Various threads here have touched on safety concerning things like radiation and high voltage. It got me thinking about my own "safety heuristics".

Sometimes, habits are far better than rational actions to keep you safe. I combine mental checklists with mandatory actions to create habits. For example, if I am going to carry concealed, I have a ritual to check the chamber, eject the magazine and reseat the top cartridge, reinsert it, then operate the safety from off to on and back off (I don't carry on safe). This way, I know the gun in ready, and can be confident.

In the shop, I have similar rituals with power tools. The table saw, for example. Both in setting up for a cut, and very importantly (particularly when I had smaller kids) making the saw safe when I am done. But, the reason this came to mind was the danger of high voltage.

People who use table saws every day are very often missing fingers or parts of them. Because the table saw doesn't hesitate to cut through a finger, its ver before they know it happened. Even people skilled and careful can be victims. So, really liking all my fingers and their parts, one of the things I did to establish a safety habit on the saw (and the router table as well) is to treat the blade as if it was at a high potential.

Since the damage is in an instant, and can be the result of a small slip, I treat the cutting action of the blade on my hand the way I treat high voltage circuits, that they could come looking for me. This is literally true of HV but it is effectively true of the spinning blade if I make a mistake that moves my hand a bit too much. This isn't a guarantee against injury, but it is one part of making myself safer. It is irrational, the blade isn't going to jump at me, but it is functional.

Do you have anything like this that you can share? I'd love to hear something new that I can incorporate.

(By the way I know about Sawstop, and my next table saw will probably be equipped, it's great stuff but I still wouldn't want to test it of pay the money for a new brake!)

 

Since the damage is in an instant, and can be the result of a small slip, I treat the cutting action of the blade on my hand the way I treat high voltage circuits, that they could come looking for me. This is literally true of HV but it is effectively true of the spinning blade if I make a mistake that moves my hand a bit too much. This isn't a guarantee against injury, but it is one part of making myself safer. It is irrational, the blade isn't going to jump at me, but it is functional.

Many years ago, when my oldest son was in high school, I got a call at work one day from the emergency room at the hospital near the school. The message was terse: "Your son has been SEVERELY INJURED in an accident in shop class. We need you here IMMEDIATELY." The caller would not tell me more.

A half hour later I walked into the ER and found my son sitting on a gurney with his right hand held up high above his head and his middle finger raised, and the school principal, the shop teacher and the school nurse standing nearby, all looking stricken.

Turns out the kid was operating a table saw, tried to retrieve a stray piece of wood from behind the blade with his bare hand, and got the tip of his middle finger nicked by the spinning blade. The cut was about 1/8" deep, through the fingernail and down almost to the bone. No big deal, but a useful reminder for a great safety tip which his shop teacher had drilled into him, but which he had ignored:

When working with a table saw, always use a pusher stick.​

Other safety habits:

Always keep one hand in pocket when working with high voltage. Never wear loose clothing-- especially not a tie-- around rotating machinery. Remove power before servicing. Wear safety glasses or goggles.

And that's about it...

 

(By the way I know about Sawstop, and my next table saw will probably be equipped, it's great stuff but I still wouldn't want to test it of pay the money for a new brake!)

I saw that device and came to the opposite conclusion. I cut aluminum on my Unisaw. If you plan to cut anything conductive, like a PCB, you might want to reconsider.

Sawstop: https://www.sawstop.com/why-sawstop/the-technology

 

I saw that device and came to the opposite conclusion. I cut aluminum on my Unisaw. If you plan to cut anything conductive, like a PCB, you might want to reconsider.

Sawstop: https://www.sawstop.com/why-sawstop/the-technology

My saw cuts wood and plastics, no aluminum.

 

I took a class in woodworking and the teacher emphasized safe practices. In addition to always using a pusher:

1. Use the blade guard when possible. For one thing, the integrated splitter is required to get a good cut.
2. Don't ever put your hands beyond the start of the blade guard until the saw is stopped.
3. When you are about to go finish a cut, step to the left so that if the cut off piece kicks back, which it will sometimes, it does not hit you. The worst injury I have had on the table saw came when a piece kicked back and hit me in the forehead.
4. Of course, always use safety glasses. (See 3.)
5. Always clamp down work when using a drill press. I got whacked pretty good on the knuckles when a piece got away from me and swung around.
6. The most dangerous tool in the workshop is the router. Be very afraid when using it!

Bob

 

6. The most dangerous tool in the workshop is the router. Be very afraid when using it!

Sometimes, the most dangerous tool in the workshop is the one who operates the power switch.

 

6. The most dangerous tool in the workshop is the router. Be very afraid when using it!

Bob

If restricted to woodworking, I think a large jointer (≥6") or cabinet model molder with a large (≥3") head beats out a router. I particularly don't like using a handheld, corded circular saw. The safety switch on some is "handed" and not very easy to use if left handed. On my Craftsman cordless, I had to bypass the safety to feel safe, but it is not a very big blade.

Metal working has different dangers, but given the higher speeds and larger sizes usually involved in hobby woodworking, it gives me more concern.

 

I’m missing a digit. I had an inexpensive power saw and was ripping a board. The guard was on. I was off to one side to avoid kickback. I was using a push stick.

The cut piece was clear. I placed my left hand on the waste piece to shut the saw off. But, the switch was on the left side of the saw. I reached across my body to hit the switch.

But as I did so, my torso twisted and the waste piece got caught in the blade and pulled my hand through. I still don’t understand how. Cut through two fingers and my thumb. (Only lost one)

I made a foot switch for it after that. I know, too little too late.

* Warning: Graphic Content Follows *

I almost severed two fingers. Right through the bone. An 18mm piece of flesh kept them attached. My thumb lost all of the skin from the pad.

Twenty hours of surgery and the surgeon was able to reattach one finger. There was minimal nerve damage. The cut on the second finger went right through the knuckle and it couldn’t be saved. But they used the skin to reconstruct my thumb.

Too little too late, I wired the saw through a foot switch. But my wife wanted to get rid of the saw and I sold it to a neighbor.

Addendum: That neighbor nearly split his middle finger on the same saw. It must have been possessed.

 

But as I did so, my torso twisted and the waste piece got caught in the blade and pulled my hand through. I still don’t understand how. Cut through two fingers and my thumb. (Only lost one)

Sorry about your accident.

The switch on my saw is positioned so that, after I step to the left, it is below the table and inches from my left hand, so, no reaching required. And it is a large red button that you simply hit to shut it off, with a separate green on button that is recessed. This switch design is an essential safety feature.

The saw is definitely designed for a right handed person, If I were a lefty, I would find it very frustrating.

Bob

 

And it is a large red button that you simply hit to shut it off, with a separate green on button that is recessed. This switch design is an essential safety feature.

That would have been a nice feature. Mine had a large red toggle for both on and off. The foot switch I made was a stomp switch, made from a modified 2000W dimmer switch that I had on-hand (bypassed the dimming circuitry and just used the push button.)

I also cobbled together a foot switch for my radial arm saw. An arm that pivoted on one leg of the saw table crossed to the other leg. It had a fork cutout on the opposite end, which cradled a line switch. The board was held around the switch by extended switch mounting bolts, a strap of plastic (scavenged from scrap when I installed a tub liner) and several nuts. Lifting it up with my foot sent power to the saw (I still used the saw’s power switch.) Pressing it down cut power.

 

I’m missing a digit. I had an inexpensive power saw and was ripping a board. The guard was on. I was off to one side to avoid kickback. I was using a push stick.

But as I did so, my torso twisted and the waste piece got caught in the blade and pulled my hand through. I still don’t understand how. Cut through two fingers and my thumb. (Only lost one)

Very sorry to hear about your accident. It is a mishap that scares me a great deal. Your case shows that even care isn't a cure.

I am glad to hear about the heroic surgery and the mitigation. Far better than if you hadn't had access to that!

 

I was a sawyer in a Truss Plant, Table saws, radial arm, and quad blade which cuts either 2 angles or 4 depending on where the piece needed to fit in the Truss. I was working on a Saturday with someone assisting me, I told them not to pull the wood through the table saw on the other side because I wasn't going to use a push stick. Of the table, 6 pieces cut and on the last one guess what he pulled, I had 2 pair of gloves on it cuts into my thumb 28 stitches on the side of it. Lesson learned don't work with idiots.

Of the thousands of cuts made not once did I have an accident other than that one.

kv

 

Never wear loose clothing-- especially not a tie-- around rotating machinery.

One place I worked we were required to wear our security badges at all times. The problem was the badges were hung on a metal chain round the neck and we were working on mains/high voltage equipment. We didn't wear those badges while working and they came up with a clip-on holder for the badge after a while.

 

One of the biggest safety factors is between your ears. You're so much more likely to have an accident if your mind isn't in the right place, ie. engaged and thinking about safety and proper technique. When you get tired, frustrated, stressed, whatever, your reasoning ability goes down and you're far more likely to make a bad decision, to take a shortcut.

I can remember being under the car, covered in rust and grease, pushing with all my might on a wrench. Cold, tired and sore. I've learned the hard way that this is when you need to step back and regroup. After cleaning up and getting a cup of tea, it dawns on me that the threads are left-handed, or that particular piece doesn't even need to be removed, or whatever silly thing I was banging my head (or knuckles) against didn't need to be forced. When you find yourself wanting to apply more force, push a little harder and faster or otherwise just tough it out, take a breath and rethink it. Get more light and take a better look. Prepare yourself and your work area to do good work. These little things can affect our attitude and keep us on the right track.

 

I've made thousands of cuts with a hobbyist 10" table saw. I am always envisioning fingers being cut off, so I'm careful (and have been lucky so far).

I replaced my table saw with a 10" contractor's table saw that cuts through wood like butter (as compared to the one it replaced) . I've also added a chop saw, radial arm saw, bandsaw, jointer, and surface planer, so I have more tools to choose from. When I only had the table saw, it had the inside track for most cutting jobs.

 

I've made thousands of cuts with a hobbyist 10" table saw. I am always envisioning fingers being cut off, so I'm careful (and have been lucky so far).

I replaced my table saw with a 10" contractor's table saw that cuts through wood like butter (as compared to the one it replaced) . I've also added a chop saw, radial arm saw, bandsaw, jointer, and surface planer, so I have more tools to choose from. When I only had the table saw, it had the inside track for most cutting jobs.

That a good point: One way to stay safer is to use the right tool for the job. It may mean buying more tools than you can really justify.

 

One observation I have made over the years is when someone is trained for the job, for the first while there is a adherence to the safety issues they were trained in, after a while apathy sets in they get overconfident and relax the rules.
Hence an accident waiting to happen.
Max.

 

One observation I have made over the years is when someone is trained for the job, for the first while there is a adherence to the safety issues they were trained in, after a while apathy sets in they get overconfident and relax the rules.
Hence an accident waiting to happen.
Max.

It's Dunning-Krueger. A noob may have apathy set in because, in their limited experience, they've seen that they can get away with it. The weathered pro has seen so many different ways to get injured that they know better than to sidestep on safety.

 

It's Dunning-Krueger. A noob may have apathy set in because, in their limited experience, they've seen that they can get away with it. The weathered pro has seen so many different ways to get injured that they know better than to sidestep on safety.

I've seen a few pro's take chances or 'short cuts' over the years, probably more so than the newbies.
My experience anyway.
Max.

 

I've seen a few pro's take chances or 'short cuts' over the years, probably more so than the newbies.
My experience anyway.
Max.

Yes definitely, although I suspect in those cases they got to be pros without seeing the injuries they "should" have . If you know the hazards and still don't take steps to mitigate them, then you're just stupid.