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regarding tool that I “fear” the most,
without a doubt, the circular saw is the tool that my finger
are closest to during operation. also, the blade continues
to turn after the switch is released.
I have operated a chain saw a ton, and only when falling
trees do I worry, and that is because of the tree, not
the tool.
Replies
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When I started out as a carpenter I inherited a bunch of my grandpa's tools. One of them was a Black and Decker slow-speed drill with a 1/2" chuck. I believe it was from the forties. Screwed into the housing was a piece of 3/4" galvanized pipe for a side handle which, when the bit bound into something, would swing around and pin whatever was attached to it, usually my left hand, against the nearest solid object (an adjacent wall, the ground, a laborer). If it managed to break free of my grip, the mass of the motor would keep it gyrating for a few moments, long enough to wrap up three or feet of cord. Luckily, it died before I did.
I was just at a friend's house last night and he was showing me his new 5 h.p. three-phase band saw (some Italian brand I'd never heard of... Agazzi? or the like) and when he fired it up I got chills realizing it was so vibration-free that you couldn't tell it was running. Like the bone saws the butcher uses.
However, looking back at my workmen's comp claims through the years, with the exception of Charlie's run-in with a chop-saw, the ladder has turned out to be the most hazardous tool on my sites, with a dozen incidents of injuries.
-Ben
...and a deep thought concerning safety from Jack Handy....
* During the Middle Ages, probably one of the biggest mistakes was not putting on your armor because you were "just going down to the corner."
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It'd have to be my framing square. Better let me explain; I can't layout my stairs today because Dave borrowed my square w/o returning it yesterday aftn. My others are MIA from a job I did a few months ago where "misplaced" tools was rampant. So, come Monday, my square will become a lethal weapon. I know what you're gonna' say, but why should I?
Actually, the most inherently dangerous tool is the table saw. Still have all ten, but there have been some scary times.
*Tool that gave me the biggest scare and only TKO: DeWalt 18v drill with a half inch spurred wood bit.I was picking up one evening and bent down to grab the drill by the front end (not the chuck). My finger caught the trigger and it started. Sadly my loose windbreaker was hanging down into the sharp bit. Instantly the nylon wound up around the bit. I screamed and let it go. It stopped and was hanging from my belly when I realized I was still alive and undrilled. That was close. Pleased with my good fortune, I picked it up again by the front end and again my finger caught the trigger and again it started. But the bit was too tightly wound up for the chuck to spin. So the drill did the only thing it could do and that was to start turning from the back end. It only made half a revolution because, at the 12 o'clock position, that massive 18v battery caught me square in the chin. This knocked me to the floor which was actually a good thing because it caused me to let go of the trigger much faster than I could have done in a conscious state.Now I'm lying on the floor seeing stars and my face is hurting so bad that I'm certain my jaw is broken. I'm all alone and wondering if I can drive myself to the hospital. Thinking this through, I realize that Step #1 is to pick myself up off the floor and as I start to do that, I can feel the drill still tugging on me. So I reach for the front end of it (that's the part that has the trigger you recall) and almost finish myself off. But this is where my superior intellect and years of education pay off. I throw my hand back and let the drill hang there. No bomb squad has ever removed a battery more carefully. As it turned out, the only thing broken was my pride. I only had to drink one supper. I still use the drill constantly. I don't fear this tool, but do tend to sneak up on it from behind now.With only the holes I was born with, Fred
*Contemplating the speed of a blade rotating in the direction of your body brings the table saw to the top of the list; it just commands respect when the switch is flipped. I find it necessary at times to shake of the robotic nature of redundant action; nail guns and circular saws come to mind. An additional consideration might be tools in the hands of others. Last year I was on a job, and the new hirewas cutting rebar with a cut-off saw. When I looked up, the stream of embers off the blade was bouncing off a gas can;I'm convinced that he had a guardian angel!
*It is not a matter of fear, If you are afraid of your tools, you shouldn't have them in the truck. Besides, I'm much more scared of my crew than any tool.The cordless Paslode gun is dangerous. I know some day that smelly thing is going to expolde. Besides, it's too easy to shoot while day dreaming.
*I vote for any kind of a circular saw. I know a very young contractor here who showed me how fast he could cut 2x4's across his knee (like a real piece work macho tract framer) when I asked him why he wasn't using the chop saw he had set up by his lumber pile while building a deck. The next week, he was unable to work after a trip to the ER. Seemed his saw had kicked back and run up his thigh a ways.Ben, a band saw is the one I'm most comfortable with. Cant kick back, throw things at you or chase you around. You gotta be pretty determined to run your fingers through a band saw.Ladders are a for sure killer. If you spend any time on them the question isnt if you will fall. The question is how often and how bad?Until Stephen mentioned it, I hadnt thought to be afraid of my compressor blowing my legs off. That's just one more thing. Sigh.....Avoiding all high work as best I can since my balance and reflexes started to deteriorate and my bones lost their youthful elasticity. (as explained to me by my Doc) JonC
*Hands down, it's an old 9" Rockwell Mitre Saw. I lost the tip of my index finger on my left hand to that one. I think I personally know 4 other people who were injured severely or loft finger tips while using this model saw. It was the first power mitre saw I ever used or owned. I lost my finger tip when the friction break wasn't working with the recoil spring letting the blade down just enough at the exact moment I reached for a very short piece of base on the partical board table with 92 degrees missing from it. I still have the saw but never use it.
*I've known more good carpenters with stubby fingers due to a jointer than anything else.The most dangerous things I've seen on any job are people.Ed. Williams
*I think that people are confusing fear with respect. I fear/respect every tool that I own.........some more then others sometimes..............lol
*I think I misworded this post, What I meant to say was, perhaps,i What tool that you own are you absolutely sure is out to make you a cripple?You don't have to be scared of it, just owning it like you might own a reformed police dog.Not calling anybody a sissy,Clay
*To me the most dangerous and feared tools to use are the ones owned by other people that remove the guards or safety devices. I once worked a job with a trim carpenter who removed all the safety mechanisms from all his pneumatic nailers and the guard off of his chop saw. When I arrived on the job he told me that I didn't have to unload my tools, that I could use his. My response was "no thanks, I can't afford it"I feel that the guards and safety mechanisms are put there for a purpose and once you are used to using tools with them in tact, using someones tools without them is a real accident waiting to happen.
*(Smartest response so far...) Tools are like guns, it takes a person to make things happen.I've yet to see a circular saw, shaper cutter, or pistol leap out, and attack someone.If you're tired, sick, distracted or unsure of your footing, handhold or operation... stop.
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i woud have to say the most dangerous tool is the utility knife, I have never had a problem with it, But I have seen some verry experienced carpenters slice themselfs real good A few I know even cary tape with them.
*I have to agree with last post.The utility knife cant do the damage of power tools but because they are so simple they dont command the respect they deserve.
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So I think the consensus puts circular saw, ladder, and utility knife at the top of the list. I notice these are also the tools that get used the most, so i guess we're likely to mistake them for an old friend or take them for granted. I like the good advice here.
Anyone think a handheld router is kind of frightening? It's pretty powerful, it's one of the few power tools with a hard-to-reach power switch, and it has just those little knobs to hold it. If you dropped one in your lap...
*You missed the post a long time ago about the first generation circular saw someone's dad set down on the floor ... it turns out the power switch jammed on ... and maybe they hadn't invented guards yet. Report was it took three wild trips around the room before it running over its own power cord and crashing in a shower of sparks.One of the funnier stories of demonic possession.
*Owwweee! Dang Andrew, that hurts!Alot of routers come with triggers, and usually you can lock the trigger down, if you want to use it in a table scenario. But yeah, mine looks at me funny sometimes too....
*I'm using tablesaws and routers constantly and carefully; never had an accident so far. Thinking back over the last couple of years, the only two serious accidents with people in my life came from 1) a spinning router dropping out of a router table, and the operator tried to catch it. He's pretty much lost the use of one hand. 2)Jointer accident-could have been a lot worse, I've heard of some bad ones. Personally, I'd put ladders and air nailers at the top of my list. That story last year in FH about the guy getting a backfire into his heart still gives me the willys.
*So far so good with the power tools but my partner and I call the utility knife "the silent killer". Might not kill you but sure can ruin your day in a hurry.
*JonC mentioned the comparitive safety of a bandsaw. Well. let me tell you, unless everything is squared up, level, or plumb it'll get you. Almost lost my thumb--didn't go deep enough--because the blade was cattywampus to the table. The blade wasn't tracking right and I only had a little bit more cut to make...sound familiar?Stopping to check the alignment of the parts on any power tool is one of the most important features of safe usage.Other than that, only serious injury was from a utility knife earlier this year. Sliced my index finger deep enough to warrant 7 stitches.
*yup, only stitches I've had came as a result of usin' a utility knife, once across the thumb and once in the palm of my hand. - jb
*That business with the bandsaw.... If you ever have the occasion to see a blade break and slowly but surely feed itself out the side of the table and go through someone's hand (or worse).... Well, that'll get you religion in a hurry. Other than that, every tool out there leaves me with a lot of respect. The 12" blade on my miter saw.... Something about the way it just slices through a 4x6 without a whimper..... Ever since getting a 1/2" DeWalt drill "that only looked a little bigger than my 3/8" drill..." That damn thing has got away from me more times than I care to admit. A lot of bruised knuckles from that little beast. Sam
*Man, after reading this stuff, I'm not sure I want to even get in my truck tomorrow, one of them tools might jump up and get me. :)The router and shaper always get me when I first turn them on, all that metal revolving at that RPM makes you want to buy the good bits for sure. You might not have fear of your tools, but I always plan to maintain a healthy respect for them.Thinking back some of the ladders, planks and scaffolding I worked on in my younger days, not to mention that block & tackle bo'sun chair my old man rigged up for me to work on that tank at Pella, I sometimes think I must have had an angel walking with me. LOL
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Know one has said anything about the batt. operated
saws. If you don't think those little suckers will get you........
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Does anyone know if it is actually possible to remove a finger with a utility knife? Does trying count? A good one a year ago on left index. Still kinda numb, but no more pain. Thank God for duct tape? Joe H
*I can still count to ten on my fingers! All power tool are dangerous. They will all take offence if you give them the finger! LOL.. I have been bitten by my table saw, My router and my miter saw. All three times on my ring finger left hand.If your right handed it seems that the left hand is in peril.Can't be too careful with power tools of any kind. L. Siders
*I've got a left index finger that's numb between the second and third joint from a utility knife. And once while slicing cedar shingles, I cut my pant leg clean open from my pocket down to within four inches from my knee. Never scratched my leg.Cut my boot laces with a circular saw once. Trying to cut the overhanging shingles on a newly shingles gable end. The saw slipped, I dropped it, it hit my foot and cut three laces. Once again no scratch on me. That one I would have deserved.
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Three stiches in my index finger and a nice scar on my thigh.
I agree - Utility knife!
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You're right about that gettin' your attention Sam. Whenever I break a bandsaw blade my blood runs cold until the wheels stop spinning...afraid to reach over and turn the darned thing off too. - jb
*Hey Adrian, how'd it fall out? Did the vibration cause the nuts to loosen up? Just curious as a means for precaution.
*Or the one where one of my flooring-subs plugged in the 7" orbital sander only to have it launch down the staircase I was working on... once again, someone had to plug it in before it became demonic! (While failing to check the switch).
*i Don't let your left hand know what your right hand's doin'?
*
Long ago (ten or fifteen years ago) FWW had an article (illustrated with a drawing of a hand missing 1.5 fingers -- chilling!) about table saw accidents. Very analytical and statistical. One of the major points of the article, if not THE major point, was that in the responses of those surveyed (all actual accident victims) one, two, or three of three key phrases kept popping up: (1) It was late. (2) I was tired. (3) I was in a hurry. Over and over again. Accidents rarely just happen.
In construction, it's probably the circular saw (Which is a rotary blade with a small mobile table.) In woodworking it's probably the table saw, which is the tool that virtually everyone has, and can perform so many functions. (And almost every one removes the guard from.) Buck
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That tool over in the corner that I've gotten real comfortable with is probably the most dangerous one. It could be a table saw or a 1/2" drill or just a little old utility knife. All of these have done something to get my attention over the years when I've gotten a little complacent. That picture of the router lap dance Andrew was addressing was especially disturbing AAGh!! Mad Dog had a good point to. Never trust your welfare to someone else. Some people chock their guards up, some people use tools that shouldn't be used, and You should never climb on anything before giving it at least a good once over. Remember that all safety manuals are written in someone's "red ink". Good Luck to all, Skip
*Let's see...Shot myself once with a loaned nailer that fired when the nose trigger hit the wood(mine only fired sequentially..nose trigger then finger trigger): Same job another guy shot himself with the same gun...tried to stop a chainsaw one time with gloved hand, fastest reflexes since Superman...tripped one time when I tried to work after giving blood, BIG ankle and knee. Framing one time and my partner-for-the-day hit a nail off-center and drilled me about a 1/16 from one eye(fortunately head first).Yes, on consideration I'd say the most dangerous tool for me and everyone else here is...US. The last time I saw the statistics construction was more dangerous than police or fire work and ranked right up there with lumberjacks and commercial fishing. I think that thing between our left and right ears is the tool that makes it so dangerous.
*Clay; I wasn't there when it happened, but that's the assumption. It happened to be a Porter Cable plunge router (the big one), so it was the router-table connection that messed up. In my shop, we are really careful with the P-C fixed base routers; we have to put a wrench on the knob to tighten it so it won't vibrate loose. You can buy after-market swivel cranks ofr them; I'm going to order a couple.
*We seem to be lucky to not have a ton of injuries in our shop. I've taken several guys to the ER to get nails pulled, but nothing too serious. One incident comes to mind, though. Two guys working on our wall panel line were horsing around. One of them was using a staple gun to fasnet OSB on a wall panel. The other guy apparently walked up behind him and startled him somehow. (Don't know exactly what happened - pretty sure they didn't tell us the truth) Anyway, the guy had the staple gun pulled up by his armpit when he turned around, and had his finger on the trigger. He managed to shoot one of those staples into the other guy's chest - right through the breast bone. (1 1/2 wide crown staple)The guy realy panicked - he thought he was going to die. He immediately thought he was having trouble breathing, had blurred vision, etc. They took the staple out at the ER, and he was fine. We also have a fair amount of eye injuries, but none have been serious so far. We have a hard time getting the guys to wear safety glasses.
*Hands down (no pun intended), for me, it's the chainsaw, trimming branches from a felled tree is the worst. Have several pairs of jeans with chain sawrash on them. And a couple of little nick scars on legs. Quit working for the day after each one!
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Have been byopsied by miter saw, shears, utility knife,
chisel, belt sander, carving knives, with no more than a few
stitches to show for it. Lucky knot to have any serious
tool injuries but show a lot of respect and watch the other
guy a lot too. I'll put in a vote for the radial arm saw
(had a bad kickback 15 years ago while ripping) since no one
else mentioned it. Only use it for ripping now when
completely without option.
MD
still have 'em a
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yes, i have the PC 690 with the power switch in a silly spot ... and the motor is powerful enough that you feel some impressive precession (remember physics?) just moving it around! ...
The motor's ability to slip out of its sleeve is very disturbing. You should have to pop up a latch or some other positive action before the motor is removable ... someone oughta sue :) i've been wondering the way it screams along just how hard it could throw a chunk of carbide if it hits something (please don't tell me, i'll be afraid to use it) ...
but i do like the router otherwise ... definitely a safety glasses tool ... and a lot faster/safer for profiling than a utility knife :)
*about that d*mn guard -- i don't use the saw a lot, but when i do i'm virtually always doing partial depth cuts of some sort where you can't have it there ... it's such a pain to put it on and off every five minutes that of course i want to skip it. i have learned to appreciate the splitter's benefit
*(6) your cell phone actually has a chip inside it which allows the CIA to monitor your thoughts. Otherwise it's OK.
*After reading everyone else's messages, I feel comfortable added my moment of stupidity, and yes it was with a utility knife.I was trimming off some glue off a cabinet and the glue kept sticking to the blade...as glue should. So ya just gotta wipe that stuff off. In comes the jeans. A quick swipe and no more glue. Of course there is a 3 inch cut in the pant leg. Here is the lucky part...didn't break the skin. The stupidity angels were watching this one.
*This is second hand from my days of safety training when I was an assistant maintenance foreman for a large steel company. Apparently the maintence people had made a practice of goosing each other with the nozzles on the compressed air lines. One individual reportedly got a sufficient blast up his rectum that it perforated his intestine and he died from it. (Sort of reminds me of that old joke with the punch line - wrecked um, hell, it killed him...)
*
Air should never be injected into any human orifice, no
joke
*
An AJC hammer. Also known as a mangler. It is like a roofing hatchet, but at the hatchet end is a blade similar to a utility knife for you to use to cut composition roofing and yourself.
*And I've been worried about hitting my head with the claw of my regular hammer!
*The only thing that's ever sent me to the emergency room was a pocket knife (4 stiches in the fleshy part of the thumb), but I agree that the one I'm most wary of is the battery operated saw. They're handy, but are so undertorqued that not allowing them to kickback takes very cautious use.
*All this talk got me to thinkin' a little more about near misses and such and led me to thinkin' about spinning things- like lathes. Always had a pretty good respect for this sort of thing- lots of stored energy and such. Anyway, having spent a lot more time around machine shops than woodshops has afforded me the opportunity to witness a few bonehead moves too... Like the guy with about 4' of 2" bar stock hanging out of the back end of the headstock unsupported. This happened on a newer lathe that was computer controlled and was able to compensate for the change in surface feet as the tool progressed toward the center- it speeded the lathe up as the radius decreased. Anyway, the guy has been working away at this bar stock with no problems until he decides to face it off. As the tool nears the center of the bar, the RPM increases ever steadily until WHAM! the unsupported end promptly turns 90 degrees (at about 2000 RPM), takes a HUGE divot out of the concrete floor, breaks the head stock loose from the lathe (attached with 3/4" bolts), uproots the lathe from the floor and finally breaks free. And no one gets hurt. Never happened again that I'm aware of. Make sure whatever you're turning is firmly attached/glued/secured....Sam
*Was talking to a plumber during lunch yesterday. He said "Well, I spent 15 years cuttin' trees before I started plumbin." I sez: "You mean, like climnbing up high with chainsaws and all that?He responds "yep"I sez: "Oh so that hows come your missing 1/2 of your pointin' finger."? (index finger, left hand)He sez: "Nope. I wuz drunk and was cuttin' some 2/4s up for firewood with a skill saw".I sez: "Yea? well what happened"? Kick back on ya?He responds "Naw, I forgot to move my finger. Didn't hurt till the next day."Duh!!!!!!!!!!!!
*The thing I've realized with this post, carbide tipped blades don't really cut you, a bandsaw will actuallyi cutyou. A carbide blade just sort of bangs its way through flesh, wood, etc. at a high enough RPM that is resembles a i cut in the right material, the wrong material just looks like mangled meat.
*I had a similar one. We were doing a remodel, and the hardwood flooring sander kept poping the breaker on the 230V dryer circuit all the way across the house and downstairs (about 120Ft of extension cord).The flooring guys' apprentice when down to reset the breaker AND FORGOT TO TURN OFF THE SWITCH ON THE SANDER.He came back up to see what the screaming was about, and the sander was imbedded in the wall between the dining room and hall closet.Very impressive.
*... something tells me they may not have reported the whole story ...
*
I would have to weigh in with my wire strippers being the one tool that scare the daylights out of me... I amm constantly re-thinking it - "is this line REALLY dead??" Once you've been bit by a volt of 110 (or 220!) and had a pair of dykes blown out of your hand, you never quite get over it!
A little fear and a lot of respect can go a looooong way in this business!
*While I am new to woodworking I have had a long history with machinery and tools. It seems to me that situations always developed around tools not being used for their intended purpose, tools being "fooled" with, tools being handled or worked with by someone (sometimes me) not completely familiar with them and tools being used by someone not totally focused on the tool and what it is doing.I am glad to say that I can still count to ten without removing my shoes and socks and to twenty without repeating a finger or toe. However, a few scars that I have aquired have caused me to gain a huge respect for hard, hot, heavy, sharp, motorized things.My dad and I lived in Australia for a year and a half from 1966 to 1968. We worked at Mt. Isa Mines in Mt. Isa, Queensland. To find it on a map just go up the east coast of Australia until you come to Townsville. Turn left and go a thousand miles.The maintenance people had a thing called "danger tags". Each person that worked on a system would tie his own, signed tag on the main power switch. Nobody could touch that tag or close the switch until all tags were removed. Still, nine guys were killed there in 1967. Not all by machinery. Some fell down holes - it was a deep mine. But, I do remember that one guy was killed when someone started a roaster rotating while he was in it.I was slag-skimmer on the copper-smelting furnace and my only real injury was caused by safety equipment. A dollop of molten slag (2500 degrees) splashed out of the launder while I was running it out and lodged in the top of the asbestos gater I was wearing on my lower legs. Had I not been wearing them the slag would have bounced off. As it was I found out what a third degree burn felt like.
*
I was director of maintenance for hotels and medical centers for several years. Everytime we worked on any equipment that could hurt you, we locked out the power (electric, air pressure, hydraulic) with padlocks. Each mechanic had his own lock and there was only one key for each. Sometimes we'd have a dozen pad locks on one switch and the power stayed off until everyone was accounted for and removed their respective lock.
I was a mechanic for a major state university that shall remain nameless in the State of NJ, city of New Bruswick. They had the same procedure on paper but didn't even own the lockouts. I was working on a 277V three phase circuit that I had shut off and got a good shock. A student called to say the lights were out and another mechanic turned my circuit back on.
*The new alarm clock! That frikken thing scares me and the missus to death!
*You have those things down in your neck of the woods Jim? Wow, I thought those things were only allowed in the big city......Sam
*Hey! Speakin' of scary tools, have you fired that planer up yet? And what's this lame excuse about "prior commitments" on the 20th? :-) - jb
*Mike, I will agree the roofing hatchet can be pretty scary.When you are hand nailing you are gonna swing that thing at least 5,000 times a day,and a lot of those swings will require you to bring that blade right back at your face.Believe it or not,that isn't the dangerous part.The couple hundred times a day you put it in,and take it out of your hammer loop on your tool belt is where guys seem to get cut.Climbing ladders with that open blade flopping around on your belt is also nasty.For all those reasons,all the roofers we deal with immediately discard the knife blade on the hatchet.It doesn't cut that neatly anyhow,and we prefer the accuracy of a hook blade in a utility knife.good Luck,stephen
*Oh yeah! Fired that sucker up a couple of weeks ago and yeah, it's scary! I'm gonna' have to fab some guards for those belts- they're just waiting to grab something and get down to business- nasty. Other than that, it's just great although I'm going to put some wheels on it- that thing is HEAVY. Sam
*Couldn't resist adding to the chorus of voices claiming the table saw to be a most dangerous tool. When I was a carpenter's helper I once tried to use our table saw to crosscut a chunk of 2x6. The circular saw was on the other side of the house and in my naivete I figured a table saw was just a circ. saw without a handle. Needless to say, the blade made it halfway through the board before shooting it straight back into my stomach. I was too ashamed to tell anybody and hid my pain, but I wore the bruises for a month afterwards. I'm still too scared of the damn things to remove the guard and kickback pawl on my own saw, even though they're such a damn nuisance...
*OK, I'll 'fess up. I think those guards and splitters on table saws are hazzards and in the way. They block the path of the material and my line of vision. I don't use them. - jb
*
I wouldn't say I'm really scared of any tool. Though some can make you take notice. I don't know about you guys, but I think I'm more afraid of some of the chemicals in the products we use than I am of tools. It's the sneaky, quiet stuff that gets ya.
*I'm afraid of that banana peel laying on the pavement outside the shop door, left by some passerby kid. Of course carrying a heavy box obstructing my vision doesn't help either. All kidding aside, I'm afraid of all of it and if I stay well slept, well fed and watered I'm OK. Don't forget the safety protection too.
*
My current "widow maker" is a cheap framing nailer made in communist china, that ricochets nails out the side about every 50th nail. You never know where it is going to go.
Its a back up for my Senco framing nailer, and I only let subs or day labor use it, but when they do, I leave the room.
Someday, I'm going to give it to my building inspector as a present.
*I would have to say cutting a 3/8" thick return on my miter saw when Im down to a 4" piece of stock and the stock is from a molding that is no longer available. Almost lost a finger like this. The tools I know are dangerous (skil saw with a wedge in guard for cutting stakes; chainsaw; planer; shaper; table saw with guard removed;etc) I tend to be more careful with. Its those "safe" tools or being in a hurry that I find most dangerous
*Yes, I almost lost a finger on a dumb*ss maneuver like that, too. I thanked the saw afterward for teaching me a lesson without any permanent damage. A backer block makes it a lot safer...
*Never, ever, wipe up the blood. Leave the blood stains near the killer tool for all to see. Now, if the person who "donated" the blood happens to be a needle-sharing druggie who visits brothels in Haiti and doesn't know what a condom is, well...first revisit your hiring practices. Then, dress up the day labor in a HAZMAT suit and have him hose down the area.
*Gee, Mongo, I'd think you'd be more likely to drink the blood. :)
*
A cheap table saw with the wrong blade.. Kick back. "Use mine if you have to make a few cuts" No way dude.. I'll bring mine up three stories for one cut.
*
Roof brackets not nailed into a rafter. Helped a customer install some solar collectors on a roof he staged. He stepped onto the next plank and the bracket tore loose and he fell one storey into a newly poured footing with rebar sticking up every two feet. How he managed to fall between the rebars and only break an arm was God's little gift that day.
*I've worked for eight different contractors and have yet to work with a table saw with one of those guards, even the one I bought second-hand was guardless. I see 'em in the catalogs but just thought it was stadard m.o. to remove them. Actually I have worked with those little rubber wheels that flip up and they seem to work quite well, if I had the $$$...
*Hello Ken, Long time no see. How you doing?James DuHamel
*Early in my career as a framer we used a powder actuated tool that shot a wadded .38 caliber cartridge and BIG pins. It was called a Ramset Jobmaster 38 I think. Every body was nervous when that little gem was out being used. Especially on the days we were attaching wood plates to steel I-beams. Does anyone else remember this tool or have I had too much sunshine in the Golden State? Marshall Winn
*Just the crap between my ears, which sometimes runs far ahead of what my body can manage! However, the crap between my ears is also my greatest safety device.
*
I would say it's my 1/2" right angle drill. I dont know how many times I've had the thing bind on me and wrench my arm or smack me in the head when I was drilling overhead.
*
Yup....TABLESAW...got my pins out last week. 2 tablesaw accidents due to exhaustion....and still have all 10 fingers...(knock on wood...a lift of it). The pain is just not worth it, play safe guys.
*
I would think that when people don't have a healthy fear/respect of their tools, that is when they are more likely to be injured. I think it is fairly safe to equate a tool with an automobile. To better protect oneself, one wears a seatbelt. In the shop, one would wear goggles for much the same reason. Just my thoughts....
*
My routers .......still remember a bit comming out of the sucker at 30,000 rpm, ripped right thru the bakelite base and embedded in the wall. Real particular about that nowadays .
*I'm with Scott. It's gotta be the hole hawg. It is somehow wired to my right hand, so that when it decides to hang up, my hand refuses to let go. Can't explain it. Although after pulling an errant 16 from my senco out of the meaty part of my hand, I have a whole new respect for that bad boy too.
*
Put a sears molding head in a radial arm saw to raise a panel. Guaranteed to put the fear of god in ya.
*
Back at SIU, the design department had a woodworking shop.
The only criteria for using the equipment was enrollment. One of the female students was cutting rabbits on the table saw. When the 1/4x1/4 waste shot out and penetrated the drywall 10 feet away, her comment was "Wow!".
*Isn't cutting rabbits on a table saw a bit ... messy? What, she didn't have a knife? Poor Thumper!(Rabet, ha-ha... thanks for the chuckle, my typos rhyme with the right word too) :)
*the new guy on a ladder or just walking across the sub-floor towards the stair hole.
*I also don't fear any of my tools but respect them all. Fear is a result of not understanding or mishandling your tools. We all have differing needs for tools, so in my workday I would say the tablesaw has the most potentional to do harm. After almost cutting off the tip of my finger 15 years ago I decided to get smart and learn to use it properly.Bill Swales
*I agree, you have to respect power tools. But if you find yourself actually afraid of a tool or operation it's probably for good reason. You need to step back and take a careful look at what you were about to do. Almost every accident I've had [ fortunatly few and fairly minor] there was a little voice in my head saying " I'm not so sure about this" right before it happened. Common sense will usually keep you safe. Chuck
*Chuck; you know, that little voice pipes up every time I'm going to make a mistake, too. If I find that something seems a little harder to do than it should, or I have to take a couple of tries at it, I've learned to step back. 90% of the time, I'm about to make a boo boo.
*Me too. The voice usually goes something like, "Maybe this isn't such a good i--- &*^%@(*$)!@&# where's that tourniquet!?!"If only we listened to those voices more.
*
Although no longer employeed as a cabinet maker(long time ago in a galaxy far away)... The little laminate router: It shocked our crew into how easy it was to get lax'a'dasical and develope habits that can maim if not kill. Imagine bouncing the rounded carbide tip of a solid carbide flush trimmer absentmindedly against your denim covered thigh between tabletop trimming in a run of 200 tops. Then picking up a 3hp, 1/2 inch collete router with a 3 inch carbide straight cutter...mistakes like that don't give you pieces back you can reattach.
*
Lap dance of death. (Or wish you were dead.)
*
nightmares
A 7 1/4" Skillsaw with a 6 1/4" blade and no bottom
guard. never ever ever use a saw the HotShot says "works better."
Meat is softer than wood.
*
Andrew d
I also have the 690. I had cucked in a new bit and then went to plug it it. The motor had not been tightened down into the base. The switch on the router and the variable speed contol on my belt (heretofore my back up saftey switch) were both on. The router started to run. I stupidly reached out to get the handle. I grabbed the handle and the motor spinned out of the base fracturing the aluminum housing and sending it and a chunk of the bit flying. The router barely missed my feet. I turned off the switch, closed down the shop and went upstairs to change my pants. Boy those old fashioned moulding planes are looking better and better.
Frank
*I -think- I talked a DIY at HD the other day out of putting a 7" abrasive blade in his Woodhawk.... I hope I did. I said a new circular saw would be cheaper than his deductible.
*Ouch! Yes, my two biggest complaints are those slippery little handgrips and the lack of a safety lock on the depth adjustment -- the motor housing should come free without releasing a latch of some sort. With long bits it is tempting to back it out too far. Oh well, it is a nice router....
*
I have a Stihl TS350 and the newer TS400 that I run 12" diamond blades in for cutting pavers, mostly. No problems other than worrying about what breathing the dust might do.
The scary part is using the 12" carbide "demolition" blade I picked up. The thing feels entirely different in my hands with that blade mounted!
Couldn't agree more about the "little voice" saying not to do something. That little voice is always right, unless you're Son of Sam or one of those guys.
*Got to be my radial saw. One of the FH best of books has an article in the back about tools vs number and severity of injuries. I pull it out and read it once in a while.That may be why I own 15 pairs of safety glasses.
*
The tablesaw is my choice of tools that I double my attention at....I have told others many times that if they interupt me while I'm doing "so and so," that they will get zero attention from me...And I almost never allow others to use my tablesaw...
By the by I read once that the screwdriver is number one for injuries followed closely by the utility knife....Not long ago while in a tight spot on a frustrating, hot summer day I tried to quickly change the battery in a rental boat of mine and with a quick slip jammed the blade thru part of my nose right next to my favorite eye...Felt like a knock out blow for a day or so and did heal closed so I now still have only two nostrils but I can remember how totally happy I was that luck saved my "favorite" eye.
Some on my two cents worth...Stay sharp and alert and don't let yourself be interrupted...
near the stream,
*
Jack, that reminded me of a guy I know who did lose an eye while pulling on something with needle-nose pliers. When it slipped, the pliers went right in his eye.
*
Poked myself firmly, and bloodily in the nose with a brand newly sharpened pencil today which I was holding backwards for some reason as I replaced my glasses. . .before that I woulda said utility knife about 20 times easy, can't brag about stitches though many were probably warranted...just wrap it with the paper napkin from lunch and lay on the duct tape...it's a Canuckian thing!!
Been known to lean to(o) hard into the screw gun and have it pop off the screw head an embed the bit in the end or edge of a finger.. . that's a sensation that stays with you for days.
Be careful out there
-pm
*The one that I don't own anymore , sold my wooden pumpjacks for $50 when OSHA started enforcing staging reg.s around here, and went to Alum-a-pole.Two weeks ago a contractor in town on a gable end , lost three men, they were at second floor with apparently overloaded wooden pump-jack staging when the pole exploded from the force and dropped all three onto the rocks below, two still in the hospital, one with broken pelvis. One discharged same day, apparently his fall was broken by the other two.My electrician was one of rescue on scene. We haven't heard the end of this one.The buck you save today might cost you several thou. tomorrow. Look out for your men, you are responsible for them.
*
How about the
b new guy
trying to please the boss who expects the old 12 hours work for eight hours pay. Offers to help me finish up 20 minutes prior to knocking off on a Friday.
Within thirty seconds of his arriving up on the scaffolding I have been nailed to a board with a spiral shank 12d galv. Safety at the mercy of production.
*
Yikes! What happened? Too much weight? Most pump-jacks I've been on have been the lapped 2x4 variety, was that what did it?
*Can't say, but from what my electrician tells me.....yes, 3 beefy guys plus their material, plus their tools, the usual 14' span with doubled planks, 2x4 doubled poles....... a bad nail, a missing nail (or twenty missing nails), a knot in the 2x4, don't know, he says it looked like the pole exploded....like those siding tests where they fire 2x4's at the side of building to simulate tornadoes & hurricanes.b Hey, hear the one about British Rail........they had been having trouble developing vandal proof windshields for their high speed trains.....and someone told them about the Federal Aviation Admin. doing tests with birds and passenger jet windshields....they developed a cannon that fired dead chickens at the windshield......so, Brit Rail arranges to borrow the cannon and sets up their test track and ....WHAM.the chicken goes right thru the windshield...right thru the back of the drivers seat... and imbeds itself in the instrument panel in the back of the cab.......so the engineers get on the fax machine to FAA and tell them about how puzzled they are because this is one great windwhield........FAA faxes back......(it's in the fax......Thaw the chicken.
*Mike,Great st9ory and laugh fo9r me tonight after a lo9ng day o9n the ro9ad...I'm a pilot ...had a face to9 face with a red tail hawk and his tal9o9ns a few years back in an o9pen c9ockpit ultralight...a windshield then wo9uld have been nice.number nine, near the stream,aj
*And an old story too .. I heard it as a military blunder in the early days of jets. Now I have to wonder whether it's true!
*Gee, Mongo, I'd think you'd be more likely to drink the blood. :)
*
Or rather, for you especially manly types, do you hold in the most wary regard?
*Hey Clay, The tool that I own that is most likely to get me killed sometime in my life is my van/truck. No matter how careful I am while driving, I have to contend with the other thousands of drivers out there that hold my life in their hands. A drunk, a speed demon, a young kid with no driving experience... they all contribute to make my workday very dangerous. Every other tool I own is in my hands when being used, and therefore I am very, very careful when using them. There is no outside force/people to contend with. I have a great deal of respect for my power tools. The tool that I consider to be the most dangerous, and therefore gets my utmost respect, is my 22" chainsaw. James DuHamel
*Yikes! Mine is my 10" table saw, but of course I couldn't do without it. Other than that, it's the mouse and the keyboard after three beers.I'm bettin' on the word b shapershowing up a good bit here (or maybe that should be in Knots)
*regarding tool that I "fear" the most,without a doubt, the circular saw is the tool that my fingerare closest to during operation. also, the blade continuesto turn after the switch is released.I have operated a chain saw a ton, and only when falling trees do I worry, and that is because of the tree, notthe tool.
*The one I fear the most is my circular saw. I know that all it will take is a fraction of a second to take off a finger or more. The most dangerous use is when I'm cutting something at a steep angle or very thin and my blade guard gets stuck and I need to move it by hand. I really believe that these things would be safer If I had a way to lock the guard out of the way while I start an odd cut. Once the nose of the guard is past the start of the cut, it could be free to do it's thing.The tool I've been hurt with the most is my utility knife. Only badly once but little cuts almost every week.
*Clay,
Joseph FuscoView Image"The price of apathy towards public affairs is to be ruled by evil men." -- Plato
*I don't fear any of my tools. When people are afraid to use a tool, that is when fingers get cut off.
*Most dangerous? .....That would have to be me, when I'm tired (which is often lately with school and work), pushing to beat the weather and other deadlines. Finally smartened up enough to realize it's not worth the risk.
*Well clayB, have you heard the one where the blade guard gets stuck up on the guys skil saw, and he goes to rest his arm on his hip while the blade is still turning? Two words for that deal, John Bobbit. If thats not scary I don't know what is.Joe
*1) Table Saw. By far the scariest----Even sounds scary. since I rarely need it anymore I really should get rid of it before my sons start fooling with it.2) circular saw. I figure this is gonna cut me eventually,just not today, please.3)Extension cords. For some reason dragging these through mud and rain and snow and up ladders and on roofs seems like an accident ready to happen4)air compressor. I just know it will explode one day,no matter how often I drain it.5)any ladder,nailgun,hammer,drill,roof jack,ladder jack,knife.......virtually everything I own and use seems designed to maim or kill me. Maybe I should just get one of those pansy office jobs.6)Is my cell phone really giving me a dose of brain cancer everytime I use It?Life is fatal,Stephen