Kid size face shield?

[Pete Staehling]

Anyone have luck finding safety gear for younger children? Face shields in particular. My grandson loves helping in the shop and he grabs the face shield and wears it when the power tools are on but it doesn't fit very well. Toddler and kid sized hearing protection is readily available but face shields less so.


He is 2-1/2 and knows the names and functions of all the machines right down to small items like chuck keys and such. He knows how to safely stay out of the way when he watches operations where i allow him in the shop, and where safe enough he actually helps by handing me parts or tools or holding things. Some operations Grandma helps out where the work requires too much attention to properly supervise him by myself.


Sometimes time in the shop is spent just asking me to do stuff like make curly wood (shavings with a hand plane), which he seems to delight in. Some times he pulls pieces from the scrap bin and requests cuts or holes to be drilled. Often the finished pieces wind up with his blocks or on his play work bench. Other times we actually do projects like building little trucks or a little adirondack chair. I love it when I do something and he quickly goes and gets his toy version of the tool I used and follows behind and does what I just did. He is still mostly at the watching and handing parts and tools stage, but is starting to be able to drive brads and small nails and to fit pieces together. He is really interested and a quick study.
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[scott vroom]

How about dust protection?

[Matt Day]

I have a 5 and 6 year old. At 2 1/2 I’d never consider having them in the shop while machinery is being operated. Too many things they can bump their heads on, get cut on, or worse. Just my opinion but I’d suggest waiting a few years or a decade. My kids went through a phase where they loved kid tools and seeing my big tools while I carried them around. They are out of that phase now.

Even at 5 & 6, I’d be leery of having them in there while I was working.

[Pete Staehling]

I have a 5 and 6 year old. At 2 1/2 I’d never consider having them in the shop while machinery is being operated. Too many things they can bump their heads on, get cut on, or worse. Just my opinion but I’d suggest waiting a few years or a decade. My kids went through a phase where they loved kid tools and seeing my big tools while I carried them around. They are out of that phase now.

Even at 5 & 6, I’d be leery of having them in there while I was working.
Just to clarify... He isn't there when I am working on my projects. He comes out to work with me on little projects for him. When he is there the time is focused on him and not on my work. Some slightly bigger projects like the little adirondack chair he watched a few steps and was there for assembly. Exposure to power tools is limited, but developing good habits of using safety equipment is a good idea. Most cutting for him is done on the band saw rather than the table saw as it is easier to manage with him in tow. Since we are usually working with small pieces from the scrap bin it is easier to manage for that reason as well.

By the way, while he isn't in the shop while I work on my projects. He does take notice of progress on my projects and asks about how they are going. When he visits he wants to see what has changed since his last visit to the shop. I hope that it will give him a lifelong aptitude for working with his hands and solving problems which will serve him well regardless of what his chosen profession is. I think that is especially lacking in at least a few of the folks taking up engineering and other fields these days if some of the engineers I have worked with are any indication.

He seems to get a great deal of satisfaction out of having had some input into building some of his toys and his chair. They really seem to be favorites for that reason. If nothing else I think we are building a nice bond between us and I will continue to invite him into the shop as long as he continues to ask and enjoy the visits.