Sharp Is As Sharp Does...

[Jim Becker]

(Interesting thing is that I used that title for a thread before...)

Well..."stuff" happens. My nice 3/4" Ashley Iles chisel worked wonderfully as I was cleaning out some mortises on the side table I started this afternoon. It worked nicely on the top of my thumb, too...5 stiches worth! The cut didn't hurt and neither did the stiching...but the dang tenus shot will be "reminding me" of its presence for awhile I bet!

The moral of the story is...pay attention to what you are doing so you don't start to go too fast!

[Lloyd Frisbee]

What? No pictures? You know the rules. hehe. Sorry bout that.

[Jim Becker]

What? No pictures? You know the rules. hehe. Sorry bout that.
Yea, yea, yea...when the bandaid comes off...'gotta keep Chris happy! I wasn't in the mood for photography right after the accident, although I had just taken a shot about a minute before it.

[Lloyd Frisbee]

I really don't want to see it. Just had to give you some more grief. Hope we all learn something from your (our) mistakes.

[Ted Shrader]

Wow Jim -

Glad you are basically OK. Something important in your hand could have been severed. The old arm will be sore for a couple of days, but it will loosen up.

Regards,
Ted

[Jim Becker]

I really don't want to see it.
Chicken... :D

Thanks, Ted. Funny thing is that the only injuries I've ever had in the shop (so far...) have been with chisels. The first time sharpening them a few years ago when one slipped and today while doing some very light cleaning of a mortise. (The last one in the last leg. Go figure...)

[Bill Grumbine]

Jim, I am sorry to hear of your injury, but I feel your pain! A long time ago there was a thread somewhere asking about the most dangerous tool in the shop. My reply was the utility knife, as it was the only one that caused a trip to the ER for stitches. I guess I might need to add drill press now, but even though that one looked worse, it turned out to be not as bad.

Heal fast and I hope they gave you some good pills! :D

Bill

[Jim Becker]

Heal fast and I hope they gave you some good pills!
Heal fast...yes, that's the plan, but I'll be back in the shop tomorrow working on my side table. The new couch for the soon to be ex-dining room and newly crowned "home theater room" arrives next Saturday.:p 'Gotta be ready for it! I would have gone back in the shop tonight, except I was hungry and picked up a little cold this week. Too much sneezing goin' on...

No happy pills...no need and I generally don't take them anyway. Ex-strength Tylenol is just fine for me!

[Jerry Olexa]

Jim Sorry about your mishap. I, too, wouldn't have expected it w a chisel. Most of us expect it to happen w a big power tool of some kind. Take it easy for a while and heal quickly. Don't make my mistake and rush right back to the shop and reinjure. Take care. We need you on this forum.

[Don Henthorn Smithville, TX]

I agree about the shot. Usually worse than the injury. Keep it clean and heal fast.

[John Miliunas]

OUCH! Sorry to hear about the altercation between your finger and the chisel. Yeah, the chisel will usually win! :( I too know that one from experience. Didn't go do the stitches, though I did wrap it up pretty good. Always got to be on the lookout for them runaway chisels. Heal fast!:) :cool:

[Dave Anderson NH]

It's not the right way to start off the new year Jim. 'Course I've been there before myself, in fact 2 days after Christmas 2003 if'n you remember. I didn't get any blood on the workpiece I moved so fast, how about you? Will the oxalic acid be put to use? Inquiring minds want to know. Heal quickly buddy.

[Jim Becker]

No, Dave...no blood on the workpiece or my shirt. Definiately some "decoration" on my jeans and one sneaker...and likely the workbench. I forgot to go back out and check on that! I had a hunk of paper towel sitting right there on the bench that I was able to grab really quickly to get pressure on the laceration. The towel was covered with walnut dust, but at that point I really didn't care...I could switch to a clean one after rinsing under cold water (ouch!!).

[Dennis Peacock]

Sorry to hear about your injury Jim. Let's hope that your just getting the only ww'ing injury for 2005 out of the way now and letting it be a not so serious injury is ok. Heal quickly my friend....Just make sure that after the stitches come out, you take it easy on that area as it may be tender for a while.

[Ted Shrader]

Jim -

This is as good here as anywhere else. . . . .

Hydrogen peroxide works great for getting blood stains out. Now, I know you don't care about the jeans, shoes, or even the workbench. But in the off chance that there was a little splatter (think CSI) on the workpiece, H₂O₂ will sure help getting them off. It will raise the grain, but that can be sanded back. DAMHIKT :)

Regards,
Ted

[Mark Singer]

Jim,

Sorry to hear about it! Take a break and let it heal!!!! It happens...

[Michael Stafford]

Sorry about your injury and hope it does not interfere with either your vocation or avocation. 20 years ago I managed to cut three fingers rather badly with a fillet knife. Many stitches, much pain, miserable sleeping... Hope you are doing better and not experiencing tremendous discomfort.

[Jim Becker]

No blood on the bench OR the workpiece. I guess my aim was prioritized... :D Feels a little better today--I can bend it a bit without "hurt". 'Will not cause a problem with working in the shop today other than having to pay attention a little more...which is a good thing.

[Kevin Murdock]

Hey Jim,

Can you describe exactly what it is that you did wrong, resulting in the thumb cut?

I always worry about using an unsafe technique.

Hopefully we can all learn from your mishap.

Thanks,
/Kevin

[Jim Becker]

Can you describe exactly what it is that you did wrong, resulting in the thumb cut?Excellent question...and I should have addressed it earlier.

Rather than setting the chisel down while I shifted the workpiece around, I kept it in my right hand. I was moving the workpiece with my left and wasn't paying attention to where the business end of the chisel was...:o

And the gory results...

[Michael Stafford]

And the gory results...

Oh the humanity :eek: I'm really sorry you were injured but at least it was not too seriously.

I've told this story before but it is too good and too true not to retell.

When I lived in Virginia some 30 years ago I had two woodworking buddies, Richard and David ( names changed to protect the innocent).

Richard was the best of the three of us and undertook projects that David and I would only talk about. We all worked at the same company.

On this particular day, Richard took the day off to stay at home and work on some new cabinets he was building. He was careless or in a rush and reached across the saw to steady some oak he was ripping for face frames.

He let his thumb drop into the blade and the blade grabbed his thumb, forefinger, middle finger and ring finger and slice them off at the middle joint.

Richard wrapped a towel around his hand and drove himself to the emergency room. Once everything was under control he called the office and asked for me. I was unavailable, in a meeting but he did reach our mutual friend David.

"David, I had an accident on the saw and sliced off part of 4 fingers," he said.

David interrupted, "You want me to find them and bring them to the hospital?"

Richard responded, " Nah, they're too chewed up to sew back on. I was hoping you could go over to the shop and get the blood off of that quartersawn oak." :eek:

True story. Next time you think about doing something you know better than to do, think about part of 4 fingers going through the table saw slot! :eek:

[Jim Becker]

Mike, "Richard" really had a true woodworker's attitude! (Scary, too...)

[Stefan Antwarg]

Sorry to hear about your cut. But mistakes make you more careful. At least it was not a more permanent mistake.

On the bright side - it looks like you got yourself a nice remote. They do make life a lot easier when you have a lot of components with several settings on each. I use a Home Theater Master remote. It's hard buttons - I don't like not being able to feel where I am on the remote. It's nice to just press one button and everything is set.

Stefan

[Jim Becker]

On the bright side - it looks like you got yourself a nice remote. They do make life a lot easier when you have a lot of components with several settings on each.
Yea, the gyrations necessary to work the TV, Home Theater box and Cable box were "interesting". Now, I have everything "normally needed" on a single screen and the more esoteric functions of the cable box on a second. Being able to program everything custom right from the computer was great! $216 shipped from ecost.com (less the ebates.com rebate... :D )and worth every penny!

[Dave Malen]

Jim,
Sorry to hear about your mishap. It happened to me about 5 years ago. I was carving a shell and very stupidly pushed the gouge towards my other hand. Right before I did this I was thinking to myself that this was not very smart. But I did it anyway. Go figure. Ended up in the emergency room. The doctor said hand tool injuries were quite commom. Anyway, heal quickly!

Dave