Another Lathe accident turns fatal

[Roger Chandler]

I am not sure how many "creekers" were aware of Joan Kelley's terrible accident at the lathe on May 4th. On the WoW website there has been a discussion of the accident and now it is reported that she succumbed to her injuries.

Our prayers are with her husband Earnest, and the rest of her family. You can see info at the following location: please, cut & paste address to your browser.

segmentedwoodturners.org/forum/showthread.php?609-Joan-Kelly-Update&p=4293#post4293

[Roger Chandler]

Just thought I would take this opportunity to remind all turners, both hobbyist and professional...........proper safety is always the top priority............your life could depend upon it...........

It is my understanding that Joan was using proper safety equipment and was a very safety conscience turner..........but sometimes the unexpected can and does happen.........

Be safe everybody!

[Tim Rinehart]

I had just read about the accident yesterday. I'm truly sad to hear it went downhill, it was sounding more encouraging from updates. My thoughts and prayers go out to Joan's family.

[John Hart]

It is awful, and Joan's passing will impact a large number of people, as she was so active with the Mid-south Woodturners Guild in Memphis, and active in other community activities as well.
We set up a memorial fund over on WTA, and we hope to start some safety awareness work soon.

[Roger Chandler]

It is awful, and Joan's passing will impact a large number of people, as she was so active with the Mid-south Woodturners Guild in Memphis, and active in other community activities as well.
We set up a memorial fund over on WTA, and we hope to start some safety awareness work soon.

Excellent response, John.........I think a lot of people know in the back of their mind that safety is important, but get familiar with and comfortable with wood spinning, and somehow lose the edge for safety........I think safety awareness is something truly needed and hopefully your work and perhaps maybe a "sticky" on safety here would not be a bad idea.........at least a link to safety guidelines from the AAW website.

[Scott Hackler]

What horrible news. :( My thoughts are with her family.

After reading the accident story (earlier), the recent developments and the face shield discussion on WoW..... well I am re-thinking my anti-face shield attitude. I WILL be checking out the face shields at St Paul and seeing if I could stand to wear one.

Very sad....

[John Hart]

Yeah, I've been in contact with the folks at Uvex Corporation, and I think what we experience as "hobbyists" is that there is no company over-sight of our activities, therefore, we sink into a comfortable zone. I know I do.
Some people take it extremely serious, but most of us do what we think is necessary at the time.

Two days before Joan's accident, I was turning a walnut bowl. I was doing finishing cuts at high speed and just getting ready to my final sanding. I was slightly off to the left when the bowl exploded. The top half whizzed past my face and hit the far wall of the shop, 40 feet away. I was not wearing a faceshield. I had my safety glasses on....and felt safe.

[Steve Schlumpf]

This is very sad news indeed.... My heart goes out to her family. Thoughts & prayers sent.

[Roger Chandler]

I've told it here before on this forum a year or so ago on another thread...........

I had a tenon break on me.....same thing walnut bowl blank ...........the thing hit me square in the chest, and I was wearing a face sheild.......it knocked it sideways, but it took some of the blow.........I wonder what would have been my injuries to my chin or neck if I had not been wearing it?

I like my eyesight! I want to keep all my fingers! Safety, Safety, safety!!! Lets all take the lesson and do everything in our power to keep ourselves safe.........I don't need a hobbyist version of OSHA, I can use good common sense!

[David DeCristoforo]

I did not know Joan but one does not need to be personally acquainted with another to feel empathy for them, their families or their loved ones. Joan's injury was horrific and her passing turns an accident into a tragedy. We can take consolation only in the thought that she has been called to a higher purpose. Her family and friends need all of the prayers, energy and support that can be sent their way. If anyone knows how to contact her family, I would like to send them a note of condolence.

[John Hart]

I will get that for you David

[jeremy levine]

Just awful, I read the related link. To her family be strong.

"Safety always , not just first"

[Alan Trout]

This was a very tragic accident and very sad news. I thought are with her family and friends.

Alan

[Jim Underwood]

This is tragic, awful news, and my heart goes out to her family.

I've read through many threads about this, and although I see that she was very safety conscious, I see nowhere an answer to a question that we must all be asking. Was she wearing a face shield?

I only ask that for the benefit of all who must be wondering what to do to prevent such a tragedy from happening again. We all know we should wear a faceshield, but if wearing one did not prevent her death, what more must we do to prevent ours?

I hope this doesn't seem cold, because I honestly want to know. I have taken to wearing a cheapy $15 shield from Lowes after the Trend headband broke, while waiting on the new one to come in... (I'm about ready to design my own respirator I'm that frustrated with the Trend.) The Trend company has been great to work with, (they've sent new parts at no charge,) but I'm not having good success with the product.

[Tim Thiebaut]

I am almost at a loss for words here, I feel so bad for her family and friends, its just horrible. My prayers go out to her family.

[John Hart]

This is tragic, awful news, and my heart goes out to her family.

I've read through many threads about this, and although I see that she was very safety conscious, I see nowhere an answer to a question that we must all be asking. Was she wearing a face shield?

I only ask that for the benefit of all who must be wondering what to do to prevent such a tragedy from happening again. We all know we should wear a faceshield, but if wearing one did not prevent her death, what more must we do to prevent ours?

I hope this doesn't seem cold, because I honestly want to know. I have taken to wearing a cheapy $15 shield from Lowes after the Trend headband broke, while waiting on the new one to come in... (I'm about ready to design my own respirator I'm that frustrated with the Trend.) The Trend company has been great to work with, (they've sent new parts at no charge,) but I'm not having good success with the product.

To be frank, Jim, I don't think you are being cold. These things need to be said.
When I read about the nature of the injuries and the surgery that was performed, I can not imagine them occurring if a faceshield was in the way of the projectile. Granted, we don't know. But to rationalize not using one just because we don't know she wasn't wearing one, just doesn't make sense.

There is the idea of, "What I do in my shop is my business". And I agree. Except when you have a family...then it's their business, because they need to clean up the mess and figure out how to get along without you.

I have been researching all the faceshield options. The lightest and cheapest faceshield that meets ANSI Z81+ for high impact testing, is the Uvex Bionic Faceshield. It doesn't weigh anything, costs about $23 and a respirator fits underneath it. (I've used mine for 5 years......um...when I use it)

[David DeCristoforo]

The simple fact is that there is no way to protect against every possibility. It's not just woodworking that is "dangerous"... it's life that is dangerous. There are times like this when we simply have to accept that we are not immortal...

[Keith E Byrd]

I have been researching all the faceshield options. The lightest and cheapest faceshield that meets ANSI Z81+ for high impact testing, is the Uvex Bionic Faceshield. It doesn't weigh anything, costs about $23 and a respirator fits underneath it. (I've used mine for 5 years......um...when I use it)

John do you know what stores handle these?
I have a face mask but hate it because it get all covered in dust, the static electricity makes it almost impossible to clean. I always wear a respirator and safety glasses but willing to go with mask if I can get one t hat is easier to clean!

[John Hart]

Yeah Keith...They are carried in so many places, it's hard to pick. But a few are
Cooper Safety http://www.coopersafety.com/product/uvex-bionic-faceshield-1189.aspx
Sears http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_00932970000P
Amazon http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0013G86FG/ref=pd_lpo_k2_dp_sr_2?pf_rd_p=486539851&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-1&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B001VY3ACE&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=1R8XFVBE9GBRSQ0Q2VT6

My favorite outlet is Airgas for price and customer service
http://www.airgas.com/browse/productDetail.aspx?Category=336&product=UVXS8500

[Wayne Hendrix]

John do you know what stores handle these?
I have a face mask but hate it because it get all covered in dust, the static electricity makes it almost impossible to clean. I always wear a respirator and safety glasses but willing to go with mask if I can get one t hat is easier to clean!

I seem to vaguely recall reading a tip somewhere that rubbing the shield with a dryer sheet will help cut down on the build up of dust due to static electricity. Can anyone werify that or am I just crazy?

[Dan Hintz]

Be careful with the dryer sheet trick... don't want to haze up the mask with scratches, leading to you taking it off in frustration.

I'm not sure if Rain-X works has anti-static properties, but it might be worth a try. There are anti-static sprays, but I don't know their contents offhand and therefore couldn't say if they're plastic-safe.

Or you could do like the dust collector guys and wrap the mask in several feet of copper wire grounded to your shoe :p

[John Hart]

I seem to vaguely recall reading a tip somewhere that rubbing the shield with a dryer sheet will help cut down on the build up of dust due to static electricity. Can anyone werify that or am I just crazy?

Yup...Dryer sheets are the cats meow. I keep a box of Snuggles in the shop.....cuz they're snuggly :)

[John Hart]

Be careful with the dryer sheet trick... don't want to haze up the mask with scratches, leading to you taking it off in frustration.

We musta posted at the same time....Good Point Dan...You don't have to do the high friction rub down....just lightly go over the inside. It doesn't take much.

[Jim Burr]

Prayers for peace for her family.
We see traumatic head injuries every day at work; they are at best...unpredictable.

[Rob Cunningham]

This is sad news indeed. I did not know Joan but my heart goes out to her family.

[Roger Chandler]

I hope this doesn't seem cold, because I honestly want to know. I have taken to wearing a cheapy $15 shield from Lowes after the Trend headband broke, while waiting on the new one to come in... (I'm about ready to design my own respirator I'm that frustrated with the Trend.) The Trend company has been great to work with, (they've sent new parts at no charge,) but I'm not having good success with the product.

I have a Bionic face shield and it works well...I got mine off Amazon.com for $26.00.......I also have a Trend airshield pro, and it has served me very well.........I do all I can to care for it properly and so far no headband issues, but I am about ready to put on a new cover for the shield.......too many splatters of CA glue on it!

I like the Bionic face shield for regular protection, and use the Trend a lot also, but especially when sanding..........dust control to protect my lungs, along with an overhead air cleaner and a dust collector.

[Trevor Howard]

I too have never heard of Joan, and my Heart goes out to her family and friends.

I have not read anything about her accident, but the general impression I get from this thread has made me re-think. I use a face shield always, but it is a cheapo from Harbor Freight, I never gave any thought to/or heard about ANSI Z81+. So I just ordered the Uvex Bionic Face shield from John's Sears link. I would like the Trend Air/pro but money is tight right now, but I can scrape together about $35 to improve my safety around the lathe.

[Roger Chandler]

I too have never heard of Joan, and my Heart goes out to her family and friends.

I have not read anything about her accident, but the general impression I get from this thread has made me re-think. I use a face shield always, but it is a cheapo from Harbor Freight, I never gave any thought to/or heard about ANSI Z81+. So I just ordered the Uvex Bionic Face shield from John's Sears link. I would like the Trend Air/pro but money is tight right now, but I can scrape together about $35 to improve my safety around the lathe.

Smart guy, that Trevor! Good for you!

[Tim Rinehart]

John,
Thanks for the recommendation on the faceshield...I've seen them before, but had just opted to keep my cheapy big box version. My stomach still churns thinking of Joan's tragic accident. It took me at most 10 seconds delay to order one of these better faceshields. I think I'll relegate my cheapy model to lesser turnings or when turning after applying CA, etc.
For those looking into these, note that about a $10 variant exists between the 8500 and 8510 by adding the hardcoat/antifog lens on the 8510.

[Jim Adkins]

Sad news indeed. I am a member of that club and to think I've did two demos for the Mid-South Woodturners Guild and did not wear a faceshield either time!! That situation will change in future demos. Joan was a very sweet person, always a smile, just a joy to know. She will be sadly missed.

[John Hart]

Sad news indeed. I am a member of that club and to think I've did two demos for the Mid-South Woodturners Guild and did not wear a faceshield either time!! That situation will change in future demos. Joan was a very sweet person, always a smile, just a joy to know. She will be sadly missed.

I just read an article that she wrote about you Jim in a past issue of the Mid-South Newsletter. I thought about you. I am sorry for your loss.

[Justin Stephen]

Here is a video from last year of Ms. Kelly. Watching it may make you even more sad but I will link it just in case anyone wants to see a little more of who she was:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A7PCfMr4gUM

Edit: also a picture of her in this older issue of the Mid-South Woodturner's newsletter:

http://www.midsouthwoodturners.com/Newsletter_2006_files/1106talk.pdf

[Richard Kennedy UK]

Terrible news my thoughts are with her family.

[Glenn Barber]

Wayne- You are correct about the dryer sheet trick. I was told to use only used dryer sheets to prevent the scratching and smudges.

Very sad events indeed.

Glenn

[Roland Martin]

This is unbelievably sad news indeed, my prayers go out to her family and friends. Thank you John H. for the facesheild info, this turner is also getting one ordered before the day is out.

[Keith Burns]

Joan was one of the special ones and will be missed by all. She has always stepped up to the plate to help our club. She has served on our club's board. She wrote for our newsletter. As I have said she was a passionate artist. She absolutely loved turning and she was always willing to share her knowledge. She always had an infectious smile on her face. She will be missed. I know the family appreciates all of the thoughts and prayers .

[John Fabre]

My thoughts and prayers are with the family, makes me rethink buying a better faceshield. Does anyone know of a better faceshield for kids?

[David DeCristoforo]

This has just bummed my whole day. I didn't even know this person and I keep telling myself that this sort of thing happens everyday, people get hurt or die and life goes on. But for some reason, I feel like I just lost my mother or something. I'm sure I'm not the only one who feels this way...

[Roger Chandler]

This has just bummed my whole day. I didn't even know this person and I keep telling myself that this sort of thing happens everyday, people get hurt or die and life goes on. But for some reason, I feel like I just lost my mother or something. I'm sure I'm not the only one who feels this way...

Not trying to psycho-analyze, but I think we all feel a bit this way because this happened to one who loved and engaged in the same craft we love and engage in almost daily ourselves........then we become circumspect about all the things we take for granted as we approach this use of machinery and its associated risks...........we feel saddened, oh so very saddened........and also realize it could happen to us, and all the close calls we have endured.........then we feel so fortunate to have come out of those close calls with little or no harm..........makes us wonder about tomorrow.

[Faust M. Ruggiero]

So much has been said about the dangers associated with woodworking. The conversation usually centers around the loss of a finger or worse caused by the table saw. I know several people who have been wounded or disfigured that way but I never heard of a death by table saw. This hobby we have chosen is certainly a source of pleasure and an outlet for creativity but it is apparently life threatening. It is easy to forget how dangerous something we do daily without incident can be.
I'm sorry we lost a fellow human to such a tragic accident. I hope we never see that again.
faust

[Ed Morgano]

This has just bummed my whole day. I didn't even know this person and I keep telling myself that this sort of thing happens everyday, people get hurt or die and life goes on. But for some reason, I feel like I just lost my mother or something. I'm sure I'm not the only one who feels this way...

David,
I've sorta been feeling the same way. This is indeed sad news. I'm just getting into this and now I'm really thinking about this safety issue. I have turned some big chunks before (9" x about 24" between centers for a table) but frankly, they scare the H out of me. My prayers go out to her family and friends. Thank you John H. for the face shied info, I just ordered one and I WILL use it.

[Roger Wilson]

My condolences to the family, this is a terrible accident.

More detail about what safety shield etc. she was wearing would be helpful. I'm thinking that maybe a hard hat may also be required to be safe. The 3M Airstream that Bill Grumbine wears looks like it has an integral hard hat. Can anyone who uses it confirm that?

[ray hampton]

forgot key word
So much has been said about the dangers associated with woodworking. The conversation usually centers around the loss of a finger or worse caused by the table saw. I know several people who have been wounded or disfigured that way but I never heard of a death by table saw. This hobby we have chosen is certainly a source of pleasure and an outlet for creativity but it is apparently life threatening. It is easy to forget how dangerous something we do daily without incident can be.
I'm sorry we lost a fellow human to such a tragic accident. I hope we never see that again.
faust

a Hard hat is a good idea, a local student in my area were kill a number of years ago by a piece of wood that got caught in the blade and throw across the room and smack the poor student

[John Hart]

For those who are interested in a full hard hat, there is an option for $30 made by Jackson Safety. It is a configuration that is used by the company I work for (and they are quite anal about safety). The configuration involves buying three pieces...the hard hat, the visor frame, and the shield (window). I have all the part numbers and pricing and source at work....so I'll get that for you tomorrow. But this is basically what it looks like

195106

I requested one from our safety director so I could try it out. It was pretty comfortable, the shield meets ANSI Z87+ and there's plenty of room for a respirator. I thought the price was very reasonable. I haven't turned with it yet, but I'll use it tomorrow night and do a full review.

[John Hart]

This has just bummed my whole day. I didn't even know this person and I keep telling myself that this sort of thing happens everyday, people get hurt or die and life goes on. But for some reason, I feel like I just lost my mother or something. I'm sure I'm not the only one who feels this way...

I spent most of my afternoon thinking about what you said earlier....about life itself being dangerous. So true. I reflected on that fragile precipice that we seem to teeter on. And here we are engaging in a hobby that, frankly, puts us into a precarious situation just for the pleasure of making a cool looking thing.

I also thought about the bowl that exploded on me two weeks ago, and how cavalier I was..."Whew...that was close!" and then I completely disregarded that if I had been three inches to the right, a spear traveling at 50 miles and hour would have hit me in the face.

Then Joan two days later. I said, "My God....That was me just two days ago".

Our fragile existence...determined by inches, circumstance, timing, and common sense.

I'm not a banner-waver. I don't protest, and I don't launch crusades. But Joan taught me something. I think I'm indebted to her.

[Dick Wilson]

I have been the recipient of flying wood. 2 shattered face shields and counting. After this tragedy I think something a heck of a lot more substancial is in order. I have not read anywhere whether Joan was or was not wearing one. There comes a point where you have done everything, wear all protective gear, and things still happen. 100% protection at the lathe means not turning it on in the first place. Of course, there is always life experiences that we have no control over either.

[John Terefenko]

do you have the link to this story??? Thanks

[Roger Chandler]

do you have the link to this story??? Thanks

John,

The opening post on the thread has a link that you can put in your browser and get the info from the segmented turners forum. Also, the WOW site has a running discussion.

[Jeff Nicol]

My heart aches for Joan's family, with the passing of my FIL last week I am still feeling that in my heart also. To add more heartache a friend of mine that I went to Oklahoma this last weekend for a hog hunt lost his MIL on Saturday night and this morning at 8:30 his FIL passed away from some sort of embolism (SP). I have had enough death and sadness in the last few weeks to last me for a long, long time. But Joan's accident is so tragic I can't find words, I had the same thing happen but all I got was 28 stitches in my head. Without knowing what really happened the only thing I got from her husbands post was that she was turning a "LARGE" blank. Not for sure knowing the type of wood and what its shape was, I think some folks turn large pieces much to fast for big items, I don't even use the high setting on my 3520B, because it scares me! The piece that hit me in the head maybe weighed 10oz. but if a large chunk of a few pounds comes off and flies up that high and hits you in the face, there is not a face sheild that I know of that will protect you completley. So I guess we all must be proactive in making sure the wood we mount on the lathe is in good shape without cracks, shakes, voids etc that we are not ready to deal with. If you are turning slow enough in the beginning the chunk should just fall to the bed and bounce away which has happened with me while roughing out some borderline wood.

So with this tragic lose we should all remember to make sure of every little thing and take the time to look at the blanks as we turn them to make sure it is safe all the way through the process and listen to the sound it makes as a crack will change how it sounds.

Turn safe all,

Jeff

[Curt Fuller]

I've followed this sad story about Joan since first reading about it on the Woodturners America site. I was shocked to hear today that Joan had died. I had the obviously mistaken impression that she was improving. Her death is truly sad news. I didn't know Joan personally, but her turned art was always something that caught my eye on WOW. If you have the chance to go to her album on WOW take a few minutes to look through her work and read her wonderful descriptions and open, candid explanations of what she has done. You can't help but notice the references to those that inspired her and also her passion for the art of turning. RIP Joan.

[Cody Colston]

In that u-tube video that Justin linked to, she was wearing safety goggles but not a face shield. I suspect she was not wearing a face shield when the fatal injury occurred, either.

It's up to every turner to decide how much PPE is necessary to pursue a hobby. I generally only wear safety glasses when turning although I'll occassionally don a face shield if the piece has bark that I know will fly off. I have worn a hard hat at work for the past 39 years and wearing one in my woodshop is not an option I'm willing to consider. There comes a point where the need to put on a bunch of safety garb will remove the enjoyment from turning and woodworking. I'm not there yet and hope to never be that scared of getting hurt.

David was right in that it's life that is eventually fatal. One can live it to the fullest and go when it's time or live it in fear and still go when it's time. I've chosen the former and from what I've read, so did the lady who died from her turning injury.

[Lori Kleinberg]

I am sorry I did not know Joan or her work, but can still feel the pain.
My condolences and prayers go to her family.

[Justin Stephen]

In that u-tube video that Justin linked to, she was wearing safety goggles but not a face shield. I suspect she was not wearing a face shield when the fatal injury occurred, either.


To be fair, a lot of people who normally wear face shields only wear glasses when they are demonstrating (in person or on a video) so that their voices can be heard more clearly.

Considering the extent of her injury, it does seem likely that she was only wearing glasses though. Who knows?

[Keith Burns]

In that u-tube video that Justin linked to, she was wearing safety goggles but not a face shield. I suspect she was not wearing a face shield when the fatal injury occurred, either.

Cody, you can not make the assumption that she was not wearing a face shield based on a video and to make that assumption about someone you do not know offends me.

Second, the video makes an excellement statement about doing demos. The problem with the majority of the demonstrators (professionals included) is that they do not wear a faceshield. I have not worn one when I do a demo (I'm not a professional). The demos always start with a statement like "you should always wear a faceshield" but I don't have to because I can't talk or some other excuse. The fact is that this approach is wrong. We must develop a "safety culture" and it must start with demonstrators leading the way and give up the crap of "do as I say, not as I do". We can never protect ourselves totally, everything we do has risk. The key thing to do is to minimize the risk.

[John King]

John - I am interested in the full hard hat with faceshield option. Checked Jackson Safety and could not find anything that looked like the picture you posted. Can you provide product number for hat/faceshield configuration in the picture? - John

[Dan Hintz]

...to make that assumption about someone you do not know offends me.
I'm offended by you being offended of someone's suspicion...

Anyone care to jump in and be offended by my being offended at someone else's feeling of offense?

[Roger Chandler]

It would be my hope that we could keep this thread in the area of sympathy for the family for the most part.......I realize it does raise questions on safety and they are legitimate...........I was the first to mention safety, because I care that all who are part of this turning fraternity be safe as much as possible.

If we can use another thread and not get too personal with the sad circumstances here, then it will certainly help with perhaps not adding to someone's grieving at this time, and then safety can be spoken of in general terms with references to accidents done with some care.

I hope this thread will not degenerate to a show of ego's or anything of the sort..........it just is not the thing to do under these sad circumstances..........most likely,all her family and friends will eventually read everything said here, so any sort of speculation will only add to their burdens............let us try and avoid that if at all possible..........

Thanks everybody!

[Keith Burns]

Roger you are right of course. I offer my appologies. I let my emotions rule over logic and I shoud not have.

[Jeff Moffett]

I offer my sincere condolences to Joan's family, friends and club members. Like others have indicated, hearing the news has rocked my world and made me take a serious look at my turning safety precautions.

[John Hart]

John - I am interested in the full hard hat with faceshield option. Checked Jackson Safety and could not find anything that looked like the picture you posted. Can you provide product number for hat/faceshield configuration in the picture? - John

Hi John,
That picture isn't exactly what I was proposing....just sort of an example pic. I'm still getting all my info together and I'll post it in a bit. I'm feeling a bit like a ball in a pinball machine today. :)

[Montgomery Scott]

So how many turners here have removed the metal wire guard that came with their lathe? I have always kept mine on until my last segmented turning because the largest ring hit the swing arm. I am generally too paranoid about large whirling masses to think about taking it off.

[David DeCristoforo]

"I let my emotions rule over logic ..."

As an Italian, it is incomprehensible to me how something like that could happen...

[Dan Hintz]

"I let my emotions rule over logic ..."

As an Italian, it is incomprehensible to me how something like that could happen...
Maybe there wasn't enough hand motion to keep up the energy required for balance... Italian is a very animated language.

[John Hart]

Just wanted to let everyone know that we created a Memorial Article over on Woodturners America It's on the homepage. Man! This woman was incredible.

[Tim Rinehart]

John - I am interested in the full hard hat with faceshield option. Checked Jackson Safety and could not find anything that looked like the picture you posted. Can you provide product number for hat/faceshield configuration in the picture? - John
John King, the Uvex 8505 has the hardhat adapter, the 8515 has hardhat adapter PLUS hardcoat/antifog lens.
Personally, I think unless you have overhead stuff that can fall on your head, the hardhat is not really going to add much protection to turning, and will only make it that much harder to convince yourself to wear.

[John Hart]

I have been asked to post this by Mid-South Woodturners:

Woodturners America and the Mid-South Woodturners Guild, Joans home club, have joined together and established the Joan Kelly Memorial Fund. Joans story is on the front page of Woodturnersamerica.com. Please read it. You can make a donation thru the paypal button located at the bottom of the article. The money raised will be used to provide grant money to other AAW clubs to make an appropriate shield in front of their club lathes to help protect the audience. The plan is to have generic drawings and recommended materials available with the grants. We still have not established the process and requirements yet but they are in the works and will be posted as soon as possible. We felt this would be an appropriate tribute to Joan.

[John Hart]

I also decided to talk about faceshields in another thread. http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?166265-Faceshields-and-Stuff&p=1706244#post1706244

[Roger Chandler]

So how many turners here have removed the metal wire guard that came with their lathe? I have always kept mine on until my last segmented turning because the largest ring hit the swing arm. I am generally too paranoid about large whirling masses to think about taking it off.

I think to preserve the sympathy aspect of the thread on Joan Kelley, this question related to safety [a good one to discuss] should be asked on another thread and on that discussion all aspects related to safety could be explored should posters desire to do so.......Thanks!

We have a good bit of drift from the intended reason for the thread albeit, some drift was certainly inevitable......no criticism here, just thinking about the sympathy aspect and perhaps a full discussion on another thread related to safety would be a better way to go..........just an idea.

[John Hart]

I agree Dr. Chandler

[daniel lane]

This is terrible news, my heart goes out to her family and friends. Odd sentiment, but thanks to the OP for the news because it's allowed me to become familiar with Joan and her work.

Also, I volunteer to be offended at Dan's being offended by someone else's feeling of offense. I believe Burke Breathed called this, "offensensitivity" and I offer this link (http://imgsrv.gocomics.com/dim/?fh=821f77e205736ee116aab24a56dcbe5b) for an explanation.


Regards,

daniel

[Joe Adams]

I realize I'm a little late but I just read about Joan's tragic death and it hit me hard even though I did not know her. I've never experienced a bowl blow out at the lathe but I've been warned it's only a matter of time. FWIW - I wear a Uvex Bionic face shield and like it. My condolences to her family and friends.