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wd9garymn

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Well i got in a fight with a table saw last Friday and you know how that turns out. I was ripping 3/8 strip off a 5/8 by 27 inch board and reached over to catch that strip to keep it from sailing back. Probably had blade 1/2 inch too high as i had cut some thicker wood earlier in the week.Don't know if i was standing different or what-why as i have cut hundreds of these pieces over the years. Don't know how, but lost index finger at the knuckle by the palm of my hand and second finger 1 inch higher toward the tip. Front of thumb was half off right at the first knuckle. 400 foot walk to the house, wife called 911 and ambulance ride to local hospital, then to North Memorial hospital in Robbinsdale ( Mpls.). Doctor said best not try to attach fingers but would save the thumb. Nurses said he is the best hand repair doc. in the 5 state area. I am thankful for what i have left and praying for no infection. Was set up to go on a week long fishing trip with our kids and grandkids the next day. As a friend says, excrement occurs. Tractor related, i had fuel tank and sheet metal from my Farmall super MTA diesel ready to paint next week. Sorry for the long post and i am NOT looking for sympathy for doing something stupid. It just helps to talk about it,Gary.
 
Oh, dear God, OUCH!

My late Uncle had a similar encounter with a table saw about 35 years ago and I've never forgotten it and try to be so darned careful when using any power saw, but DANG, it just takes a split second of inattention!
 
Condolences sent. I helped a colleague who did a similar thing with a 14" table saw. two fingers shorter than before. I got him to the hospital in 5 minutes. They are unforgiving. I spend 15 minutes working with neophyte students on that same saw going over safety and discussing consequences. Jim
 
It is good to share these stories, hopefully someone will read them and think twice the next time they use a power tool. I wish you good luck with your healing.

Rich
 
I can honestly say, "[i:710318185e]I know how you feel![/i:710318185e]"

I picked a fight with a tablesaw shortly after getting out of the Air Force. Was building a fancy doghouse for Mom & Dad's dog and was working in Dad's shop. He had an older Sears contractor tablesaw where the blade guard had also been removed....because it was lousy. Also, little did I know that the rip fence on this saw often did not lock perfectly aligned for a cut. It would usually lock right-on or out slightly at back end, but this time it locked too far in. The board got bound up between blade and fence and kicked up. Cut the tip off left index finger and knicked top of left middle finger. Ended up driving myself to the hospital....in my stick shift truck. *hehe*

The doctor took a skin graft from left wrist. Makes it look like I tried to cut my wrist at some point. Middle finger would have healed perfectly if not for the stitches. A simple band aid would have sufficed. Anyway, all is well now.

To this day I won't trust a rip fence to lock perfectly parallel to the blade; not even a Beismeyer! I'll measure it every time.
 
Ouch! Sorry to hear this. I have realized I’m not in college playing shape anymore and try to keep safety in mind. These things happen fast and unexpectedly and we all can be lulled into a trust of familiarity. Hope you recover well and too bad about the fishing trip.
 

Ouch, I am glad that this sort of thing could never happen to me because every morning my first thought is that I am going to be careful in everything I do today. NOT!!
 
I hate to hear that, but I hope you can recover as much as possible. Thanks for posting, because it can happen to anyone and maybe it will remind us to be more careful. Note to self: adjust blade height, make new push stick, be more careful!
 
Well, now you have to figure out if you even have a middle finger. Rock, paper, scissors won’t work as well either. I hope a little gentle teasing about your future with sign language and your strategy or tactics in a children’s game of chance will give you a chuckle which may help heal the soul. Even if it makes the hand hurt a little...

What I have not said is that I still have not read your entire post in detail but tfat is the sort of picture I held in the front of my brain as I started almost every cut with my good buddy, the 10”table saw. At work or in the home shop for most of 40 years. Close calls and research led to a good work safety background, but my stupid was always nearby but never took a finger. So,sympathy and empathy you get here wether you want it or not.
Hope you’re be feeling better and no infection,JD
 
Very sorry to hear that. Hope the healing goes well. You are fortunate to own a SMTA diesel. They are a fine machine.
 
Wishing you a speedy recovery. Don't beat yourself up, we all do stupid stuff. Sometimes we get lucky, and sometimes not.
 

Terrible injury, sorry to hear. Glad you posted, though. I use the old Sears table saw that was left here at my place. Even put a new blade on it, but I don't use it enough to feel comfortable with it and it has practically no safety features.

Lately the small pulley on the motor comes flying off after the first or second cut. Tried tightening with a new set screw. Same thing happens.

I think it is trying to tell me to junk this saw and get a safer one.

Take it easy, let it heal up like it needs to. The body is amazing.

Gerrit
 
My table saw removed about 1/8" at the tip of my left thumb. I was cutting multiple pieces of the same size and reached over to flick the cut off piece beyond the blade and flicked a little low. Took the skin off so I could see the pulp of the flesh under it. Never had the chance to see what was under the skin before so took a minute to see what was there: a kind of sponge-like tissue. Not a lot of pain nor a lot of blood. Just pulled the skin together and put a bandaid on it. It has healed up just fine but I cannot pick up a dime off the floor with that hand because of the lack of touch in that thumb. Just a moment's carelessness doing repeat cuts but I have a valuable reminder to be more careful.
 
We had a experienced carpenter in our local carpenter's union that took off all his finger on a miter saw. He was doing a left miter and held the material while cutting off his 4 fingers. He was trying to finish a trim job so he did not have to return the next day. So try not to beat yourself up.
 
That hurts just to read about.
Take care of yourself and follow doc orders.
After running a sawmill here on the farm for years, I could tell you about some very close calls I have had.
Richard in NW SC
 
Yea, that is probably the golden rule you don't reach over the blade until the wood has passed the blade. The wood can kick back before you can blink. About 30 years ago I had to pick up a co-workers thumb off the floor and rush it to the hospital. The shop owner rushed the guy out the door to the hospital before I could get to the site. I thought they might be able to re-attach the digit but the part of the thumb on his hand was so badly mangled they couldn't do it.
 
Ouch! Yikes! OMG! Sorry to hear. I am not sure how many of you have heard of Stopsaw. These saws stop instantly if a body part gets within a few inches of the blade. I believe it senses moisture. A cartridge fires a brake against the saw blade. I have seen them demonstrated using a hot dog as a substitute for your fingers. They are impressive, and a bit pricey, but cheap compared to the expense of an accident. I believe that most schools have gone to this brand just on account of liability and they are now making inroads into commercial shops. I belong to a woodworking club that bought 2 of them. Quality machines with advanced safety technology. Google "Stopsaw" for information. Best wishes on your recovery, Gary, and thanks for sharing....it may save one of us from a similar experience.
 
Nicked the tips of two of my fingers on table saw few years back. Saw had no sympathy, but I did learn something. Experience is by far the best teacher, but sometimes hurtful and expensive.
 
My Dad had two table saws and he had many close calls. As a child, I hated that saw. Guards off, lack of safety - even then I know there was a risk running those things. When my parents are both gone, I’m executor of the estate and you can be sure those table saws will go to scrap before my kids would ever own them. I’m not like this with other stuff, farm equipment, tractors - but watching my Dad and a table saw made me nervous...

I appreciate your positive outlook and wish you healing and all the best.

Bill
 
I don't like to hear that, hope you heal up quick. A couple of weeks ago I used my table saw for the first time in about five years, had to slap myself to pay attention.
 
Stuff happens! Our local HS shop teacher who has taught many years of students Safety when doing anything. Had a table saw accident after retiring, lost some fingers. It only takes a second!! Hope you the best outcome possible. joe
 
That’s rough !! I remember several of my dads farmer friends missing one or more fingers, usually corn picker, mower or silage chopper. A large Vee belt with a deep pully claimed one neighbors finger, while another told how his glove got caught in a slow turning sprocket. He could only whatch as his thumb , caught in the chain , went slowly around the sprocket severing the thumb.
 
You should have had one of those fancy blades that they try to cut a weaner with and it locks up before it can even make a mark on it.
 
Sorry to hear that. One other thing to watch for when using a tablesaw, is one of my friends was going to rip just a little short piece and he didn’t put his safety glasses on. The kickback cost him an eye.
 
Sorry to hear about your accident. I can relate as I had my fingers pulled off in the husking rolls of a MM corn picker three and a half years ago. I still have my hand and thumb though, so I can still work. Hope you heal well.
 
Thank you ALL for the kind remarks. Such a great bunch of folks on here. Was at the doctor yesterday and he said it looked great--me not so much. I am just a stubborn German and where there in a will there is a way and i am a git-er-done guy. Thanks again, Gary.
 
> I am not sure how many of you have heard of Stopsaw.

Actually it's <a href="https://www.sawstop.com/">SawStop</a>. The inventor tried for years to sell his design to established power tool manufacturers and got nowhere. He eventually started his own company. Bosch came out with a competing design; SawStop sued for patent infringement and for the time being the Bosch saw is not being sold.
 
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