Do you wear a (breathing) mask when sharpening?

[Frederick Skelly]

Question: I wondered how many people wear a mask while sharpening at the grinder or sharpening stone?

Why I asked: I read there can be some toxic heavy metals in some types of steel used in chisels, plane irons and such. These can be additives used to help the steel achieve certain desired properties. So the specific metals and concentrations depend on what kind of steel you're sharpening (if I understood it correctly).

Thanks!
Fred

[Luke Dupont]

I doubt this is something you need to be concerned about unless you're removing massive amounts of metal very quickly on something that slings particles up into the air and is used without lubricant.

If you want to be super extra safe, maybe you could wear a mask while using a grinder, but I think it's completely unnecessary.

As for sharpening stones, it's absolutely unnecessary. All of the metal shavings will be suspended in the oil or water you're lubricating the stone with, and even if you sharpen dry on a diamond plate or something, the metal particles are simply too heavy to be thrown into the air from the simple action of rubbing metal on a stone.

[Doug Hepler]

I agree with Luke Dupont. I don't wear any dust protection even when sharpening with a high speed grinder. I do wear a dust mask when I am doing extensive high speed grinding.

Doug

[Lee Schierer]

I don't sharpen anything fast enough to create a cloud of metal particles and the lubricant will keep whatever particles I do create contained.

[Vincent Tai]

*I am not a doctor and likely will never go into med school no matter how much my family wants me to

Frederick, I really doubt the different elements will cause a problem in terms of heavy metal toxicity before you die from getting ground chisel dust piled up in your lung. I worry about the metal causing chronic breathing issues. Just not metal poisoning. Many implants are made of chromium and nickel. Hexavalent chromium which is toxic is not used in solid steel. The chromium as an alloy in steel is not toxic. "The chromium in solid stainless steels should not be regarded as a health hazard." https://www.bssa.org.uk/topics.php?article=112

You would need to eat a fair and noticeable amount of nickel to get affected by it. Unless you have a sensitivity to it.

Molybdenum is an essential part to an enzyme for humans but of course like anything else it will be bad for you in large quantities. Manganese can kill you if you have to much somehow and yet there are adequate daily levels that government bodies set. Silicon is in our baking and cooking tools, in many human bodies, in our food. It goes on. These additives to steel usually exist as a minute percentage or a small percentage that isn't toxic even if increased by many times like in stainless steel, which chops millions of food times daily for our consumption. There are many more funky steels used in kitchen knives then what we usually see in WW.


I would not worry heavy metal poisoning. What I worry about is pulmonary Siderosis, Decreased lung function, and you would have to really be sucking in that dust to get an iron overload. Treat metal dust like you would with fine dust of any sorts, stop it from going into your lungs. That way you don't need to worry. I would not bother with a mask during normal stone sharpening unless you were doing some really eyebrow raising stuff. Most people wouldn't whip out the respirator when doing some light hand sanding, and likewise if they were dry sharpening on some diamond or ceramic stones. I heavily recommend wearing a mask for doing any sort of grinder related activity if its more than a couple minutes. I was sitting at my bench grinder and refreshed a hollow grind which took 30 seconds and my phone happened to be in my lap. I finished grinding and look down at my phone and see minute glittery particles on the black screen. Scary. I usually wore a p100 respirator when grinding more than 5 minutes but now its pretty much every time I flick on the grinder. I have had all sorts of crap in my lungs; sprayed lacquer, sawed fibreglass, power sanded wood etc all with no protection from the age 13-16. These were not constant actions (whew); only had to do each a few times to suffer enough to never do it again. With the fibreglass incident once was enough to give me skin problems for months and who knows what else to my lungs. Yes I was an idiot. Yes I am less of an idiot now (incrementally less but no more fibreglass rash and stuff embedded in my chest:)).

I literally wear a respirator now when whipping out a handsaw. No joke. I've gotten pretty sensitive to dust so I just keep my respirator on for most of the time; it's an odd sight to behold, a guy cutting dovetails with a tiny saw in a hand tools only shop with a respirator on.

Vince

[john zulu]

The amount of dust from the stone are too minute and most of the time the stones are wet. If it is a water stone.
However grinding on the wheel or belt is much higher. It is always advisable to wear an appropriate dust filter.

[david charlesworth]

Eye protection is essential when using high speed bench grinders.

Dust mask cannot be a bad thing, too.

David Charlesworth

[John K Jordan]

When I switched to CBN wheels for lathe tools I became aware of the extent that the steel dust from sharpening would float in the air.

I first noticed a strong magnet stuck on the back of the bandsaw was covered with extremely fine steel dust. The bandsaw is at least 10' from my sharpening station and the magnet was on the side of the saw away from the grinders.

I put a strong magnet below the one wheel and it was very quickly covered with a thick glob of talcum-fine black powder. When I paid attention, I noticed extremely fine dust floating around the room during and after sharpening. I could see the dust more easily in a narrow beam from a bright flashlight with the shop lights off. I hadn't realized that steel dust could be so fine it could be suspended in the air and float around the shop like that.

Dust fine enough to float in the air would certainly be inhaled. How healthy is that?

I have not experimented to see if more of the finest dust was coming from a particular grinder or if more came from some types of steel. I primarily grind turning tools made from HSS. I use several grinders and wheels of several types and grits from 80 to 1200, on "1/2 speed" bench grinders and Tormek, plus conventional wheels and polishing wheels. Most of my sharpening on the bench grinders is with a 600 grit wheel, the one I put the magnet under.

389470

JKJ

[chris carter]

Grinder: yes. If I can smell the metal dust then surely I'm inhaling it and when I use the grinder I'm taking off a lot of metal. I doubt there's a toxicity risk for the minimal amount it's being used, but I'm concerned about my lungs (particularly because I'm asthmatic).

Diamond stone: no. There's a slurry so really nothing can even become airborne - and if it did it would be a minuscule amount below what could be measured I'm sure.

[Bruce Haugen]

Unless I’m doing a lot of grinding, I don’t bother with a dust mask. However, I polish aluminum and brass on a cloth wheel on the grinder and always use a mask. The first session polishing the aluminum heads on my motorcycle left me with chest pains. I have not failed to use the mask since.

[Joe Tilson]

Having gone to the doctor lately with lung problems, and dark spot on the left lung. The doctor was asking me if I used a grinder. After an affirmative answer, he said I should start using so kind of mask no matter how much grinding is done. He advised we should wear a mask anytime there is dust involved. He is a woodworker, and I will take his advice. Respirator is within easy reach as of now.

[Brandon Speaks]

Interesting, I guess I could see it. I still think exposure levels are part of it and not sure I do enough to really cause me any concern.

As I think now I may have answered the poll wrong. If I am at the grinder there is about a 90% chance I have a mask on, but only because I use one at the lathe and typically only grind turning tools.

I will never wear one while using a stone unless I just happened to have it on.....

[Matt Lau]

Nope. But I only use water stones.

[Alexander Zagubny]

I would agree with Vincent. And I have pretty similar experience but happily for me consequences were not so strong. I could only add epoxy to the list of hazardous items. Vincent, best healthy wishes to you, take care of yourself.

I would not bother to wear dust mask while wet sharpening, use it occasionally for dry grinder (mostly because I don't use it heavily and have vacuum cleaner attached) and most frequently for sanding and sawing. I don't use power tools for sanding or sawing, but under certain conditions the fine dust causes caught (which indicates inhaling). I also use respirator while cleaning bench area, there is usually a large amount of saw dust under the shavings. So since I'm packing shavings to plastic bags it creates duct cloud around.

BTW, in my rating fiberglass is most dangerous. Not only small glass fiber parts can be inhaled, once you get those onto your skin, they will stay there for couple days irritating it.

[Jim Koepke]

In the past most of my grinding/sharpening/lapping was done sans mask.

It may be time for me to rethink this.

This poll may alter my work habits.

jtk

[bridger berdel]

....snip.... it's an odd sight to behold, a guy cutting dovetails with a tiny saw in a hand tools only shop with a respirator on.

Vince

Read that as a guy in a hand tools shop with only a respirator on....

[glenn bradley]

I tend to use mineral spirits as a lube on my DMT diamond 'stones' so I use a mask when the weather doesn't allow an open door and a fan for fumes.