How often do you cut yourself?

[Zach England]

Just curious. I haven't been doing much woodworking lately, but started a small-ish project last week and have been doing almost everything with hand tools (in places where before I would have used a mortiser, router or dado stack). Last week I took a good nick out of one finger with a plough plane, shaved the very tip off another with a skew rabbet plane, and last night put a small cut in another with a chisel.

This is a problem for me because my main hobby, which is starting to look more like a part-time job, is ceramics and it is really hard (impossible) to throw pots on a wheel with sliced up fingertips.

Am I just clumsy? Does this get better with experience?

[Derek Gilmer]

I hope it gets better... The first time I tried starting a rip cut with a 6 ppi saw it jumped off and bit me good. To teach the saw a lesson I laid it on the table saw as I finished ripping the board. It hasn't mis-behaved on me since then.

[Moses Yoder]

It sounds like you and my wife both have the accident gene. I told her I had to stop feeling bad for her when she hurt herself or get medication for depression. I occasionally get splinters when I am working on a project, but hardly ever cut myself with tools. This may be because I have a well defined aversion to the escape of my blood from my body which makes me very careful.

[David Weaver]

Once a year for something bad enough to draw blood and need CA glue.

Quite often for stuff like accidentally sanding off pads of your finger with a sharpening stone, splinters, pinches etc.

The only thing I've ever had to see a dr. for in the shop was getting steel in the eyeball - off of a low speed belt sander. Never would've thought that was possible.

You'll get fewer injuries over time. keep CA glue handy for the small ones, it may save your ability to do pottery work with small cuts.

[Joshua Byrd]

I cut myself every now and again in ways that I wouldn't have thought possible. The two most recent put very big gashes in my index finger and thumb, respectively. Cut the index finger when I was filing an old chipbreaker level (file slipped on the push stroke) and I cut the thumb when I was filing an old roofing hatchet (hatchet slipped and got my thumb on the way down - I didn't even try catching it! :P ). I might need some mesh gloves for future filing projects...

[Jessica Pierce-LaRose]

The only time in years I've managed to cut myself on an edge was lapping the back of a new blade. When do cut myself, I always manage to cut myself on the sharp edges of freshly dressed lumber. But mostly when I slip, I bash my hands into something (usually a clamp) and give myself quite the bruise and sore spot.

[Chris Griggs]

I cut myself more often then I would like to admit (probably about once a month) - however, I cut myself much less often then I use to. I used to constantly cut myself with my marking knife. Now when I do its usually small knick from a freshly sharpened chisel that I'm not paying enough attention to. Typically this isn't when I'm actually using the chisel, but when I'm picking it up, or just holding it in my hand before use. Router plane also likes to bite me on a fairly regular basis, once again not so much in use as much as when I'm taking it out, adjusting it, or wiping it down before putting it away.

[mike holden]

Zach, I have always felt that a job was not done until I had bled on it. This goes back now some thirty-five years to when I began my apprenticeship in the patternmaking trade.
Nothing serious mind you, just a small cut, fixed with a band-aid.
Mike

[Jim Stewart]

I use both power tools and hand tools. I usually rough out projects on a miter saw, band-saw, planer, jointer, sometimes a table saw, and a router. After that I use hand tools. I use a LV smoothing plane with a 50 degree angle on the blade, a small brass LN block plane, an adjustable mouth LN block plane, a LV medium shoulder plane. I occasionally use a stanly #7 jointer, and a LN #4 smoothing plane. I don't think I have ever cut myself with these.

I use LN chisels and some old stanley 750's. I have nicked myself with these but not in a long time. I am alarmed that you cut yourself because people have cut their fingers off with sharp chisels. Always secure your work in a vise, clamps, hold down, or shooting board. Always pare away from you. The same goes for planes.

[Brian Cameron]

I agree with Mike....my wife says that if I didn't bleed on it..I didn't do it...never anything major...scraped nuckles etc...sort of like a signature on a piece:D

[David Weaver]

I would imagine that all of the discussion on the boards of people cutting themselves with chisels has probably really cut down on the number of people who do cut themselves with chisels.

For me, it's been the marking knife, getting fatigued with pull saws and pulling one out of the cut onto a hand or finger, etc, but those are seldom now because you only have to get the disgusting feeling of something getting in deep to remember it.

It's handling wood and pinching yourself moving things around, etc, that are the known threat to me now. About the only power tool I use is the bandsaw, and being a mosty HT woodworker is probably a positive assist in that because you don't have the urge to ram something through the saw - any speed with a power tool is fast, especially on a resaw or long rip of hardwood.

There is a lot of discussion of power sharpening, and I figure sooner or later we're going to get a story from someone who is struck by an iron or chisel flying off of a leather strop. I flung one (an iron) across the shop a couple of years ago on a setup that I thought was pretty safe, and one where I felt like I had control of the iron. It was enough of an experience that I think I'll not put an iron on a disc sander strop again.

[Jeff L Miller]

I'm in the frequent injury club with those small cuts.

I also take some twisted pleasure when I watch Roy Underhill working with a band-aid on one of his fingers; makes me feel better to know I'm not alone.

Jeff

[Zahid Naqvi]

I think the important question is when do you cut yourself. Every time you pick up a nick, stop and think about what you were doing wrong. Sometimes accidents do happen but they should be few and far in between. I have found out that I pick up small cuts when I am hurrying the work or stressed out because I made a mistake. Whenever I feel like I am starting to pick up speed I remind myself to slow down. I cut my thumb couple days ago while scraping glue from a joint with an old chisel, the thumb should not have been in the path of the chisel's movement, but I was hurrying because we had to go somewhere and I wanted to finish the cleanup before we left. You should not be getting injured beyond small bandaid type stuff, if you are as frequently as you say then you need to step back and look at what is causing it.

[Chris Griggs]

I also take some twisted pleasure when I watch Roy Underhill working with a band-aid on one of his fingers; makes me feel better to know I'm not alone.

Jeff

I was just thinking the same thing - he always makes me feel better about my cuts. I think we should all be clear that we are talking little knicks and scrapes hear and there (I think anyway). Following the rules that Jim just laid out has kept me from ever getting a really nasty cut. My worst cuts need some CA glue or a bandaid at most- most need only a minute or two of pressure with a paper towel just to stop the bleeding.

Like David, many of my cuts are actually scrapes. For instance, I bang my knuckles into the top of my leg vice chop all the time when I'm edge jointing - this is teaching me to set the board higher up in the vise.

My worst cut recently happened when I was sawing the shoulders off of some dovetails, was probably moving a bit too fast and using a bit too much pressure - the saw jumped out of the kerf and gouged the tip of my thumb that I was guiding it with, not a bad cut, but saw teeth are definitely more painful then a slice from a chisel - lesson learned.

[bob blakeborough]

I get little cuts and knicks all the time. If you don't you're just not trying hard enough! lol! Really though, when you work with sharps tools and wood, you are going to knick yourself up quite often. It has never been enough to stop me from working though (knock on wood)...

[Zach England]

I think the important question is when do you cut yourself. Every time you pick up a nick, stop and think about what you were doing wrong. Sometimes accidents do happen but they should be few and far in between. I have found out that I pick up small cuts when I am hurrying the work or stressed out because I made a mistake. Whenever I feel like I am starting to pick up speed I remind myself to slow down. I cut my thumb couple days ago while scraping glue from a joint with an old chisel, the thumb should not have been in the path of the chisel's movement, but I was hurrying because we had to go somewhere and I wanted to finish the cleanup before we left. You should not be getting injured beyond small bandaid type stuff, if you are as frequently as you say then you need to step back and look at what is causing it.

Yeah, these are small band-aid type cuts. I try to always analyze what happens. In this project I got cut with the rabbet plane while adjusting the fence. I don't remember what happened with the plough plane, but I think it also involved adjusting the fence. I still don't understand how the chisel thing happened. I was using a small (1/8 inch) bench chisel to clean up some fiddley teeny tiny mortises and I somehow got in its way.

What is interesting is that with all of these it has happened with newly sharpened tools and with one of them I did not even know I had cut myself until I saw a trail of blood all over my work piece. i literally didn't feel it.

[Trevor Walsh]

I get small slices through the superficial layer of skin, aka no blood pretty much daily, all from the sharpish arri of chisels. I'll bruise a knuckle here or there, but never had to go to the hospital or get stitches. I've had to heavily band aid or use CA glue maybe three times in the last 5 years. At the school shop (where power tools are involved, I've never cut myself on operating machinery. Dusting off the bandsaw and tablesaw I've gotten a nick, but that's a papercut.

[Jim Koepke]

I think the important question is when do you cut yourself. Every time you pick up a nick, stop and think about what you were doing wrong. Sometimes accidents do happen but they should be few and far in between. I have found out that I pick up small cuts when I am hurrying the work or stressed out because I made a mistake. Whenever I feel like I am starting to pick up speed I remind myself to slow down. I cut my thumb couple days ago while scraping glue from a joint with an old chisel, the thumb should not have been in the path of the chisel's movement, but I was hurrying because we had to go somewhere and I wanted to finish the cleanup before we left. You should not be getting injured beyond small bandaid type stuff, if you are as frequently as you say then you need to step back and look at what is causing it.

Very good advice.

For me, even once a month is too much, but somehow that seems to be about how often a blade has bitten me.

It is now second nature for me to not have a hand in front of a chisel blade. The last time one got me was when I wasn't paying attention as I was routing around in a drawer full of sharp chisels and got nicked. Yes, there was a moment of inattention and distraction.

That was a little over a month ago now.

I now know to always pay attention around my tools. If there are distractions, it is time to put down the tools and attend to the distractions.

Hurrying causes accidents. Being tired or distracted emotionally can be a dangerous mix with sharp tools.

I probably don't need to, but will, mention having a clear mind unclouded by alcohol or medications.

When a plane is being wiped down or chips being cleared from the mouth, always move away from the blade's cutting direction.

If a plane is being cleaned when put away, it may be good to remove the blade and use a brush to remove wood dust from the frog area. This could eliminate some of the danger while cleaning.

When a gouge or chisel is being stropped, special attention must be paid to what is taking place. This is an especially easy place to have an accident if full attention is not given to the job at hand.

Even when something is seemingly securely clamped or held in a vise, it is still possible for it to slip. With a recent foray into carving, I am learning that it is often better to remove small amounts at a time instead of trying to muscle my way through a deeper cut.

When I am jointing a piece or planing it while held in the vise, I will take a practice swipe or two with the plane to find the relationship between my fingers and the vise chop and other holding devices.

I try to keep my mind clear when working with tools and always consider the possibilities of slips and where the blade is going to go. My mantra while working is, "where are my fingers, where is the blade."

My last "accident" was not a cut. I hit my thumb with a hammer while stapling chicken wire to an animal cage. It didn't bleed. It did hurt for a while.

jtk

[Steve Friedman]

I draw blood all the time, but rarely while actually using a tool. My problem is forgetting that I have a razor-sharp tool in my hand while I'm doing something else! Is it just me?

Steve

[Zach Dillinger]

I do get frequent, small cuts. I'm on the Edison schedule: one minor injury every 10 days, one larger injury every 6 months. Nothing too major, of course, still have all 10, but I've had one or two nasty ones. Like nearly cutting the tip of my right pinky off with a razor sharp chisel, planing the tip of my right middle finger basically off with a strike block plane or "nicking" my finger with a coping saw blade. That one took forever to heal, such a jagged cut. 99% of the time, my chisels are what draws my blood but the others get their fill too.

[Zach England]

I draw blood all the time, but rarely while actually using a tool. My problem is forgetting that I have a razor-sharp tool in my hand while I'm doing something else! Is it just me?

Steve

I'd advise keeping sharp objects out of your bathroom.

[Rob Fisher]

Zach, I have been in a similar situation when I was in college. I was taking ceramics classes while also building models for my architecture studios. I never got serious cuts but paper cuts were an often occurrence. The best advice I have is to try and not get cut. If possible maybe try to schedule your potting time after a few days break from woodworking, giving you hands a bit to heal.

[Jim Stewart]

I was being a bit hurried in my reply because someone was standing there waiting to go to lunch. I still like what I wrote.

You can get by with holding a work piece if you are sure a slip of the tool cannot get you. In general however, use a device to hold the work. I have seen a few replies that talk about nicks that don't bleed or scrapes on edges. That is unavoidible. You will get nicks sometime testing a chisel for sharp. Safety if a very important issue and one that does not have to be restricting once you understand it.

Happy woodworking, Jim

[Jessica Pierce-LaRose]

Funny, the day this comes up, I went through a long sharpening session touching up all the blades I've been neglecting. (The curse of having a few more tools than you need, I guess, is that I can put one chisel down and grab another one instead of doing a quick sharpening job) Two chisels and five plane blades later, I'm looking at my thumb as I sit down here, and realize I've got several small cuts on my thumb - nothing that's bleeding, (Not all the way through the callous, I guess) but I've still no idea where they came from. If they came from the blade edges when lapping, I figure they'd be deeper. Maybe it's paper cuts from testing an edge. From where there are, I think I must have a sharp arris on the sides of one of the blades that rubbed me wrong when lapping the backs.

My mortise chisels are the worse - if I hold them the wrong way (and I'm apt to forget) I get cuts from the sides. I've taken to wearing one glove when using them just in case. I often do the same when making odd precision or flush cuts with a pull saw, because I can guide the saw a little close with my thumb without worrying about it biting back.

[george wilson]

I might nick myself about once a year. Seems like nearly every T.V. show,Roy has cuts or bandaids on his finger(s)!

[Trevor Walsh]

Joshua, Yes that's exactly what I get, particularly what you've been enjoying from the mortise chisels.

[Zach England]

Either I just suck or my tools have it in for me. I think my rabbet planes are especially evil. I am always getting cut on those things.

[Gordon Eyre]

Put me in the numerous small cut club and I have even been known to require stitches a couple of times. The worst was with a table saw kick back where the wood hit me between my thumb and first finger. That took 14 stitches to repair. So far I have not lost anything except a little blood. ;)

[Steve Branam]

All the time! Usually just little tiny scrapes or skinning that don't even need a bandaid. Half the time I don't even realize how it happened. The worst cut was when I picked up a very sharp chisel and brushed my pinky backwards over one of the corners. That left a very clean slice, fortunately not deep, but of course one of those annoying ones that keeps oozing.

[jamie shard]

I might nick myself about once a year.

Regardless of the truth of my recent past, that's my new goal.

[Mark Baldwin III]

I cut myself so often people think I'm one of those depressing emo kids. Only three times with an edge tool...wiping off a plane iron while sharpening, and a light one with a chisel, the third came from the SIDE of a chisel. One of the worst cuts came after feeling the edge of a freshly jointed board, I guess that corner was pretty acute! For some reason, most of my cuts are from things that you wouldn't expect.

[ray hampton]

I get some cuts but I bruise easy so I try to hold the knife or other cutting tool by the handle , the last time that I got hurt were a pinch finger and NO BAND AID[ only GAUGE AND PAPER TAPE

[Chuck Walker]

My late woodworking mentor always told his high school students that "you can't cut yourself if your hands (and other meat) are behind the cutting edge". With that advice, I still manage to injure myself in one way or another on each project. I have begun to think that it is a symbol of involvement.

[Michael Ray Smith]

I keep a box of bandaids at my workbench and reach for it frequently. I use handtools almost exclusively, but I still manage to draw blood fairly regularly. The worst I've done was a small puncture to my palm when I was sharpening a chisel. The wound became infected, and the infection spread to one of my fingers. 3-4 months later, the inflammation still hasn't entirely disappeared, but the doc tells me to just give it more time. I figure if I can do that much damage with a chisel, it's a good thing that I stay away from power tools.

[Jim Koepke]

One of the worst cuts came after feeling the edge of a freshly jointed board, I guess that corner was pretty acute! For some reason, most of my cuts are from things that you wouldn't expect.


This is what convinced me long ago to give a very light pass on corners of boards.

jtk

[Brian Loucks]

Very rare since I stopped shaving 30 years ago :-) Seriously, as Zahad stated, 'Monitor your state of being and stop when you start feeling tired or frustrated. Little nicks don't even count.

[george wilson]

Hand tools are ALWAYS more prone to injure you than power tools: Your hands are in closer contact with them,and you tend to be more careful around power tools.

[Michael Redmond]

Hi,I haven't had a cut lately but managed to trap my finger between two magnetic tool holders from Benchcrafted, I had finished looking at them and thought the best way to store them until I was ready to put them on the wall was to put them mag to mag so nothing wood be attracted to them but didn't take my finger out of the way. Pain shot through me like a rocket, won't be doing that again.RegardsMichael

[Philip Duffy]

I try to do it twice a week, just to see if the blood is the correct color. Otherwise, I might have to observe the proper safety procedures and protocols that go with operating dangerous machinery. Phil

[Zach England]

Hand tools are ALWAYS more prone to injure you than power tools: Your hands are in closer contact with them,and you tend to be more careful around power tools.

This is what I am talking about. I have gotten hurt precisely twice with power tools. Once I had a board kick back from the tablesaw and hit me in the stomach and once my finger came into contact with a router bit. Both of these were long ago and valuable learning experiences.

The only time I have ever been to the hospital (for any reason) was when I cut myself with a chisel, albeit before I was really interested in woodworking. I was cleaning the glue out of a rabbet in the back of a cabinet door into which I had recently installed a glass pane and the chisel slipped and sliced the wrist of the hand that was holding the door.

Edit: I have been hurt three times. I once shot a brad through my finger (and out the other side!).

[Larry McGarrah]

Splinters and scrapes yes, cuts not in years. I used to think of my blood as a natural wood stain until I learned to slow down and pay attention to what I was doing.

[Steve Beadle]

I think I have cut myself two or three times in the last two or three months because I have been trying to perform a carving procedure without the proper equipment--that is, without a proper hold-down or clamp or vise and without the right kind of blade. I think I am still pretty much a novice at woodcarving, and I think that leads to accidents.