Thread: Blood, Sweat, and Tears Series...a Saga

I believe it was two weeks before Thanksgiving a friend who I attend Bible study with approached me requesting a custom knife for Christmas. My little motto of: "If you want a knife to use, I can help you. If you want a pretty knife to wear around, look in the catalog." is spreading around here locally. Folks just know that I take my time on them. We talked about it a bit and roughed out the design. After bible study he dropped a bomb on me. He wanted 7 of them before Christmas. I first turned him down, but had the following day off (they just didn't call me in to work...I'm on call 24/5) and happened to have 5-36" sticks of 1/8" O-1 in the shop/shed. I roughed out the design & called Bob to come to the house at lunch. He liked it, so I told him I would accept the order & do everything I could to get them done by Christmas. Now the kicker is that I don't do leather & the leather guy needs time too.

The Eye
I go out in the shop and rough out the other blades. During this, somehow a piece of steel gets around my safety glasses into my right eye. It feels like it is in the outside iris area, so I wipe a little bit on the eyeball with a cotton swab...done it many times. Thinking I got it, but scratched my eye, I trudge on. Next day my eye is killing me, keep on working on the knives. Third day...gotta go to the ER, something is still in the eye & I can't get it. I get the wife to take me to Silas Minor Emergency. The PA gets the sliver out of my pupil, not out of the iris like it felt like. She worked on me for quite some time afterwards, rubbing this "tool" up and down my eye "too make sure she got it all". Seemed a bit excess, but I'm just a dumb ole working guy. I asked about keeping the numbing drops and she had no problem with it as they set me up a appointment with a optimologist the following (Monday) day. My eye was very, very irritated after all that working on it and I would hit my with a drop of the numbing drops about every 30 minutes. I ended up staying up all night as I was hurting pretty bad, thank God for those numbing drops.

I see the eye Dr. at 1pm and he immediately numbs my eye and puts in some sort of dye in my eye. As we talk about what all went on, he brings in this light and I see my wifes eyes bug out. The dye shows what is going on and I had a "lot" going on in my eye. The sliver of steel had started a "rust ring" in the pupil of my eye, the eye numbing drops are only meant to be used a few times, and the PA at the emergency room had scratched the poop out of my eye. Keep in mind that I was blessed with most excellent vision. So now I have a rusty & severly scratched pupil and a blistered eye. Yes, prolonged use of eye numbing drops will blister your eye. So after really looking over my eye well, he takes this dremel like tool and "polishes" on the eye. I had to make him stop three times...prolonged use of eye numbing drops also effects how well it works. Imagine someone coming at you with a dremel and you have to let them take it to your eye...not fun. As I write this, it has been two weeks and I still have somewhere around 70% of my vision back in my right eye. Doc said it would take a couple of weeks for it to return, but it "should".

The Thumb
Sunday after church I get home and decide to cut down the blocks of wood that I had ordered for the batch of knives since they are at the heat treaters. I normally use my band saw, but it doesn't cut too straight on larger blocks of wood. I drag out the table saw, get it set up and on the second block wouldn't you know it, I get tagged. I'm pushing that last cut through with a push block with my right hand and grabbing the cut ends (the blocks of wood are about 8" long) with my left. Normal proceedure for me, but this ONE time I get my thumb in the way...some how. I still can't tell you exactly how, but that singing 10" blade got me. I felt the "bite" and knowing what that feeling is I shut down the saw by reflex and look. It tore more than cut, a large chunk of the pad to the tip. I'm a do it yourselfer, the wife was shopping, so I go and rinse the thumb to really see what is going on. Trying to see thru the blood to see how bad it was, I decide to hold it closed and use the old superglue. Guys, I tell you the truth, that stuff is an absolute must have in the First Aid kit. Applying it was a challenge: holding the finger closed, wiping blood, and applying super glue...but I got it. I went out and finished cutting the blanks with the table saw and rough sanded them flat. I'll try and get a pic of the thumb when I change the dressing this morning. Could be worse...I still have a thumb thank God!

Every power tool that I have used on this project has gotten me in some way. I normally use the band saw on rough cutting the scales to shape, but I really am thinking about it now. In all honesty I haven't been "rushing" it and being reckless...but I'm off my game somehow in the safety department. I've really got to do some evaluating. For those who have taken their time to read this, please use goggles instead of safety glasses when grinding steel and use caution when using any power tool. Don't get too relaxed just because you have done something a thousand times...it's a power tool with no mind and it doesn't care what it is cutting.

I'll try and get some pics up here later.

Well, glad all will heal in time.I have had similar mishaps in my home shop.
Is always caused by being rushed,tired,wandering mind etc.
I usually just quit and come back another day,some days the stars just do not line up properly.

I got a sliver of die stone in my eye and had to go and have it removed by the eye doc. I know a little of how you feel. Nothing as bad as you've had here though.

You're having a rough week man. Hang in there and take it easy until you're back closer to 100 percent.

Rust ring in the eye. So i guess you have a hazel colored eye now. +1 on the super glue, i dont go to work without it.
Remember slow and steady wins the race, And keeps limbs attached.

Bummer.

Been to the ER or doc to get stuff fished out of the eye many times. Can be quite annoying.

Sounds like a rough go of it. If I feel rushed or pushed at all I just walk away. Of course, I can not do that at work, but work pays the bills. Knives and razors are just a hobby.

Jeff

Ahhhh, alcaine....... Man's best friend.

I keep a secret stash in the fridge just in case.

Speedy recovery!

Eric.

Hang in there Man.
Don't be put off the power tools. i have made a few knives with hacksaws, files and stones before i had power tools, and you'd be surprised how much damage you can do to yourself regularly without power tools. But maybe that's just me.... My wife compares me to Tim The Toolman..
Anyway - stick with it and i hope you get a better run.
Adam

When I am sanding, sawing or grinding, I always have my vacuum cleaner turned on with the hose close to my workpiece. this captures all airborn dust and other particles. Not only does it keep the air much cleaner for breathing when I am done, but it also keeps the debris away from my face.

Yikes man! Here's to a speedy recovery. Good luck as you continue on.

Hang in there Shooter.