The reason for blade gaurds on circ saws

[Rick Lucrezi]

FOr those of you who still pin up your gaurds, here is a story that will make you think next time you use your saw.
I was helping another contractor with a roof issue and he was trying to "cut in" the valley with the sheet tacked at the top with 2 sinkers. He was standing on the sheet, trying to hold it up off the deck with one hand and cutting with the other. He had a new Matsushita framing blade and the gaurd pined up. He had me worried so I got below him in case the sheet came loose. It did. The sheet came sliding off the roof whit him on it and he had a death grip on the saw which was still full throttle. I reached out to grab him and as I did he spun around and burried the saw in my hand. Took three surgeries but they saved my thumb which doesnt bend or have any feeling, but its there.
No I didnt sue, but I dont speak to him any more either.

[William OConnell]

Thanks for the post. I'm sorry about your accident.
One of mine was a chop saw tendon cut accident so my finger wouldn't go up. Surgery and it works now. One of my guys had taped up the guard the day before and I didn't notice. Again thanks these posts are usually in my mind when I'm working these days. Especially around the table saw and routers

[Jim Kountz]

Oh man when did this happen? Sorry to hear about your injury, makes me hurt just looking at it, cant imagine. I had one of my guys tie the guard on my chopsaw up out of his way so he could make a bunch of repetitive cuts. As soon as I saw it I made him stop what he was doing and he started arguing with me, telling me I was being a nervous nelly and all that. I said he could tie it back up and be unemployed or he could put it back and keep his job. He kept his job and his fingers!!

[Dewey Torres]

Rick,
This had to happen today huh?

Man that sucks!

[M. A. Espinoza]

Man, I am sorry to hear about that.

Really hits on one of my biggest peeves in the trades, "cowboy carpenters". Been around enough and luckily I was old enough and had enough experience in good shops that I knew bad practices when I saw them out in the field.

There is some saying about there are old carpenters and bold carpenters but no old and bold carpenters.

It sucks to be in a position where you have to make a decision and decide to refuse to do as told. The economy was much better when I had to deal with the issue so it was easier to tell someone no, since there was plenty of other work to be found.

To be fair, the vast majority of carpenters I've been around wouldn't push someone to do something they weren't comfortable with. And the best (of course) did things fast, safe, and tight. Those were the ones to pay attention to.

I hope you are able to use the hand OK after you are healed.

Good luck.

[Rick Lucrezi]

I should of said, this happened in August of 07. Was a bad year. In my next class about what not to do, I will tell you all what happened in March of 07. Complete with more wonderfull pics. New years resolution was no injuries for 08. Unfortunately made 2 more trips to the ER in 08 as well. I am not making any resolutions this year needless to say.:o

[Steve Clardy]

Oouh sorry to see that happen.

[Stan Urbas]

When I was in high school my dad got me started in construction. Guys could never just set down their saws - always had to drop them. Then the blade guard would get bent so they would remove them. Dad did that, too, but luckily he never got caught. It really bothered the heck out of me - I'd NEVER do that.

Years later the wife and I were at a friends house and the guy had a question for me. He was an EMT for the fire department. He said that since I had once worked in construction, maybe I knew the answer. He wanted to know why they kept getting calls for carpenters with bad gashes across their upper legs. Apparently old habits - bad habits - still linger on.

[Frank Drew]

In the past I've certainly used table saws and jointers without guards, but a circular saw with the guard secured in the up position? No effing way. I've never even seen that done on any job I've been on; gives me chills thinking about how many ways that could go wrong.

[Steve Clardy]

I've seen it done numerous times when they have a board to notch out.

[Greg Hines, MD]

Sorry to hear about your injury.

Doc

[Vince Shriver]

In the past I've certainly used table saws and jointers without guards, but a circular saw with the guard secured in the up position? No effing way. I've never even seen that done on any job I've been on; gives me chills thinking about how many ways that could go wrong.

Lots of folks use table saws without gaurds - but jointers? No effing way.

[Alan DuBoff]

Thank your lucky stars he didn't take your entire hand or arm off, or worse your torso...

Take care Rick, this will be a better year for you! Sorry to see such a bad accident happen to anyone, I'm sure it was tough for you to post such a picture.

Happy New Year! Peace, Love, and a great 2009!

[Mike Heidrick]

Lots of folks use table saws without gaurds.


One nice missle like kickback will cure that as well.

[Thomas Knighton]

A circular saw, much like a table saw, is a Whirling Blade of Death (TM). It's a motor with a blade attached. Despite all the bells and whistles, that's all it is. And yet, so many people don't associate the danger with the fact that a sharp blade is whirling and thousands of RPMs just inches away from various body parts.

When I first got out of the Navy, I worked in home construction. I got the job through my Mom, who knew the contractor's mother who also did the books for the contractor. He took me on right out of the Navy. Man...I'd have been better off with unemployment. I learned quite a few unsafe habits from these guys and didn't even realize it was unsafe. They would wedge the blade guard out of the way. It looked unsafe to me, but I just thought it was an occupational hazard:eek:

I'm glad I got a better job offer soon and could move on. I still have all my body parts thankfully!

[Larry Edgerton]

Rick

Sounds like you and I could sit around and tell some of those stories that start out with "Well, Check this out!".

I have had a fair amount of accidents, broken 62 bone, cut of 5 fingers, one twice, and three at once, one being a thumb.

I almost cut off my foot once when I helped a friend of mine that takes his guards off alltogether. First time I set the saw down I forgot and it did a nice circle that included the tip of my boot. I went to the truck and got my own saw.......

I cut one finger off when a homeowner came up behind me and tapped on my shoulder at the wrong time in 82

in 86 someone took the back guard off my jobsite jointer and I always hooked a finger over the fence when I ran stock. Got to the cutting head and.............

Tablesaw kickback in 92, not sure what happened, but I was working with my back in a back corset/brace from a broken back and on pain killers, so I am not sure what happened. Won't do that again....

Last year I was making a crib for my granddaughter, working with the door open doing a small rail part with a 3/8 dado, that was a little dull but not bad. It was one of those cuts that there is no good way to do it. A truck delivering steel started to back up and the loud beeper distracted me at just the wrong point. BAP! it kicked back and went lengthways up through my thumb, cut off the index finger I had already cut off once, and went into the knuckle on my middle finger about half way. Dado blades make ugly cuts....

Every year I say I am going to make it through this year with no injurys. This year I fell off a scaffold and broke two ribs, I consider that a good year! :)

My worst two year period was a stretch in my 40s. I broke my back twice in the same year, cut a finger off, and broke both legs at the same time, in two different accidents for a grand total of 17 bones in all. I feel like I have spent half my life in a cast.:) Ironically my dad broke both his arms at the same time the next year. He still blames me.......

Even with all this I would never "cut a valley in" but I am not under that kind of pressure for speed on the houses that I build.

That is a bad cut fella, jobsites are dangerous enough without cowboys. But the pressure to build so many sq. ft. in so little time leads to this kind of thing, and the kind of work that comes from being in too much of a hurry. I'm just lucky to work in a niche where they pay me to take my time, but that niche is shrinking with the American dollar.

[Chuck Tringo]

Sounds like alot of contractors nowadays have been watching a bit too much DIY and HGTV :p

[Rick Lucrezi]

Larry, crying out loud, thats nuts. I dont know wether to be thankfull or fearfull. I am assuming you're a bit older than me. Still in my 40s, SO should I be happy that my lists is an abreviation of yours or does this mean that there is more to come.
If you are like me, every job you do, there is a little thing in that back of your head that screams very quietly "CAREFULL" but then those little moments when your daydreaming a bit and wistling a nice little diddy and "BAM" there goes another ice tea.:(

That same year I fell off a ladder. Surgery and rehab went till mid june. I got a little over a month worth of work before my hand got cut.

[Larry Edgerton]

Larry, crying out loud, thats nuts. I dont know wether to be thankfull or fearfull. I am assuming you're a bit older than me. Still in my 40s, SO should I be happy that my lists is an abreviation of yours or does this mean that there is more to come.
If you are like me, every job you do, there is a little thing in that back of your head that screams very quietly "CAREFULL" but then those little moments when your daydreaming a bit and wistling a nice little diddy and "BAM" there goes another ice tea.:(

That same year I fell off a ladder. Surgery and rehab went till mid june. I got a little over a month worth of work before my hand got cut.

Ha! LMAO! Sounds like we may be twin brothers of different mothers. Ya, I know that attention span thing. Repetitive stuff is where I really have to force myself to concentrate. Hobbiests don't understand this so much because it is not a job, it "is" the adventure. That and sometimes I take chances because of financial constraints that hobbiests do not have on them.

One of my most comical was in the shop. I had walked away from the shaper and left it running when raising panels and my brother walked in and tossed me a sandwich. At this point I was 15 feet from the shaper. His throw was a little off and I lunged to catch it, hit a style that was hanging over the bench, with short rails stacked on top of it. The short rail catapulted up in the air, hit the raised panel cutter, came back and whacked me in the side of the head. A few stitches later........

They say "That is a one in a million chance", but when you are a pro and do a million cuts........

[Mike Cutler]

Years later the wife and I were at a friends house and the guy had a question for me. He was an EMT for the fire department. He said that since I had once worked in construction, maybe I knew the answer. He wanted to know why they kept getting calls for carpenters with bad gashes across their upper legs. Apparently old habits - bad habits - still linger on.


So,, uh, did you explain that unique plywood cutting technique to him?

"Knock on wood", The only kickback I've ever recieved came from a Makita circular saw.
I was cutting some flooring material in place, on my knees, and the saw caught a knot, or defect in the wood. It kicked back into my inner thigh so fast it was unreal. The blade guard was functioning, (but I admit I had been thinking about defeating it) so all that happened was that I had a bruise from the blade guard hitting myy inner thigh, and an instantaneous heart rate of about 250bpm.

[Al Willits]

I can only say I'm luckily not invovled in anything that requires me to take short cuts like removing saftey devices or work so fast I make mistakes...lord knows I make enough just puttering in the garage..er..shop, imho time ain't worth the injuries, far be it for me to suggest how anybody lives their life, but slowing down and putting the saftey devices back on may make your wife/kids/whatever happier.

I can't think of any mistake I've made...least ones that reqired band aids or duct tape to stop the bleeding that didn't come from not paying attention or going to fast for what I was doing, like I said, it may not be for me to say, but I'd slow down a bit if I was you guys.

These injury posts hopefully will help others be more careful, but it's gotta be hell for the poster.

And to think the wife suggested I get out of motorcycle drag racing because it was to dangerous...:D

Al