Ouch! Or Vans Safety lesson of the day

[Van]

Hey Folks!
I just got some bad news from across town. A carpenter, at another theatre here in Portland, lost a finger to a table saw last Friday. I don't have all the particulars yet, as to how exactly he did it, but I do know he lost the middle finger of his right hand and almost took off the pointy finger too. Apparently the finger was just too badly mangled and they could'nt re-attach it. They were able to save the index finger, though he may never feel anything in it again.

I want all of the students and pros out there to take a second to realize that he will never again be able to;
Hold a screw gun quite right
Use a hammer quite right
Write his name, the same way.
Button his shirt, without awkwardness.
Pick his nose.
Run his first two fingers over the surface of a board to feel if he got that high spot out with the palm sander.
Make little rubber strings by putting rubber cement on his index finger and thumb and squeezing them together.

Or Flip someone the bird, < which comes in quite handy in a proffessional scene shop>

Sure he will eventually learn to compensate, but he will never be the same. All of these thing and more, because of one moment of inattentivness while using a tool that most of us carps use every day.
I , happily, admit that I'm one Lucky SOB, after 25 some-odd years of carping, I still have all 20 phalanges, and most importantly my manual digits are still in real good shape. I've had my share of bumps and bruises, even tried to put a phillips screw bit through the middle of my palm with a Makita once, once, but all in all I've been extremely lucky.
Lucky, and attentive. I don't F around when I'm running tools, and most especially when I'm operating the table saw. I've seen thumbs go flying and more than once seen the tips of 2 or more fingers get eaten.
Is this gross? Is this freaking you out ? Good !
Be Careful! You only have one body, unless you're a conjoined twin, in which case you still really only have one that it mostly yours. Take care of it. Don't take chances, if you don't know exactly how a tool works, ask someone who does. No one knows everything, < well I try> < don't tell anybody I said that> It's not worth the pain, and loss just cause your afraid of losing face. Who knows you might actually lose a face.

[gafftaper]

Thanks for the reminder, Hey Van how about starting a Carp Safety entry for the Wiki. Do's and Don'ts for operating common shop equipment safely. Another great one would be on shop tool maintenance... but safety is far more important.

[Van]

After I finish the wood products entries, I think I'd like to try that. I'l put it on my list of "Things to do in my Copious Spare Time"


< Actually, I will try that>

[gafftaper]

I would be happy to help out but I know you've cut a few million more board feet than I have so I'm not the one to take the lead on this one.

[What Rigger?]

We've these at our shops. Needless to say, my employer has deep pockets, but this device is f-ing unbelievable!
http://sawstop.com/

[Chaos is Born]

Originally Posted by What Rigger?

We've these at our shops. Needless to say, my employer has deep pockets, but this device is f-ing unbelievable!
http://sawstop.com/

Have you ever had a situation where it saved someone?

[Charc]

Originally Posted by Chaos is Born

Have you ever had a situation where it saved someone?

Well, at least it saved other people:
http://sawstop.com/why-sawstop-testimonials.htm

[Chaos is Born]

I watched that too, i'm just amazed at the responce time it has.

[icewolf08]

We had an incident last season in our shop during the build for the last show of the season. The saddest thing is, that the person who lost part of a finger to the saw was a good carp, and didn't fool around, and has been doing it for many years. I didn't see what happened, and luckily we have an EMT on our staff and work on a university campus that has a top notch hospital. Needless to say, we lost this carpenter as she found it very hard to come back to the shop.

I have also seen a friend put a pneumatic T-nail through a their hand and have to be carted away in an ambulance. I have also seen people almost get t-nails in the face when they were using a metal ruler as a guide while lidding flats. They mistakenly tried to put a nail through the ruler and the nail made a u-turn and headed for the sky.

It just goes to show you that it isn't just the big tools that are dangerous. You can do plenty of damage with hand tools or pneumatic tools or a screw gun.

I am sure we all have seen our share of bad things happen, and probably have had plenty happen to us. So be careful, don't defeat safety systems, and pay attention to what you are doing. Your hands and your eyes are your livelihood in this business, keep them safe.

[Footer]

I have (as well as 2 other people I have worked with in 2 different shops) put a wide crown staple through my finger. Luckly for me, the crow pulled through the skin and I did not hit any bone. All of the new senco wide crow guns are shipped with "speed" triggers, or single action triggers. Basicly, this means that you can hold in the trigger and just hit the safety of the gun and it will fire the next staple. Great for roofing a house, bad for putting lids on decks. These things will double fire and jump, and if your finger is in the way your finger is gettting a staple in it. If you call senco, they will over night a dual action trigger that requires you to pull the gun up, let go of the trigger, put the gun back down, then pull the trigger to fire. This stops the double firing and makes for a much safer stapler. Most senco dealers will switch out the trigger free of charge when you buy the gun.