Dangerous tools

G

gredpe3

Joined
Sep 22, 2012
Messages
442
There has been a recent post about Grinders being dangerous,and I totally agree.They dont scare me because I use and have used one for many years.I just got a Table Saw,now talk about scary. That is one dangerous piece of equipment,it has has my utmost respect.After I use the thing some maybe i'll get more confident using it. I have never been around one so it is all new to me.
Eddie
 
The faster any tool cuts, the more dangerous it is. Things spinning at 3600 RPM and having piranha sharp teeth can maim beyond belief.
 
I'm beginning to think that the purchase of all power-tools should require proof that the buyer has at least taken a high-school shop class and can pass a basic proficiency exam.
 
My dad was the manager of a furniture store that made all their wood products and he bought mostly Sears craftsman tools like table saws and some table tools I never did learn the use of but the tools were replaced after about 5 years of manufacturing use. He would buy some of the tools and bring them home for his shop use as stress busters. I remember my mom having to call family friends on occasion due to him planing a finger or knuckle to haul him to the ER to get sewn up! That stuck with me and I never even considered going into the woodworking business but went to the metal end as a mechanic and in the wrench twisting end rather than the machining end.
 
I work in a machine shop in the summers, and have seen some dangerous tools, the grinders are pretty bad, I've only tapped my knuckles against them, but they can screw you up easily, same with bandsaws and mills.

But, in my humble opinion one of the most dangerous tools in out shop is a pedestal bench grinder that has a wire brush on it. It is VERY easy to have things pulled out of your hands and thrown. We actually take the ocea required guard off of it because it is safer that way as it throws things down instead of around the guard and back at you if you have small parts. I have personally witnessed both of these and have had things pulled out of my hand and thrown, it seems to me that it is easier to hurt yourself beacause people don't respect them as much either, then again, that is just my opinion

I do believe that anything that has a high rate of speed can seriously tear you up....badly, but most of these people are much more careful around than a spinning wire brush
 
Buffers and lathes..... When I worked in the cabinet industry our big HP table saws and cyclone saw were really scary.
 
I don't like table saws either. I'll use a bandsaw whenever possible.

Chainsaws are very dangerous too, never used one for knife making but I've built a big log house with them and wow, I won't hand one to just anyone.

Metal lathes can be quite dangerous too. I recall the woman who died at a school lab running one recently. That chuck has invisible parts at speed.
 
Any and all tools can be dangerous, whether in the most professional hands or the most ignorant. Just a risk of the trades, I feel safer using any power tool than driving to work on the freeway. Life is dangerous by nature. I just accept the risk.
 
Everything is dangerous including the razor sharp blades that we make. One idiot ended up going to the ER
for stitches after cutting himself with a knife I made on display at a Renaissance fair. The next weekend
that vendor had dulled all edges of the blades for sale there.
 
Salem Straub said:
I recall the woman who died at a school lab running one recently. That chuck has invisible parts at speed.
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Right down the road at Yale University if my memory serves me correctly. And it was only a few years ago. Young student went into the lab late at night and didn't tie her hair back. Breaks my heart to think of that.

I work at one of the largest machine shops in the region (aerospace manufacturing) and there is extreme danger in every aisle, work cell, and flow line. We take safety very, very seriously here.
 
I grew up on a farm, and learned respect for all power tools at 12 years old when I witnessed a farm hand slip and fall arm first into a grain auger. The machine stalled out when it got past his elbow. I turned the machine backwards to free his arm which was just ripped into 6" chunks held together by flaps of skin. I use chain saws, table saws routers, angle grinders, O/A welders, plasma cutters, arc welders, power planers, floor jacks and presses in my shop and around the yard. My first thought when walking up to ANY machine is "if this blows up, what is the most likely trajectory?" I have an assortment of cuts, bruises and broken bones from years of workshop experience and thrill seeking hobbies (MX racing, DH MTB, BMX racing.) While people think my hobbies are nuts, NOT having productive outlets for my ADHD brain results in much more destructive habits.
 
My step-sister's husband lost a finger to a table saw. I watched a guy turn his fingers in to hamburger feeding a piece of wood the wrong way through a bench mounted router. A female at culinary school got her hand sucked in to a meat grinder from trying to push the meat through with a sausage stuffer funnel, broke nearly every bone in her hand and she had to wait till maintainence showed up with a wrench to reverse the motor. My step-father had a faulty arc welder shoot through him and fused his wedding band to the steel frame of his welding table, almost lost the finger. An older guy I know lost all the fingers on one hand in a lawn mower accident.

Point is, be smart. Exhaust all resources to operate machinery safely to avoid dangers. Remove jewelry and loose clothing. Secure long hair. Don't take risks or shortcuts. Know what needs to be clamped and how to do it. A lathe can tear off body parts as well as launch things.
 
james terrio said:
I'm beginning to think that the purchase of all power-tools should require proof that the buyer has at least taken a high-school shop class and can pass a basic proficiency exam.
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Then I'd be stuck with files and sandpaper :(

I agree that basically everything is potentially dangerous. I recently had one damn hole I drilled that I wasn't happy with so I turned on my drill press and, even at slow speed, a broken bit flew across the garage and smacked into the wall. Of course that was the one time I wasn't wearing eye pro. Never be complacent. At least that's one thing I should have learned from being around guns all day.
 
I agree all power tools are dangerous for the most part. You need to keep you head about you and I'll be honest I did something stupid when I cut out my first blank with a hacksaw. I don't even remember exactly what I did but I remember saying to myself "this is pretty dumb" and a few seconds later while I was going nuts sawing it slipped and I drew almost the whole length of the hacksaw blade into my finger. Other than that I had a bad experience in shop class one year on a table saw. Something happened when I was cutting that caused a piece of wood rise up a bit I guess and it kicked back at me. Caught me in the ribs and ricocheted off me and slammed into a steel door about 15 feet away hard enough to cause the whole shop class to stop and look to see what happened. Luckily just got the wind knoced outta me and I had a 3/4" corner sized bruise for a few weeks.
 
strider214 said:
Then I'd be stuck with files and sandpaper :(

I agree that basically everything is potentially dangerous. I recently had one damn hole I drilled that I wasn't happy with so I turned on my drill press and, even at slow speed, a broken bit flew across the garage and smacked into the wall. Of course that was the one time I wasn't wearing eye pro. Never be complacent. At least that's one thing I should have learned from being around guns all day.
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I've done something similar with a small drill bit. The bit exploded and embedded shrapnel in my hands and arms.
 
Just like rust and gravity, Murphy's Law never sleeps. Hot and sharp stuff doesn't always look hot or sharp. Never ever grab anything in motion.

strider214 said:
Then I'd be stuck with files and sandpaper :(
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I was only half-kidding. Many community colleges, technical schools, woodworking supply places, etc offer beginning shop safety/general practice classes. That would be an excellent investment for someone without education or experience in these matters. There's a lot going in a typical knife shop on that a person probably wouldn't even consider if they haven't had it pointed out to them - or learned the hard way.

Those of us who did take shop classes and have worked in production for decades know the little tricks and instincts for staying out of trouble that a layman would never guess at - but then again, sometimes familiarity breeds complacency and dumb "shortcuts", too. I read somewhere that OTJ injuries take a big jump after a year of experience, tend to level out, then spike again a few years later.

At the very least read your manuals. The Yale Labs safety pdf is a pretty decent overview.
 
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Thats funny you say that. I saw a video the other day where Adam Savage the guy from mythbusters said the same thing about table saws.

Table saws dont bother me much because they're stationary, but chainsaws are what scares me!
 
I only injury I've rec'd so far from power tools is from a plain ole drill. I was drilling a hole in wood, had the wood on the ground with my foot holding it down. The wood slipped away, the drill twisted and broke my thumb. I've also had 2x72 inch belts blow apart. Scary as hell, but didn't hurt me. I was pushing the life of the belts, silly.
 
David Stifle said:
I've also had 2x72 inch belts blow apart. Scary as hell, but didn't hurt me. I was pushing the life of the belts, silly.
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I had the fun of learning how far I can push a belt just last night... thankfully I always stand off to the side of my grinding tools so the flying dust and debris doesn't coat me. Ended up being really lucky last night, cause the belt tore and started whipping the air in front of the grinder where I could have stood.

Definitely won't be letting a belt wear out that much any more.
 
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