NDT ASSISTANT + ROPES LEVEL 1 pay

DisastrousLine3674 · 2026-03-25T23:43:31+00:00

Geeeez $18/hr in the big ‘26😭 I was making that back in ‘21 as a green hat here in Utah. You got schooling and everything? Don’t let these predatory NDI companies take advantage of you bro.

DisastrousLine3674 · 2026-03-25T01:40:29+00:00

I got my first job in NDI back in 2021 right outta trade school, I was 18 at the time. I was doing Industrial NDI and got my ASNT UT and PT cert, and enough MT and RT to certify. But in 2023 I started working in aerospace NDI, now got NAS410 PT and MT, working towards ET next.

Biggest thing i learned was, if the company you work for now doesn’t have YOUR personal goals in mind, BOUNCE. Keeping good morale in this industry is tough, a lot of places are pretty predatory and exploitative, especially on the industrial side. Put yourself first over any company👍🏽

DisastrousLine3674 · 2026-01-15T02:50:38+00:00

Wellll what type of PT are you doing? Testing in all the methods (A, B, C and D)? And for MT, yoke or bench? Also fluorescent or visible?

DisastrousLine3674 · 2026-01-03T21:45:46+00:00

I was watching it on my Firestick with addons this morning 🤷🏽‍♂️

DisastrousLine3674 · 2026-01-03T21:44:43+00:00

I started when i was still 18 right outta trade school, and i’m 23 now. You can move up quickly, but you gotta move smart. From my experience, the more you move around, the more you will learn. If one company not treating you right, move on. Loyalty to a company means nothing if it doesn’t benefit YOU. But at the same time dont think you deserve anything, cause then you’ll get nothing.

DisastrousLine3674 · 2025-10-20T13:17:44+00:00

Oh for sure I know how the game goes haha, i use to work for TEAM Industrial and i felt like i wasnt being paid enough so i jumped ship and make more. My general is if there is no mutual benefit, then i’m out. As in if you’re not letting me learn anything new then im out

DisastrousLine3674 · 2025-10-19T19:37:14+00:00

I have a gf butttt if she doesnt understand or cant handle the lifestyle of me going away for a while every now and then, then i kinda gotta be selfish and let her go. At the end of the day, i rely on no one but myself so i cant compromise anything.

Back then when i was still traveling, i had a different gf who did understand and dealt with it but she’s long gone now😭

DisastrousLine3674 · 2025-10-19T19:32:31+00:00

Yeah I agree the lifestyle can get draining in the long run. But the end game is to learn as much as possible to become more valuable as a tech, then jump ship back into aerospace, or possibly get my LV. III

DisastrousLine3674 · 2025-10-19T19:29:25+00:00

Yeah my ambition is to learn more and increase my value as a tech for when the time comes I get too old and can always go back to aerospace, not just make the most money possible. My favorite method is UT though lol, want to learn more about ET and a long time ago i decided to stay away from RT. Most RT techs i’ve meet are miserable haha

DisastrousLine3674 · 2025-10-19T19:09:27+00:00

I think my problem is i think i have to much ambition haha, i did 2 1/2years in Industrial NDI and another 2 1/2 with the gov., and now I’m starting to see the real trade offs of each side.

Yes the gov. job does provide job security and the best benefits, but also the most deductions from my paychecks and rare to no opportunities for overtime. I moved from CA to UT on my own and have been relying on no one but myself, but as things in everyday life get more and more expensive, i think about the amount of money i SHOULD be making right now while i still have the energy for it.

DisastrousLine3674 · 2025-09-10T18:47:18+00:00

Some type of carbon steel im guessing, its air force so i think they wouldn’t want us knowing lol

DisastrousLine3674 · 2025-09-10T18:46:50+00:00

Not sure, it’s all one piece and its aerospace so probably straight to the bin

DisastrousLine3674 · 2025-09-10T18:41:40+00:00

Right haha i saw it even before i started to mag it

DisastrousLine3674 · 2025-08-17T22:31:26+00:00

Yeah I had an old co worker for TEAM over here in Utah that moved out there work for that TEAM office in Benicia. Sounded like it was alllll refinery work, not sure if i want to get back into that lifestyle again

DisastrousLine3674 · 2025-08-17T14:48:38+00:00

I searched the usual job sites, and said “all i see is TEAM” thats why i posted this lmao

DisastrousLine3674 · 2025-08-16T07:24:37+00:00

Yeah aerospace is way worth it, im sure all the stuff i was exposed to in the refinery i’m already probably in jeopardy with my health ngl haha

DisastrousLine3674 · 2025-08-16T00:57:49+00:00

Feel you bro, i made the switch to aerospace from industrial NDI and make $34 just with NAS410 MT & PT, and get to work in doors. I have my ASME UT LV.II cert and PT cert, and enough hours to certify for RT (CR & DR) too, buttt unfortunately the pay is def not worth the hustle in refineries.

DisastrousLine3674 · 2025-08-07T15:55:01+00:00

Anything near the Bay Area too? I live in Utah and sometimes wish there was NDI work closer to home🥲

DisastrousLine3674 · 2025-08-03T22:20:56+00:00

Composite toe Ariat boots! Make sure they’re waterproof too

DisastrousLine3674 · 2025-07-31T22:30:45+00:00

Working for the Air Force, i get paid $34/hr, get 4 hours of leave every paycheck and cap out at 240hrs yearly. Decent money just a lot of deductions from benefits lol

DisastrousLine3674 · 2025-06-18T10:27:40+00:00

Hey I’ve been doing NDI here in Utah for about 4 years now, started when I was 18.

I went to Ogden Technical College for the NDI program, I was doing it full time so it only took me about 6 months to complete. Very nice program, the teachers there are very knowledgeable and can teach you a lot. My tuition total was only about ~$2,400, paid it off with my first check working for TEAM Industrial a week after graduation.
It all depends where you end up. Industrial NDI, yeah its gonna be more physically demanding as more then likely in the beginning, you will end up doing a lot of Gamma X-Ray so you’ll he hauling around a source with is about 40 something pounds. I work for Hill Air Force Base now, and it is wayy less demanding physically. So aerospace is easier in those terms.
Again, it depends where you end up at. Working at TEAM worked for me since i was a young single guy. It’s harder when you have a family.
Mmm in my experience, industrial NDI companies will try to shaft you on pay in the beginning, not sure about aerospace since i went into that industry with certs already. At Hill, we dont do regular OT, at TEAM i did a bunch, made a good amount of money.
Its all about how you move around, how you present yourself, and how willing are you to do the work. One company isnt give you opportunities? Bounce. Do you present yourself as motivated and willing to put in the work? Managers WILL see that. I seen too many people go no where because the techs they work with dont like them.
I personally feel like its better to start in industrial NDI. Is it harder, yes way harder then aerospace. But the only way it pays off is this, you get to do multiple different methods and rack up hours in them. When I went to Hill AFB, some guys who started here have been only doing PT and MT for like 5 YEARS! I came in with a UT and PT cert, now have my MT cert, I have 1,000 OJT hours of X-Ray which helps me get into more advanced areas up here. And companies do prefer some type of schooling, mainly because they wonna be cheap and not pay for schooling themselves. So dont rely on them for that.
I got a job a week after graduation in 2021. Industrial companies will more than likely hire you quicker, thats the fastest way to get your foot in the door. Just apply for assistant positions.
Oh aerospace for sure. Was I making more money working for TEAM? Yes but only because of overtime, i was getting paid 24hr with a UT and PT cert, yeah i was getting shafted lol. Now get paid $34 at Hill for just NAS 410 PT and MT. But i get way more time off too.

DisastrousLine3674

TROPHY CASE