LUCKY!! Whew!!

Was just grinding down a piece of steel with an 8" angle grinder. Needed to cut a bit off the end.

Grinder kicked on me with an 8" steel cut-off blade (and I wasn't paying close enough attention). Grinder hit me in the gut, edge first at full speed. Cut right through my Carhartt bibs before I shoved it away. I didn't even notice at first, but then I saw the slice in my Carhartt's.

I stuck my hand down inside my Carhartts to see if it got my T-shirt underneath too. It didn't! (Cut through my Carhartts like butter, but not my T-shirt...freaking amazing!!) I felt a hot spot on my belly just below my rib cage, but no damage.

MAN...that was a close one!!

WOW!!

ETA- Yes, I had the guard on the grinder, and it was positioned properly, but when the grinder caught it spun around counter-clockwise and hit me with the blade. I lost my grip on it so fast; it's a 5/8th HP (15A) grinder. Shame on me, but lesson learned. I already knew better, but carelessness happens, and there's no excuse.

Yikes, that is a close one. You could have been spilling your guts for sure.

Time for a drink

a reply to: caterpillage

No doubt!!

People thing grinders are so harmless, but with a cut-off blade on them they're dangerous as hell!!

Lucky day I guess!

I had a lucky day with a big chain saw once.

Wrecked a leg of my trousers as the high speed cutters just skimmed across the surface. The trousers were of a special material ... they worked as advertised. I was genuinely surprised.

Yes, I know how to use a chainsaw, but, every once in a while you have to remember that Irish saying, if it can go wrong it will.

Nice reminder for you on safety. We all need reminders every year or so as otherwise, complacency sets in.

P

a reply to: Flyingclaydisk

Love your threads!

I am sure the company that hold's your Life Insurance policy Loves's you too...Careful Man!

a reply to: pheonix358

Chainsaw chaps!

Had a buddy of mine ask me what he should get for protection gear to cut a bunch of lodge pole pines down on his place. I told him to get some Husky chaps. He got some, and then complained for weeks to me about how hot they were.

Then one day he had a stump blow out on him (burnt tree) and it tossed his chainsaw, right into his thigh. Chaps blew up and fouled the chainsaw. He was actually mad about this. The kevlar fouled the chain and stalled the saw...and then it took him hours to un-foul the chain. I reminded him, it probably saved his life! (He was out in the boonies with his elderly wife)

Crazy stuff!

I was sawing some major powerline poles once with my big Huskies. My neighbor warned me about spikes possibly in the poles, and throwing a chain. (scary thought). I must have cut 4 of those poles down (these were 125 footers) with no issues. They were like 24" in diameter. On the 5th pole I hit something and busted a chain...that's the first time I've ever had a chain break...and it was crazy dangerous!! The chain brake on my Husky locked up, but the chain snapped back and took a major hunk out of my tractor tire (behind me) about six inches from my face!

ETA - I was wearing a face shield and a hard hat, but no chaps. I got lucky.

a reply to: Flyingclaydisk

I was cutting up a log for firewood, it had been eaten by white ants and so it was more like cutting a loooong donut.

Had a King Brown snake curled around inside that I didn't know about.

He came out chopped into little bits.

King Browns are deadly, but not when in bite sized pieces.

P

Carhartt's are my daily wear here...you got lucky though!

By the way, how is your guitar playing coming? Don't go losing anymore fingers! ..or maiming them, as it were.

Two years ago I was building some timber furniture and learned the hard way about being in a hurry...

Long story short I had the wrong bit chucked in my hole hawg. The forstner bits for timber furniture have a LONG pilot point to prevent walking on the rounded surface of small diameter logs.

Being in a hurry I saw the 1 1/2" bit in the chuck and just started going.
It was not my 1 1/2" furniture bit , it was a standard 1 1/2" forstner bit with the short pilot point.

It walked right onto the top of my left hand in between the thumb and first finger.

Completely shredded the soft tissue in th blink of an eye.

I'll post pics if anybody wants em, but be warned, it's not nice.

Oh, and I should add: I do all my own doctoring, be it sutures or bone setting and casting.
That was a painful 3-4 months of healing, not to mention the remaining nerve damage that makes you want to blow chunks whenever I touch that spot now.

You are lucky. I wasn't so lucky last year. Cut a steel tub in half. The cutting was fine, used PPE, gloves no problem. Long story short, second half of the tub, I dropped it on my finger tip outside putting it to the trash.

It severed the tip. Good news though. I had the best hand doctor in TX. He could not save the tip but he was able to make a new one with skin from the side of my hand. It's damn near perfect. I still have my nail, can play guitar....amazing.

a reply to: Admitted

By the way, how is your guitar playing coming?

I'm still the worst guitar player on earth! I completely suck. I'm trying though.

(but I'm really awful) I sound like a 3 year old on a bad ritalin trip.

I think I'll go down to Guitar Center and play some Smoke on the Water riffs (some really bad ones). (just to piss people off).

You know what, I'm so bad, not even I like my stuff...but for some odd reason my ACD loves my music. He comes in the room every time I stumble around and lays on the bed and just looks at me. So there's that.

Of course, this is the same dog who rolls around in fresh cow poop to take a bath...so...I'm not going to Nashville anytime soon!

ETA - I've read so many things where people say you finger tips get sore. Mine don't. I think my fingertips are like pure oak. In fact, my guitar gets sore from me playing it! I don't think it likes me.

a reply to: Flyingclaydisk

I appreciate that update, really.

If you are playing your own music. Man you can jam anything. Please keep doing it. It's a life of enjoyment.

ETA: also, yes fingers get raw...if yours don't you are a worker. That's good... Please keep playing.

I need a distraction and this would be great. Did you find a method? A song you like that you can do with your specific fingering?

a reply to: Stupidsecrets

When I was in college, I worked in a big machine shop. I ran a 300 ton shear. We were shearing 1" stainless for NASA.

The sheets would come in on rail (on a diagonal). We'd pick them up with a crane and set them down on these posts which stuck up out of the floor, with ball bearings in them. Then we'd roll the sheets around to line them up. We had early lasers on the break; the lasers would set a line across were we wanted the cut. Then we'd have to adjust the sheet forward.

Cutting a 12' foot wide, 1" inch thick, sheet of stainless steel was something to behold! There were spectators when you did this! The whole building shuddered. I digress...

When we'd shear the steel, it was a two stage process. First the hydraulic rams would come down and pin the sheet to the shearing table (which was about 12 feet long). Once that happened, the operator would initiate the "cut" BOOM!!! It sounded like an earthquake! The whole building shuddered, and the people in a trailer park nearby would complain. The power was incredible. But here was the thing...

When the primary hydraulic rams came down, they always said keep your fingers out. AND, if you ever got your fingers caught under the sheet, they said just "shear the sheet" because the rams would not let up until the shear came down.

Yes, you would lose your fingers, but it was better than losing your life. That got my attention, as the guy running the shear!

NASA - STS 51 Lima - RIP!!

I know that sounds like a dumb story, but the reason I told it is this...

After all that, if I can get cut by a simple grinder, just not paying attention, then..wow...I guess I should be thankful.

I have gotten my forearm, bare skin, with a four inch grinder that got away from me. I have a bigger grinder too, but that is heavier and it does not seem to be as much of a problem even though it is a real big one. It is way heavier, so it might kick out but it has to be held with both hands because it is heavy. The little grinders I use one handed a lot which is more dangerous.

My plasma cutter died a couple of years ago, what a bummer, I used it quite a bit. My brother used it too, he bought one now and I can use it when I need it, but I don't do much cutting anymore. I have the torches to cut heavier stuff and also a metal ten inch chop saw. I had a blade blow apart on the chop saw one time, I was glad I had a jacket on when that blew, I also was wearing goggles.You are lucky, it makes a big gash in your skin quickly when the grinder hits your body. It took me almost a week for my arm to heal up when I hit it with the grinder that time.

Only two times I was every really hurt getting chucked of a horse, both of them were 100% my fault for not paying attention.

Easy to let happen when you get to feeling too confident. Be careful...

Back when I was with the union, I was cutting 1/2" steel plating to pass 4" rigid into a switch gear. I was wearing my PPE and cutting away. I was an apprentice at the time. My journeyman came up and asked me a question. I kept cutting while looking at her to give an answer. Grinder kicked, cut through my gloves AND face shield...not a scratch on me.

Glad you are ok FCD, I would miss your posts. Oh, and if you ever need a hand, I could use a vacation to come work for you just to witness your life for a week.

a reply to: Flyingclaydisk

I really enjoy reading your threads,you provide a lot
of useful information.