While cutting a sip panel on Wednesday my 10″ Milwaukee circ saw decided it wanted to take a shot at my foot. Straight back, big toe got grazed, second toe looked like hamburger. Trip to ER. Surgery to fix tendons, clean it out and stitch it up. A little over 6 hrs and back out of the hospital with orders not to work( of course). Extemely painful 1st thing in the morning. Can’t wear a boot on that foot till Doc says so. Have a post-op bootie so I can walk and still go to work and cause everybody grief.
First bad injury in the 12 years or so I’ve been in this business. Hopefully the last.
Merry Christmas to all.
Greg
Replies
Aw man Greg, I'm sorry to hear of your accident. I hope you're feeling better soon enough. That must have been quite a scare. 10" is a big blade and capable of more than it's fair share of damage so it sounds like it could have been worse.
Elevate that bad boy and maybe elevate a few egg nogs while yer at it. Hope you're back at it soon enough. Constant vigilence, my friend. That should be on all of our minds first and foremost.
yeah I was scared sh!tless. I felt it and saw the 4" cut in my boot and thought for sure it was gonna be worse than what it was.
It probably woudn't have scared me so much but I was born without the other foot, had a prostetic for the last 29yrs, so I really didn't want to end up with no feet if you know what I mean.
I don't do egg nog, but a couple of Corona's are on my schedule for today.Greg
Wow, that's some story then. Add a whole other element of fear to the equation.
When I was growing up, my father used the same contractor for a bunch of work at our house, from roofing to a sunroom addition, to odds and ends. He had a prostetic leg from the knee down. I used to be in awe of him running up and down ladders and stuff. I still think about that guy on days when I'm feeling not up to the tast at hand. Makes me think my excuses are pretty lame.
Enjoy those Coronas and have a good holiday dude.
I get that response alot. Most of the time customers and contractors I sub from don't ever know about it. Exept in the summer when I live in shorts. I do everything that anybody else does. I've have prostetics since was 2 so I don't know any different. Only time I get nervous is walking 2x4 plates cause I don't have any feeling on the one side so I'm pretty much guessing if I'm standing safely or not.
Took some perceset this morning so my Corona's will hafe to wait till tonight.Greg
What a bitch that it, hitting the good foot!Hang in there buddy and let that be a reminder to all of us that safety comes first. Stups. Merry Christams to all!
Sorry to hear about that. But it sure could have been worse. Glad ya still got some meat to walk around on.
I like to tell DW that blowjobs help speed recovery from just about anything. Give that line a try and I hope it works for ya.
lol
It's always worth a shot.
Already tried the bj line, didn't work.Greg
I've been told of those jobs before and I heard the benefits are great...........;-) Is there a website I can go too..............Joe Carola
Sorry to here about that. I hope it heels well. Just curious how you did it though. Were you cutting with your foot directly behind the saw?
When I went to sit the saw on the subfloor guard didn't drop and blade caught the floor and twisted the saw and back it came. Thank God it was already off and it was just winding down.
Lack of thinking about safety for a second causes pain for a long time to come.Greg
Thank God that's all that happened and it didn't run up your leg. To be totally honest with you when I first started framing 22 years ago I was taught to frame with the guard pinned up. My boss and everyone else actually sat there and showed me how after every cut to flip the saw over and lay it down on it's top. I know it's crazy but that's how everyone did it. But I've perfected how to use my saw and I can carve statues with it but I'll never teach anyone that.All the guards are down and even though the guards are down I still flip my saw over from force of habit. Sometimes the guards stick and when you lay the saw down it jumps just like what happened to you, in fact it happened the other day and I didn't even see it, you just know the sound the saw makes as it hits the plywood and you here the guy say f##k. These things happen.This is why it's up to us to teach everyone who just starts out the safety classes on how to cut and how you position your body so that if the saw does kick back it can't kick back into your stomach if your cutting on a set of horses. If your cutting on the ground no matter what hadn’t you use your feet should never be behind the saw in case the saw kicks back.I almost cut my thumb off back in 1984 because I was stupid and ripping a piece of would by holding it in my left handing and cutting with my right hand and the saw kicked back and rolled right over my left thumb. I should've never been holding that piece of would like that and plus I was aggravated already at everyone because they were screwing around and I wasn't thinking straight.Now there isn't one time when I turn that saw on and think about that cut for some reason and when I cut my mind and body position is focused on that cut only and nothing else. We always say that we learn from our mistakes but this type of mistake we would rafter not learn from. Good Luck in your recovery.Merry Christmas!
Joe Carola
I was holding the other end of a board when my buddy did exactly that and cut his thum almost entirely off.
He was doing a plunge cut, right over left hand holding, we were both f'in around, the saw jumped up and bit his thumb good. This was some years ago when we were still using steel blades.
We would sharpen them ourselves. he was known to put a "bit" of extra set on the blade to get that viscious cut when sharp. That contributed I'm sure.
He was lucky the saved the thumb. Took a peice of flesh off his azz to put it all together. Was probably close to 2 years before he was all good.
I see that sceene over and over and over. Probably been close to 20 years now and it's fresh in my mind like yesterday.
I pin and flip. I know it's dangerous, but I know I don't have to worry about a stuck guard. It's a dangerous tool. My least favotite next to the table saw.
Eric[email protected]
It's Never Too Late To Become What You Might Have Been
OOOHHH MAN (big shudder) . i'm definitely bummed for you.... you know the worst part of accidents like that is sitting in front of the t.v. or the drive home . and the swirling thoughts of what could of happened or the i should of 's . this september 1ST 9 a.m. lopped the left finger tip (3/4") off with my joiner. man.. that was one scary day.. didnt wax the bed... 8" joiner ..the one thing the doc said your lucky the blades were sharp... i'm hoping you'll be back without a blink, any vicodin?? i'm sincerly wishing you a speedy recovery.... slainte' alias
Hope you get well soon.
It sucks to be laid up when hurt. I'd rather have time off when I'm in 1 piece- there's more to do
What's wrong with percosets AND Corona? It'd sure make the time off go faster.
Greg, you don't know me, I'm usually over on Cooks Talk. I am so sorry about your toe. I hope you have someone to baby you until it's all better. Try and have a Merry Christmas. Pamilyn
The purpose of Art is washing the dust of daily life off our souls
Greg
Sorry to hear about the foot.
Like someone else said, what's the matter with a little percuset(sp?) and a few Coronas!
I damn near chopped my big toe off 20 years ago with a jack hammer and the doc gave me pain pills like they were going out of style. I had a lot of college friends back then and they'd all stop over for a couple of the magic pills. I don't recommend passing em out to your buds, hell let em get there own.
Doug
Man what a christmas present! I guillotined my thumb with my utility knife 2 weeks ago (you wouldn't think you could get 5 stitches in the end of your thumb but you can) and told my brother that whenever I have something like that I am simply grateful it wasn't a saw because I know how quick the damage can happen. Hope you heal well and quick! DanT
PS: The bj thing didn't work here either. Must be a bad theory.
very sorry to hear of your accident, when i read about setting saw down and guard not dropping i had to speak up.
i learned to frame in southern cali housing tracts beginning in 1976. i didn't use a skillsaw with an operating guard for years. i was taught immediately when using the saw to twist wrist to right and lay saw down sideways (worm drive saw).
numerous times i have had saw guards jam on me and had it not been for that early training with no guard i too may have been bitten.
i saw a safety poster once about a close call being a warning, and kudos for you for sharing a difficult time and maybe preventing someone else from an accident.
lastly in reading about a prosthetic on your other foot i am reminded about the story of the widowed italian immigrant trying to marry off her only daughter. after a lengthy time of trying to convince the stubborn young girl mama tells her to stir the sauce while she goes upstairs to take care of the man with only a foot and a half
Sorry to hear that happened to you. I know from first hand experience that injuries to the extremities (fingers and toes) are the most painful. (barring the fact that I have never had any serious accidents)
Re: >> Have a post-op bootie so I can walk and still go to work and cause everybody grief. << Welcome to my world! I'm a superintendent and most of what I do is walk around the jobsite and try to get people to do a good job... That way there won't be stuff to fix later! Who knows, this could be your ticket to management ;-)
Im so sorry for your injury. Ive had a few close calls in my day. Everyone that happens I think it could of been worse and give thanks it wasnt. God Bless and heal up well and fast
Ooooweeee...oh man, I've got a flip top thumb from a skilsaw, twice, d'oh. I definitley feel for ya. I've also ruined a couple of floor boards when the blade guard stuck, better them than me. Thanks for reminding me to twist that puppy.Hey, you needed time to get the year end books done, right?Here's to a healthy healing, brother. Hey, pocket doors can't come off the track if they're nailed open
Thanks for all the thoughts. I would've been on here sooner but I had the family thing to do. It definitly could've been worse. I can still do things just can't get it wet or use my toes( hurts like heck when you slide on the snow and try to regain your balance.) I'm sure it'll be fine.
Bad thing is I promised the customer we'd be done by the holidays. That didn't happen. Should be done by Tuesday though. Good thing my head still works, but I'd rather be doing some of the work instead of just doing the thinkin part.
Happy Holidays to all!
PS - I checked the saw today and guard is working fine. Must of just been bad luck.Greg
Hope you're having a wonderful Christmas with the Coronas.
Hope the percs are working. I know your pain.11 years ago I stupidly (how else is this done) put a wormdrive into my leg. Not too bad, but showing muscle, which I never had enough to spare. Nice 2-1/2 inch scar on the thigh.15 years ago, my sidewinder kicked in my left hand, and heade for my crotch.'Say goodbye to my little friend.'This was two weeks before my wedding. Luckily a keychain my wife had given me that Christmas stopped the blade. Cut the pants (looked real silly the rest of the day with the undeis showing) and cut up my thigh, but the little guys were saved.You bet I prayed alot the rest of the day.Hope this helps brighten your day. Good luck.
Boy, you have some pair of BA!!S..........;-)Merry Christmas!
Joe Carola
They aren't that great, which is probably why they are still there.You're in Caldwell, correct? I ate at a place near you a couple of months ago. Italianissimo, on Passaic near Bloomfield.Good food. Not cheap.If I have a framing question, is it okay to email you.
We are doing an addition and I don't think we are doing the rafters correctly, and I saw that Timuhler said you helped him. I would prefer not to be a nuisance.Thanks.Glenn
Yea, what Framers says!
I think if I had that close a call before the big day I might of resorted to a hand saw, at least until after the wedding.
Doug
You know what they say about stupidity and balls (figuratively).And we cut with the gaurds pinned up.That's the way I learned, and I liked it but I got scared as I grew older.
You do understand that the term "Footloose" is just a metaphor for free?
With the comedy out of the way, it's a dirty job but someone has to do it, I can say I'm always sorry to hear about good people getting hurt.
It's not very popular to say it on sites but construction is dangerous and no matter how much you get paid or can make working fast it seldom pays off. We have to be careful. As your story said it takes only a second of carelessness or inattention to end up facing a lifetime of pain and/or disability.
And with the obligatory 'be safe' admonition out of the way I can say that it may not feel like it but it sounds like it could have been far worse. Loose a big toe and it can throw off your balance and walking permanently. Knew a guy who lost one and he was a little bit shaky a year later. Second toe is important, and I'm sure painful, but less vital as long as the big one is still operational.
Take it easy, ti's the season so let them wait on you hand and, need I say it, foot. Follow doctors orders especially make sure you complete any course of antibiotics. You want to kill the critters not make them madder and stronger than they already are.
Lay back. Rest and take it easy. Don't be in too big a hurry to go back to work. Muscle and ligament damage takes a long time to heal so even after the skin looks good and swelling is gone don't think your 100%. Over stressing a ligament which is only partially healed can double the time it takes to get better so slow and easy.
I'm sorry to hear you got hurt. A tough job and only made worse when you get hurt. I hope you feel better real soon. I wish you well and rapid healing.
How is it going?
It's a week into your ordeal. How are the toes healing? Any more insights?
Inquiring minds want to know.
I hope everything is working out and healing smoothly for you.
Everything seems to be working out fine. Had a slight infection, doc gave more antibiotics. Go back to surgeon on tues. Will know more then.Greg