Topic: Safety

[Robatoy]

A long time co-worker/friend/competitor of mine has hurt himself. Nothing fatal. He is the most safety-aware guy a boss could ask for. An excellent cabinet maker for 25 years. Took a 1 1/2" 16 ga Paslode finishing nail in the wrist. Right in the joint. It managed to distort going into the joint to the point that extraction wasn't an option. The Xray (I want a copy) shows it looks like the letter Z.

3 (three) days that sucker was in there before the medical team could decide how to go about taking that sucker outta there. They sortakinda partially removed/hinged his hand, opening the joint so that they could remove that nail. Moral of the story is that even the most experienced guys can get injured.

Nail guns are very dangerous. They are giving them away these days. To anybody!

Just the thought of a nail in a joint is giving me the creeps.

0¿0 ?

Rob

[Leon]

Thanks for the reminder that NO ONE is incapable of making a mistake.

[Robert Allison]

I have shot myself 7 times with nail guns and staple guns in the past 30 years. I was once shot by another person for a total of eight times. 3 of those were 12d framing nails. Other than getting a tetanus shot, I have never had to go to the doctor for this.

By far the most painful was with a 4d finish nail. I was trying to hold a shelf board flush with the front of the shelf unit. The nail hit a knot and came out the side and into the tip of my index finger. Only penetrated about 1/4" (to the bone), but it felt like a bolt of lightning. That is the only time I had to go home, and it was the smallest injury.

I have fired at least a thousand boxes of nails of all kinds. If the average box has 5,000 nails, that is 5,000,000 nails. That is close to

1.5 in a million. Start counting. If your close, be extra careful.

With every penetration, I have noticed that my technique changes a bit. I haven't been hit for the last 8 years, so maybe I am close to getting it right. I will let you know the next time I get hit. I figure that it is just a matter of time. If you use it enough, you will shoot yourself.

[tomeshew]

Man, I'd hate to mess with my hands like that. Well, now I don't fee so alone. Recieved a 2-inch long, 1/2-inch crown staple in my kneeca while roofing in a cold climate, wearing heavy gloves. It's hard t feel that trigger while you're freezing your a** off, and messing wit a safety harness/rope. Later in the hospital, with all the intern gathered 'round, it was removed with a pair of vise-grips and a hammer Yow. To

-- tomeshew