On Sat, 16 Apr 2011 17:27:17 -0400, aemeijers
wrote:

On 4/16/2011 9:19 AM, HeyBub wrote:
wrote:

Yale must have some real morons in admin...turning students loose,
ALONE AND UNSUPERVISED, in a machine shop? Employees attend safety
lectures? Even the few kids nowadays with experience with power
tools, a lathe is a whole 'nother animal.

She was not a "kid." She was a graduate student in Astronomy, presumably
around 23-25 years old.



I have worked with and for some very brainy people that I had to take
the tools out of their hands and make up errands for them to run. I was
scared they were going to trash the tools and/or the item being worked
on, and/or injure themselves or me. Book-smart doesn't mean they ever
learned how to use tools, and some people just aren't wired that way.
But yeah, whoever the strawboss was for that shop, should only have
passed out after-hours keys to people he or she knew had enough
experience to be trusted. And some machines should be a 'no lone zone'-
you don't fire them up without a spotter to call 911. Sorta like doing
confined-space or high work by yourself- not a good idea even for
experienced people.

--

About being wired right.
I warned a foreman at IH once not to trust a fellow worker around any
danger. The guy couldn't even operate a worksaver safely.
Plain clumsy.
Foreman put him on a Webb roller and he got his arm pulled through,
mangling it badly so it was useless.
The Webb machine had a safety cable running it's entire length to pop
the top roller, but he never hit it. Somebody who was nearby heard
him scream, and hit the cable to free him. Probably saved his life.
I'm not too in love with myself either, because one time I managed to
back myself in a corner hotdogging a worksaver and it rode up on my
foot almost to my ankle.
Steel toes were required at IH, but not metatarsals.
But I wore the same metatarsal shoes I wore at U.S. Steel, where they
were required. Only thing that kept that foot from getting mangled.
Would have broke every bone on the top of my foot up high.
Just limped for a couple days from the bruising.
So dress gear is important too. I don't recall ever needing those
metatarsals except that once. Once is enough.
Don't even have any steel toes anymore, though I sometimes drop
something and have to dodge my feet out of the way.
I should have some for whenever I do work in the garage.
But I probably won't get a pair. No safety boss here.

--Vic