First woodturning accident injury ...

[Steve Mathews]

... and hopefully the last. While turning the inside of a large bowl I reached near the end of the rest and apparently the gouge slipped off, dug into the bowl and spun around hitting my left hand. No skin was broken but it left a bruise and later some swelling. It was one of those situations where I knew the envelope was being pushed but did it anyway to get the job done. Did I say it hurt like h***?

[John K Jordan]

... and hopefully the last. While turning the inside of a large bowl I reached near the end of the rest and apparently the gouge slipped off, dug into the bowl and spun around hitting my left hand. No skin was broken but it left a bruise and later some swelling. It was one of those situations where I knew the envelope was being pushed but did it anyway to get the job done. Did I say it hurt like h***?

Yikes. Glad it wasn't more serious.

I've occasionally wondered if tool rests should be made with little stops on the ends, perhaps removable. This would be useful for the occasional beginner.

JKJ

[Stark Suggs]

I agree John. Glad it was not any worse. Ive had one or two near death experiences myself....sent a big chill down my spine......much more cautious now...sometimes when making a cut , Ill get an uneasy feeling....I know its time for me to back off....

SWS

[Brice Rogers]

Steve, I did the same thing about 5 years ago. I went to the left end of the rest, had my left index finger resting on the curved tool rest, BANG (decent catch). The bowl gouge slammed into the middle joint of my left hand. The tip was on the rest. It crushed the distal (2nd) bone. Surgery. Pins. Rehab.

Like John Jordan said, perhaps having a stop on the tool rest would make sense, especially for beginners. Now (after the fact) I am much more careful. I consciously never go to the end of my rest.

You are lucky. I wasn't.

[John Terefenko]

Very very easy to put a stop on the ends. Tape would work as well as turning something. Add a setscrew in it. I sense an invention coming.

[John K Jordan]

Very very easy to put a stop on the ends. Tape would work as well as turning something. Add a setscrew in it. I sense an invention coming.

I considered tapping a hole in the end and fastening a washer with a screw. This would work on some tool rests but not others, such as the Robust rests (with hardened steel rods on the top) which are all I use now.

Tape is a good idea. Tape with a bump under it for the less aware. What about a little clamp block with a set screw?

But I can't remember ever running off the end of a rest and none of my students have, at least now while in my shop.

[Steve Mathews]

The swelling on the back of my hand has gone down some and seems to be on the mend. Lucky for me it wasn't more serious. I take exception to Mr. Jordon's comment about this sort of thing never happening to one of his students. I've been following John's advice and comments for some time on this forum and consider one of his students. So, I'll have to take claim for being his first student to get into this type of trouble. Of course it wouldn't have happened if he was standing over my shoulder.

I don't think a stop at the end of a tool rest is worthwhile regardless of what happened to me. In my situation I was aware that the gouge was near the end of the rest but proceeded anyway just to finish the cut. Of course moving the rest would have been the smart thing to do but I didn't do it at my peril. In fairness to me I didn't realize at the time the real consequences of the gouge slipping off the rest and jamming into the spinning bowl. It was only after analyzing the cause of the accident did I realize that the stuck gouge would spin around and whack me on the hand stationed at the rest. What I intend to take away from all of this is a reminder that the best safety device is what's between my ears.