davem1111 2,170 #1 Posted August 14 I didn't think to post it when this happened, and I didn't take any pictures. About 2 weeks ago I had a cut-off wheel on my angle grinder and was about to cut 2 rusted bolts off a WH deck bracket, and when I went to push the button to the "lock-on" position, my left hand slipped forward as the grinder started spinning. The wheel briefly hit the back of the 2 middle fingers on my left hand. Dropped the grinder, pieces of the wheel flying everywhere when it hit the floor, but I didn't care. Thin skin there, didn't look like they needed stitches, but luckily I had some rubbing alcohol and a first aid kit nearby. Cleaned them quickly, and slapped a couple of Steri-strips on them. Don't think I hit bone but might have. Both cuts were about an inch long. I kept them clean and put fresh Steri-strips on daily for about 10 days and they've healed nicely. One of the first things I did was order a few pairs of those "can't cut through them" gloves, and now I wear them when using anything that wants to cut through my hands. Sorry I don't have any bloody pictures to share. 3 4 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
8ntruck 7,877 #2 Posted August 14 Again, Ouch! Glad you are healing. Did you happen to have the wheel guard on the grinder? I had some brick masons working on my house a while back. One of them had an angle grinder with a 6" or maybe an 8" diameter diamond masonry blade mounted on it. No guard, either, as the diamond blade was too big. I started calling that rig the 'wheel of death'. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
squonk 43,939 #3 Posted August 14 I hope @Pullhosen’s Pony Express keeps @Pullstart away from any angle grinder within 100 miles! 4 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
953 nut 60,348 #4 Posted August 14 9 hours ago, davem1111 said: I don't have any bloody pictures to share. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Skwerl58 766 #5 Posted August 14 Glad you didn't get hurt worse are healing up well. Last year while sharpening mower blades with my older Skil die grinder the disc came apart hitting me on my right arm at the shoulder. It didn't cut me but it bruised me through my shirt and I still have a scar there. After that I looked for a shield for my grinder but couldn't find one so I replaced it with a new one. That incident spooked me because I realized that this could have ended badly. Safety is the best policy and sometimes we do get more chances to do it right. 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
davem1111 2,170 #6 Posted Friday at 01:45 PM On 8/14/2025 at 12:11 AM, 8ntruck said: Again, Ouch! Glad you are healing. Did you happen to have the wheel guard on the grinder? I had some brick masons working on my house a while back. One of them had an angle grinder with a 6" or maybe an 8" diameter diamond masonry blade mounted on it. No guard, either, as the diamond blade was too big. I started calling that rig the 'wheel of death'. Busted. Yeah, I took the guard off at some point in the past, for some reason. I do have a piece of bent sheet metal duct-taped on as a hand guard, but that only works if my hand is in the normal "holding" position behind it. When this happened, I was just being in too much of a hurry to push that power button up into the "locked on" position, when my hand (the non-holding hand) slipped and went forward. I really don't know for sure that having the guard on there would have prevented this, or maybe it would have been a bit of "road rash" style buffing of the skin... which probably would have been more painful. Gonna put the guard back on, since I did actually find it after this happened. 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
8ntruck 7,877 #7 Posted Friday at 04:39 PM Like i tell the students on the high school robotics team I mentor - you gain kmowledge from your own mistakes and you gain wisdom from other's mistakes. This section of the forum is a vehicle for sharing your knowledge so the rest of us have an opportunity to gain some wisdom. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
peter lena 9,309 #8 Posted Saturday at 02:58 PM @davem1111 my father was terrified of any electrical / mechanical hand devise , had a number of his friends loose , fingers , deep body scaring , severe cutting , that was in the early years of , powered anything . would not even use a power drill ! everything he had was old school hand power , there was no warnings or safety ideas , even implied . typically there was no training of any kind . have his tool supply in a canvas bag , those hand auger drills , were regularly used . time traveler , pete 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
adsm08 3,338 #9 Posted Saturday at 04:50 PM On 8/13/2025 at 10:18 PM, davem1111 said: Sorry I don't have any bloody pictures to share. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
davem1111 2,170 #10 Posted Monday at 01:58 PM On 8/16/2025 at 12:50 PM, adsm08 said: Here ya go. Just faint scars now. The fingernail I hit with a hammer a few weeks before the angle grinder incident will be obvious for quite a while longer. Nail is getting close to falling off... 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
rjg854 12,247 #11 Posted Monday at 09:41 PM Looks like you've healed up nicely 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
davem1111 2,170 #12 Posted Tuesday at 01:59 AM 4 hours ago, rjg854 said: Looks like you've healed up nicely Thanks - Yeah, considering I have scars from many years ago that still show, they're just adding to the "decorations". I even have a scar on the heel of my right hand from when I cut my hand on a metal toy truck when I was 2 or 3 years old that's still qute visible. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites