Are your tools dangerous?

[Edward Weber]

Do you consider tools as dangerous?
https://www.popularmechanics.com/hom...-can-kill-you/
I came accross this article and it struck me, that I don't consider my tools as dangerous or not. To me it's just a tool. Sure, some tools can cause greater injury than others but I don't think about it like that. If I'm using the tablesaw, I take the appropriate action so I am comfortable with the cut. This is no different with whatever tool I'm using.
The list made me laugh a bit as I own multiples of many of them.
Also, I believe that it's ladders that cause the most injuries.
https://porch.com/resource/most-dangerous-tools

[jim sauterer]

I agree ed all tools can cause injury some more than others.but as you said respect the tool an always follow safe operating procedures.good post I think we all need to be reminded.

[Lee Schierer]

Getting out of bed in the morning can be dangerous, but then again staying in bed could also be dangerous as lots of people die in bed. We all take various levels of risk every day. If you are going to use a tool, whether it is a pencil, a table saw or a race car, you need to know how to properly use it to avoid injury. The most dangerous tool is the one you aren't using properly between your ears.

[Bill Howatt]

Being a turner, my favorite cautionary quote is: "other tools can maim you, your lathe can kill you" and this has happened along with very severe head injuries.
A lathe looks like a pretty safe tool compared to something with spinning blades and cutters. High risk is usually by exploding blanks due to cracks or burls that have not easy to see cracks or the supporting wood gets turned away and the burl is only held together with convoluted bark. Centrifugal force is the problem so the pieces can fly in any direction.

[James White]

This is why I rarely turn. Not because I am afraid of the machine. I am just unable to enjoy it due to the anxiety of having a catch as you get closer and closer to the final product. It's not so much worrying about getting hurt but rather loosing all the work you put in. LOL With that said if the lathe was powerful enough to literally wrap you around the part being turned. Then I probably would be afraid.

Being a turner, my favorite cautionary quote is: "other tools can maim you, your lathe can kill you" and this has happened along with very severe head injuries.
A lathe looks like a pretty safe tool compared to something with spinning blades and cutters. High risk is usually by exploding blanks due to cracks or burls that have not easy to see cracks or the supporting wood gets turned away and the burl is only held together with convoluted bark. Centrifugal force is the problem so the pieces can fly in any direction.

[Bill Howatt]

This is why I rarely turn. Not because I am afraid of the machine. I am just unable to enjoy it due to the anxiety of having a catch as you get closer and closer to the final product. It's not so much worrying about getting hurt but rather loosing all the work you put in. LOL With that said if the lathe was powerful enough to literally wrap you around the part being turned. Then I probably would be afraid.

Losing the work you've put into it is how view routers . Really bugged me watching router-based TV shows years ago when they'd zip the thing around with no issues at all which didn't seem to align with my experience.
Instances of turners being wrapped around the workpiece are typically related to loose clothing getting caught resulting is some serious injuries.

[Mike Henderson]

This is why I rarely turn. Not because I am afraid of the machine. I am just unable to enjoy it due to the anxiety of having a catch as you get closer and closer to the final product. It's not so much worrying about getting hurt but rather loosing all the work you put in. LOL With that said if the lathe was powerful enough to literally wrap you around the part being turned. Then I probably would be afraid.

I often think about that with every project I do - more furniture than turning. As the project develops you have more and more time and effort invested in it. A mistake (such as cut something too short) at the beginning of the project generally means getting a new piece of wood and starting over. A mistake towards the end of the project will ruin a lot of time and supplies invested. And make you question whether you want to do it all over again.

I try to do things that I might mess up on early in the project.

Mike

[Edward Weber]

I really asked because I constantly hear people saying "tablesaws are dangerous", I just don't look at it that way.
Sure, I could do serious damage to myself if I don't pay attention to my tools.
Anything can be dangerous. as I linked to, ladders cause more injuries than tablesaws by a mile.

From the list/s I linked to, I regularly use about 80-90% of the tools listed, apparently I'm just a danger junkie or have some sort of death wish or just like pain or something.
IMO, tools need to be better understood, then respected, not simply irrationally feared.

[Robert Hayward]

A 6' stepladder worries me more than any power tool ever has. Over the years I have operated machines and tools from a D9 dozer to a 16" circular saw while hanging over the edge of a seawall and too many smaller tools to mention. It is still the 6' stepladder that scares me.

[Maurice Mcmurry]

I have heard from several sources that woodworking tools are the most dangerous industrial machines, because of razor sharp blades traveling at very high speeds and unlimited availability.

[Thomas McCurnin]

When I was a framing carpenter, the most dangerous and most common dangerous tool was . . . .

The hammer.

No joke, the straight claw ones hit guys in the head. The 22oz waffle headed ones crushed fingers.

[mike stenson]

More people use ladders than tablesaws. I am not sure how you can argue that a tablesaw is not an inherently dangerous tool.

[Edward Weber]

More people use ladders than tablesaws. I am not sure how you can argue that a tablesaw is not an inherently dangerous tool.

If you use the tool as it's designed to be used, it is not dangerous, IMO.
When the operator does something he/she shouldn't, is usually problems occur. The wood sometimes contributes but most of the time it's humans.

I just don't view tools as dangerous or safe like some do.

I have a chainsaw with a three foot bar and an exacto knife, which one is more dangerous? which one have I cut myself with?

Everything in my shop can injure you in one way or another if used improperly.

[mike stenson]

If you use the tool as it's designed to be used, it is not dangerous, IMO.
When the operator does something he/she shouldn't, is usually problems occur. The wood sometimes contributes but most of the time it's humans.

I just don't view tools as dangerous or safe like some do.

I have a chainsaw with a three foot bar and an exacto knife, which one is more dangerous? which one have I cut myself with?

Everything in my shop can injure you in one way or another if used improperly.

Exactly. You just confirmed that it's inherently dangerous to operate. Like firearms, chainsaws, explosives, etc.

I do lots of inherently dangerous things. I just never blow off that they're dangerous. That, is a bad combination.

[Edward Weber]

Exactly. You just confirmed that it's inherently dangerous to operate. Like firearms, chainsaws, explosives, etc.

I do lots of inherently dangerous things. I just never blow off that they're dangerous. That, is a bad combination.

I don't quite follow your logic and I don't "blow off" safety for any tool.

I just don't view tools as being dangerous, as in being worried about injury.
I try to understand all I can about how tools work and then there is less of a cause for concern.
A tool after all, is an intimate object and only does what the operator makes it do, this is what makes it dangerous or not, IMO