posted
I use quite a lot of the bigger cutting knives, the ones you break the blade off of when it gets dull. Welp, for the third time I hacked off a chunk of one of my fingers. This time a real good hunk. Was slicing away and seen sumpthin fly up in the air, said, "What the heck was that?" Looked down at the index finger of my left hand and seen where it had come from. The left side of the tip is gone now. Forever lost somewhere in my shop. And I aint never had one this sore. Keep forgettin about it and hit it on something and BAM! Long string of expletives. I know some are gonna say you should watch closer, but I thought I was. I think. Anyway, my typing which is usually about 40 words a minute is now down to three or four. And I got this big ol homemade bandage stuck on the top of my left hand. It's a pitiful sight. Don't know what happened to that knife. Musta threw it when I was expleting. Oh well, I'll find it tomorrow when I step on it.
-------------------- Maker of fine signs and other creative stuff. Located at 109 N. Cumberland ave. Harlan, Ky. 40831 606-837-0242 Posts: 4172 | From: Ages-Brookside, Ky. Up the Holler... | Registered: Jul 1999
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Geez... that must hurt. Before getting into the sign biz I worked as a meat cutter. The mystery meat that I added to some of our customers orders was the tips of some of my fingers as I sliced them in a meat slicer. That hurts too. Eventually, I decided to butcher a few signs instead of cattle and hogs.
Hey everyone, here's a thought... You know how we pick up the freebees at the letterheads meets? Well, how about those blade holders that look like keys? Maybe we ought to go through our pockets and purses before getting on an airplane...Just a thought.
-------------------- Jeff Vrstal Main Street Signs 157 E. Main Street Evansville, WI 53536 1-608-882-0322
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John, I did the same thing 3 months ago. I thought nothing about it until my new wife saw it and freaked.
She called a friend who is a nurse and I had a tetnus (sp) shot by evening.
I could not remember when the last time I had one, but I'm sure I was past the 10 year warranty.
Take it seriously - Don't take chances.
Like me, You'll have peace of mind knowing that the next digit that encounters a dirty blade will cause only the annoying blood loss and nerve shattering pain.
-------------------- Mike Duncan Lettercraft Signs
Posts: 1328 | From: Centreville, VA | Registered: Oct 2000
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Hey Man... If you "zipper" like you trim... you best learn to sit ta pee!
Nuttin more dangerouser than a hand held severing instrument.....
Last time I did that $%^&*... I whacked off a wafer of fingertip...so clean..It flipped on my weeding table..came to rest....it was as if it laid there a minute... caught its own breath...then it oozed a lil mini gush of blood....unlike the bloody stump it just became detached from..My poor finger bled for well over 3 years before a scab finally arrived.. I weed and trim vinyl today with a hot dog..its a lil slower but its a lot less sharp and ...nuttin like eatin yer tools for lunch!Mustard n relish on a weeding tool?.....You betcha!
-------------------- Michael Boone Sign Painter 5828 Buerman Rd.Sodus,NY 14551
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john....you need medication.....i used to live in a place....no sharpe object or matches.....but iam "weller" now.......dumbest one i did was dropped the exacto knife...put my foot under it so i didnt break the tip...well didnt break it, it went thru the top of my shoe and stuck in my foot...had to pull it out so i could take of my shoe and stop the bleeding..
-------------------- joe pribish-A SIGN MINT 2811 longleaf Dr. pensacola, fl 32526 850-637-1519 BEWARE THE TRUTH.....YOU MAY NOT LIKE WHAT YOU FIND Posts: 11582 | From: pensacola, fl. usa | Registered: Nov 1998
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John, Just last week one of our guys did exactly the same thing,... but there was absolutely no need for it. You see he was not paying attention, and he was "NOT" using our big yellow safety ruler, of which we have 2. I said to the guys on many many occasions "One of these days...." Buy one of these types of rulers they do save your finger tips, and if you play Guitar it hurts a lot less if you have some flesh hiding the nerves at the end of your fingers. Neil
-------------------- "Keep Positive"
SIGNS1st. Neil Butler Paradise, NF Posts: 6277 | From: St. John's NF Canada | Registered: Mar 1999
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Yeah Neil, I thought that was worth another mention. Flat tip finger scars that are way sensitive a year later are no fun.
Or there was the time as a newbie when big wads of transfer tape covered the table, & when I balled it up I found the xacto that got stuck in it when I buried it to the bone! Still prefer that to the old finger tip trim though.
posted
If any of you know "Bill Williams", Old time sign painter and long time letterhead from clear back to Mike Jacksons's Oklahoma meet in 1980, you've probably noted that he carries an X-Acto knife point up in his shirt pocket. He says he's never cut himself (But I know better).
-------------------- Jerry Mathel Retired Grants Pass, Oregon signs@grantspass.com Posts: 916 | From: Grants Pass, OR USA | Registered: Dec 1998
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Sorry to hear of your painful mishap John. Things could be worse though. If you were a Proctologist, that could be a career-ending injury. Hope that you have a better day with no bleeding involved.
-------------------- Ken Henry Henry & Henry Signs London, Ontario Canada (519) 439-1881 e-mail: kjmlhenry@rogers.com
Why do I get all those on-line offers to sell me Viagara, when the only thing hardening is my arteries ? Posts: 2689 | From: London,Ontario, Canada | Registered: Feb 1999
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I got this big ol fat bandage on the thing, mainly to keep from hittin it against something. But I did. I aint never had something hurt so bad. I seen hallucinations and stuff. Brother , you oughta seen me with that knife today. After having a good talk with it, and letting it know the next time it was outa here, I went so slow with it I fell asleep twice. I can't stand hardly to take the bandage off, cause it looks weird, with a flat spot where once it was curved. Them nerve endings is hanging out there just itching to cause me pain. Never again says I.
-------------------- Maker of fine signs and other creative stuff. Located at 109 N. Cumberland ave. Harlan, Ky. 40831 606-837-0242 Posts: 4172 | From: Ages-Brookside, Ky. Up the Holler... | Registered: Jul 1999
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A few weeks ago one of those large snap-off blades inadvertantly disappeared on the floor in my shop only to reappear through the bottom of my running shoe a little later causing a relatively bloody 1/2" cut on the bottom of my foot that kept me from 2-steppin' for a couple of weeks. I think pulling the shoe off caused more damage than the actual puncture but I had no idea what was irritating the bottom of my foot. I have also 'caught' an exacto with the top of my foot. I'll never do that again!
Happy Signing..... Marty
-------------------- Happy Signing...... Marty
M.F. (Marty) Happy Signmaker Since 1974 Happy Ad Sign & Design Regina SK, Canada S4N 5K4 306-789-9567 happyad@sasktel.net www.happyad.ca
I can sympathize man, them damn blades have jumped out and got me more than once.
The worst was about a year ago, I got the tip similar to you only it did leave a flap. I didn't have time to go get it checked or stitched so I just put a banage on it myself and finished the signs I "Had" to get out the door. I was all finished, had the signs loaded into the van went back in got a few things and headed out the door. I grabbed the door handle ( on the steel door) and had my figer sticking straight out, not paying attention I slammed my finger in the door!!!!!!! After yelling many choice words I realized I couldn't get my finger out of the door, had to reach around with my other hand into the oppisite pocket to get my keys and unlock it.
End result, several stitches on top of the tip of the finger broken, talk about painfull [EMAIL]null[/EMAIL]
-------------------- Troy "Metalleg" Haas 626 Kingswood Dr Evansville,In 47715
Posts: 1100 | From: Evansville,Indiana, USA | Registered: Nov 1998
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Over the years, the number one accident here in the store is damaging the left hand with the right hand, or vice versa for the lefties. Had one guy drill a hole with his Makita, most of the rest were Exacto knives.
I was going my best Ginsu act on a Taco salad a few years ago, and removed the fingerprint from the one finger salute finger. Hurts like crazy, and feels really really dumb. Vic G
-------------------- Victor Georgiou Danville, CA , USA
Posts: 1746 | From: Danville, CA , USA | Registered: Dec 1998
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Sorry, John, to hear about your finger cutting that poor blade.
I reluctantly "invested" in a 52" Big Yellow ruler about a year ago. Best money I ever spent. I now have another 52", an 18" and I plan on ordering a 36" Big Yeller.
Plus, they are heavy and don't slip and slide around like some rulers do.
-------------------- Stephen Bolin Signs By Tomorrow Holland, MI
Posts: 78 | From: Holland, MI | Registered: Aug 2001
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I used to build and fly RC airplanes bout 10 years ago. I always would try and slice my finger off! I would use super glue as a band aid when I was out flying and slice my finger inna propeller. Lemme tell ya, 15% nitro in a open cut SMARTS!
I havent sliced my finger doin sign work in about 10 years,(open razor in a top pocket, stupid... STUPID!).
Now I just jinxed it and will only be able to count to 9 tomorrow.
Posts: 768 | From: Sturgis South Dakota | Registered: Nov 1998
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OUCH!! Couple of years ago i moved the benches round in my shop, one was screwed to the wall with what we call frame fixing screws, as i removed it it left the plastic plug in the wooden frame, now i thought "i will cut it off" but the damm thing kept moving so i turned the knife around towards me, BIG MISTAKE, it slipped off the plug and went straight through the web of my left hand tween thumb and forefinger. Oh dear thought I thats painful as blood was sprayed all over the wall, the only thing i could find to staunch the blood was a dirty tea towel from the kitchen. So of I went to the local hospital and the good old british national health service being the dinosaur that it is I sat there for 2 hours bleeding all over the carpet whilst the receptionist eyed me with a look off distaste as I messed up her floor. So in the end fed up and weak from blood loss i enquired of the dragon on the desk if she had a needle and thread as i would "SEW UP THE DAMM THING MYSELF!!" And the moral is don't do stupid things whilst on your own suffering from the king of all hangovers.
-------------------- Steve Broughton Alpha Grafix Signs Lowfields Road Benington, Boston Lincolnshire, England Posts: 315 | From: Boston, Lincolnshire, England | Registered: Aug 2001
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I learned a lot from my dad, and one of'em is "if you draw blood, it's a job well done..." or at least that is what it seemed like... Building our garage with a loft, my dad, the shortest guy on the jobsite hit his head on the rafters in the loft twice, drawing blood both times. The next day he shows up wearing a bicycle helmet. It worked until he went to his truck to get his lunch out of the cab. Took his helmet off and leaned into the cab through the window, and POW! you got it...
-------------------- Eric Patzer A.S.A.P. Design Lafayette, CO epatzer@earthlink.net Posts: 208 | From: Lafayette, CO USA | Registered: Nov 1998
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sorry to hear of your knife accident bubba deaton. i think we all have xacto knife horror stories. here is mine... i used to have one of those rotating art caddies, my wife had warned me several times to put the blade down when placing it in the caddie. i did'nt heed her warning and placed it with the blade up. i reached in to get a pencil one day and drove the knife deep into the fleshy part of my hand below the little finger. (i hate it when that happens) i bled like a stuck hog. i have yet to put the blade up in the art caddie since then. i hope you heal soon john.
posted
Adrienne, I know you said "I'm replacing all blades in my shop with popcicle stix!!!!!" but look at the posts. Do only men lose finger tips or are the woman just not talking? Just wondering? Do you know? Curious, Debbie
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Debbie, I think that it's based on a traumatic post-circumcision thing that a lot of males go through. That might explain the absence of posts by the fairer sex.
-------------------- Ken Henry Henry & Henry Signs London, Ontario Canada (519) 439-1881 e-mail: kjmlhenry@rogers.com
Why do I get all those on-line offers to sell me Viagara, when the only thing hardening is my arteries ? Posts: 2689 | From: London,Ontario, Canada | Registered: Feb 1999
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I just found this post, and am cringing inside, so much of it is familiar because I have several fingers with flat tops and little remaining feeling. Naturally there are stories that go with the mutilations.
By the way: I have, always, half peeled bandages hanging on the shelf in the bathroom, so I can run to one and put it across the cut and pressurize it immediately. There is not much that’s harder to open and peel than a bandaid when you have a bleeding hand.
Once I got in the car and rushed to the drugstore, drove with one hand, the bleeding one in my mouth, took the hand out to talk to the druggist, and fainted on the floor.
Last year, one week before I bought the safety ruler I use religiously now, I cut against the corex flutes with all my might, and sliced my finger cleanly down. My rummaged desk (I looked for money) and the amounts of blood in the shop and bathroom indicated a possible robbery and kidnapping homicide to those looking for me while I was driving to the hospital.
In spite of all this, exactos are my friends.
-------------------- Myra A. Grozinger Signs Limited Winston-Salem, NC
signslimited@triad.rr.com
Posts: 1244 | From: Winston-Salem, NC USA | Registered: Nov 1998
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Debbie Delzell
unregistered
posted
Myra, I do not not know if I should say I am glad to hear it is not all one sided. Or sorry that you have tips missing. I guess both. I am glad the police did not try to arrest you for driving a stolen car. Do you know if missing finger tips are a sign of a sign maker? Just wondering. Kind of scares me away from cutting. I may stick to painting. Thanks for the input, Debbie
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Steve Barba's got the right idea regarding cuts..
When you get a cut, grab a tube of Super Glue and use it to glue the wound shut.
The glue actually has a chemical that acts as an anti-bacterial agent so not only does it close up the wound but it also helps kill germs that might have gotten in there.
Oh it might sting like hell but it's better than bleeding all over the place. =)
I keep super glue in my truck for this very reason! I'm always out there workin in the truck, fixing the interior or workin under the hood, busting knuckles and such. It's great to have that glue handy!
-------------------- "If I share all my wisdom I won't have any left for myself."
Mike Pipes stickerpimp.com Lake Havasu, AZ mike@stickerpimp.com
Posts: 8746 | From: Lake Havasu, AZ USA | Registered: Jun 2000
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My dad seen this big ol bandage on my finger and asked what I did this time. Told him I lopped off the tip of it. He asked where the tip went. Told him somewhere in the shop. He said I shoulda grabbed it and glued it back on. Mighta looked a little funny, but woulda been a whole finger. Man, the way that thing was bleeding, it woulda been impossible. It's slowly getting better though. I sliced through all the layers of the skin. Looks like a tree with the rings showing. Verrrrrrry tender right now. I bopped it a couple times yesterday. Sure glad no customers were in the shop.
-------------------- Maker of fine signs and other creative stuff. Located at 109 N. Cumberland ave. Harlan, Ky. 40831 606-837-0242 Posts: 4172 | From: Ages-Brookside, Ky. Up the Holler... | Registered: Jul 1999
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