Is it really safer?

Re: Is it really safer?

Mike Schwing from Md.

>Terry, I took one look at the guard that came with my 3520 and decided it was a disaster waiting to happen. No way did I want that thing between me and my work. Sooner or later I was going to injure myself on the guard itself or what you described was going to happen. No way. I figured that guard was just there to satisfy the attorneys. It still has the bubble wrap on it, as a matter of fact.

A well designed guard may be a different animal. I threw the one out that came with my tablesaw and built one that suited my needs. It doesn't give me a false sense of security - it DOES give me security.

I do often wonder why we don't hear about turners being cut in half by work blowing up. We usually only protect our heads and faces. I do have a fear of something exploding at high speed, even though I stand on the end and face the work, some of the pieces could easily slice an artery or worse.

Re: Is it really safer?

tdaniel

>Mike, if you stand at the end and face the work you will not be hurt should things go wrong. The only way you can be reached is if the piece hits something and bounces back at you. With a bed lathe it is possible that something could hit the bed and come back toward you but more likely it will go away from you; in any event, the guard would not help at all and would most likely just give it womething to bounce off to come back in your face. You are correct to not trust a guard without first totally examining it and thinking thru it. Is it there to protect you or to keep the manufacturer safe in court?

Re: Is it really safer?

Chris Wright

>My 3520 guard lies on the floor of my shop for the most part, unless I am giving a lesson. Main reason being is I watched a bowl come loose during a demo where the guard was being used, the bowl came off the faceplate and bounced around in that circular cage for what seemed an eternity. No way to stop it, everyone stepped back out of fear of getting hit and let it destroy itself and consequently shove the tool rest into the faceplate damaging both of them.

As Terry has mentioned, I have also seen the same thing without the guard and in all but one case, the piece has flown "safely" away from myself or the other operator into the wall on the 'dark' side of the lathe.

Re: Is it really safer?

Thomas Skaggs, Foothills of Mount Level

>Being mostly a "flat woodworker" I'm not an authority. You make some interesting observations. Your general remarks about guards not necessarily being safer is true IMO. For example, with table saws, stock guards can pose more risk than safety. Splitters of course are a must.

I do not have a guard on my lathe so the only injury I have sustained is to my turnings as they crashed away from me. Gee, I wonder if instead of a lathe guard I could mount a large Catcher's Mitt? ;-)

Tommy

Re: Is it really safer?

Fog Tanner

>I certainly wih my Vicmarc 300 would have come with the wire gaurd like the PM3520. It would have come in handy a few months back. I could have boldted it to the wall as a wire rack for my turning smock and visor, instead I had to make a rack. Absolutly no way would I use a guard on a wood lathe for the reasons that Terry mentioned. I accept the risks involved and try to use some amount of sense around the machinery. And I certainly don't need federal legislation to protect me from myself. Attached is the OSHA picture of a wood lathe guard. Its interesting to read their view on our little interest. I have friends who worked for the public lighting company when OSHA mandated hardhats. The number of accidents went up due to the false sense of protection. That hard hat wasn't going to stop 12kv, and a number wound up either severly burned or dead.

I have had a box come off during the hollowing process which bounced off the wall and hit me directlty on the wrist. Had I had a guard it would most likely have caught me in the head. After talking to Raffan, I think the safest piece of "safety equipment" is something like the Airstream, where you skull is protected should a piece bounce off the wall or lathe and come across your skull. Much like a brainbucket in race cars. There have been some woods I have turned where I had to be close and could not be out of the like of fire, that I havd considered a full face skid lid.

I still think it comes down to if you really need all those "gaurds" to make you feel good, then you should really be doing something else.

Re: Is it really safer?

Dick Hines

>The guard on my 3520 went to the dump right along with the box the lathe was packed in.

I did find a good use for the bracket that was suppose to hold the guard. I turned down a rod to fit the hole and hang the end of my dust collector on it. Holds the collector right in the dust stream.

Re: Is it really safer?

Keith Tompkins

>Hi Terry, I think you are correct....the replys to your post reinforce a belief I have...keep your lathe as far as possible from a wall. If not, it may be wise to put a layer of shock-absorbing material over the wall.....a gym mat, or sheet of styrofoam for example. Something to absorb some of the force of impact. Don't turn with a wall behind you either.

I have students who come to the turning center in sweaters and sweatshirts. I ask them politely to roll up their sleeves.....if that doesn't work, they must remove the garment, or they can't turn.

Ironically, my dad was an osha inspector, in fact he spent seven years in DC writing many of the laws pertaining to mining and construction...he had helped build the first nuclear missle sites in upstate NY, and the under ground water supply to NYC.