Shop Safety...this happened to me

Ed Caffrey

Ed Caffrey

Joined
Jul 23, 1999
Messages
1,409
Some of you folks may be aware of my current situation, but for those that don't, I just had major lung surgery, which required that a chunk of my right lung be removed. In Sept I had a kidney stone, and during the CT scan, the Docs discovered a "nodule" on my right lung. After removing it, and getting the pathology back, it was identified as "False Lymphoma". It is malignant, but not cancerous, but if not discovered early and removed, almost certainly turns into cancer.

We did some research on this, and found that in 90+% of the cases, its caused by an "outside Stimulus", meaning exotic dusts, fumes, etc. At 46 years of age, I'm way too young to be loosing parts of my breathing hardware! I have always worn a respirator while working in the shop, but never paid much attention to the quality and function of the mask. That just took on a whole new priority for me, and I implore everyone to take it seriously too. I thought I was 10ft tall and bulletproof.....but this has proven that we need to protect ourselves when working with the types of things we do.
Do yourself a favor, if your not protecting yourself while working in your shop, please think about the long term effects, and take care of yourself! Safety glasses, gloves when required, and GOOD lung protection.

I've been down for nearly three weeks now recovering from the surgery, and I would not wish this on anyone!

I thought I would edit this to include something that might drive the point home.... This is what they did to me to remove the tumor.
Surgeryaftermath.jpg
 
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God bless you. Get well soon.
 
Good to hear your doing better. I really need to invest in a good mask. Thanks for making me think about it.
 
You're blessed that they found and removed it early as they did. Thank you for your post, as it can hopefully start some people thinking about better lung protection.

After a long bout of bronchitis and increasing shortness of breath a while back, I decided to get serious about lung protection as well. Luckily for me, that only cost me a few months of inconvenience, and it occured after only limited shop time, hopefully before more serious damage had a chance to occur.

Ed, may I suggest something along the lines of the Breathe Easy system from 3M or something similar. Or, with your shop inginuity, you could come up with a fixed mount, filtered, supplied air system set up similar to a shop compression system with quick disconnects that allow you to freely move about without the added weight of a motor/filter pack. You just unplug and change locations and plug back in. I started using the Breathe Easy system a few months back, and I love it. It's refreshing for the most part, the weight isn't too bad, and it has eye protection built in. I've never even caught a whiff of scent from grinding woods and micarta or even when using solvents. The positive pressure means no particulates or vapors slipping through and into your lungs unless they manage to get through the filters.

Best wishes on your continued recovery, Ed.

--nathan
 
Ed,

First off its good to see you coming back around. I know it was hell for a few weeks!

I just recently started wearing a half mask, do you think that would be ok long as I keep the filters clean? or should I go with a full mask?

I started out with them cheap paper masks.....every night I would come in to shower etc and would be blowing out black death through my nose and out my lungs. Scary stuff.

Anyway, thanks for the heads up and we are all thankful to have you back brother. Might post this on KnifeDogs too:thumbup:

See ya around Ed.

45Warrior/Chris Martin on KD
 
WOW, thank you Sir for this post. I met you a couple of years ago, at the Bladeshow in ATL. You seemed to be the nicest of all people.
I wear the respirator when working with some woods and G10, but hate it enough that I only wear when "recommended". Maybe I should rethink that.
Sorry you had to go through this, I hope and pray for your full recovery, or as full as possible. Dan
 
I agree completely

Sure masks are hot, sweaty, uncomfortable, difficult to fit over beards and overall a PITA, but...

As an asthmatic, I pay attention to good personal protective equipment.
At a minimum I use a good half mask with VOC/Formaldehyde cartridges.

Fumes and dust set me off and when I'm severely triggered it has progressed into a touch of Pneumonia...

Its a real attention getter to wake up drowning from the fluid in my lungs and wondering if I am going to die today before I can get help and get it under control.
 
Being 16 years old and totally new to Bladesmithing this is good to hear, I can take initiative in the protection of my lungs (wich I never though of doing, I just figured hands and eyes). Thanks.

I hope you get well soon.
 
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Good advice Ed, thanks for bringing a reality check to us dust makers. After a days of grinding while wearing a mask, if you have black accumulated in you nostrils ( black buggers) then a better mask is inperative. I wish you a speedy recover while God looks over your shoulder and continues to talk care of you. Thank God he sent you an early message.
 
And remember NOT to smoke ciggs of any kind:thumbup: Good luck in your BS.

45

Kingdom said:
Being 16 years old and totally new to Bladesmithing so this is good to hear, I can take initiative of protecting my lungs (wich I never though of doing, I just figured hand and eyes). Thanks.

I hope you get well soon.
Click to expand...
 
Best wishes on a speedy full recovery.


Just out of curiosity what is a good respirator? I asked for one as a birthday present and got one from the Home Depot as a gift. It was I believe the best one they had at the store. Says it's good for working with pesticides, Asbestos, and spray painting. It also say it meets the requirements for OSHA and NIOSH P100.
 
Ed,

I am sure sore to hear your news, but take heart nonetheless at a good prognosis. Thank you for taking care of my favorite bladesmith. Not only are you a damn fine man and a pleasure to talk to, we need about 40 more years of your work to inspire and teach us.

Thank you for your post. It is a great reminder for me because I need to get a new one today in town before mixing a bag of Castalite.

They are a pain, require a shaved face and get in the way of goggles and glasses, but need to be worn fer sure.
 
Ed, good to hear that they caught it before it turned into cancer and that you're recuperating. You makers better listen up, this is important stuff!

Alot of you wear respirators, which is great, but I have a few words of advice. I work in the environmental field and here's a few things that you have to keep in mind.

1: Make sure the mask fits your face. If you stop up the breathing holes and breath in, do you get good vacuum? If not, the mask won't help you that much. Each manufacturer's product has an optimal fit on a different-shaped face. I think if you call tech support at Grainger or McMaster-Carr they should be able to help you out. If you want to be extra careful, there are doctors and other providers that can do a fit test on you to see if you maintain vacuum when talking, turn your head to different angles, look down, etc. If you go up or down over 10 pounds, get teeth removed, etc. the shape of your face changes - make sure that mask still fits.

2. If you have facial hair, you might not be able to get a good fit, again, different manufacturers masks react differently to facial hair. If at all possible, shave the day you're going to wear the respirator.

3. Don't try to use your filters longer than you should. In industry, you chuck your filters after each shift. I know that that's fiscally impossible, but don't use it until it clogs up, it may have stopped working way before that.
 
I edited the initial post to include a photo of what they did to me...in hopes that it will drive the point home....don't let yourself have to go through this!
 
Speedy recovery and happy Holidays....
 
Ed,

I have seen the earlier posts about your surgery and am glad to see you are doing well.

I had no idea this could be associated with the dust created from grinding knife materials!

I have a quality respirator and use it "Most" of the time. I will be using it "ALL" the time from now on, as well as my safety glasses and other items to protect me from the dangers of the shop.

Thanks for posting this and giving some of us a little wake up call...

Get Well Soon,
 
Thanks for the safety reminder. The photo will help make me more diligent about wearing the respirator! Get well, and stay well.

Phil705
Winthrop WA
 
Heart felt best wishes on your recovery. I have been fighting different lung issues since about 1980. Proper protection is a must. Now at 53 I have breathing issues every day.
I never thought about saftey in my own shop until the first time I was cutting a peice of antler. I will be praying for you and yours. God Bless Uncle T. Tim
 
That photo certainly drives home the point. Prior to your health problems, I bought a very expensive 3M system with the full face shield, helmet, etc. Ever since I bought the thing I have been suffering from some buyers remorse (i.e. how many belts/bars of steel could I have bought with all that money). At this moment all that second guessing is gone. I'm glad I bought it and I'm not looking back. Thank you and best wishes on your recovery.:thumbup:
 
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