Jeff's Boo-Boo

Bro. Noble · February 18, 2003, 06:51:28 PM

Jeff,

I sure hope you get along well with your injured paw.

I suppose you didn't post about it cause you didn't want everyone feeling sorry for you and telling you mushy stuff. I won't say anything about it either then cause I really feel for you and think you're just wonderful

Noble

Noble_Ma · February 18, 2003, 06:59:38 PM

Looks like some one has let the cat out of the bag Jeff. Or is that paw ;D Come on now, fess up.

Texas Ranger · February 18, 2003, 07:43:57 PM

Y'all be gentle on Jeff, he hurt his pinky. The way I understand it, he impailed his pinkie on a Martinni tooth pick trying to get to the olive ;D

Jeff, thanks for the help on the computer, seems to be speeding right along.

Jeff · February 18, 2003, 07:45:42 PM

O.K. boys, (and girls)(and Don) my cut and paste answer cause I aint typing well.

I am wounded. My saw tooth change tool broke a pin this morning as I was slamming in a new tooth in the vertical edger. I drove a sawtooth into the base of the palm of my hand till it contacted with bone. I went to emergency and have to go to another Dr. tomorrow. My middle and ring finger on the right hand are completely numb. I have either cut or traumatized the median nerve that goes through there. I can move them O.K. they are just numb. (that was written this morning, tonight, no moving without silent screams) I have this big ole bulky bandage that has got my hand mummified. No place for the mouse cause my palm is full of gauze!

I hope this is just first night pains. I am becoming increasingly worried that I have severed some wireing. increasing numbness.

dan-l-b · February 18, 2003, 08:00:36 PM

Sounds kinda serious, Jeff. 800 miles away, there isn't much a guy can do to help, so.... keep us informed and my thoughts and prayers are wit yu

bull · February 18, 2003, 08:02:00 PM

Jeff I feel your pain, got bitten a few years back. Woodsplitter went after my right hand..... Three surgeries later and its about 90percent..... severed the pinkey just above the first knuckle.... it was put back on and works like new, Middle finger was squished ,it has recovered to near normal.The ring fingers another story, spiraled the first knuckle right out of that sucker its 3/4 of an inch shorterand has a mind of its own
The doc was able to keep the fingernail and if you look Quick it looks fairly normal..... this damb cold weather hurts like hell though!!! GOOD LUCK...... update after you see the doctor

CHARLIE · February 18, 2003, 09:07:58 PM

Jeff, I'm sorry to hear about your injury. It's amazing how fast something like that happens. Faster than you can respond to. I sure hope there is no nerve damage. Take care and you'll be in my prayers for sure.

Tillaway · February 18, 2003, 09:10:44 PM

Ouch, possible nerve damage too. So long as it all still works you should be OK.
Look at it this way, more war stories with scars. You should come up with a better story like, rescuing a small child from the grips of a lion while on safari in Africa. Or maybe took a bullet for the President during my time with the Secret Service. "I was changing a tooth in the verticle edger" just doesn't quite have that certain pizzaz.

How about this one " I was helping Deadheader when..."

Bud Man · February 18, 2003, 10:55:23 PM

Had a chat with Tom Ridge about your injury and he said to spray some WD40 in the wound (cures anything ) and wrap it with Duct Tape real tight so as to trap the WD40 inside the wound, might want to use some visqueen under the Duct Tape to keep it from getting infected with any airborne bacteria !

I had a couple of fingertips put back on after a mishap a few years back and I'm familiar with hand pain, It'll pass thankfully !! Hope It wasn't your paperwork hand, mine was, sure made things awkward for a while !! :'( :'(

Haytrader · February 18, 2003, 11:07:04 PM

Jeff, I too, feel your ouchy when thinking about it. You are probably kickin yer own butt (as Kiwi might say) for letting that happen after doing it so many times. :'(

But, what I want to know is.......will all the kissen up from the originator of this post do any good? What's he want, another tree?

[

ADfields · February 19, 2003, 12:28:57 AM

Hay, your spost to be cutting wood with that thing not hands!! :

Nobody lern ya nutin? :-/

Sorry to hear this but you will get all healed up soon and once you get the dope working for you you wont cair that it herts like the dickens. Yea it will still hert you just wont give a darn. ;D
Andy

Get beter SOON!!!

Jeff · February 19, 2003, 05:30:10 AM

A small dull impailing device sometimes also used for the manufacture of lumber.

Ron Scott · February 19, 2003, 07:56:57 AM

Ouch! Get good care for it for good healing.

ohsoloco · February 19, 2003, 08:05:35 AM

Jeff, when I've opened up parts of my hand on my bandsaw and jointer I thought of one thing after the cussing....just be thankful the blade wasn't moving when it happened! Hope to hear you're 100% real soon.

Texas Ranger · February 19, 2003, 09:33:55 AM

I talked to Jeff on the telephone yesterday, cause he couldn't type real well. I suggested one of the metal mesh gloves used in the fishing industry, and around the house, to protect hands in the circumstances he described.

Anyone else ever hear of, use, or know of this thing? Forestry suppliers have them for around $15 or Kevlar for 7.

Tom · February 19, 2003, 10:30:46 AM

That's a good idea Don. If those metal gloves will stop a knife then they should stop a still sawtooth, eh?

I'm real sorry to hear about your accident, Jeff. After considerable consideration I've decided that there is ONE GOOD thing about this.........It wasn't my hand.

Take care and try to enjoy the time off.

CHARLIE · February 19, 2003, 11:27:05 AM

Some woodcarvers will use those mesh gloves (made for protection while filleting fish) when carving. They will help prevent a slicing cut but won't stop a stab.

Jeff · February 19, 2003, 11:36:47 AM

hmmm, I was stabbed.

whitepe · February 19, 2003, 12:03:49 PM

Jeff,
Sorry to hear about your mishap. :( I'm glad that the
motor nerves are still intact. I'm sure that the numbness
will pass although it will probably take some time.

On M.L. King day, one of the guys that works at my
kid's school got the edge of his palm on his table saw.
He was real lucky and is moving all digits real well.
He just barely missed bone. He too has numbness
in his hand and his orthopedic surgeon told him that it
would eventually pass.

Take care my friend.

dan-l-b · February 19, 2003, 01:02:39 PM

Jeff, that impaling device dont look that baad, didn't even leave any blood

:D :D Get well soon.

Jeff · February 19, 2003, 02:01:02 PM

Oh there was blood alrighty :D

Thats just a photo I have on hand for a swage thread I am planning.

OneWithWood · February 19, 2003, 03:15:33 PM

So, let's think about this. A while back you said you could kick anybody's behind with one hand tied behind your back-hmmmm ifn you tie your good hand behind your back and you are all wobbly from your meds a body might stand a chance. Oh yeah, kick 'em when he's down. . . :D :D :D

Take care of that paw and don't be afraid to slow down a bit. I know you are probably real frustrated that you can't easily put your down time to good use on the puter but I am sure you can use the time to catch up on your reading. :P Not to mention thinking up onery things to do to that wunnerful guy that spilled the peas :D

Fla._Deadheader · February 19, 2003, 03:15:39 PM

DanG son !! That's not good. Ya know, I think you hit the nail on the head when you stated, I've done this tooth changing many times, or sumpin like that?? Ennyhoo, that's what happens when ya get too familiar with yer work. Don'T expect things like this to happen. Get well soon, so's we all can go back to razzin ya. :P :

;D

Ron Wenrich · February 19, 2003, 03:27:25 PM

I talked to my saw doc today, and he had done the same thing. He now puts a piece of hose on the teeth behind the one you're working on, just in case. He says you might get bruised, but you won't get stabbed.

I've broken lots of pins, but never had those results. I also wear gloves, so that helps.

I did get my hand tangled up in a Skil saw, once. It cut nerves in my thumb. They knitted it together when they sewed my thumb back together. The feeling never came back 100%. (I guess you didn't want to hear that :D)

Don P · February 19, 2003, 03:53:22 PM

Thats a good idea Ron.
My neighbor was helping one day and was holding the blade, I hit his hand and cut him. I guess neighbors make good protection too

.
Am I understanding right, no serious nerve damage?

L. Wakefield · February 19, 2003, 04:14:41 PM

   It hurts just to think about it! There have been some pretty good suggestions for safety equipment come out in this thread. I am glad you are in one piece- if it was a good clean cut and cleaned out well, the nerve may grow back. It will take a while. I forget which hand you said it was- but being ambidextrous on the computer is an enviable skill ( I don't left mouse well but I know people who do.

   It sux that you can't take a 'do over' and avoid the mistake. But your telling about it is going to save a lot of people who will be more careful after hearing your story. Get well soon!

Get your sig other to bestow a 'kiss and make it better' at least once daily lw

Jeff · February 19, 2003, 04:34:15 PM

Well I went to my own Dr. today for a follow up. The emergency room sais to go to urgent care today, but I called my Dr. and he said "Don't go to them towel heads, come see me" He's quite a guy. first time I went to him I got there at lunch. A nurse and some dude were in the parking lot smoking a cig. I went on in and later I found out the dude was the doc. He is the realest Dr I have ever met. Stacy went to him for the first time last week for her exczema. He leans back and stretches and yawns and says, "Man I'm tired today, I hope I don't screw up" :D :D He then laughed and said how are ya stase... She saw he was as twisted as dad and likes him.

The hand, Doc has come to the conclusion that the cutting is not the cause of the numbness but it comes from the cruching of the nerves up higher in the hand where the next tooth hit but did not pucture. Thats good news. He said the crunch has a better chance to get better then having them cut off. The hand is very sore, but I am using it to type. Just can't make a fist to show OneWithWood. :D

Thanks for all the well wishes and prayers I know I got here.

Deadheader, it would not have mattered how many times I had done this. The tool failed and thats what caused the accident. However I definitely will come up with a safety device of some kind to avoid this in the future. I'll keep ya all posted on what I come up with.

Tom · February 19, 2003, 05:05:32 PM

You could file all the saw teeth off real dull. :-/

chet · February 19, 2003, 05:11:42 PM

Sorry to hear of your BOO-BOO, hope your on the mend. If it is still bugging ya this weekend in Novi, tip a few of dem 12 oz. pain killers. 8) 8) 8) A bunch of dem and you'll feel nottin. ;)

RMay · February 19, 2003, 05:51:00 PM

Jeff sorry to hear about your boo-boo . Hope you get healed up soon . :(

RavioliKid · February 19, 2003, 05:52:28 PM

Dang, Jeff!

Between your owie and the other stories in this thread are making my blood run cold!

Take care of your hands, my friend! (and all the other parts you want to keep!) ;)

Saki · February 19, 2003, 07:02:22 PM

Hope that you are back to 100% and right as rain in the immediate future. By sharing your experience, you may save someone an identical or similar experience. It sure sounds as if this accident was in the non-preventable catagory, being a tool failure, but it can serve as a reminder that with the vocation many of us here have chosen there is no such thing as a " routine " job. Even the smallest things have hazards. The tools that we use and the activities that we do, can be, and most usually are, dangerous by their vary nature. Forestry/logging is almost always listed in the top 10 most hazardous jobs by OSHA. I think that depending on the exact year, and statistics that I remember, it being as high as #3, behind only commercial fishing, and mining. So everybody out there take care of yourselves.Saki

D._Frederick · February 19, 2003, 07:51:53 PM

Jeff,
Could you use a rubber mallet to strike the handle of the tooth tool to set the tooth? Sorry to here about your getting cut, glad it wasn't worse. If you work with your hands, the odds are that you are going to end up with damaged fingers or hands if you work long enough.

Bro. Noble · February 19, 2003, 08:24:07 PM

My son sharpens and changes the bits on our scragg saws. I was telling him about Jeff's accident. He said that wouldn't happen to him because he uses a cheater pipe on the bit wrench. Is this a good idea? Is that why he breaks a shank about every time he changes teeth?

Noble

Jeff · February 19, 2003, 08:37:33 PM

whitepe · February 20, 2003, 02:23:22 AM

Jeff,
Did you spank that evil machine with your good hand
and send it to bed without supper? ;)

Rick Schmalzried and I were talking about safety at
CAT on our way out the door last night. Rick's been here about 12 years and I have been here 27 years.
I asked Rick if he had ever heard of anyone being killed while he was working at
CAT and he said no. Well I said that the first 10 years
that I worked at CAT there was one person per year
killed while on the job. OSHA eventually cracked down and things have thankfully been better the last 15-17 years.
I have another co-worker, a man named Mark Strother who lost his leg when a roll
of track for a dozer fell on him. That happened about 20
years ago when he was in his early twenties.

One time after he had his prosthetic leg he was cruising
the bar scene trying to meet gals and he told this
one gal that he had a cramp in his leg and he wanted
her to stretch it. She obliged and pulled his prosthetic leg
clear off. He said that she wouldn't talk to him any more.

One of the new gals at work was giving me a hard time
about dinging my foot with the chainsaw in Oct 2001.
Mark just happened to be nearby working on someone's
PC so I had him stop by and tell this gal that he
had lost his leg with a Woodmizer band saw.
She wouldn't believe it until Mark had her knock on
his leg and then she turned real white. ( she's African-American). We eventually told her what really happened
but we had her going for a while.
She told us that we were real BAD.

Corley5 · February 20, 2003, 01:41:13 PM

Wow Jeff that really sucks!!! But sounds like you got pretty good news from Doc. Don't over do it with that hand. Take it good and easy for a while

whitepe · February 20, 2003, 05:27:39 PM

Jeff · February 20, 2003, 05:42:57 PM

What the heck is that?? I don't think I want to know.

whitepe · February 20, 2003, 06:01:21 PM

Scary ain't it?

Do you want to know where it came from?

Jeff · February 20, 2003, 07:03:45 PM

Just to be gory, NO, but if it serves a purpose like teaching a safety lesson then YES. If I want gore I just look in a mirror. :D

chet · February 20, 2003, 07:21:04 PM

A guy I know retired about 10 years ago from the electric company. He bought a portable circle-saw mill to fill his time after retirement. About 2 months later he fell into the saw as it was coasting down.

It cut him between his neck and shoulder, almost severing his arm. His sawmill carear was very short lived. :(

whitepe · February 20, 2003, 07:22:01 PM

One day I was searching on --Photos MUST be in the Forestry Forum gallery!!!!!--.com on
the key word sawmill. Well several legit matches
came back and also this photo and a couple of
others from someone's "Halloween" collection.
I hope that I didn't scare someone with the gore.
Psychologists say that "poking fun" at things that
are really scary is a subconscious way to cope with
how truly "dangerous" some things can be.
I apologize if I have offended anyone. :-[

DanG · February 20, 2003, 07:38:22 PM

There's a good lesson, here; DonT never beat on yer toof changin' gizmo wit yer haid! :D :D

Sorry to hear about your accident. Do you suppose Billsby could spare an extra two seconds in the tooth changing process? I have an idea that might make it safer. A piece of PVC pipe, bent to the exact arc of the blade, and with a slot on the inner radius, a little smaller than the width of the teeth, could be slipped over the teeth, and would slide ahead of the process. It would only have to be about a foot long to offer adequate protection, and would snap on and off in a second.

dail_h · February 20, 2003, 10:21:06 PM

The fervent effectual prayer of a rightous man availeth much,, KJV A good doctor is a plus too .Speedy recovery to you.

sawmill_john · February 20, 2003, 11:22:42 PM

Jeff, hope your healing up OK. That is one of the hazards of keeping your saws in top shape, even when the teeth are to the point of needing sharpening they can cut the heck out of you.

John

Gordon · February 21, 2003, 04:13:13 PM

If your hand is hurting Jeff I've got a simple cure but it's short lived.

Just have the mrs BAM ya in the leg with a baseball bat and wa la your hand is no longer hurting.

On the serious side hope your feeling better

Gordon

woodman · February 21, 2003, 07:13:42 PM

Jeff are you telling me you used your hand as a hamer on a new saw tooth and lost.

Sawyerfortyish · February 22, 2003, 06:13:22 PM

Something like this has always been in the back of my mind when i change the teeth in the head saw. I,ve broke that same pin and replaced it many times. As for my edger I put carbide blades in take them off and let someone else sharpen them when needed
Hope you feel better
PS next time wear some gloves it may help and not hurt as much

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