Printable View
Ok, I've always worn leather gloves when using an angle grinder to be safe.
However, I've been told recently that this is actually a dangerous practice in that the glove can get caught in the rotating kit, pinch, and take fingers with it.
This seems feasible but now I don't know - what do you guys think. Should gloves be worn or not?
Never wear gloves with machinery that have moving parts, have seen it happen to 2 different guys and lets just say it's not a pleasant view.
In the toolroom I'm at, some blokes wear cotton gloves to keep their hands a bit cleaner. Unfortunately their hands still cop a fair bit of dust and grime and pretty much any grinding wheel will drag their hand in if it gets so much as a whiff of cotton.Quote:
Originally Posted by djstimber
Leather gloves may, however, be a bit different, as leather is generally quite resistant to abrasion and may not get grabbed like a cotton or placky glove would. Myself, I still wouldn't bet a finger on it tho. :wink:
In general I agree, but I wouldn't say "never". For examble I wear gloves when using chainsaws and jackhammers, although this is more for comfort than safety - although some might say that comfort eventually translates into safety.Quote:
Originally Posted by djstimber
I have often worn those big blue type leather gloves when grinding to stop all the metal sparks/shavings burning my hands.
I understand the logic of not wearing them but it would be pretty damned hard to get your fingers caught with an angle grinder seeing as one is on the handle and one is on the main body.
I think DJS is technically right but this may be an exception. Metal filings embedded in the skin slowly rusting into the blood supply may be just as bad as becoming Captn hook :?
I'd say it's a mixed bag. Although gloves seem to increase safety, they not only can get caught but they also can reduce control of the tool because your sense of feel is reduced. Best bet is to practice with both chain saws and grinders to better learn their behaviours, and then dispense with the gloves. And NEVER employ the trigger lock; if you sense loss of control, drop it and run.
Joe
Shirt sleeves & shirt tails can also get caught in moving machinery too, if they are loose.
The emphisys here is on loose.
never wear glove bloody dangers habit ,just remember never pick things up that you just cut:oo:
My experience with chainsaws and jackhammers is that after using them for a more than say 10 minutes my hands start to go numb and after about 30 minutes of use my hands will be completely numb. Soft leather gloves with extra padding in the palms and fingers really reduce this problem significantly. I figure I am less dangerous with these gloves than without. Grinders are not the sort of thing I use for long periods so I have no problem with using them without gloves.Quote:
Originally Posted by joe greiner
PS: Stihl recommends the use of gloves at all times especially to counteract users affected by vibration.
G'day,
I'll go with Djstimber and Cliff, never wear gloves for the reasons they already said. Only time I'll wear gloves is for welding...
when I'm trying to stuff up two bits of metal, which is a change from stuffing up bits of timber. :D
Morning all, the old adage is never wear gloves with rotating machinery:no: Jon.
G'Day Everyone,
Gloves are like any item of PPE. If they are not worn properly or are not the right type or they don't fit they can contribute to causing an injury.
If you are using the equipment innapropriately then you will more than likely have an incident regardless of the PPE. Most peoples' nature though is that they wear PPE and then feel like they are protected and it is this attitude that leads to a false sense of security.
By far the most injuries I have seen with grinders has come from objects hitting the hands or arms (usually due to removed guards) and "white knuckle" (numbness etc).
Like always you should evaluate what the job is and how you get hurt and then determine if the PPE is an adequate enough control but never think it is the ultimate control.
Cheers
Rod
I didn't say NOT to wear them.... my comment was about LOOSE clothing.Quote:
Originally Posted by Waldo
That is what I meant.Quote:
Originally Posted by Rodt68
I do wear gloves, I have different gloves for different jobs.
When I work close to moving or rotating things, I wear heavy tough leather gauntlets.
I had my left hand slip off the front grip of my chainsaw & it hit the rotating chain... lucky I had my gloves on 'cos I hit a new chisel 404 chain tip & all it did was rip a bit out of the finger of the glove. :oo:
I also have woven cotton gloves for some jobs & they are a good close fit. They are fine near a grinding wheel but I wouldn't wear them near a wire wheel or a chainsaw.
I think it is good to wear a welding glove when grinding but on the hand that is on the trigger. Thats the hand that is away from the blade - its also the one that cops the sparks.
Its also not a good idea to use a grinder if you are wearing a tutu as the sparks can be quite dangerous.
How do you know? :?Quote:
Originally Posted by Bleedin Thumb
G'day,Quote:
Originally Posted by Bleedin Thumb
Besides it's a Code Vilation anyway, unless there's something different in the sheila's Code :shrug:
Quote:
Originally Posted by Waldo
Geeez that code can be a bit repressive sometimes can't it.
I bet there's a whole section on taffata!:wink:
Riggers gloves are much better fitting than the cheaper half leather half cotton gloves that tend to flop around. Upright drills and any glaves at all do not mix. :oo:
Just this morning Number 1 son told me off for wearing riggers gloves to cut old corrugated iron. He then reached over a freshly cut sheet to take the grinder off me, and I had to tell him how dangerous freshly cut edges of this scalpel sharp stuff is and also full of tetanus and such stuff.
Riggers gloves for me, and I'll keep my fingers crossed. :D
In my opinion this is one of those overgeneralised and inconsistent view areas.
For example in the US it seems that operating a saw bench in long sleves is a major danger BUT it seems just fine to work without a guard or a riving knife.
No gloves with rotating machinery is a typical over generalisation.
I would not use any sort of glove when hand grinding small parts on a bench grinder or similarly on a wire wheel.
Should you ever wear gloves when using a bench grinder, well I recon in some situations yes.
example..... Boily (boilermaker) grinding burs and daggs of freshly cut large square pieces of large section steel using a 10" 2 hp grinder
I would expect him to be wearing gloves, an apron and full face protection, because the various risks to the hands from heat, sparks and sharp edges is high and the entrapment risk is low particularly if proper work method has been established.
I most certainly wear gloves when using a chain saw.... not always but when I am working with rough material and brush.
Lets see you prune a large boganvillia without gloves:D
With a chain saw the predominant safety issue with hands is.....
they should both be on the handles...
. I dont think a chain saw would care gloves or no gloves it wants pieces of you and will take them if you put any part of you near the blade.
The most common injuries to boilermakers and related trades are, burns to the hands and metal in the eyes.
If working with metal, hot metal is an ever present risk. the predominating issue is the protection of the hands, body and eyes from hot metal
Besides both hands should be on the grinder while the wheel is rotating.
Proper use of Personal Protective Equipment is a matter of carefull risk assessment and not a mater for gross and often irrelivant generalisations
One of the other major issues of PPE is that it should be fit for purpose and should properly fit the user.
Should you wear glove when using an angle grinder?
If there is a risk of injury to your hands that gloves will protect you from,
Most certainly YES.
Is there a risk of entrapment?
If the gloves are appropriate and fit properly....AND you have both hands on the machine handles/ body while the disk is rotating....very remote.
Safety is not a matter for generalisations.
cheers
try the new gloves at bunnings ironclad l think they are called much better fit than riggers :2tsup:
PPE is and always will be a last line of defense and will never compensate for poor work practices,Quote:
Originally Posted by soundman
As a general safety rule I stand by my statement re rotating machinery.
Appropriate use of PPE and safe work practices are not open for negotiation, in my workplace it is mandatory, deviate and pay the price.
Yes I am responsible for and care about the daily safety of a large group of people, and our incident rate is negligible.
Jon.
Jon,
just wondering what sort of industry you're in? Whilst generally I don't like wearing gloves at all, especially when using any form of tool there are exceptions. If using an angle grinder on steel for any more than a quick cut I'd want a glove on my right hand (trigger hand). I'm not really fond of getting burnt or having steel splinters embed themselves in my fingers. If using a wire buff on an angle grinder I'd definitely wear gloves on both hands, I've had to use pliers to remove wires from my leg after using a buff (ouch!:oo: ). Like Soundman says, generalisations aren't helpful. Lots of workplaces have blanket safety rules because they assume (sometimes correctly) that their workers won't take the proper steps to protect themselves. So in your workplace, would you give someone the boot for wearing gloves whilst using an angle grinder for either of the two operations I've mentioned? Personally I use my own judgement to assess risk, plan work practice and judge what types of PPE are appropriate. I'm sorry, but I just don't trust anyone else to decide what is safe for me.
Mick
You are in the minute minority there Mick.
I had a guy say to me the other day that he doesn't need to wear a face shield while using an angle grinder on the side of a bridge because he holds his head to one side while he grinds (at head height and above).
He could prove that this was a great control measure because he had never been hurt before. I asked if he has ever heard of anyone getting hurt with grinders because of sparks. He said yes but it was their fault because they were idiots.
If you operate grinders the way they are supposed to be operated safely an appropriate glove will never drag a finger in IMHO.
Different equipment has different hazards and it is usually complacency ("I have never been hurt before") and indifferent attitudes that leads to injury or worse.
Sorry about the safety rant. The years of seeing injuries and incidents from stupid things such as incorrect PPE (if using at all) have jaded me to people's perceptions on this stuff.
Thank god it is Friday:2tsup:
Cheers
Rod
Even if your glove was to touch your wheel I doubt that it would get caught. - I'm assuming hand held grinder with cut off wheel. Even a bench grinder with a stone I find it hard to imagine that wearing a glove would be more dangerous than not wearing one.
I'd rather hit a wheel or stone with some leather on that with my bare skin, not to mention protection from sparks.
Come to think of it any small bit of machinery is going to do you more damage if it hits you without gloves than with. If you go up to a larger machine that has the power to grab you and pull you into itself well thats a different matter.
RE; Even if your glove was to touch your wheel I doubt that it would get caught.
If you use gloves with a "naked" grinding wheel the chances of getting it caught are I agree very low. The problem is when gloves get caught between wheels and guards. I've seen idiots not caring if gloves touch wheels so they can get in even closer to a wheel to do what they want to do. When the slip, as they invariably do, if the glove gets jammed between the piece, wheel and guard it has not been a pretty sight!
When it comes to bench grinders (as a grinder, wire wheel or buffer), if I'm doing something that makes me think about putting gloves on, I take that as a hint that I'm doing it wrong and need to re-think what I'm doing.
I got myself a few of the cheap pairs of locking pliers and I keep them located at the bench grinder. Instead of reaching for gloves, I reach for the pliers to hold things.
You bet. Small things get really warm really fast.Quote:
Originally Posted by Master Splinter
Joe
I've said it before and I'll say it again now, I reckon the most important safety equipment is the stuff between your ears. Understanding the process and the risks allows you to make an informed decision on how best to safely complete an operation. In most power tool operations gloves aren't appropriate but the risk of burns and splinters needs to be weighed against the risk of getting a glove jammed in between the guard and wheel. I believe the risk of getting burns or steel splinters much higher than the other risk and work accordingly.
Mick (who in years of trade work with dangerous spinning bitey things has used less than a packet of band aids)
Don't press so hard onto the wheel, mate. Take your time and traverse the job across the face with a light pressure. Heat will still be generated, but much slower and it may even settle down to a warm bit of metal, rather than a scolding piece of metal.:2tsup:Quote:
Originally Posted by joe greiner
Unfortunately workplace health and safety is an area where there is far to much mis-information, old outdated methods(that were never safe), management politics and gross overreaction.
In the situation of over reaction there are a number of work places that have tried to ban all sharp and/or pointy things. One bloke I spoke to last week said that because ONE idiot stabed homself is the leg because of blatantly stupid and dangerous practise, all stanley knives have been banned from use by his technicians (by high level management).
On the matter of entrapment hazards.....most of these risks should be able to be minimised.
Either gaps should be opened up or closed up to minimise the risk. on a bench grinder this means keeping your tool rest properly adjusted with minimal clearance.
I am constantly amazed at the various " safety" devices offered for the table saw. most of them would certainly be illegal in an industrial setting in europe and probaly here.......
Anybody that sprouts any sort of safety method or device but does not use a blade guard on a table saw except for minimal special operations in my has no credibility at all in my opinion.
There is still a whole range of outdated " safety procedures" STILL being given credance, procedures that were nothong more than lip service procedures to placate workers under unsafe conditions.
Other commonly held views evolved due to acceptance of persistant unsafe methods.....those views and safety provcedures become redundant when the unsafe situation is removed or better dealt with.
Typical is the matter of exposed rotating machinery, drive shafts and belts.
There would have been a whole culture concerning exposed drives early to mid last century...... those matters should now be almost redundant as exposed drives are considered almost universaly unacceptable.
There are also WHS practicioners in workplaces who most certainly do not know their stuff as well as they should. Particularly when it comes to the more technical issues like hearing protection, radiation and poisons exposure.
We all need to be careful about the sources and adequacy of WHS advice and information. Afterall we are all responsible for our own safety.
We need to be looking at and for the risks, and we need to be asking how and why. And specificaly where and what is the greatest risk.
For a heavy metal worker hot metal is an ever present and unavoidable part of the work, so that is the predominating risk.
Grinding is "hot work", sorry it cant be done cold or even warm in most cases.
enough for now .
cheers
is there anyone out there who uses an arbortech(or equivalent)
and does not wear a glove on the trigger hand.??can't be done.:no:
or can it?
underfoot
AHH no that depends on where the switch is on your grinder, switc at the head or at the tail.
Many dirty trades prefer a switch at the tail of their smaller grinders because the last longer without getting full of rubbish.
Why would you bother putting a glove on one hand when both hands are suposed to be on tha machine.
OH
Interersting that many manufacturers make a big deal of the fact that the switches on their grinders are designed to be easy to opperate with a gloved hand.:U
cheers
I'm guessing you have'nt used a rotary carving disc on an angle grinder.Quote:
Why would you bother putting a glove on one hand when both hands are suposed to be on tha machine.
cheers
both hands on machine, guard in place , all appropriate safety gear on..
each tooth removes about 0.5mm per pass x 6 teeth per disc ,rotating @
12000rpm .(I don't do maths).aiming chips at my recently manicured digits
like machine gun fire. . no glove,draws blood,hurts hand ,drops tool..
cheers underfoot.
Can't quite tell which drum you're beating, underfoot. I use a Lancelot disc in a right-angle grinder with trigger at the rear. No gloves. Main thing about these machines is practice, practice, practice, until you can better predict its behaviour. I can now almost duplicate the finish of a belt sander. Always anchor the workpiece to something solid, and never employ the trigger lock.
Joe
Haven't used a lancelot joe ,so I don't know its characteristics,Quote:
Originally Posted by joe greiner
maybe its different,What I meant was that ,an arbortech, when held correctly , spits chips back at the hand holding the grinder hard enough
to draw blood,therefore the glove.:rolleyes: or maybe it's just me?
underfoot
My point wasn't to not wear gloves, rather that gloves like hands come in pairs (generaly) why wouldn't you put on both gloves?
cheers
Soundman its called the Michael Jackson effect. After you finish your grinding you punch the air with your one gloved hand, then moon walk backwards to your bench then quickly spin on your toes whilst letting out a sharp high pitched WOO.
Quite invigorating actually.
Joe,Quote:
Originally Posted by joe greiner
I'd suggest you remove or disable the trigger lock when using any form of aggressive toothed blade. I've seen a couple of absolutely horrific industrial accidents involving grinders and toothed blades.
Mick
As said before, in other posts, angle grinders are a lot more dangerous than most people give them credit..... and thtas with a grinder blade in them.
As I mentioned before I know bloke that cut his foot amost off above the ankle with a 9" angle grinder fitted with a grinding disk.
Theya derseve a lot of respect.... in certain situations thay can kick back savagely... AND they make a horible dirty wound.
The best safety measure is........ two firm hands on the machine.
cheers
I know a bloke with a permanent smile to prove it...Quote:
in certain situations thay can kick back savagely... AND they make a horible dirty wound.