CNC Lathe Machinist - Operator Level III '3'

About the role

Pegasus Mfg. Inc. is a precision CNC manufacturing company supporting demanding customers across aerospace, defense, medical, automotive, industrial, and advanced manufacturing markets. Our work requires skilled people who care about accuracy, consistency, craftsmanship, and doing the job right. This is an opportunity to work in a high-performance manufacturing environment where your machining judgment matters. We value people who take ownership, communicate clearly, solve problems, and take pride in producing high-quality American-made components.

This position focuses on operating, setting up, and supporting 2-axis CNC lathes and mill-turn with live-tooling lathe equipment in a high-precision manufacturing environment. The role is a strong fit for a hands-on machinist who takes pride in clean setups, accurate offsets, efficient production, tool-life awareness, and consistent part quality.

Location: Galesburg, IL  |  Employment Type: Full-Time  |  Work Setting: On-Site  |  Compensation: $28.00–$34.00 per hour

Responsibilities

• Set up and operate CNC lathe equipment, including 2-axis CNC lathes and, when applicable, mill-turn / live-tooling lathe machines.
• Produce parts to blueprint, model, and work-order requirements.
• Read and interpret blueprints, GD&T, work instructions, and engineering drawings.
• Load programs, set work offsets, set tool offsets, and make minor program or offset adjustments as needed.
• Work with FANUC CNC and Okuma controls to support setup, operation, troubleshooting, alarms, edits, and machine-level adjustments.
• Select and install tooling, inserts, jaws, collets, fixtures, and workholding as required for the job.
• Monitor tool wear, surface finish, chip control, part movement, and machine performance during production.
• Inspect in-process and finished parts using precision measuring tools such as calipers, micrometers, indicators, bore & thread gauges.
• Identify and communicate issues related to tooling, setup, material, machine performance, or part quality.
• Maintain accurate production records, inspection documentation, and job notes.
• Keep work area clean, organized, and safe.
• Communicate clearly with supervisors, programmers, quality, and other team members during job handoff.

Requirements

• 2–5+ years of CNC lathe machining experience preferred.
• Experience with 2-axis CNC turning required.
• Experience with mill-turn, live tooling, sub-spindle, Y-axis, or multi-axis lathe equipment is a strong plus.
• Experience with FANUC CNC controls preferred.
• Ability to read and interpret blueprints, tolerances, GD&T, and work instructions.
• Strong understanding of lathe tooling, inserts, speeds and feeds, workholding, offsets, and basic troubleshooting.
• Ability to use precision measuring tools and verify parts to print requirements.
• Strong attention to detail and a quality-first mindset.
• Reliable, organized, and able to work independently once trained.
• Comfortable working in a fast-paced precision manufacturing environment.
• High school diploma or equivalent; 2 years of technical school, or associate college degree.
• Experience in aerospace, defense, medical, automotive, industrial, or other tight-tolerance manufacturing environments is a plus.
• Ability to work with ITAR-controlled information where applicable.

Qualifications

• Experience setting up jobs from scratch, including jaws, collets, fixtures, tooling, and offsets.
• Experience machining stainless steel, alloy steels, aluminum, titanium, Inconel, or other difficult materials.
• Experience with repeat production jobs and improving cycle time, tool life, setup time, or part consistency.
• Ability to troubleshoot chatter, taper, surface finish issues, tool wear, part movement, and dimensional drift.
• Experience supporting first-piece inspection, in-process inspection, and production handoff.
• Willingness to help improve setup notes, tooling lists, and repeatability for future runs.

Benefits

• Health & Insurance: Medical, dental, vision, life insurance, short-term disability (STD), and long-term disability (LTD).
• Retirement: 401(k) plan with company matching.
• Paid Vacation: 2 weeks initially, increasing to 3 weeks with tenure.
• Paid Holidays: 7 paid holidays annually.
• Sick Leave: 3 paid sick days annually.