Lets talk safety gear

Will Batayte

Will Batayte

Joined
Jan 8, 2007
Messages
640
What's the gold standard in safety glasses and respirators? I currently have some cheapo safety glasses, a flip down face shield from H.F. and haven't bought a respirator yet bit will before I start grinding.

Problem is I find a lot of distortion in the cheap glasses. Is there a brand that stands out above the rest for glasses? The face shield is great. I forget I'm wearing it. How about respirators? I'll be sawing grinding different metals, woods, and g10, micarta, and so on.
 
I like the 3m 6300 respirator. Always where the shield when grinding but I also like the little cheap all clear safety glasses for general use.
 
I wear the prescription safety glasses the office provides. The key is that they meet ANSI Z87.1-2010, the new accepted US standard. If I am doing something extra dirty/dusty/messy, I wear googles over the safety glasses http://www.safetyglassesusa.com/vergraybodwf1.html. they are have foam that molds to your face and indirect venting, so it is next to impossible for the nasty stuff to get inside.
for extra dusty jobs, a good N95 disposable dust mask works. I also like to use my vacuum cleaner to get the dust before it gets in the air.
final piece that is usually not mentioned is hearing protection. I have a set of shooters earmuffs from wallyworld that cost $10, also use disposable foam in the ear canal.
a 1/2 deaf 1/2 blind old sailor
 
Didn't think of the ear protection. Then again I'm not sure how loud some of these tools are yet.

The respirator, I definately want a good one. The dust masks barely seal and I've blown my nose to find black stuff in the kleenex even though I used a dust mask. Cleaning my garage was like that lol
 
Dust masks are worthless for preventing particulates from getting in your nose and lungs. They _are_ good at protecting others around you from catching bugs you have if you are wearing the mask. Look into a good quality respirator with replaceable filter cartridges.

Look into better quality ear protection also. The good ones should tell you how much of a decibel reduction you get if wearing them.
 
http://www.galeton.com is where I purchase my safety equipment.

I am partial to the Helium line safety glasses. Whether I am headed to work in the masonry industry or just out to the shop to tinker around, I don't step out the door without a pair of Heliums.(I should get an endorsement for that plug!)

Chris
 
A 3M PAPR is my preferred method of respiratory protection. The hood also provides eye protection.

If I'm going to be in the shop for a while, I wear ear plugs and ear muffs.
 
I ended up getting the 3M 6800 fullface with p100's. I really like it. Great field of vision and no more black boogers :D
I have never worn ear protection but it might be worth it just to keep the dust out of my ears.
 
Wow that 3m papr is a serious piece of kit. A little out of my price range as of now. But maybe after I sell a whole bunch of knives.
 
I ended up getting the Trend Air Pro powered respirator. It not only has a built in face shield, but you don't have to worry about face fit (or beards). It also keeps you cool in summer. All you need are some disposable earplugs and you're fully kitted up.
Bolle safety specs are pretty good, excellent optics a variety of tints and great ergonomics.
 
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