Lee Valley Shop Apron saved me

[lowell holmes]

Lee Valley dose not advertise it as such but their canvas shop apron saved me from kick back injury. I'm sure they can't advertise it as such because of liability issues. I can comment on it though.

I wear eye and hearing protection as well as the apron. I was making a stupid cut when it kicked back striking me in the sternum. It knocked the breath out of me and almost stunned me.

The double layers of canvas in the bib of the apron never even ripped. I suffered no bruising, no cuts and no penetrations. The canvas was not penetrated either.

I'm sure Lee Valley can't advertise it as such, but it sure made a believer out of me that it is another layer of protection. I'm glad they use a strong canvas.

I'm embarrassed to post this, but it might save someone else from injury.

I bought the apron because of the shoulder strap configuration.

[Dave Lehnert]

Glad you are ok.

[Chris Padilla]

Do you have any bruising on your chest? I'm glad you are fine. What did you do wrong to warrant the kick back?

[lowell holmes]

No bruising. I was making a diagonal cut on a rather small piece of wood using a push stick. The wood must have twisted a bit and the blade caught it and kicked it back at me.

I never had thought of the apron acting as a protection device. I would not depend on it, but I have used the apron for years and I will certainly always have on now.

[Aaron Berk]

This description sounds like you were free handing on the table saw? Was that the case? Not using a miter gauge or the fence?

[Chris Parks]

What he was doing is not pertinent to the OP's post in my view. He is just putting a comment out there on the outcome of a kickback and not the kickback itself. Go down that road and this thread will degenerate into a blame game and I am sure the OP already blames himself without any further criticism from others.

[Aaron Berk]

Nice way to keep the peace.
I wasn't trying to stir the pot, just curious.

I've free handed, and even back feed while standing on the outfeed side of a ts before.
Not condoning it at all, just stating that I have no bone to pick.

[John TenEyck]

I wear a heavy Cordura nylon apron that I bought at Woodcraft about 15 or 20 years ago. They no longer sell it, no idea why. I bought it specifically because I thought it would help protect me in case of kickback, and it has earned my praise a couple of times over the years. I wear it along with eye and ear protection every time I'm in the shop. It is amazing the force a narrow piece of stock has if it kicks back; there are a couple of impressive dents in the door to my boiler, 20 feet away, where pieces have hit it. I don't care how careful you are, chit happens, eventually, it's just the nature of the table saw beast. Keeping yourself out of harms way is number one. Wearing PPE is number two, and I'm glad I have that heavy duty apron. If you are tall, you really want one, a long one.

John

[scott vroom]

What he was doing is not pertinent to the OP's post in my view. He is just putting a comment out there on the outcome of a kickback and not the kickback itself. Go down that road and this thread will degenerate into a blame game and I am sure the OP already blames himself without any further criticism from others.

Chris, it's always useful to understand the activity that lead to the accident. I didn't get the sense that Aaron was doing any finger pointing or blaming.

[Chris Padilla]

What he was doing is not pertinent to the OP's post in my view. He is just putting a comment out there on the outcome of a kickback and not the kickback itself. Go down that road and this thread will degenerate into a blame game and I am sure the OP already blames himself without any further criticism from others.

Sure it is. I'd like to know to learn NOT to do it or to be more careful myself in the future.

[johnny means]

I assure you the apron did very little. Maybe it prevented a slight cut. Kickbacks will go through 3/4 plywood with ease. The fact is you were lucky not protected. A slightly different scenario would have pushed that apron right into your chest. Thankfully, you're okay, but I think you may have the wrong idea about how dangerous a kickback can be.

[Pat Barry]

Good news is that you are not badly injured.

The degree of injury includes a bunch of factors, importantly the length of the pice as it makes contact with the blade (the longer it is the faster it can be propelled assuming other circumstances are the same), the mass of the object, the bluntness or sharpness of the object, god know what else. I agree with jonny that the apron didn't save you all that much but no doubt it helped. Better would have been to have an insert in the apron - think Kevlar or stainless steel. Assuming the insert was in the proper location and optimally oriented to the projectile line of flight, that could save you.

Like I said though, good news is you weren't injured

[John Coloccia]

This is why I always wear my leather shop apron when I'm working. If you spend enough time in the shop, you'll eventually be pelted by things, run into sharp blades (I'm thinking hand tools here) and have other little accidents that the apron will offer at least SOME protection against.

Mine doesn't look too pretty anymore. Neither did my old motorcycle helmet (rocks, pine cones, etc....). Better it than me.

[johnny means]

What he was doing is not pertinentto the OP's post in my view. He is just putting a comment out there on the outcome of a kickback and not the kickback itself. Go down that road and this thread will degenerate into a blame game and I am sure the OP already blames himself without any further criticism from others.

Years ago, when I was the young inexperienced guy in the shop, I observed one of the senior guys in the shop doing something I knew looked dangerous. I wanted to say something but thought to myself that it wasn't my place. This guy has probably been doing this longer than I had been alive, let alone worked in a shop. So I walked on by and kept my mouth shut. No sooner than I got to the other end of the shop I hear folks yelling that this fellow had gotten cut. Without hearing anything else I knew exactly how and where he had gotten injured. I felt horrible because I basically allowed it to happen.Thankfully it wasn't s life altering injury and he was back at work the next day, albeit with limited duties. To this day I find it very difficult to not be very blunt and matter of fact about safety issues. I for one would rather be percieved as rude or overly critical than miss an opportunity to save someone a world of suffering. Say something, you just might be the voice that makes a difference.

[lowell holmes]

I wear a heavy Cordura nylon apron that I bought at Woodcraft about 15 or 20 years ago. They no longer sell it, no idea why. I bought it specifically because I thought it would help protect me in case of kickback, and it has earned my praise a couple of times over the years. I wear it along with eye and ear protection every time I'm in the shop. It is amazing the force a narrow piece of stock has if it kicks back; there are a couple of impressive dents in the door to my boiler, 20 feet away, where pieces have hit it. I don't care how careful you are, chit happens, eventually, it's just the nature of the table saw beast. Keeping yourself out of harms way is number one. Wearing PPE is number two, and I'm glad I have that heavy duty apron. If you are tall, you really want one, a long one.

John

John, that's why I made the post. I don't need any one to tell me I was stupid to be in the situation that a kickback could occur. However, I was wearing all my safety gear plus a strong canvas apron that has double layers of canvas in the chest area. I had not and do not consider this safety gear. I can tell you that if I was only wearing a shirt, the wood would have broken the skin and possibly more.

I appreciate the concern you all have shown, and if my post helps prevent another kick back, then my purpose has been served.

[Andrew Pitonyak]

I assure you the apron did very little.

Not sure I agree. I think that if I place a double layer of canvas over my t-shirt and I am hit with something, it will feel very different, especially if it has any sharp edges, compared to just the t-shirt. I am guessing that compression wise it won't make much difference, but, it would certainly spread out the force. Not sure how much it would help against something larger.

[John TenEyck]

Unless you have documentation that is just your opinion. You may be correct, but w/o proof you may not be, too. Chainsaw chaps stop even the largest gas powered saw. They are cloth and long fibered batting. No steel, no armor. I have to believe a heavy shop apron will stop at least some projectiles. It did in my case, twice. Whether or not I would have been injured without it is unclear, but I would guess I would have been in at least one of the instances. No one would argue you should never put yourself in a position where you might get hit, but in case it happens I'd rather have the apron on and hope it helps lessen the impact.

John

[Justin Ludwig]

If you are tall, you really want one, a long one. John

Ain't that the truth. At 6'3", my junk is level with the table. I've only been hit in the butt, thanks to my highly tuned kick-back sensing ninja reflexes. ;)

[Wade Lippman]

Not sure I agree. I think that if I place a double layer of canvas over my t-shirt and I am hit with something, it will feel very different, especially if it has any sharp edges, compared to just the t-shirt. I am guessing that compression wise it won't make much difference, but, it would certainly spread out the force. Not sure how much it would help against something larger.

I had three kickbacks (though none in years, now that I have a better idea what I am doing). Two hit me square in the chest, stung and left a mark, but no big deal. An apron would have been nice, but not enough to justify wearing it.
The third missed me, went though a wall and landed in a couch 25' away. Presumable it was about the same as the other two; the body is pretty tough.

[Loren Woirhaye]

I usually wear an apron when using the table saw. This is mostly to keep dust from packing into my clothes, but I have been hit in the apron plenty of times by debris that would have hurt if I'd only been wearing a shirt.

I've been hit by kickback at least twice. I don't think the apron would have shielded me from bruising but it might cushion a corner making a sort of poke-with-a-sharp-stick bruise that's almost a puncture.

[paul cottingham]

Those aprons will soften a blow from a kickback; they diffuse the impact by spreading it out a bit. They also make it less likely to get cut. The one time I took a hit from my saw, it definitely helped. It still sucked, though. :-)

[lowell holmes]

Actually, when mine hit I sucked. :)

It's not a laughing matter, but I am more careful now.

[Don Selke]

Had a woodsmith apron that they offered for many years. Since woodsmith no longer offers the apron I decided to buy the Lee Valley apron. No regrets as the apron is well made and as you stated, double canvas. If it lasts as long as my woodsmith apron, it will be a bargain.

[Peter Quinn]

I don't have a PHD in physics or mechanical engineering, but I'd guess the heavy apron softens the direct impact and stops the edges from cutting you in some cases. Dont believe me? I don't have proof? Probably not the kind of proof that lets a seller advertise its effectiveness as such, but to suggest it had no effect is naive. Glad you came out OK. I worked at a place with 40HP gang rip saws, one sticker got loose and shot a guy through the side/buttocs, very life altering to have a 3/4" oak spear penetrate your innards. (And yes these machines have a myriad of safety devises to prevent just such an incident.) Missed the vital organs, serious muscle tissue damage, that kid will probably never be the same. When you see the potential danger these saws have its frightening. Its really important you consider exactly what you did and develop a plan to eliminate that sort of thing from your working methods. Working small parts always gives me pause. After the OSHA investigation they made all rip saw operators wear kevlar body armor chest to waist aprons, which in typical osha fashion would not have protected the operator from the injury in the way he sustained it, but it gave the inspector the warm fuzzes and all the guys who had to wear it heat rash. Still, if I were on that machine I'd be wearing it. I've considered something similar for the home shop, like this http://www.hsarmor.com/htm/Kickbackbrochure.htm, wonder if I'd actually be wearing it when danger strikes? Be safe.

[lowell holmes]

If they altered the apron with a panel of kevlor or some product like it, I'd buy it. I know from experience that the double layer of canvas spread the impact force and I didn't even have a bruise.

I cannot remember having the breath knocked out of me since I was a kid, but for a moment I was stunned and breathless and a little anxious.

Regardless, I wear my shop apron when in the shop for several reasons, the perceived chest protection being one of them.

I know Lee Valley cannot comment on this, I don't expect them to. I can comment and I have.