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Thread: 31,400 Table Saw Accidents a Year

  1. #46
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    I like the fact that some people "improved" the statistic by viewing the injury *rate*.

    I'd go one step further, though.

    Like transportation, the stats are generally viewed in "passenger miles."

    In other words, the TS injury rate could be more granular, and -- IMHO -- more useful, if we knew the rate as a function of operator/operation hours.

  2. Alcohol

    I've spent many a day working in the shop with a beer in my hand. Those are days I conserve the most energy. No power tools are EVER turned on as soon as I crack a beer. Once I crack a beer it's time to clean the shop or close the doors. This mindset came from a day of roofing with a friend. Had a beer at lunch, got back on the roof and promptly put a shingle staple through my middle finger. Staple entered right next to the nail, stuck out the other side. I've decided to apply that lesson learned to woodworking tools.


  3. #48
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    As someone else stated, my immediate thought was 10 times a year could be the same person... So, 31,000 incidents could easily be 20,000 people. Hard for you to believe? Think of this:

    Imagine, for a moment, how stupid the AVERAGE person is. Wait for it, wait for it... Now, realize that HALF the population is STUPIDER (like that word?) than them! How is THAT for depressing...
    I drink, therefore I am.

  4. #49
    Quote Originally Posted by Mike Cruz View Post
    As someone else stated, my immediate thought was 10 times a year could be the same person... So, 31,000 incidents could easily be 20,000 people. Hard for you to believe?
    Yep, it's really, really hard to believe that more than one or two people would get injured by a table saw 10 times in one year in all of the United States.

    It's really hard to believe that any significant number would be injured by a table saw five times in one year.

    For one thing, the recovery time from a serious injury would put them out of operation for months on end.

    Mike
    Go into the world and do well. But more importantly, go into the world and do good.

  5. #50
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    Quote Originally Posted by Neil Brooks View Post
    In other words, the TS injury rate could be more granular, and -- IMHO -- more useful, if we knew the rate as a function of operator/operation hours.
    Bingo- If you could figure it per number of cuts, (regadless of size), that number is pretty dang small. Basically non-existant.

    I heard on the news the other night that around 3000 people per year are seriously injured from tripping over their pets.

  6. #51
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    Quote Originally Posted by Mike Henderson View Post
    Yep, it's really, really hard to believe that more than one or two people would get injured by a table saw 10 times in one year in all of the United States.

    It's really hard to believe that any significant number would be injured by a table saw five times in one year.

    For one thing, the recovery time from a serious injury would put them out of operation for months on end.

    Mike
    Mike, never underestimate stupidity. And remember, nothing is foolproof, as fools are so ingenious!
    Maurice

  7. #52
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    Amen to that Maurice! Not to mention, a TS injury does not mean a cut by the blade. Taking a shot to the gut from a kickback, or a projectile to the face might send you to the emergency room, but not keep you off the saw for more than a week or two. That said, I know of a guy that caught one in the gut from a 5hp TS and broke multiple ribs and was in the hospital for over a month....

    I wonder if tripping over you pet into your TS counts for both statistics...
    I drink, therefore I am.

  8. #53
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    political rant

    According to the original study, this does not include people hurt at work. I can tell you from experience that many people work for companies that require a post accident drug test. People who use drugs leave work and claim the accident happened at home. Many illegals and low wageworkers do the same thing out of fear of being fired. I know the tool is dangerous but random statistics mean nothing. As a matter of fact the usually lead to cumbersome Federal regulation. OK,
    get down and step away from the soapbox.

  9. #54
    If one person a year gets injured, and that one person happens to be you, statistics won't be of much comfort.

    I wear a parachute when I'm doing aerobatics. Am I afraid of flying? No. Am I afraid of aerobatics? No. Have I had training out the wazzo? Yes. Do I check the plane over. Yes. Does the place I rent from do inspections and maintenance? Yes. Do planes still break in the air, requiring bail-out? Sure! Does it happen often? No, but once is too much if I'm in the plane.

    By the way, anyone ever have a look at Maloof's fingers? Even the best among us screw up sometimes. Sometimes the machine screws up. Sometimes the wood screws up (us turners sure like our face shields, don't we?). Do you scale mountains without rope? What safety gear do you bring with you? Satellite phones, sometimes? Extra supplies? Signalling gear? It's not about fear. It's about risk mitigation where it's practical. Same reason you have GFCI outlets near water, and airbags in a car. Live your life, manage the risk. That makes a lot of sense to me.
    Last edited by John Coloccia; 03-02-2010 at 5:57 PM.

  10. #55
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    Chuck is correct on the "work" statistic. A work injury would obviously fall under workers compensation insurance.

    Many contractors do not have the proper WC insurance or incorrectly list employees job descriptions -- this is especially true of owners. This causes many injuries to flow onto personal policies in order to obtain treatment and avoid scrutiny.

  11. #56
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    Quote Originally Posted by Chuck Werts View Post
    According to the original study, this does not include people hurt at work. I can tell you from experience that many people work for companies that require a post accident drug test. People who use drugs leave work and claim the accident happened at home. Many illegals and low wageworkers do the same thing out of fear of being fired. I know the tool is dangerous but random statistics mean nothing. As a matter of fact the usually lead to cumbersome Federal regulation. OK,
    get down and step away from the soapbox.

    Good points and if the employer has WC insurance you can bet there will be a drug test in any state that intoxication is a defence for the company.

  12. #57
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    Quote Originally Posted by John Coloccia View Post
    Do you scale mountains without rope?

    Funny you should mention that since in rock and mountain climbing climbers often eshew safety measures on purpose. In rock climbing climbing without rope (and/or other safety measures) is called free soloing and the feat of ticking off a climb in this manner is highly respected, the same way climbing 8000+ meter peaks is respected when you don't use supplemental oxygen.

    Again it all comes down to managing risk, while there are sports/hobbies that certain people gain satisfaction from "flying without a net" this is not one of them. There is no extra satisfaction from using a table saw without a guard etc. Then again if safety is a primary goal then going neander or at least dumping the TS all together makes sense. There are people that just use a track saw and band saw, if one is completely safety oriented they would not own a TS, SS or not, again just an example of risk management.

  13. #58
    The great thing about this research and the discussion is that it is a reminder to be careful and opens open a dialog about best safety practices. I did some work on the table saw today and this discussion was fresh in my mind. It made me rethink the best way to approach the cut and I used a featherboard (thanks to the Deals and Discount forum-- glad I found Sawmill Creek) on a table saw for the first time.

  14. #59
    Friend of mine had an ER doctor tell him two very common accidents he sees are "tablesaws & trampolines".

  15. #60
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    oh hey look, another tracksaw/sawstop free ad thread. haven't had one of these in.....two or three weeks?

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