Everything Mac Posted July 31, 2013 Share Posted July 31, 2013 Hi guys, have any of you suffered any injuries as a result of hammering? If so what was the injury and do you know it's root cause? Cheers Andy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joel OF Posted July 31, 2013 Share Posted July 31, 2013 I hit the skin back off the tip of my thumb. I was very lucky I didn't do a lot worse because at the time I was cold cutting a bit of 6mm round wire and had my thumb been further forward over the cold cut... Not concentrating was the cause, I remember thinking "I'll just do this quickly before I call it a day". It was one of those 'no blood, no blood, no blood, then BLOOD' injuries . I've taken chunks of skin off my finger tips too when my leg vice tightening arm has fallen through the hole quickly and my finger tip has been squished between the arm and the hole. That's always a joyous occassion. That always happens when one hand is by the vice and another is reaching for the twisting wrench. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted July 31, 2013 Share Posted July 31, 2013 Blacksmith's elbow, chips from an overly hard hammer face hitting a hard anvil face, having a hammer resting on the anvil being pushed off and hitting my foot. Don't recall any impact injuries as hot steel is generally in the tongs or far away... Best one I know of was a parent who demanded their toddler get a chance to hammer and was crouched behind the child "helping" when the child picked up the ballpeen in both hands, swung it up and *nailed* the guy right above his nose on the forehead with the peen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThorsHammer82 Posted July 31, 2013 Share Posted July 31, 2013 Best one I know of was a parent who demanded their toddler get a chance to hammer and was crouched behind the child "helping" when the child picked up the ballpeen in both hands, swung it up and *nailed* the guy right above his nose on the forehead with the peen. LMAO! that one sounds like it was well deserved at least. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmccustomknives Posted July 31, 2013 Share Posted July 31, 2013 Bad elbow, cause a pos aso. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RGraff Posted July 31, 2013 Share Posted July 31, 2013 "Seating" a hardened piece of 1" 0-1 round into a vault door hinge. Pin exploded (I recall thinking grenade) sending numerous pieces of shrapnel into my left hand and forearm. The guy who hardened that batch was unemployed shortly after. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted August 1, 2013 Share Posted August 1, 2013 Outside the typical bruises, contusions, abrasions, burns, black buggers, etc. I've suffered none of the long term damage possible. I credit a lot to my hammering technique, I hold the hammer in a loose grip so it doesn't transmit shock up my arm. I wear PPE and keep my eyes open. Complacency is my greatest risk so I try to keep alert. Father said, "familiarity breeds contempt," so many times I got to hate hearing it. Truer words were never spoken though. I don't know if I have any viable advice for avoiding injuries but what I've done worked for me, not counting that stupid TREE. <grin> Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marksnagel Posted August 1, 2013 Share Posted August 1, 2013 Painful wrist, elbow, shoulder all taken care of by learning which hammering techniques, grip, weights worked the best for me. Several years ago I missed the mark and almost hit the marksnagel in the forehead due to excessive hammer rebound. Never look too close directly over your work. Learned that one quick. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chinobi Posted August 1, 2013 Share Posted August 1, 2013 I saw another student take a hand hammer rebound to just above the lip once, fortunately it was a pretty limp wristed swing to start with so at most there might have been a bruise, but no split. when I took Mark Aspery's mastering the fundamentals class last November I had kind of a rough introduction to tracking handheld struck tooling. put a little too much brain into the tip of the tool and not enough into the struck end and missed the tool, clipping my thumb.....in the same place.....three times....(over two days) I got REAL careful after that, because I probably would have broken something if I did it again. I have gotten much better at it since though :) otherwise I have maletted the odd fingertip flattening sheet metal and planishing the rim off coins, but so far no bouts with tendonitis or any of the cumulative joint damages. kurgan, thanks for the reminder, I need to install some rope or paracord or something on the ends of my vice arm to kill the noise and maybe gag that particular finger eating monster too... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joel OF Posted August 1, 2013 Share Posted August 1, 2013 kurgan, thanks for the reminder, I need to install some rope or paracord or something on the ends of my vice arm to kill the noise and maybe gag that particular finger eating monster too... Yes definitely! I was thinking of taping the ends of the vice arm and around the hole in elastoplast. Strictly speaking my first hammering injury was when I was building my smithy - it was mid winter and I was trying to finish felting the roof before the snow started, I couldn't feel my fingers and I was tacking the felt down...I didn't need that fingernail anyway :P Best one I know of was a parent who demanded their toddler get a chance to hammer and was crouched behind the child "helping" when the child picked up the ballpeen in both hands, swung it up and *nailed* the guy right above his nose on the forehead with the peen. The Cannibal Corpse song "Hammer Smashed Face" springs to mind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles R. Stevens Posted August 1, 2013 Share Posted August 1, 2013 I have an anoint habit of missing my punch, punch, pritchel, chisel, ext. and hiring my left hand just about we're the thumb meets the fist. Hurts like &$!!, and I've done it more than once!. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted August 1, 2013 Share Posted August 1, 2013 Especially when a student is striking I use *tongs* to hold tools over hot steel! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles R. Stevens Posted August 1, 2013 Share Posted August 1, 2013 Old hard rock miners had a rule, if you missed and hit the guy holding th drill, it was his turn to swing the hammer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donnie Posted August 1, 2013 Share Posted August 1, 2013 Once upon a time, I was holding a large handled punch. Just as the striker made contact with the 16lb. hammer, I felt a sharp pain in my right hand. A piece of shrapnel from the punch had entered my right hand between my thumb and finger. It was removed at the wrist joint. It traveled about 3" through flesh, after passing through a heavy welding glove. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThorsHammer82 Posted August 1, 2013 Share Posted August 1, 2013 Old hard rock miners had a rule, if you missed and hit the guy holding th drill, it was his turn to swing the hammer. Well, That has just become my new rule. If you miss and hit me, It's my turn to swing. Be it hammer, shovel, rake, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Sells Posted August 1, 2013 Share Posted August 1, 2013 Once upon a time, I was holding a large handled punch. Just as the striker made contact with the 16lb. hammer, I felt a sharp pain in my right hand. A piece of shrapnel from the punch had entered my right hand between my thumb and finger. It was removed at the wrist joint. It traveled about 3" through flesh, after passing through a heavy welding glove. one major reason to keep our punches etc dressed, rather than leaving that flash there to become a bullet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donnie Posted August 1, 2013 Share Posted August 1, 2013 You are right Steve. That happened about 25yrs. ago. I have never let the striking end of a tool go undressed since. Lesson learned. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Borntoolate Posted August 1, 2013 Share Posted August 1, 2013 I recently managed to split the fingernail of my middle finger of my Hammer hand. Was working a railraod spike. These things often seem to be "Tough" to work imho. But the comedy of errors was as such... I somehow managed to make a bit of a glancing blow while not holding the spike quite flat enough and also in such a way that the spike had a little bit of a bend away from the anvil allowing it to teeter. The spike jumped, twisted, rotated and my hammer bounced off, twisted and somehow... in all that... I managed to smash my middle finger into the hot end of the spike plenty hard and splitting the finger nail in two directions. Actually caused it to bleed right through the split in the nail. I think I was lucky I didn't really hurt myself! Pure operator error! That was about a month ago. It still looks ugly. I put a dab of superglue on it to hopefully preserve the nail. So far so good. And luckil the split does not go all the way to the edge in either direction. Mostly what I run into is small heat scale burns that tend to land on my hand bewtween my thumb and index finger knuckles. I tend to ignore them and let them cool down in place. Mostly just a bit annoying. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted August 1, 2013 Share Posted August 1, 2013 Old hard rock miners had a rule, if you missed and hit the guy holding th drill, it was his turn to swing the hammer. Good rule Charles, I think I'll put it on the wall with the shop rate one. The shop rate sign reads, Shop rate, $x/hr. $x+10/hr. if you watch, $x+25/hr. if you help. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Everything Mac Posted August 2, 2013 Author Share Posted August 2, 2013 Once upon a time, I was holding a large handled punch. Just as the striker made contact with the 16lb. hammer, I felt a sharp pain in my right hand. A piece of shrapnel from the punch had entered my right hand between my thumb and finger. It was removed at the wrist joint. It traveled about 3" through flesh, after passing through a heavy welding glove. Oh nasty. I'm surprised there are not more cases of tendinitis. But I guess you guys are all smart enough to have your hammer technique sorted. Andy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Turley Posted August 2, 2013 Share Posted August 2, 2013 I've been fortunate. My shoulders bother me a little, but then I'm an old timer. My friend Daniel, lost half of his thumb to a sledge hammer blow. He was down low on some sort of machinery installation, and the striker came down with the sledge. Daniel had gloves on, which he shook off immediately. The hit portion of his thumb had ballooned and was the thickness of cardboard. It self-cauterized. He likened its appearance to a Looney Tunes cartoon. He figured it was beyond replacement, and the emergency room staff agreed. When Daniel entertains little kids with the remove-the-thumb trick, he then holds up his 1/2 thumb to their astonished eyes. Har de har. Sayings and Cornpone The public questioning and commenting while watching the demonstrating blacksmith. "Is that hot?" "Whacha makin?" "Ya ever been burnt?" "Don't you shoe horses?" "What's that black stuff you're burning?" "My grandfather was a blacksmith, but he was a real blacksmith!" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ptree Posted August 3, 2013 Share Posted August 3, 2013 Vise handle trick. Place a fat O-ring where the ball meets the handle. Cushions and prevents vice biting.The O-ring will stretch over the ball and stay in place. They can last for years. Also protects the metal parts from mushrooming. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farmweld Posted August 12, 2013 Share Posted August 12, 2013 Oh nasty. I'm surprised there are not more cases of tendinitis. But I guess you guys are all smart enough to have your hammer technique sorted. Andy Getting a dose of tendonitis tends to give you a VERY BIG warning that your hammer technique is not sorted. Ignore it at your own peril. Same applies for pain in your neck, shoulders, upper back, lower back (nominate any part of the body here). If it hurts, STOP, and work out why, then work out how to work around it while that part heals, or otherwise just stop until it heals while you work it out, and don't do it again. I'm missing the middle finger finger on my dominant hand and the index finger doesn't bend because of the same accident, so my hammer grip is with the thumb, ring and little finger of that hand. I use a variety of hammers from >2lb to 8lb in that hand and have fairly good control (though it looks like crap on seeing a video of myself) and the main problem I have is my forearm pumping up. Learn good technique and you don't need any more than that. Andrew Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
achintzman Posted August 12, 2013 Share Posted August 12, 2013 About two weeks ago I got my first real injury from hammering. My wrist began to feel weak and a little numb. It would also "click" when I moved it around. I suppose I gave myself some accute arthritus. It was caused from a modification I did to my main hammer when the head was coming loose. I hammered a steel wedge in through the top which caused the handle to rattle everytime I struck it against my work. This rattled my wrist pretty badly, and in a few days I think I destroyed a good amount of cartilage in my wrist. I took a break after that, kept my wrist still, and waited for it to feel right again. I also put a new handle on my hammer so it wouldn't rattle my wrist again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quarry Dog Posted August 22, 2013 Share Posted August 22, 2013 The worst hammer injury I've ever seen was one time my dad hit his thumb with a hammer hard enough that the skin on the end split for about a half inch. Somehow nothing was broken. The funniest injury (in retrospect) happened when I was about 6. Dad and I were knocking down a termite eaten fence in a house we had just moved into at the time. We were standing about 5 feet apart when I went to knock one of the boards out with a hammer. Instead of the board popping off of the fence, the end of the handle bounced off of the fence. Read that again...the end of the handle...no hammer head attached. About 2 seconds later Dad is on his knees, holding his head and cussin' like it's nobody's business and I was a total wreck, thinking I killed him. Now that we think about it, he could have used a couple stitches. He learned a lesson that day, and taught me about it the next day by showing me how to properly wedge a handle into a hammer. I haven't seen a loose head on any of his hammer's since, and I'm pretty good about it too. I even safety-wire top tools so that they don't slide around. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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