What's The Silliest Shop Injury You've Had?

[crokett]

This was inspired by Dick's thread.

Mine is requiring a few stitches and losing a fingernail after cutting my pinkie open with a coping saw.

[pacwind3]

Falling off the ladder while trying to look into the crawl space. Had the ladder off center because the workbench was in the way. Hit my face on the fallen ladder and split my nose open. They can bleed for quite awhile. Still can feel something on my nose after 3 years, so I may have cracked it at the time.

[bthorne]

Putting away a nail gun.

I disconnected it from the air, removed and put away the brads. A friend walked into the garage just in time to see me look up at him and slam the slide closed on my finger, splitting the fingernail.

You can't use discretion on the manner of the injury if you're seen doing it. I still haven't heard the end of that one.

[Tom Slick]

squirting myself directly in the eye with carburetor cleaner because I didn't pay attention to the direction the nozzle was pointing.

[Pappy]

Injury? In the shop Surely you jest....

[leehljp]

Which month's best of the best would you like to hear about!

[cgallery]

I was holding the end of a flashlight in my mouth, needing both my hands to work on a plumbing project. I was pulling hard on a plumbing fitting when it finally broke free. My right hand hit the flashlight (still in my mouth) ramming it down my throat with such force that, for a very brief moment, I had a much better appreciation for the term "deep throat."

This smile is actually a very close approximation of what my face looked like at the time (minus the flashlight):

Unless someone else was using their butt cheaks to hold a flashlight (with a similar result), I'm going to guess I win. What is my prize?

[LinuxRandal]

Changing a fuel filter for a friend, then being asked a question by them and not paying attention to what I was doing, while gasoline ran down my arm.

Trying to eat lunch in the shop while project planning (pizza with Japs) then going to take a leak after catching the forementioned japs, that had fallen off of it.

Knocking tools off the bench, catching them, smashing hands/fingers, etc. (not taking time to clean the bench because just this little bit more and I am done).

Standing up to quick and sneezing (6' shop ceiling).

[shoottx]

Let's See;

Catching the chisel with the left hand when it slipped - 6 stitches in the index finger

Catching the blade of a new Swiss Army Knife with the thumb - 6 stitches

Catching a falling piece of metal off the grinder - burn to two fingers

Holding the ladder and having a hammer dropped on your head - Not once but twice.

Took the center out of a finger nail with the wing of a forstner bit - band aid for two months!

I may add some more later!

[smorris]

Dropped a chisel after I finished sharpening it. Wasn't looking and when I set it down on the workbench the workbench wasn't under it. My foot caught it. I never really considered that a chisel could penetrate far enough into my foot to stand upright...

[LarryG]

I think I've told this story before:

About 25 years ago I was changing the washer on a faucet stem. I was holding the stem in my right hand (I'm a lefty), which is the silly aspect -- I should have been able to foresee what was about to happen. The screwdriver slipped while I was applying some serious pressure on the stubborn screw, resulting in a pretty deep stab wound in the palm of my right hand.

I applied a compress and headed off to the emergency room, where the doc asked what had happened. I told him I'd stabbed myself with a screwdriver and he said, "Okay, let's have a look." He peeled off the bloody compress and deadpanned, "Phillips, eh?" Absolutely cracked me up.

[bluzcat]

Working on my Ryobi belt/disc sander, I had just ran the cleaning stick over the belt (in the vertical position) which left a bunch of those little "boogers" on the work rest. I decided to try to brush them off without turning off the sander. You know how your middle finger is a little longer than the rest? I took off about an 1/8" faster than I thought possible! Luckily, I had just switched from an 80 grit to a 120 grit belt. The tip of your finger is a really tough place to keep a band-aid on. I ended up cutting little round pieces of the flexible adhesive strip, applying it to the tip, and saturating it with CA glue, making somewhat of a cast. Took a good three weeks to heal. Haven't tried that trick since.

[kbkreisler]

decided the heel of my palm was a suitable mallet to "pop" a dent out below the headlight of my garden tractor... I didnt forsee the burr from the forming of the grill slats opening me up quite like it did.
2.5 hours and 7 stitches later... lesson learned.

[BobSch]

Chopped the tip of my ring finger off in a sheet metal shear. Also ripped the nail out. Never knew a fingernail was so long.

[Alex Franke]

This one: (Poor little guy...)