Well, I voted jointer, which may seem odd, but to me it's the most dangerous. My reasoning is that there is no tool that I use where my body gets closer to a cutter. The head of a jointer is really just freely spinning in open air with a spring loaded guard that your hands move over directly. I never get my hands that close to a blade on my TS.
-
Keith Z. Leonard
Go Steelers! -
My dad used to make custom pallets and skids and employed 5 to 6 people on average. 220V table saws, 220V band saws, 220V radial arm saw, planer, jointer, - in 10 years he had one person taken to the doctor for misuse of a circular saw (cut a board while resting it on his leg) and at least 6 because of nail guns. And most of those were STUPID tests - on a leg, on a hand, and with a finger/thumb (2).Hank Lee
Experience is what you get when you don't get what you wanted!
Comment
-
I believe the most dangerous in it's design and function is the RAS. Close to that are the shaper, due to it's power and large cutters, then a jointer because you are working over a set of knives you can't see.
Frequency of injuries from the list would have to be the table saw. As was stated, just more of them around.Don, aka Pappy,
Wise men talk because they have something to say,
Fools because they have to say something.
PlatoComment
-
You have forgotten one choice. The Wife. That's the most dangerous part where I live.
BigdaddyjohnComment
-
I voted TS because they're wildly commonplace and easy to misuse.online at http://www.theFrankes.com
while ( !( succeed = try() ) ) ;
"Life is short, Art long, Occasion sudden and dangerous, Experience deceitful, and Judgment difficult." -HippocratesComment
-
I like this topic. It is interesting and seeing the comments are helpful.
What has the potential for the most damage in your opinion?
I think the potential for the most damage would be the bench grinder.
Grind some iron/steel, then grind some aluminum, grind more steel, and more aluminum and then some more sparky steel and see what happens! . . . POOF goes the shop in flames!Last edited by leehljp; 02-05-2008, 06:33 PM.Hank Lee
Experience is what you get when you don't get what you wanted!Comment
-
You left off "operator".
Or "distracted operator". None of those tools are particularly dangerous until misused or abused.
Nail guns are another story. Tough to make safe -- particularly if you work with other people. My other half drifts into la-la land easily -- so I did a whole reno project with a hammer and screws where a nail gun would have cut the time in half. It just wasn't safe...
If you had nail gun I would have voted -- otherwise one is no worse than the other.
---
WillComment
-
I picked the table saw because you are pushing your body parts past the cutter (close second is the jointer). In situations like making dadoes you aren't using a guard and can't see the blade. Normal situations can still be dangerous with kickback and lots of folks don't use the blade gaurds.
I also shot myself with a brad nailer. you don't have to be stupid for this to happen either. pulling the trigger against a body part or goofing off is one thing. I had a nail change direction in a piece of wood and blow out the side right through my finger. only way I know this is I had a very small prick of blood on my finger and a missing brad. luckily it went clean through and didn't hit any bone.
That said, I always say the most dangerous tool is the one I'm about to turn on!
I think this helps me realize the drill press can hurt me just like the table saw. Not to get to close to the bandsaw to clear scrap cuts, etc.Last edited by ejs1097; 02-04-2008, 07:46 AM.Eric
Be Kind OnlineComment
-
Eric: I picked the table saw because you are pushing your body parts past the cutter (close second is the jointer).
With a radial arm saw, it comes running past, over and through body parts on its own if one is not careful. It doesn't wait for meat to come to it - it actively seeks out flesh of the weak handed and absent minded. - Scary to see that happen, or nearly happen in my case. Only Once!
Hank Lee
Experience is what you get when you don't get what you wanted!Comment
-
Amen, Hank...Comment
-
It is not on the list as it is not a shop tool, but the tool that frightens me the most is the chainsaw. Thankfully we have moved away from the 5 acres of fir and maple to a smaller retirement home sans big trees.regards,
Charlie
A woman is only a woman, but a good cigar is a smoke.
Rudyard KiplingComment
-
I agree. With the wrong blade the RAS can be a mean mother. Thankfully, I got a Freud -5 deg hook blade for Christmas, so I'm excited to finally get the new table and fence for mine set up...Eric: I picked the table saw because you are pushing your body parts past the cutter (close second is the jointer).
With a radial arm saw, it comes running past, over and through body parts on its own if one is not careful. It doesn't wait for meat to come to it - it actively seeks out flesh of the weak handed and absent minded. - Scary to see that happen, or nearly happen in my case. Only Once!Comment
-
When I got interested in woodworking, the first thing I did was enroll in a beginners' class to learn the safety procedures. I decided that messing with power tools on my own wasn't the best way to learn how to use them. I was happy that our instructor was pretty anal about workshop safety and didn't shy from hammering it in (so to speak). He did go a little overboard with the blood and gore stories concerning power tools, especially the table saw and jointer, which probably contributed to my continued hyperventilating just before I start them up.
I voted table saw because it's the one that gets me hyperventilating the most. I make sure I know where every part of my body is in relation to the blade, and that the area around the saw is clear. It's the tool that I'm probably the most compulsive about. I've had one minor kickback, totally my fault because I took off the riving knife. But haven't drawn blood yet in using any of the tools. (Well, actually, does a Swiss army knife count?)
Having seen radial arm saws in action at the lumber yard, I probably would have voted them the most dangerous if I owned one.
I won't even go near a chainsaw after watching a CSI episode that featured it, in graphic glory, as the homicide tool.Comment
-
I restricted my vote to tools I've worked with, so TS got the vote.
I've never used a RAS, but have heard experienced WWs opine it was the most dangerous tool they'd worked with.
After the TS, jointer gets my vote as the tool most likely to consume unwary fingers.Comment
Comment