I hurt myself

kile

kile

Joined
Mar 19, 1999
Messages
620
Just a reminder to everybody to clamp things down before drilling. I have never ever clamped a piece down while drilling, and today it finally caught up with me. I was drilling some holes in the tang of the blade to lighten it up when the bit grabbed the blade and ripped it out of my grip. It spun around and the tip took a nice gouge out of my left middle finger. I is exactly 3/16" wide, and about 1/4" deep at its deepest point. It hasn't stopped bleeding yet and it has been about 6 hours. It didn't hurt at all, but my hand was covered in blood almost instantly. Just my luck I had just used the last of my clean shop rags, so I had to rap my finger with my shirt.
Stay safe.
Kyle Fuglesten
 
Definitely get it looked at, for a variety of health reasons. Thanks for the head up on shop safety as well.
 
Get some stitches too while you're at it. They can only successfully stitch a wound in about the first 24 hours.

oh and ouch!

N2
 
Oooowww! I'd normally pinch it together and crazy glue it but, that one may be a bit too big a gash. Take care of yourself.
 
You were lucky, I know a knifemaker without a finger doing the exact thing! I hope it is better by now. I also hope that others that read this are wise enough to learn by what you did.

I am one of those, like you now, that can't stress safety enough in the shop. If it can happen, it will. The problem with safety is that the "fix" is usually not found until after it happens.

Craig
 
Kyle,
Get it checked out by a doctor.

I have all my drill presses set up with the drive belts loose, just to the point where if it grabs, the belts will slip. It sure helps me when drilling with larger bits.
 
DONE THE SAME THING! have a 3" scar on the left index from doing the same bright manuver:rolleyes: you should be on a frist name basis with the folks at the E.R. by now anyway:D :D stop by and say hello!
 
Sorry to hear about the finger -- I would get it checked out. I've had a few "helicopter" on me too. After one flew off and stuck into my wall, I decided to spend $10 on a harbor freight low-profile drill press vise.
 
OUCH!
Hope it heals up.

Another thing that I like to do is keep a 1X4 or 2X4 on the back of the drill press table. Doesn't give the blade room to spin.
Clamping is the best thing though, although it is kind of a pain.
 
DOH!

A lesson we all learn the hard way, and still push our luck on way too often. Just that "quick" job to ream a hole one size larger, and suddenly we're bit BAD.

I had a screw-style hold down that clamps to the worktable (if it has slots) for years. Recently I switched to one of those half-vise-grip jobs. I position it, so that if it still spins, it'll be held against the dog instead of continuous spinning. They work pretty well, and are a wise investment.

Hope yer finger heals well. I keep plenty of bandaids, antiseptic, and especially pre-made butterflies in the shop. Butterflies are just as effective as stitches at closing wounds, they just don't have the semi-permanence of stitches. Super-glue works well, too, but I have heard that it's best to get the medical grade stuff to make sure there are no monomers or other nasties in the stuff.

If it's still bleeding a lot after 6 hours, you may have nicked a blood vessel...that needs professional attention right away.

Good luck.
 
Dang, sure sorry to hear you had a little booboo there, Kyle. I find that most of the times I get hurt like that is A) when I am tired, B) When I am rushed, or rushing myself, and C) when I am distracted or have my mind elsewhere than what I am doing.

Sure sucks getting hurt. It can really dampen your spirits. Best of luck, and HEAL UP! =)
 
Ah, the old "Twirlybird"! Been there, done that. Too many times, I'm afraid.
 
Kile,
If your still bleeding after six hours you need to see a doctor because it's likely you nicked a vein or small artery. Don't let that wait. You may end up paying later on with decreased function/feeling in that digit. That blood seeping outta that wound needs to feed tissue, if the tissue doesn't get the blood, it dies.
Sooo to sum it up:
INJURIES THAT ARE STILL BLEEDING SIX HOURS AFTER THE FACT NEED MEDICAL ATTENTION.


I hope it heals quickly and fully.:D


All the best,
Mike U.
 
Hey Tracy,
How are you doing? I got a new job now, I couldn't take all the late hours. Haven't seen you on the forums much lately.

I was in a hurry when I cut myself, I was also barefoot. I went to the doctor today, and I got a tetanus shot. The finger was still bleeding at noon today, they didn't want to stitch it because there was nothing to stitch. It is still seeping right now over 24 hours later, but it has been professionally cleaned and bandaged. I had to wait at the doctor for over 2 hours just to get a shot and some antiseptic cream to rub in it.
I did buy a drill press vise today.
Kyle Fuglesten
 
Sorry to hear about that Kile. Like everyone else, done it.

The down time this year has made me a little more careful about shop hazards. I didn't think I'd be here now. One trick I use for knife drilling is to drill a hole in the plate on my press. I keep a piece of allthread with a nut about half way up near the press. When I drill a knife blade (and a lot of other things) I just drop the all thread in the hole. It's quick and stops the blade when it decides to pull a Georgie Bush.
 
Hey Kile, the move here was long and it took forever to get my shop set back up. I just last week finished up a couple I started last January and finally started grinding some new blanks. It's going to take a bit of effort to get a full batch of 20 ground to send off to Bos for heat treat...it's summer :cool:, the weather is great, the fish aren't biting and to make things worse, I've taken up golf. Haven't set up the forge yet as I'm putting up an extra garage for the toys and will have some room in there for the forge and eventually a press.
You'll have to come visit some time and we can play in the shop or fire up the forge.

Lot's of people say the buffer is the most dangerous tool in the shop. I can't argue with that but I'd say the drill press is the one that injures more people more often than any tool in the shop. I hate those helicopter blades.

Hope the new job is a good one. Maybe this one won't call you on the cell all the time. :)
 
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