Oh, to the turners, exercise caution

Sandy Navas

Member
Messages
52
Location
St. Joseph, MO
. . . wish I had thought of that about 2 o'clock this afternoon. Here's the scenario - I had turned the back of a bowl yesterday evening and left it on the lathe, worm screw in place. This morning I took it off (worm screw still in the bowl) and turned a new longer handle for my bowl gouge. After I had it all put back together, I put the worm screw back on the headstock. About that time my husband reminds me we haven't had lunch and because I'd been having so much fun he offered to run to the house and fix a sandwich.

Why can't I remember that screws go in clockwise and come out counter-clockwise? My first attempt, needless to say, was the WRONG way, thus tightening the screw instead of loosening it. I turned the correct way and removed the bowl, stopped the headstock and tried to remove the worm screw . . . and it would not come off. What would you do? Funny, I only have these short Tomy bars and instead of getting something to put on extra leverage, I threw my weight into it. When it came loose, the Tomy bar came out, my hands were left holding air, and I lunged forward, striking my head and glasses on the lathe ways. Did you know that cast iron hurts when your skull cracks it?

I managed to steady myself - knowing that I was alone - and reached the phone (about 4 foot away). I kept dialing our home phone number and couldn't understand why the line was busy . . . before realizing that the only way I could reach Al to get help was by calling his cell phone. No lacerations, no bleeding, but a huge goose egg by the time he got to me. He rushed me to Urgent Care and they, in turn, called an ambulance and sent me to the hospital for care - CT scan, etc. After 4 1/2 hours the released me with cautions and a horrendous headache.

This was NOT the exciting afternoon I had planned in the shop. Ruined a new pair of glasses, have a headache to break all my past records, and look like half a raccoon. Caution out there, guys and gals.
 
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Ouch! Glad to see it wasn't any worse, but it sounds like it was plenty bad as it was. Take care of the headache, and I hope it feels better soon.

And remember, lunging into the abyss is just a figure of speech. ;)
 
Geez Sandy, I hope the lathe is OK ;) :D

Seriously, a goose egg on the head is no laughing matter, good to see that you got it looked at. :thumb:

I learned a long time ago, that if something don't want to move when I lean on it, before I get a bigger hammer, and or longer bar, or REALLY lean on it, to step back and use my head for a minute, it doesn't always help, but sometimes it does.

I watched a neighbour trying to get a trailer hitch ball off a truck of his, he had a big wrench, and he tried that, would not budge, then he tried a pipe on the wrench, and he bent the pipe, so next he tried some heat on the bolt and then a longer stronger pipe, he bent the wrench..........

Next a BIG pipe wrench and the BIG pipe, and MORE heat and still, it would not budge, he was actually moving the truck sideways. By this time the guy was just about in fits, he was red in the face and a crowd had gathered as he was now SHOUTING bad words. Nothing worked, so he got out the hot wrench........ah.... cutting torch and burned it the darn thing off.

My Dad said to me (I was about 12 at the time) "Do you know what he was doing wrong....?" I said "Yeah, he was pulling the wrong way........."

I was not stupid enough to tell the guy, and my Dad laughed and said neither was he, if anyone had told the guy "Hey buddy, try it the other way!" they would have got a wrench in the face, the guy was SO mad.

Your suggestion of caution is WELL founded, I'm glad you are OK, and grateful to you for sharing your story, as we can all learn from stuff like this...................

Now where are the pics of this bowl..... :D:D:D:D

Take care, and some aspirin!! :wave:
 
I felt well enough to make a trip to the shop last night. I think the lathe suffered just as bad as I did. There's a huge dent in the ways - about the width of my head. My Dad always told me I was truly hard-headed. Now I know he's right. Just kidding - sure don't want to replace the lathe base before I finish this bowl.

Thanks for everyone's well wishes. Other than looking like I had a fight with a light-weight boxer, I'm feeling fine. Puffy and black and blue. I will finish that bowl today and post pictures tonight (unless I get caught up in this vortex and start something else).
 
It is even worse when you know what is going to happen while you are attempting it, from experience, but you think you can anticipate it breaking loose, or the knife coming free, and control it... So it happens anyway!
Glad to hear you and your lathe are okay, though.
 
Ditto on the "ouch" and hope you feel better soon.
Years ago I would have used the Stu method and gone for a bigger hammer or bar. But, in recent years, I have learned to just walk away and come back later. Sometimes a few minutes, sometimes hours, sometimes day will pass. Somehow solutions seem obvious once the adrenaline has gone down.
 
Sandy, I've had a similar experience to yours, but not nearly as painful. Concussions can be steathy, be careful.

The first couple times I used my new lathe, I had trouble remembering which way to remove the handhweel on the left side of the heastock, and the faceplate on the right side of the headstock. DAMHITKT :rofl:

Being somewhat forgetful and to avoid "turning" errors, with a Sharpie, I marked a small curve on the area behind the handwheel of which way to rotate to get it off. Then on the right side of the headstock, I marked a curve with the correct direction to get faceplate and chucks off.
It really helps. I'm used to it now. But every once and a while I'm glad I put those marks there.

Regards, Mike
 
I'm glad your ok. I know how it feels, I have hit my head on several truck frames. It is not something that feels good at all. The neck day is worse. Hopefully you will make a quick recovery.
 
I have hit my head on several truck frames. It is not something that feels good at all.

Al, you reminded me of an injury I witnessed one time while sitting in a parking lot waiting for someone. A delivery truck drove in, parked, and the driver came to the cargo door and proceeded to pick up about 7 rolls of paper - each about 8 inches in diameter and about 30 inches long. He was slinging them, one by one, onto his opposite shoulder and realized he could not carry all of them in one trip. So he laid them down in the truck, pulled out a hand truck and leaned it against the bumper. Great.

Now he picks up a roll of paper, places it on the base of the hand truck, another, and another . . . and, about the fifth one, the base lowered and the top of the hand truck came up quickly and smacked him upside the head. He wasn't knocked out, but I am certain he learned something that day. Sometimes we just have to have it beated into our hard heads, don't we.

Doing great - don't look to purty, but never did. Only slight tenderness around the eye orbit now. Main concern was a newly inserted lens in the left eye - 'specially since I'm blind in the right one.

Thanks again to everyone for all their concern. You guys are the best.

BTW I can't post pictures of the finished bowl because it didn't happen. Has anyone successfully completed a 10 inch bowl with a 1/32" thick base? Caught a 'crack' with the bowl gouge and it went flying. Ahhh, I chalk that one up to a learning experience.

I have three others that I'll try to post tonight though - I have not been idle.
 
Ouch!

Hello Sandy,

Sorry to hear of your accident, I'm glad to hear that you will be ok! We all need a refresher course from time to time on safety around our lathe and the other tools in our studios. Best wishes to you for a full and quick recovery!
 
Sandy, you should not beat your head on the lathe like that you might hurt the lathe. :doh: OUCH Glad to hear you are going to be ok. In the shop I can dial our phone number and hang up and it will ring all of our phones. I let it ring twice then pick it up and the wife is supposed to be on the outher end.
Bob
 
Hope yer healed up by now Sandy.
Them bumps can be hard on a person.

I mechaniced, shop foreman'ed on semi's for several years. Close to 20 I guess. 5-6 years on cars, irrigation engines before the trucks.

I could sometimes really tear myself up. Cut, mashed fingers.
Head bumps were the worst.:eek: Or a socket come flying off of an impact gun, smacking ya right in the face.

Gave that all up in 1993.

Hope you are better:D
 
I think I have healed - and the lathe isn't damaged . . . too bad, that is.

I've been real nice to the lathe recently, even bought a few new toys for 'her' and have chips all over the place.

Now, if I could only relocate the brains I lost when I slammed my head into the lathe bed . . . oh, I'm reminded there weren't that many in there to start or I would not have had my accident. I did get a bit of 'sense' knocked into me though.

Thanks to everyone for their concerns. I hope no one ever has a similar goof up.
 
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