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Thanks to all for the INITIAL Safety Advice...

Dudley

Dudley

Joined
Dec 10, 2005
Messages
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Location
SW Pennsylvania
I had a bowl blow up on me tonight. I noticed the outside had a few bumps, so I decided to try to touch them up with a gouge.... and BAM 😱 Pieces flew everywhere.... one smacked my face shield right below my eye. Thank the Good Lord I listened to you folks and bought a face sheild before I started turning!

I had been wearing it all along; however, last night I droped it and broke the hinge. I FINISHED TURNING WITH ONLY MY SAFETY GLASSES and got lucky that nothing like this happened last night.

I stopped by a local welding shop on my way home from work today and bought a new shield because I just didn't feel comfortable without it. (I wear both the shield and safety glasses at the same time.) Glad I did!

Thanks again for pushing the shield issue on me when I started. You folks probably saved me a few stitches, a big scar, or possible loss of an eye (the wood was moving pretty fast, would have went under the glasses.) 😱
 
Very glad to hear that you did not get hurt Brad. Safety glasses and goggles do not cut it for woodturning. Faceshields are the only way to go. Accidents happen and sometimes even good wood goes bad.

You may want to go out and try to visualize how the piece blew up. Maybe you had the gouge at the wrong angle or something else. It's always good to learn from mistakes.

If you had not been wearing your faceshield we would probably be hearing about your trip to the hospital. And I have already heard about 3 other people getting hurt during 2005. I wear my faceshield even when sanding. It may sound like too much safety but I only have 2 eyes and I like both of them. :cool2:
 
Brad,

Glad you're not hurt. Hope those blowups never do catch up to you.


Also, belated congratulations on the new addiction. Welcome to the Vortex.

Oh.. and nice job on your first bowl...
 
Posts like this make me glad I spend the time on these forums trying to help!! Like Jeff, I wear my face sheild even when sanding and buffing - just can't afford to loose the eyesight and don't want anymore stitches!

Glad things turned out right on this accident!

Wilford
 
Brad,

Congratulations on your "baptism." There's no better teacher than walking away unharmed from an incident to internalize the advice you got.

Full face protection is the paramount safety issue for turners, and it's one of my pet peaves that almost every "how-to" video (and most live demontrators) I've seen usually have the instructor spinning away with a pair of glasses at best. Perhaps they'll argue "when you get to my level, you won't need it", which is a crock, but I suspect it's more vanity-driven than anything else; everybody wants to be a movie star. 🙄

Really glad you're OK 😀

M
 
I'm with you, Mark.

Was watching a demo video last night. The demonstrator (not to be mentioned here but famous for nested bowls) was wearing light safety glasses only. He also had a steady stream of shavings hitting his face and glasses, indicating exactly where something bad would go if things went wrong.

I'm not so sure it's ego so much as complacency. I guess folks can lose their sense of caution as skill improves and the number of blowups decreases. I just remember what happened to one friend. He had what he thought was a perfectly sound piece of wood on the lathe and was turning gently and normally. Unfortunately, a spalt line that had given no indication of it's opening up just inside the surface he was working on let go and took out a significant chunk of his shoulder.

When we stop paying close attention and start thinking of what we do around power tools as routine, bad things can happen.

Dietrich
 
Jason Ledbetter said:
You guys made me paranoid (or maybe smarter)... I went to SLowes yesterday and bought a face shield.
Click to expand...

Not paranoid, definitely smarter. I've only been turning for a few months and originally was only wearing goggles. I had a couple minor chips hit me in the face but didn't think too much about that. Then while I was working on a small walnut bowl the tenon broke off and that little 8" blank came spinning out of the chuck and did a "burn out" tire spin on my left forearm before flying off into space. I was extremely lucky I got off with only a simple nasty scrape on my arm.

Before I turned the lathe back on I went out and bought a full face shield. Felt really funky at first but now I've really come to like it.
 
As much as I dislike wearing the face shield because I can't see as well with it on, I always wear it. Had a bowl come off this afternoon. It hit the wall instead of me but still a reminder. Always glad to have it on.

I need a better light 😀 .
 
I had to buy an anti-fog spray for my shield. I had a hard time seeing at all through the cloud that formed on it. I can't believe how easily a little mistake can turn bad!
 
Old Saws, New Theme

dkulze said:
I'm with you, Mark.

Was watching a demo video last night. The demonstrator (not to be mentioned here but famous for nested bowls) was wearing light safety glasses only. He also had a steady stream of shavings hitting his face and glasses, indicating exactly where something bad would go if things went wrong.

I'm not so sure it's ego so much as complacency. I guess folks can lose their sense of caution as skill improves and the number of blowups decreases. I just remember what happened to one friend. He had what he thought was a perfectly sound piece of wood on the lathe and was turning gently and normally. Unfortunately, a spalt line that had given no indication of it's opening up just inside the surface he was working on let go and took out a significant chunk of his shoulder.

When we stop paying close attention and start thinking of what we do around power tools as routine, bad things can happen.

Dietrich
Click to expand...

"Familiarity Breeds Contempt"

but

"Chutzpah is not Hubris - Go For It"

😀
 
I used wear glasses to see, now I wear contacts, and it was easier to put a shield on instead of oversized safety glasses. It just became habit when I was teaching shop and never has gone away. I also had a bowl blow up and actually put a crack in my shield. I was much happier to replace the shield than my cheekbone.

I was at the WW show in Atlanta this past weekend, lots of great stuff being demoed but an amazingly large number of vendors would demo without any eye protection. Total idiots in my opinion. I even told one that I would never buy a product from an idiot, and he kept right on demo'ing his sanding discs.
 
Griesbach,
I bought it at Cabela's. It's called "Parker's Perfect." Here's their website

Here's the link to Cabela's: link

I bought the 4 oz. bottle for $9.99 at their store in Wheeling, WV. It's designed for scopes and optics but works wonders on my shield. I still get a little condensation on the shield, but it's not in my field of vision--more around my mouth area.

Hope this helps! 😀
 
face shields

I'm not so sure it's ego so much as complacency. I guess folks can lose their sense of caution as skill improves and the number of blowups decreases. I just remember what happened to one friend. He had what he thought was a perfectly sound piece of wood on the lathe and was turning gently and normally. Unfortunately, a spalt line that had given no indication of it's opening up just inside the surface he was working on let go and took out a significant chunk of his shoulder.

Kevlar next? 🙂 Gretch
 
It doesn't take long to get that first accident Dudley. If you were touching up the outside after turning the inside, you can be more subject to blowups. After a bowl is reversed touchup the outside and be done with it. It should run dead straight. If a bowl is not reversed same principle. Small vibrations can lead to big ones. Keep on safe turning. GT
 
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