nick205
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| posted on 11/5/20 at 04:24 PM |
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Angry grinder injury
Bugger!
As mentioned on here earlier I'm busy making a rocket stove from 50mm ERW box section steel. Making the final cut today with the angry grinder
I managed to slice a pinky finger. A wash and a sticky plaster has held it for now, but a classic case of not paying enough attention to the tool and
making a mistake.
Quite rightly told off rather sternly by SWMBO and eldest son 
Take care with power tools and stay safe people!
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macc man
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| posted on 11/5/20 at 04:32 PM |
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While cutting some 8mm steel strip to size the sparks managed to set my overall and t shirt alight. Wearing goggles I did not notice until I put the
grinder down. No real damage done but I learned a lesson that day.
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nick205
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| posted on 11/5/20 at 04:37 PM |
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It happens and as you say it makes you learn. Hopefully you didn't suffer any injury, just some smouldering clothes.
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rusty nuts
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| posted on 11/5/20 at 05:18 PM |
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What I would call an idiot rash, got a few myself
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40inches
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| posted on 11/5/20 at 05:27 PM |
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I was cutting a 3x2 box section frame into pieces, and after 2 cuts the cut tightened breaking the 9" blade.
the angry grinder spun round out of my hands, I was saved by the plug pulling out and the Dickies padded overalls 
.JPG) .JPG)
Angry grinder
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02GF74
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| posted on 11/5/20 at 05:50 PM |
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We all do a half assessment of whether to wear protective gear or not, usually failing to fully take into account of consequences if it goes wrong but
just take probability of it going wrong.
To illustrate many of us would quite happily walk along 6 in wide bean 2 ft off the ground but would be less happy doing the same on a beam 1ft wide
but 50ft above ground.
You are less likely to fall off the wider beam but there is a big difference between falling 2 or 50ft.
Now I always put on a pair of protective glasses when drilling, it's not happened yet and even though the chance getting a piece of metal in the
eye is very low, the consequences of it happening could be loss of sight.
Reading this I may start wearing protective gloves when holding Mr angry.
As shown by the op, no matter how careful you are, poo happens.
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snapper
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| posted on 11/5/20 at 05:55 PM |
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I seem to do my left forefinger knuckle when it happens, I could see the knuckle joint the first time, very little blood.
I now keep a tube of superglue handy just in case I do it for a third time
I eat to survive
I drink to forget
I breath to pi55 my ex wife off (and now my ex partner)
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lsdweb
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| posted on 11/5/20 at 06:38 PM |
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I find I'm less cautious with an angle grinder when I wear ear protectors - it just seems safer when it's not screaming in my ears - a
false sense of security I know!
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jps
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| posted on 11/5/20 at 06:42 PM |
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I was cutting some 3mm aluminium sheet a couple of weeks ago, with the jigsaw. Lots of stop/start making cuts, as I kept offering the piece up to
where it's going on the car. I started off wearing safety glasses (and usually I am reasonably good at wearing PPE), then at some point I took
them off and didn't put them back on. A couple of cuts later and a shard of alu came up and hit me in the eye. Lucky escape, no damage done, but
it just underlines why we should be wearing the protective stuff all the time.
I do with the angle grinder as I had a disc break a while ago - and part of it whacked straight into the visor I was wearing - but obviously I felt
too safe with the jigsaw!
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David Jenkins
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| posted on 11/5/20 at 07:12 PM |
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A stupid trick I've done 2 or 3 times in my building saga is to wear all the protective gear while doing a piece of work... then, when I think
I've finished and taken all the gear off, I spot something that needs "just a touch" with the angry grinder.
You guessed correctly - that's when the grinder jumped or kicked back...
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ianhurley20
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| posted on 11/5/20 at 08:07 PM |
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With me - finished for the day, all gear off, clearing up, picked up the grinder which immediatly switched itself on, bugger, 4 hours in hospital
later came home. Took the grinder apart to find due to use the power cable had fractured making intermitent connection and had connected as I picked
it up. Cable shortened and fixed.
Despite wifes call to bin it still have the grinder and also its new replacement as ordered by the boss (wife)
Now have two grinders :-)
BUT these things are the most dangerous tool any of us will ever use and we should all be aware of that and be as safe as we can!!!!
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Bluemoon
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| posted on 11/5/20 at 08:10 PM |
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Never like angle grinders, I still don’t have one at the minute, accidents
Happen with them far to quickly!
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David Jenkins
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| posted on 11/5/20 at 08:49 PM |
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I've also set fire to stuff by not watching where the angry grinder's sparks were going - done that a few times... done the same with the
sparks from welding...
Nowadays I *try* to ensure that there's nothing inflammable downstream of the grinder or welder. But it always seems to be the "quick
one-minute job" that causes the problems.
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MikeR
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| posted on 11/5/20 at 09:02 PM |
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My friends used to ask me on a friday "what have you set fire too this week" as for a few weeks running i set fire to something. The
favourite story was when i held the grinder infront of me cutting metal held in a vice. The sparks hit my padded aldi pollyester jumper.....
I thought it was getting a bit warm but finished the cut.
So then discover i'm wearing welding gloves (due to mr angry grinder) and my groin is on fire ...... its a very strange experience trying to hit
yourself in the groin to put out a fire. You don't want to hit yourself but know you need to.
Luckily thats the worst i've done with the angry grinder. I do tend to be quite good with the ppe. I have managed to give myself a nasty burn by
welding a long seam, taking the gloves off and then leaning over and holding my weight against the reverse seam to check how i'd done. I then
had to push against the hot steel burning my hand to stand up.
Years ago on this forum i remembered someone posting about a drill bit breaking and getting embedded into the goggles they were wearing. The gentleman
only had sight in one eye. It embedded infront of his good eye. That makes me wear goggles a lot more than i used to, especially with small drill bits
(but rarely with larger ones).
Stay safe everyone, this is supposed to be a fun hobby.
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SteveWalker
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| posted on 11/5/20 at 09:05 PM |
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I am generally quite happy using a 4-1/2" grinder, but am a lot more nervous with the 9"
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02GF74
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| posted on 12/5/20 at 06:17 AM |
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quote:
Originally posted by Bluemoon
Never like angle grinders, I still don’t have one at the minute, accidents
Happen with them far to quickly!
Then you want to borrow my black and decker jigsaw. The 'on' button is on the inside of the handle where your second finger would be when
holding it. You need to be extremely careful so as not to turn it on when picking it up, who designed it deserves a hefty kick to the bollocks.
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nick205
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| posted on 12/5/20 at 07:40 AM |
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On the one hand I'm glad to hear it's not just me.
On the other it simply highlights to me that accidents happen to all and we ALL have to take better care of ourselves.
As before, please look after yourselves and think ahead. Accidents happen so quickly and consequences can be so bad!
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JeffHs
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| posted on 12/5/20 at 09:09 AM |
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I bought myself a winter workshop coat from a local Army surplus store - full NATO spec ex Austrian army, warm comfortable, goretex lined, the
works.
Too good for the workshop really and it turned out to be the perfect coat for winter bird watching. Now it has a big black hole around the groin
thanks to some careless cutting of sheet steel.
Some years ago I was grinding with my son watching when he started hitting me because I was on fire. I was totally unaware on both occasions.
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coyoteboy
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| posted on 12/5/20 at 01:44 PM |
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My (cant remember the make) grinder has a lock-on option (seriously?!) which locks when you push/use the grinder.
I had a cup brush fitted (lovely wire-flinger, good for burying wire ends in your face/arms/fingers as a normal hazard). Caught on my sleeve, while it
had inadvertently locked on. It wound up my sleeve and buried itself in the back of my left hand. As letting it go didn't stop it, the only
option I had for preventing further damage was to hold it as tight as possible to try to jam it.
Removed a 50p piece area of flesh down to the bone on my hand and scuffed up my arm, had to pick bits of wire out the back of my hand and it was
purely good luck that it got me between two ligaments or I'd have lost function of my left thumb and forefinger.
If you can find the lock-on option and snap the catch off, do so.
If you can wear leather gloves ALWAYS do so.
I'm very lucky it was limited to that damage and it was my own stupid fault, but why the hell do they have a lock-on button?
A decade later it looks like this...no hospital visit (all the digits moved, seemed no point troubling the good folk at the hospital and after 3 weeks
it had healed over).
 
Angry Grinder
[Edited on 12/5/20 by coyoteboy]
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Angel Acevedo
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| posted on 12/5/20 at 04:16 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by coyoteboy
My (cant remember the make) grinder has a lock-on option (seriously?!) which locks when you push/use the grinder.
I had a cup brush fitted (lovely wire-flinger, good for burying wire ends in your face/arms/fingers as a normal hazard). Caught on my sleeve, while it
had inadvertently locked on. It wound up my sleeve and buried itself in the back of my left hand. As letting it go didn't stop it, the only
option I had for preventing further damage was to hold it as tight as possible to try to jam it.
Removed a 50p piece area of flesh down to the bone on my hand and scuffed up my arm, had to pick bits of wire out the back of my hand and it was
purely good luck that it got me between two ligaments or I'd have lost function of my left thumb and forefinger.
If you can find the lock-on option and snap the catch off, do so.
If you can wear leather gloves ALWAYS do so.
I'm very lucky it was limited to that damage and it was my own stupid fault, but why the hell do they have a lock-on button?
A decade later it looks like this...no hospital visit (all the digits moved, seemed no point troubling the good folk at the hospital and after 3 weeks
it had healed over).
Angry Grinder
[Edited on 12/5/20 by coyoteboy]
I have a Skil one that has a single slide switch. You in order to stay put you need to push somewhat hard which makes you use both hands.
The problem is when you turn it on and it is not pulgged, it´s all too easy to let it for a second to plug it in..
Then...
HOLD ON... if you were not holding it tight while you hastily plugged it back...
Beware of what you wish.. for it may come true....
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daviep
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| posted on 13/5/20 at 08:10 AM |
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In my opinion small grinders need to be able to be locked in the on position, they are awkward to use in some situations if you have to hold them in a
certain way to keep the switch pressed.
“A truly great library contains something in it to offend everyone.”
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Bluemoon
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| posted on 13/5/20 at 11:14 AM |
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quote:
Originally posted by daviep
In my opinion small grinders need to be able to be locked in the on position, they are awkward to use in some situations if you have to hold them in a
certain way to keep the switch pressed.
Used to think that, had an electric drill snatch on some clothing with a wire brush, the lock was on it was not at all fun, now never use the lock
buttons after that. Drill on full chat no way to turn off but to pull the plug out, a recipe for serious injury, same us true for a grinder or any
power tool. Effectively the push switch is a "Deadman's Handle" a very handy safety feature IMHO.
Dan
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David Jenkins
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| posted on 13/5/20 at 11:24 AM |
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A couple of my air tools have a nice and safe arrangement - a long lever that's easy to keep on, but with a latch that needs to be pushed aside
before you can pull the long lever. It's not easy to pull the lever accidentally, but reasonably easy to operate the safety latch.
Here's an example I plucked off the Machine Mart website - the arrangement of the operating lever is clear.
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coyoteboy
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| posted on 13/5/20 at 03:29 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by daviep
In my opinion small grinders need to be able to be locked in the on position, they are awkward to use in some situations if you have to hold them in a
certain way to keep the switch pressed.
In those cases I find a different tool to do the job safely. If it's hard to hold and keep pressed, it's in a position that I will have
poor control over the device anyway because I'm not holding it in the manner it was designed to be held. Personal choice at the end of the day,
and I'm entirely behind your ability to risk removing your own fingers should you wish, but I've made that mistake and won't make it
again personally. 
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steve m
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| posted on 13/5/20 at 05:36 PM |
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"I am generally quite happy using a 4-1/2" grinder, but am a lot more nervous with the 9"
I am exactly the same, the 9" seems to be a bit over the top for most of the jobs ive done, so its rarely used
I will add, that all of us have done something silly using workshop tools at some point, in fact I am very surprised that I appear to have all of my
digits, and eyes, quite incredibly !!
The most painful one, all though there have been a few, was soldering a new rectifier into my Suzuki 250
I had the garage vice on the seat to hold everything in place, and for some bizzare reason picked up the soldering iron on the HOT metal, not the
handle !!!
so, that's not the worst bit !, having jumped in the air with burns on my hand, the vice (heavey record vice) falls of the seat, and lands on my
left foot
I broke my foot so bad, at one point amputation was considered, and a few weeks in hospital, and in plaster but no pins or plates,
and a lot of time recovering, all seems to be ok, but now in the winter, left foot aches so badly I have to take painkillers
And then the story of me breaking my arm in two places putting a new fence panel in, we wont go there, as my arm still has problems 5 years later !
steve
Thats was probably spelt wrong, or had some grammer, that the "grammer police have to have a moan at
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