) when I had to retire. I'd do it again in a heart beat. I have had good friends ask me to talk with their children and grand children about this - and I tell them what I just told you. And a teen age person can gain a lot of maturity during an enlistment. Little over a year ago I had 'the talk' with the grandson of good friends of ours. He wanted to join the Army Reserve, get medical training and help pay for college in a medical area. Recruiter promised him what he wanted - went for physical, recruiter said what he wanted was no longer available, here, sign this, etc. Young man was smart enough to say no, refuse and come home. I told him the recuriter would be back - was so mad at the kid he would not talk to him all the way (2 hour ride) home. Kid was a senior in high school. Last spring the recuriter called - could get him exactly what he wanted. Our friends went to his graduation from basic last month, where he was one of the top soldiers in his cycle. He got an early promotion and is now in the school he wanted, getting a year of training. Plans to enter college next fall.

Most of all it is a decision he has to make. If you never served, please have your son talk to someone in your family or a friend who did. And not necessarily an old guy like me. It can be a great experience - but understand what you are doing.

Just my 2 cents.

Dale

Navy used to have Machinery Repairman "rating" which were their "machinists" - I think this has been incorporated under the broad Hull Technician.

Oddly, the Navy "Machinist Mate" was not a machinist at all - more of a steam or diesel plant operator

How do I know? In 1959 I joined the Navy to be a machinist and promptly became an Aviation Electronic Technician - so I got out of the Navy to be a machinist

Bill D said:

get the training promise in writing. The thing is they will guarantee the training if it is in writing but... After the training is over he will most likely be placed into a position that the training was made for but no guarantees. He might graduate from machinist school and they need infantry so off he goes into the infantry.
Bill D

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Bill -

I'm going to disagree totally with you on that one. Once upon a time - maybe. Today - no way, now how.

I'm not saying that a machinist (or clerk, or whoever) cannot get shot at. But that is wrong place wrong time type of thing - not planned.

But if you get trained as - lets say a machinist - you might end up turning wrenches on some truck/aircraft/whatever if there is nothing to machine. Once upon a time I saw that exact thing happen. Or get some low level duty cleaning the place - but you are the lowest level trained guy there. No different than industry in that respect.

I spent most of my time in uniform as a combat engineer or infantry. And the last thing you want next to you is someone who does not know their job, especially if you are a trigger puller.

Dale

Thank you everyone for the info. From the research I have done so far, I'm thinking of he goes the military route, Navy would probably be the best. Maybe I'm being naive, but I think he would have the least chance there at being forced into combat. I completely realize that with any military position there are always risks, but would obviously like to minimize them as much as possible. I'm also under the impression that machinists are getting hard to come by so I wouldn't think they wouldn't want to risk a valuable asset if it could be avoided. My son would be a 4th generation machinist. My grandfather and father were both machinists and my brother is a shop supervisor. He has been able to get some guidance from my dad and brother, but I want him to get as many opinions as possible before making any decisions. Until recently the military had been more of a plan b, but he has shown a lot more interest in that lately. He is scheduled to take his ASVAB next month and has started studying. He knows getting the best score possible is the first step if he decides to go that route. The mother in me would rather he just get a civilian job, but I also think that the military structure could really do him a lot of good in the long run. We have several military family members, some active duty and some retired that I want him to talk to before making his final decision.

I spent 30 years in the Army maintenance field but have been out for over 8 years. We used to have machinists and trained them at Aberdeen Maryland, but I understand they have changed that MOS and the training. I a few folks that were in the Navy as machinists and they did far more than most of our Army kids did. So if I was advising a young person who wanted to be a machinist and wanted to serve I would point them to the Navy, just remember they deploy for several months every year.
I am appreciative of anyone who chooses to serve our great country, I wish your son the best.
Get everything in writing and make sure they stick to it.

I was enlisted Navy from 2002-2006 as a GSM3 on a Frigate. There was one MR on the ship and he did the same job as the HT's. The HT's maintained the fire fighting gear and stayed pretty busy unclogging shitter pipes. We had a lathe on the ship. I never saw it used. Anything we needed machined or welded was done in port by outside contractors. There is essentially zero opportunity for advancement in niche ratings like MR/MM.

I joined the Navy to see the world. I still think that was a realistic reason and I don't regret it. You will not learn advanced skills in the military, machining related or otherwise. If there is anything the military will teach you that you may not learn in civilian life it's leadership skills if you are cut out for it.

If I were to do it again I would go in as an EN. There are endless billets (especially small ship billets) for EN's and diesel engines break down all the time whereas turbines never ever do. I spent hundreds of hours repairing and adjusting 149 detroits alongside EN's. The only thing I ever did to a turbine was oil changes. Large ships do not go into port as often. Carriers are at sea all the time. Small ships go to more ports.

In the Navy you may not see combat, but you will see time at sea. 60-70 days in a haze gray box at a time was pretty normal for the ship I was on. The hardest part was getting off the ship in a new port and fighting the pressure to go get hammered at the nearest bar with everyone else.

With a good attitude and work ethic I don't know how anyone could not land a job instantly in this economy. There are more jobs than warm bodies.

In writing or not doesn't matter. Once you are enlisted you do not have the rights afforded to you by the US constitution. You get the UCMJ. You do what they say and ask for more!

In the old days, this is how the Navy figured out what to do with you. Though my "mech" score was higher, the Navy used my electrical/electronic "etst" score of 71, which they had more need of. They did this by two old grizzled E9s and me in a little room by ourselves whereupon they did the job by convincing a green 19 year old that he should do what the Navy wanted, and not head off to Machinery Repairman school

Scan from 58 years ago this month

I would suggest he:

1. Start looking for work right now - there's no reason not to, and my guess would be he could have a job lined up before he graduates, especially if he's willing to do 'whatever' on a part-time basis just to get his foot in the door to show them he's a worker, and that he can start as a full-time machinist as soon as he graduates

2. At the very least, spend some time applying for jobs before enlisting. The armed services will always be there in the event he tries for 6-12 months and can't find work

I would be more concerned about signing up for a 4-7 year commitment on the off chance he can't find a job before he even really tries. I respect, admire, and appreciate the heck out of the US Military, so I don't mean to treat it like a fallback, but if it's not what he actually wants to do, and is only using it as such, I think the odds are good he can find work as a machinist elsewhere.

A bit off-topic, but thought I'd share a photo from when I visited San Diego, and toured the USS Midway (now a floating museum). Machinist in on-board machine shop here is obviously a mannequin. Sorry for the blurriness.

jfoster323 said:

Thank you everyone for the info. From the research I have done so far, I'm thinking of he goes the military route, Navy would probably be the best. Maybe I'm being naive, but I think he would have the least chance there at being forced into combat. I completely realize that with any military position there are always risks, but would obviously like to minimize them as much as possible. I'm also under the impression that machinists are getting hard to come by so I wouldn't think they wouldn't want to risk a valuable asset if it could be avoided. My son would be a 4th generation machinist. My grandfather and father were both machinists and my brother is a shop supervisor. He has been able to get some guidance from my dad and brother, but I want him to get as many opinions as possible before making any decisions. Until recently the military had been more of a plan b, but he has shown a lot more interest in that lately. He is scheduled to take his ASVAB next month and has started studying. He knows getting the best score possible is the first step if he decides to go that route. The mother in me would rather he just get a civilian job, but I also think that the military structure could really do him a lot of good in the long run. We have several military family members, some active duty and some retired that I want him to talk to before making his final decision.

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my father was a surveyor in the Navy CB's in Vietnam during Tet offensive, my grandfather was a machinist mate on a resupply ship in ww2. When the bullets started flying, they were not taking measurements and or tapping holes, they had guns in their hand and were at battle stations. If combat is a no go, then he needs to go to trade school, a scared soldier in a firefight gets other soldiers killed.

rainman said:

A bit off-topic, but thought I'd share a photo from when I visited San Diego, and toured the USS Midway (now a floating museum). Machinist in on-board machine shop here is obviously a mannequin. Sorry for the blurriness.

View attachment 213241

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Hey rainman,

I just visited the Midway while in San Diego for my son’s graduation at MCRD in October. That ship is a tub with some of the crappiest welding and systems design I have ever seen. But yet still amazing considering it was built decades before I was born and was in service through the gulf war.

Maybe things have changed but when I was in the army in Viet Nam. I was talking to our mortar man. He said he enlisted in the army to get the job he wanted. He joined to become a military policeman. So why wasn't he an MP instead of being a mortarman you ask. What he told me was you are only guaranteed the training, not the job. So they probably gave him the training before he got out. Not what he had in mind. Bob

akajun said:

If combat is a no go, then he needs to go to trade school, a scared soldier in a firefight gets other soldiers killed.

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Combat is a no go, for me (his mom), not necessarily for him. I honestly think that if he ended up there he would be fine as far as the being scared part goes. I'm just trying to advise him as best I can so that he will not end up there. :-(

motion guru said:

I just visited the Midway while in San Diego for my son’s graduation at MCRD in October. That ship is a tub with some of the crappiest welding and systems design I have ever seen. But yet still amazing considering it was built decades before I was born and was in service through the gulf war.

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Well, it was built in 1945, so can't expect it to be state of the art. Got the job done, though, didn't it?

motion guru said:

I just visited the Midway while in San Diego for my son’s graduation at MCRD in October.

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Semper-Fi.
Cheers Ross

as a marine (out more then a few years) with kids. if i was listing the branches in order of advantage navy/airforce can be flipped back and forth depending on job and time away.
army shoudl be fine but as far as tec goes i feel its not the top USMC while we dont take bridgeports to the front line everyone is expected to be able to fill the front line role (and our budget sucks) got to say go to the $ and the training navy and airforce have it nice. one thing to add even tho im not sure how much a clearance might matter in the trade after gettig out but i could have been making 100K cleaning up at Lockheed martian while my sister was driving satellites around making less cause i had more clearance then she did and could get into rooms she could not. i stupidly left my clearance laps so i can no longer get a job like that

Army machinists are part of Allied trades and no longer train individual jobs. They are trained in both machining and welding. Training is at Ft Lee, 13 weeks and covers a lot of basic ground. Doing your actual job while on active duty can account for very little of actual time available. They do train both manual and some CNC as the school has many manual lathes and mills, along with several Haas TM and TL series machines along with a great setup for welding training. A better option may be to look at the Guard units in your area and see if there is a maintenance unit nearby with open slots for the 91E MOS. He’ll get the training and a foot in the door with businesses looking to hire semi-trained workers.