ptree Posted May 31, 2009 Share Posted May 31, 2009 Yesterday, I destroyed yet another safety glass lens. It was on my face. I was at another smiths shop at a meeting. I was forging a tomahawk from a hoof rasp. I was doing the first heat, tapering the end of the rasp, when somehow the rasp came out of my hand, and flew so fast the audiance could not see it, struck my right eye hitting the safety glass lens in the lower right portion, knocking the glasses upand allowing the rasp to then scratch the INSIDE of the sideshield and knocking them off my face. The rasp continued up and struck the left upper portion of my eye socket just where the eyebrow and nose meet. I have a rasp width bruise ther. NO OTHER BODY DAMAGE. Had I been forging with out safety glasses, I would have, I am sure, damaged my eye badly. The lens has a deep gouge about an inch long, in a polycarbonate lens. I suspect, since the smith that owns the shop is much taller than I that I must have had the stock not level to the anvil top, and when I struck the stock it levered up. I have been smithing for many years and have never had this happen before. I now have destroyed about 7 safety glass lens in 30 years of factory, lab and home work. AND I still have 2 functioning eyes. Life is too short to spend any of it dead, injuried, or in jail. And any combination of those three really sucks. Always wear your safety equipment! Ptree the industrial safety guy, who has a fresh show and tell for the folks at the factory:( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnptc Posted May 31, 2009 Share Posted May 31, 2009 glad it was only glasses Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Glenn Posted May 31, 2009 Share Posted May 31, 2009 Safety glasses are worth the small inconvenience it takes to put them on each time. Safety glasses are great when washing the dog, keeps the soap out of YOUR eyes. Keep a pair handy (in the glove box of the car etc) so when away from the shop you can still be safe. Ptree, glad you are ok. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted May 31, 2009 Share Posted May 31, 2009 Good man Ptree! This is one of those stories that gives me the willies. Even with a double layer of safety gear a serious injury was a fraction of an inch away. Without the gear, even if it missed your eye it would've hurt at minimum and been debilitating at worst. You wouldn't think it can happen, having debris make it past a face shield and glasses but I've had it happen too many times. Never a FILE though. Glad it worked out okay and I'm sure nobody present will ever question eye protection. Frosty Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fe-Wood Posted May 31, 2009 Share Posted May 31, 2009 Another example of a smart and lucky man! I didn't used to be a fan of safety glasses until one of my shop mates brought a freshly sharpened carbide blade out and put it on the saw. When turning it on for the first time, he was struck just below his eye, about 3/4", by a piece of the blade. It had to be surgically removed. He didn't have glasses on. I was standing next to him... no glasses either. Now I wear them... Have them all over the shop and most importantly on my face and not my forehead. Its amazing how easy and fast the day can go from great fun to great horror! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John NC Posted June 1, 2009 Share Posted June 1, 2009 Glad you're going to be ok, ptree. Guys and Gals, please wear eye protection all the time in the shop. Just get into the habit. And if you smith seriously consider stout, old fashioned safety glasses with glass lenses and side sheilds. They cost a few bucks, but IMO they are worth it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ptree Posted June 1, 2009 Author Share Posted June 1, 2009 John NC, May I gently disagree with you on the opinion of glass safety glasses? Polycarbonate is the best choice for impact protection, and most companies now require their employees to use only polycarbonate. The polycarbonate lens are a bit more expensive than the plain plastic, and most companies see the small extra cost as a good investment. My company does, and that was polycarbonate lens I trashed with the raw chop sawed end of a hoof rasp. Lucky for me the cold end, so no burn. But ANY safety glasses are better than no safety glasses:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sloscheider Posted June 1, 2009 Share Posted June 1, 2009 I'm glad you came through the ordeal in relatively good shape And if you smith seriously consider stout, old fashioned safety glasses with glass lenses and side sheilds. They cost a few bucks, but IMO they are worth it. Why glass? I've always heard that polycarbonate lenses had the best impact protection, though they will get surface scratches more easily. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnptc Posted June 1, 2009 Share Posted June 1, 2009 glass does not melt when struck by forge fleas ????:confused: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fe-Wood Posted June 1, 2009 Share Posted June 1, 2009 I like the polycarbonate, glass shatters. Poly is light and cheep at twice the cost. How many eyes can you buy for $10.00? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Budd Posted June 1, 2009 Share Posted June 1, 2009 I mostly wear the full'eye shield type googles with the rubber seal (look like diving masks made of polycarbonate) these days, especially when grinding. I used to wear spectical types until a bit of grinder grit/steel bounced off a wall and over the top of them, stuck right in my iris and had to be plucked out in the eye hospital! on a smilar note of "how did that happen?". a couple of days ago I was hot cutting the end off a bar (last inch or so), the bar was supported between my legs, chisel in left hdn and hammr in right. Everything is the right height and the metal hot, so no groin injuries but somehow the severed piece of metal came up and struck me on the outside of my right shoulder?! not sure how that happened, but I wish I had been wearing a shirt when it did Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ptree Posted June 1, 2009 Author Share Posted June 1, 2009 Dave Budd, we had several cases of small grinding and sanding particals going into the eyes of folks at the factory, even when they were wearing spectacles. If you look at most folks wearing safety glasses, there is a gap at the corner of the glasses. The wrap around glasses are better, but still gap on som faces. We now use Pryamax V2G safety glasses with the gasket that seal well. They are the ones that the folks found most comfortable. They also don't fog up. Some of the types we tested fogged badly, or have open cell foam gaskets that were irriatating to the face. I have never seen a partical get past the gasketed glasses. I often give a "safety Glasses" test to those who are caught without. I tell them to close both eyes, then I ask them what they see. When they reply nothing, I ask "Any questions?" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Sells Posted June 1, 2009 Share Posted June 1, 2009 My shop glasses are wrap around, poly with side shields and Rose-1 IR filters. My day-to-day pair are std. safety glass, with wire frames. I also add a full face shield when grinding. My main job is as an Electrician in mainly Industrial loications, so all my glasses are safety, no reason not to, when my daily pair looks nice, and adds protection, why not. Glad you are safe Ptree. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Glenn Posted June 1, 2009 Share Posted June 1, 2009 Ptree I have been giving the same test to folks for years. I follow with *everything you see after I leave is because you wore safety glasses.* Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John NC Posted June 1, 2009 Share Posted June 1, 2009 Guys, the glass Vs. polycarbonate debate has gone on a long time. I prefer glass for a number of reasons. They're more heat resistant and much more scratch resistant. Since I have a rather expensive prescription I prefer a pair of glasses that will last a long time. Whatever your choice, the main thing is to wear them! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charlotte Posted June 1, 2009 Share Posted June 1, 2009 .....Whatever your choice, the main thing is to wear them! I have a prescription that would be impossibly heavy if I wore glass lenses so polycarb is almost my only choice. I must say this also: polycarb lenses show less effect of minute scratches. However careful cleaning is an absolute must and so in very gritty enviornments they may need to be replaced more oftern. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ptree Posted June 1, 2009 Author Share Posted June 1, 2009 To get the most life from any lens in a gritty environment. NEVER wipre the lens on your shirt! Wet the lens with running water, then with about half a drop of liquid soap, gently wash the lens between a CLEAN thumb and forefinger. Wash well, then dry with a clean soft towel. I get 2 years from my safety glasses in most cases(less when impacted!). NEVER wipe the lens on you gritty, dirty shirt and never polish the dust off a dry lens. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CBrann Posted June 1, 2009 Share Posted June 1, 2009 Better to be prepared then lucky!! learned that lesson a couple of times, not run with ppe always!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve McCarthy Posted June 2, 2009 Share Posted June 2, 2009 Ptree I'm sure you know that June is National Safety Month. Sure glad you didn't have a recordable on your own time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ptree Posted June 2, 2009 Author Share Posted June 2, 2009 I would never live down a recordable on my own time or at work in the present factory, where "Safety First" is more than a tired motto, but rather a from the top down way of life and work. Glad the PPE worked on many levels. I will of course display them at work once this week long furlough is over:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ted T Posted June 3, 2009 Share Posted June 3, 2009 (edited) ptree First: I am so glad you are OK. Second: You’re a wise man for wearing the safety Glasses. Third: Thank You for taking the time to share your experience, because that is the one good thing that can come from your incident. As I have grown older and my fingers are now getting disfigured with arthritis, I cannot smith the way I once could when I was younger. So my attention has turned toward trying to promote safety in the blacksmithing industry. Your story has fortified in my mind that I am going to spend what ever money it takes to get a new style of glasses I seen recently. They may have been the "Pryamax V2G safety glasses with the gasket that seal". :cool: I will find out for sure. We all must keep visitors in mind also. If they can see it in the line of site, there eyes could easily be targets also. I imagine it would be hard to see through of a plastic or rubber eye! :confused: Thanks again, you helped me make a decision! Ted Throckmorton PS. I just got through ordering (3) three pair of Pryamax V2G glasses!!! Edited June 3, 2009 by Ted T Added PS. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ptree Posted June 3, 2009 Author Share Posted June 3, 2009 Ted, the Pryamax V2G's are the most comfortable of the many gasketed styles we tried. I have about 20 to 30 folks wearing them for 8 hour shifts when the factory is at full production. (auto parts plant so we have much less than full production) They will wear them without complaining, unlike the other types. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Finnr Posted June 3, 2009 Share Posted June 3, 2009 You can walk on a wooden leg. You can still pick things up with a prosthetic hand . BUT you can't see out of a glass eye. Note: NONE of the above is a good thing. Wear your safety equipment and take proper safety precautions. Finnr Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rich Hale Posted June 3, 2009 Share Posted June 3, 2009 We have had similiar threads about this for years and I am on the bandwagon also. I cringe each time someone posts a pic of an event that shows one of ours forgeing without eye protection. When they do suffer an injury it will not be due to Ptree and the rest not telling of the hazards. If you ask anyone that has visited my shop they will tell you that i wear protction each and every time. And also that I keep a few new pairs for anyone that visits without their own. However some how that is not stopping folks from pushing the odds and doing things that may harm them in different, avoidable ways Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fat pete Posted June 4, 2009 Share Posted June 4, 2009 i wear my glasses all the time...no side sheilds...when i am bangging..50% of the time i do stuff with just these glasses the other 50 is a full face...grinding, welding and anything els where things fly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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