Hey Rich and Chris!

Thanks for the advice, stories and good wishes :) I'm seeing
the doctor this morning and will find out how my finger will be
dressed. I'll post a pic when I'm able to look at it. Doc snipped off
the shredded part and I didn't want to see it. Then they put a "gel
foam" on it which is like artificial skin. It stayed numb until
yesterday afternoon then it was like a throbbing pain without the
throbbing. I'm taking light Motrin and a swig of beer now and then and
feeling okay, all things considered.

I was back in the shop this morning with a new cove bit. Weird
thing happened. While running, a dark substance splattered off the bit
and I couldn't tell where it came from. I shut off the router and
found that the pilot bearing opened up. That freaked me out a little.
So I switched to a smaller cove bit. Much less dramatic at start up.
It removes enough wood for me to run it across the drum once or twice
and flatten it out. End result looks good.

Yeah, gloves are a questionable issue. I feel better with them
on. It's true that they're bulky and can get caught up so you have to
think about the tool and the possibility. I don't see them getting
caught on the drum or disc grinder that I use (picture in my folder).
They protect me from scrapes. The way I use them I think they're safer
overall. For the flush trim and leading edge router cut I think
they're too bulky but for the trailing edge I think they're safer. The
biggest danger is having the wood slip from lack of grip. I feel more
secure with them on. Maybe one off and one on. I think it's a personal
choice one has to make depending on the circumstances. For larger
scale tools I might choose otherwise.


Cheers!

John V.


--- In Boomerang_Talk@yahoogroups.com, "Richard Bower" <RDude15@...>
wrote:
>
> Holy crap John! Consider yourself lucky you were only using
> a "little" router bit. I want to see pics of the carnage. :-) At my
> cabinet shop we've got some hella big bits for doing square joints,
> there about 1 1/2" high and 2 1/2" diameter. When we first got them
> one of my co-workers sent a 6 1/2 x 18 x 3/4 chuck of walnut flying,
> stopped when it hit the wall 15' away...
> It had almost as much velocity as the big azz table saw we have, your
> workpiece will go flying way before you make that motor lock up. One
> of my co-workers broke his wrist on that thing. New guy fresh out of
> carprentry school, he did not know you should try not to look at the
> blade the whole time, always at the fence so you can make sure the
> piece stays flat against the fence. Nothing bad can happen unless
> that board twists or you decide to cut your thumb off (pushsticks
> people!).
>
> Anyway, tools 101, respect your tools yo! I could go on and on, the
> owner of a door store across the street from me is missing 3 fingers,
> those were some gross, but cool, pictures.
>
> Hope your diget grows back ok John, don't get scared of the tool
> because of this! My boss is missing one fingertip from an encounter
> with a sewer cover. I also don't know about work gloves, they are a
> great idea, depending on the machine your're using. Some machines the
> gloves will get sucked in and not let your hand out, resulting in
> more damage than if you were not wearing any. A pedistal grinder is a
> great example. when I was in metal-working school three differant
> kids got their hands messed up and they were all wearing gloves,
> could not pull their hands out. For the most part I do not wear
> gloves, yes I have nicked my knuckles on my belt sander a few times,
> but never anything else.
> There is a scar on my leg from where a 9in grinder got away from me,
> that was exciting. I have a 6" long scar on the same leg from a
> falling rock, not tool related but still, that was REALLY exciting.
> Still have all my digets though.
>
> Stay Rad and safe everybody!
> Richard Bower
>
> --- In Boomerang_Talk@yahoogroups.com, "johnvboomerangertiltheend"
> <whishhbone@> wrote:
> >
> >
> >
> > Hi Guys,
> >
> >
> > I've been upgrading my shop a little, trying to fine tune my
> > production. I bought another trim router and also some bits from
> this
> > place http://tinyurl.com/394sy3 Incredible variety and prices
> compared
> > to what I've seen elsewhere. Really good service too. Yesterday I
> was
> > using some new bits and one older cove bit that I did a lousy job of
> > modifying for the trailing edge cut. It works but leaves a rougher
> > edge that I have to even out with the sander. I was not being
> careful
> > enough and received a shredded fingertip. DAMN!! I'm okay but
> needed a
> > trip to the emergency room for treatment. Doc says it'll grow back
> and
> > I feel kind of lucky but also very stupid.
> >
> > I've always had an instinctive fear of routers and I used to
> avoid
> > them. But as I've cautiously used them and seen others use them I've
> > become increasingly more comfortable with them. Too comfortable
> > apparently. The more I use them I see how much time they save and
> how
> > evenly they can shape a boom. So I'd have to say I advocate their
> use.
> > I just want to remind everyone to enjoy them as I do but respect the
> > router and keep your fingers.
> >
> > I won't be doing any left handed catches for a while but I'll be
> > back in the shop as soon as I can. They wrapped my finger and it'll
> be
> > looked at tomorrow. I'm still excited about my new router tools and
> > can't wait to get back to using them again.
> >
> >
> > John V.
> >
>