Shop mishap

[Greg Cole]

Making a small box for a gift and making a pass on the jointer.... my left hand somehow slipped slightly and my lefy pinky went you know where.
Doing something I've done 1,000's of times, it wasn't a skinny nor short nor thin board( 6" X 18" X 1/2" walnut)... safety gaurd in place, using push blocks... right as I was transferring pressure to the outfeed table I 1/2 dropped the push block and made the mistake of trying to catch it. Resulting in removing enough flesh at about a 45 degree angle from tip to base of the pinky. I got to see the tip of the bone and a bunch of the tip of that finger. 1/100th of a second is all it takes or took.
It'll heal fine, hurts like a few unmentionable explitives (cause I refuse pain killers).....
Be careful all the time. Accidents are just around the corner & 1/100th of a second is more than long enough. Still got all 10 and keeping them.;)
Not to stir up a Sawstop debate, but a new TS in in the upgrade list in 08 & there's a new leader of the pack for me....

Be safe.

Greg

[Jim Becker]

Sorry to hear about your accident, Greg, and I'm glad that the damage is something that will heal well.

["Jason Belous"]

Well welcome to the club of the unfortinate, I am still seeing a hand specialist every monday at 9 due to a table saw fight. Cut my thumb in half at the nuckle, I will have 9 and 1/2 digits with a little extra. Like you I was being safe and have done the same operation a thousand times but they bite you when you least expect it. Just makes you fell kind of stupid and even angry at yourself when you do it. Lucky for me I have short and long term disability so the wallet is not that effected. As a professional woodworker the importance of insurance and extra insurance is priceless. without it christmas would of been a whole different story. The moral is that if you charm snakes long enough you will eventaly get bitten, and make sure you have a secure plan in place for when it does. Hope you feel better soon an maby you can get out of some chores aroung the house.

[Bruce Page]

Greg, I’m glad it wasn’t any worse (sounds bad enough).

Heal quickly

[Andrew Nemeth]

I'm sorry to hear about your accident. Thank you for not being too ashamed to share it. It's a story that we all need to hear now and again to remind ourselves that it can happen to anyone at anytime. In the short time that I have been visiting this forum I have already changed many of my shop practices because of the stories I have read.

I hope your back up and running soon.

-Andrew

[Christopher Pine]

You accident is one I can see happening to me very easily. I confess... on some of the accident threads on here and some I have heard about in other places I hear what happened and I think "How did somoen do that?" Yours I can see so easily happening. The jointer is one tool I think I have more respect (fear) for than some..although they all deserve respect, they can hurt you in a hurry! Heres wishing you a fast healing and recovery!

Chris

[Greg Cole]

Nothing to be sorry for, but thanks for the wishes. I did it to me and there's nothing to blame myself for other than a preprogrammed reaction of catching what ya drop.:rolleyes: The male nurse said "thats why I'm not a woodworker", but it's easy to get hurt doing anything if ya do it enough. My one golf outing ever I had a ball bounce off the bench I was sitting on... near miss enough for me.
Just a reminder to try to have the best situational awareness you can. Focus focus focus.
Jason, the doc stitched me up very well (actually have stitches thru the nail pulling it all tight) considering the "material loss" but I still have to see the orthepedic Monday just for reassurance of not damaging the bone.


Greg

[Larry Fox]

Greg - sorry to hear about your accident but thanks for sharing as a reminder to all. Speedy recovery!!

[Fred Voorhees]

Greg, well now you are even with me. The jointer is the only machine in the shop that has ever bitten me. I didn't get harmed very much either, but it sure made me realize that you have to be careful because it only takes a split second as I'm sure you are now aware of. Careful out there guys.

[Greg Stanford]

Stuck my thumb into a tablesaw blade a few years back, couldn't believe it happend at the time & still can't. Hummingbird flew into the shop. I was distracted. Fella I worked with said "I been working w/ power tools all my life, never got hurt once." Told him I'd said the same thing right up until I stuck my thumb into that saw.

Hope you heal fast.

g

[keith ouellette]

I have heard the jointer is the most dangerous tool in a wood working shop. It could had been a lot worse, glad it wasn't.
I nicked myself with a chain saw a few years ago. I know what you mean about the 1/100th of a second. My first thought was "did I just cut myself?" and then I saw the blood.

[Rick Gifford]

Man I am sorry to hear about that. We get comfortable around our tools after awhile and need to remember to stay diligent.

Hey, at least it wasn't your pickin' finger :p !

I know a buddy that lost half his fingers on his left hand on a tablesaw when he was a teenager. Has to live with that all his life.

Stay safe. Hope that heals ok~

[Dan Barr]

yyeeeeeccchhhhhhh!

Me too. Ive hurt myself a few times too. 2 cuts with chisels, 1 light touch on a tablesaw and 1 pocket knife folding on a finger.

I got to know the staff at the ER from a frequent rash of visits. 3 of these injuries were in the past 3 months. (pocket knife, and 2 chisel cuts)

Im glad you told you story too. keeps me on edge and i think i'll make sure my safety stuff is in order tonight.

hope you heal well. dont be afraid to "get back on the horse" either.

v/r

dan

[Chuck Burns]

Not to stir up a Sawstop debate, but a new TS in in the upgrade list in 08 & there's a new leader of the pack for me....



Greg,
Sorry to hear of your injury. A number of years go I ran my thumb into a TS blade. Furtunatly I had just lowered the blade and it only projected about an eight of an inch above the wood. So when it was time to get a new table saw I purchased your "new leader of the pack". A lot of money, yes, but I'm glad I spent it.

I was talking to a SS tech a few weeks back and they are working on some new tools with their technology. They plan on a jointer, SCMS and a band saw. I'm here to tell you that I will be amongst the first in line for the jointer when it comes out.

I think it was another poster who mentioned getting injured when distracted by a bird. Sometimes things happen and our automatic responses put us at jeopardy. If technolgy can prevent injuries, or reduce their seriousness, I'm all in favor of it. Even if somebody profits from it.

[Dave Ray]

Greg, thanks for posting this reminder for us all. Hope you heal fast.

[Greg Cole]

Thanks guys.... "it" happens.
Dan,after tuning it in (as described in the levels not level post) I'd expect it to not bite me.:rolleyes: Also the doc who stiched me up complemented my sharpening skills, "whatever a jointer is, yours had some nice sharp blades". I'd just hand sharpened them as the last step in the tune up. Guess being able to shave bone isn't as easy as I thought...LOL
I was just griping to LOML when I got up this morning that my shop time today will be spend puttering as I've got the boo boo had on my head all the time & can still count my hearbeats.... I'll be back at it as soon as I can. Not one to let much slow me down..... and I have Thurs & Fri off this week and all of thew following week that's allotted for SHOP TIME 8+ hrs each day. So the hand HAS TO BE BETTER..... least that's what I'm telling myself. I've got a pile of walnut & mahogany that's screaming at me to be used.;)
Be safe & get in some shop time for me today.
Greg

[Rich Torino]

Sorry to hear about the mishap...glad it wasn't any worse.
Well I guess it makes the power feed that Dave just installed sound like a good idea...

[Gary Muto]

Making a small box for a gift and making a pass on the jointer.... my left hand somehow slipped slightly and my lefy pinky went you know where.
Doing something I've done 1,000's of times, it wasn't a skinny nor short nor thin board( 6" X 18" X 1/2" walnut)... safety gaurd in place, using push blocks... right as I was transferring pressure to the outfeed table I 1/2 dropped the push block and made the mistake of trying to catch it. Resulting in removing enough flesh at about a 45 degree angle from tip to base of the pinky. I got to see the tip of the bone and a bunch of the tip of that finger. 1/100th of a second is all it takes or took.
It'll heal fine, hurts like a few unmentionable explitives (cause I refuse pain killers).....
Be careful all the time. Accidents are just around the corner & 1/100th of a second is more than long enough. Still got all 10 and keeping them.;)
Not to stir up a Sawstop debate, but a new TS in in the upgrade list in 08 & there's a new leader of the pack for me....

Be safe.

Greg
Greg,
i hope you heal fast and well. I appreciate your willingness to share. Recollections such as these have made me MUCH more safe and aware in the shop. So much more than a warning in an owners manual or a DIY program.
You have probably saved someone else from that experience.

[Glenn Clabo]

Doing something I've done 1,000's of times
Greg

I wonder how many of us have done things "1,000's of times" and not got burned. I cringe everytime a thread contains those words...especially when someone is trying to prove that it's something okay to do. I know that's not what you are trying to do here Greg.

[Marcus Ward]

Greg! When you come down I will introduce you to my friend, mister #7. He's slower but less painful when you slip. ;) Sorry to hear you hurt yourself and I hope you heal up quickly.

[Sean Kinn]

Sorry to hear it, best wishes on a speedy recovery.

I had a close encounter with the tablsaw about a year and a half ago, and put a perfect 45* chamfer across the top of my knuckle. There was no flap of skin left, nothing to re-connect or stitch.....just gone in one amazingly fast zzzzzzzziiiiiiiiinnnnngg. Didn't hurt one bit, but I heard the sound of the cut change and it hit me...."that didn't sound right." Of course when I saw a nickel sized portion missing from the top of my finger I must admit I went into panic mode. I was expecting a blood bath and grabbed a t-shirt out of the laundry basket, wrapped it tight and told the wife to get the car. I didn't even want to risk taking pressure off of it to take a peek. Here's the part that blew my mind...when they unwrapped it at the hospital there was only about one drop of blood. Apparently, the cut was so smooth, and the blade was very hot and cauterized the wound shut. Darn good thing. Lets just say I;m not in any hurry to see what my own bones look like anytime soon.

Glad you've still got your digit (or at leat 15/16 of it still attached.)

[Greg Cole]

Glenn,
I don't like using the expression, "something I've done 1,000's" of times b/c it sounds nonchalant or taken for granted. BUt literally something most of us have done alot. I work with machines at the day job that make WW'ing tools look like toys. Machines at work have up to 250HP motors & some have 10 planetary gearboxes on them etc etc & over $1,000,000.00. I have a very healthy respect for them all. If you've seen the little grinders at Cabela's etc, we sell grinders that have capacities of up to 60,000 lbs per hour....:eek:
Marcus,
Thanks for the offer on the #7.... I've got a #6 from the north of the border outfit that I've recently picked up here from SMC classifieds. Don't think I'll be grabbing it all too soon.
But I do plan to be back in the shop on my off days this Thursday & Friday and most of next week.
The orthapedic doc said I'll be fine, err at least in regards to the boo boo finger, he won't have to shorten the bone any to make sure there's some "padding" on the end.:rolleyes:

Cheers.

[Greg Heppeard]

Greg,

It seems to happen to me when I've done the same procedure a thousand times...I still think I'm being careful, but I don't think I'm as careful as I was the first couple of hundred times. I've knicked my finger with the table saw, trimmed my nails with the shaper, taken a nasty kickback to the head from the bandsaw, and have had various knicks, cuts, scrapes and bruises from various other power and hand tools. I still think the one that hurts the most is making my thumb explode with a 3 lb hammer. :o

Be careful out there
The other Greg

[Greg Cole]

Sean,
The ortho said I'd be surprised at how much it will come back to "normal" But I'll always have a little reminder, at least this one is related to a hobby I love.:rolleyes:
I didn't bleed hardly at all either. Not a spot on the machine & about 6 spots on the floor. I might be slightly warped, but I am leaving the spots on the floor as a reminder.... as it's the first thing I see when I open the door to walk in. Ok, strike that I might be... I know I am.
Greg,
Your point about 1,000's of times versus the first few 100 is something for us all to think on some.... sort of like Glenns statements. Nothing is to be assumed safe cause you do it alot.

Greg

[John Schreiber]

I lost about that much of my left thumb cutting branches with a tree saw,. Left a very ragged edge. It looks almost normal now, but my sense of touch is gone.

Being home alone, I managed to drive to the ER, but first I had to clean all the blood up at home. I couldn't imagine my wife coming home, me being gone and blood on the floor.:eek: