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-   -   Builder Injuries (https://vansairforce.net/community/showthread.php?t=9074)

Paul Tuttle 07-07-2006 07:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pierre smith
Mark, I noticed that you're wearing a wedding band.

My suggestion is for all you guys to remove your wedding bands when you're working around tools in the shop. Doc will more than likely back me up on this one.

Your right, I took mine off for good about 6 years ago and I've felt much safer ever since :D

After spending 25 years at a Fire Dept it never ceases to amaze all the wonderful ways people can find to damage themselves.
My only physical complaint so far are sore joints from all the time spent on the cement floor of the shop. Having had them all tore up from playing Hockey over the years didn't help much either I guess.

Jamie 07-07-2006 09:17 AM

I've had my share of stupid mistakes, but nothing very unusual.

When out of town a business trip once (the only real time I have to watch TV) I was watching American Chopper. One of the guys on there was drilling some holes with a drill press. He was wearing work gloves and the bit grabbed the glove and sucked his hand into the bit and chewed it up pretty bad.

Anecdotal, perhaps -- but I don't wear gloves anywhere near a drill press anymore.

cjensen 07-07-2006 10:22 AM

Nothing to major for me so far, but of note-Remember that the edges of the parts are like razor blades before they are deburred. I've sliced my hand TWICE now...you think I'd learn. :rolleyes: Both times in the same spot, right where your fingers join the palm. OUCH!

The other injury I had was done while constructing my own C-frame dimpling tool (which works great BTW, but the DRDT is MUCH better!). I was tightening down a bolt when the square pipe I was holding on to slipped from my hand, and smacked me right in the forehead. Smacked me hard too! I was stunned for a second, then fell to the ground. It hurt, and no one was there to console me! Yep, I knocked myself out for a second or two. Brilliant.

Davepar 07-07-2006 10:26 AM

A belt sander works great on aluminum but even better on a knuckle.

rvator9a 07-07-2006 10:49 AM

I've read these posts for two years while building my rv, and always chuckled as I read how other people managed to injure themselves as I have on occassion as a automotive tech for 25 years. I thought "those guys will learn now how to be as careful as I am". Well fate patiently waits for the smug, and the other day as I was drilling my cowling, I managed to put a nice deep hole in my middle finger. Took the smug right out of me

AFulmer 07-07-2006 11:36 AM

Canopy Roll bar mishap!
 
RV7 - starting on the canopy so layed out the locations for the slider roll bar. Seems it was a total of 7/32" wider than desired.

Instructions say "It can be adjusted quite easily by . . . putting one end on the floor and leaning on the other (to make it narrower). Go slooooowly. It is easy to do too much." Sounds easy enough.

After putting one end on the floor and applying increasing force up to my full body weight (170 lbs) the width refused to budge.

Next I tried my pipe clamp which has a total travel of maybe 4 inches. Still refused to budge!

Since there was no more travel in the pipe clamp I decided to pre-load the roll bar with my strap come-a-long. That plus the 4" of the pipe clamp gave me about 7" of compression. Surely that would do SOMETHING!?

About this time I had a brain f*&^%$ and released the strap come-a-long first before starting to unscrew the pipe clamp. The roll bar started to slip out of the pipe clamp as I merrily continued to unscrew the clamp. Suddenly the rollbar sprang out of the pipe clamp, shot across the workbench and on the way to the floor completely severed one of those veins that protrude from the back of the hand.

Blood everywhere! I have never seen so much blood! I put a clean rag on the wound and woke up my nurse wife. On the way out of the garage to go to the emergency room I stopped long enough to check the roll bar width. Surely it would have moved at least 3/32"!!! NOT!! No movement AT ALL!

7 stitches and 2 hours later I returned to contemplate my next move. I decided to call Van's. Support asked how far out the roll bar was. ONLY 7/32" I said. Oh that is close enough he said. I clamped one side, drilled it and inserted the bolts. Then pushed in the other side the 7/32" with my thumb, clamped it and drilled.

Don't believe everything you read!

End of story!!

rickrv8 07-07-2006 12:26 PM

Nose Out of Joint
 
Okay, I'll fess up as well. Back in the old days of -6 construction when you had to jig your fuselage the jig had two 2x6 uprights about 4 feet high that the firewall bolted to. One day I was bending over in front of one of the uprights and as I stood up I turned to my right and proceeded to contact the upright with the right side of my nose. Not unlike the gentlemen's sprained thumb I heard a very distinctive crack after which I became rather dizzy. I went inside to take a look in the mirror and discovered that my nose was clear dislocated to the left side of my face. My nose never did bleed but I ended up having an enjoyable surgery to get things back in alignment.

I won't mention the time I missed the step stool while extrating myself out of the fuselage. The wings weren't mounted yet. To this day there is a warp in the underside fuselage to wing fairing due some part of my body making contact with that piece of skin.

The scars are all badges of honor.

videobobk 07-07-2006 01:33 PM

Near miss
 
While I didn't get hurt, it sure gave me pause. Back in another life I built (and repaired) several ultralights. I was straightening a nose fork--2"X1/4" AL that had quite a bend in it. I tightened it in a vise to remove some of the bend. I strained for all I was worth to get it REALLY tight. The vise was about chest high and as I leaned into the bar, the head broke off the vise. With the spring tension, it shot between my sholder and jaw, missing by inches at most. It flew over 26' to outside the garage before hitting the ground. I figure it had the enery of an exploding grinding wheel. VERY lucky! Never again have I bought a cheap vise.

Bob Kelly

Steve 07-07-2006 02:14 PM

Protection from ourselves
 
I have access to a new sheet metal shear. It is equipped with the latest safety devices.....including a rigid plexiglass guard which moves up and down with the blade. To make a short story, keep you fingers clear of the plexi guard when stomping on the cut bar especially when working with smaller pieces of metal. That was the same barely healed cross-drilled finger from drilling fuselage longerons. Taking pix was last thing on my mind.

Sounds like a new Discovery Freak Show channel series,
Steve

vmirv8bldr 07-07-2006 02:33 PM

Not if, but when....
 
Side-grip Cleco clamps.

This one takes two times to learn. While constructing the empennage, I got in a hurry removing side-grip cleco clamps. I don't remember the actual part. As I removed the clamp, I placed it in my free hand before completely releasing pressure on the pliers. These things are VERY strong. It gave me a nice thick blood blister. I thought to myself, "Wow. That was dumb. Try not to do it again." I bet it wasn't 10 minutes later, I did it again, although not as bad. No blood blister the second time. Since then, it has not happened again. (Fingers crossed!)

I told my dad, who's helping' about my incident. He laughed, then procedded to do the exact same thing himself...twice in ten minutes.

Laugh now, but you've either already done it, or probably will.


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