Spinning helicopter of death

J

Jason Fry

Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
Joined
Jun 5, 2008
Messages
3,159
Don't do it! Use a clamp!

Lucky, no stitches this time.
 
you know there is going to be a story about a guy who downs a burglar with a flying piece of steel, right? It is bound to happen eventually.
 
The sad thing is almost everyone here knows exactly what you are talking about from personal experience.
 
I even had a piece of steel in a vise and as I drilled a hole in it it came loose and began to helicopter. I hit the "off" button before the blade came off the drill bit. I learned that its important to check everything twice before hitting the "on" button. And I changed my shorts!
 
I keep a cross slide vise clamped to the table to hold everything that gets drilled.

Wayne Suhrbier
 
insanity said:
I keep a cross slide vise clamped to the table to hold everything that gets drilled.

Wayne Suhrbier
Click to expand...

I have one of these too and I'm very glade I do. Makes drilling in metal easier. Mine is actually bolted to the table.
 
Sadly, I knew exactly what the original poster was referring to before I ever opened the link....glad everyone's ok!
 
Same here, but I was hopeing for pics.
And the boss wonders why I go thru the trouble of setting up a trip pin for anti rotation and sometimes a bar to limit climbing the bit. Yep, been there, done that. Sad part is you know sooner or later, it'll happen again and you might not get as lucky. Just the hazzards of power tools.
 
Uggg...been there. I had a clamp fail awhile back on my drill press...my first instinct was reach "up" and hit the off switch. That put my hand right in the path of the spinning blade. A trip to the ER for stitches and I ordered a foot pedal for it too. It healed up good though, no loss of movement.
3925946428_0c907faefc.jpg

5535371047_145ceba4b8.jpg
 
Yup, same here :o Got away with only barked knuckles, no bad cuts. I like the big Vise-Grips with jaws shaped like a C-clamp to actually hold the workpiece (quick release, pretty solid) and a regular C-clamp solidly on the table just to act as a stop.
 
Wolfjohn said:
Uggg...been there. I had a clamp fail awhile back on my drill press...my first instinct was reach "up" and hit the off switch. That put my hand right in the path of the spinning blade. A trip to the ER for stitches and I ordered a foot pedal for it too. It healed up good though, no loss of movement.
3925946428_0c907faefc.jpg

5535371047_145ceba4b8.jpg
Click to expand...

that's a nifty scratch you got there... ;)
 
This may be a silly question but... How is it that you guys are putting sharp blades on a drill press? Am I the odd one out for never getting myself in this position? I also use steel dowel "pegs" or the vice jaws as limit stops to prevent spinning. You should always be mindful of pinch points when using limit stops.
 
I can't speak for anyone else Rick, but I do know that a 90degree "edge" can wallop/cut you pretty bad at 2000 rpm or whatever it works out to with a 4 or 5" piece of steel whirling around. I try to treat every workpiece as if it's fully sharpened and hot to boot. Helps keep me from grabbing things that are hot but don't look like they are :D

EDIT: NEVER grab, jump back and let it fall. You guys know what I mean.
 
Maybe I take for granted what 14yrs of working in a machine shop drills into your head (pardon the pun). Anything in my workshop that is spinning above 600-700rpm is usually smaller than 1/8"dia, so if it binds, it breaks... and if it should get loose, whatever it hits will snap the bit, too. Keep in mind, that I am talking about drills, c'bores and chamfer tools, on belt driven units. I can stall out both machines under my own power. Once you get into milling machines and drills with huge torque, you shouldn't have you hands anywhere near the workpiece.
 
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