# Half inch brad point drill bit to the hand..... (graphic image)



## KTMM (Aug 28, 2009)

I was working on my grandfather's deck. We were missing some fasteners the other day so we had not yet bolted in the ground anchors. These anchors are under the deck and in an inconvenient spot. While under the deck I was drilling the holes for the supporting boards when the drill snagged at the same time it broke through the other side. The sudden snag knocked my hand loose from the board and into the path of the drill bit. The bit was a half inch brad point and went in about 1/4 of an inch at the center of the wound.

I drove myself to a local drop in clinic here in town and they stitched me up.

I got injured due to three factors that I can think of.

1. The work was not secured.
2. My left hand was not behind the cutting edge
3. Self imposed time pressure.

Drilling holes is something I do pretty regular. It's easy to forget how dangerous the most simple of tools can be when you get in front of them.


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## boxcarmarty (Dec 9, 2011)

ouch…..


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## Armandhammer (Dec 12, 2013)

Ouch…should have bought a SawSt….oh wait….nevermind.


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## JL7 (Apr 13, 2010)

ouch…...


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## Armandhammer (Dec 12, 2013)

Sorry…had to inject a little humor even though it's probably not that funny, especially if the numbing medicine is wearing off. I did something similar years ago except it was my thumb. I was holding a board for someone else. Wasn't paying attention to my hand position. I knew real fast that the drill bit had made it all the way through the wood.


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## superdav721 (Aug 16, 2010)

oooooooooooooooowwwwwww!
Nice one dude.
I hope you heal fast.


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## KTMM (Aug 28, 2009)

No worries Armandhammer. You can't hurt my feelings, I already did that with a drill bit. : )

I am very glad it wasn't worse than that.


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## bandit571 (Jan 20, 2011)

Self imposed time pressure:

Running through a forest of Rebar uprights to get an E-cord set up, tripped on one upright ( and it tore my NEW carpenter jeans), and started to fall. Put out a hand to break fall. Got about an inch of #4 rebar into the hand. Started to get up, found hand was "stuck". ER put three stitches in, all but one blew out later that week.

Too big of a hurry to put caps on the uprights, concrete was "on the way, hot" sort of thing. Somehow, I missed out on placing that concrete that day….


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## lightcs1776 (Nov 14, 2013)

Ow! Good lesson for others.


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## DIYaholic (Jan 28, 2011)

Could have been worse….
Could have been me!!!

Sorry, couldn't resist….

Hope the pain meds are working & that it heals quickly.
Have you had your shots?
NOT for an STD, for tetanus???

Oh yeah, is the drill bit OK???


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## TZH (Oct 20, 2009)

Percoset…..where the heck is the Percoset? Durn burn it! Can't find the Percoset. Just FYI - a large, yes a VERY large glass of wine or beer or whiskey or rum does just about the same thing as a Percoset (at least that's what my doctor told me).

Anyway, hope you heal up really fast!

TZH


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## greasemonkeyredneck (Aug 14, 2010)

Flesh does not make a good drill bit guide. 
I hope you heal quickly. 
Be sure to keep it clean. 
I always find myself reminding people of that since I had a cut once get infected. 
The infection looked and felt worse than the original cut.


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## Wcarver (Feb 3, 2014)

Heal fast, heal well!


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## Picklehead (Feb 12, 2013)

K- Bummer. Thanks for the reminder that any tool we use is capable of turning on us. Heal fast.

DKV, are you listening? Real woodworking safety information being offered up here, free of charge (and drama).


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## bowedcurly (Aug 31, 2013)

you shoulda used that Sawstop drill that would have never happened, just funnin, Ive shot myself with the nail gun, doin basically the same thing,that dam ol coping saw has got me 2 or 3 times, get well soon and make some more dust, have a good day


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## TheGermanJoiner (Dec 1, 2013)

Sorry to hear about ur booboos. Sadly I've been there. Not a good feeling. Heal quick. At least it's ur left hand. Always look for the good


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## todd1962 (Oct 23, 2013)

I'm surprised DKV hasn't posted to welcome you to the knucklehead club. I hope you heal quick!


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## KTMM (Aug 28, 2009)

Yeah, I should have used a Drillstop TM. Like the old plant operator says, guards are for people that like sticking their hands where they don't belong.


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## PRGDesigns (Jan 25, 2012)

+1 on the ouch.

I did something eerily similar many years ago under very similar circumstances. Right before Christmas, used a paper towel to staunch the blood, etc. The ER doctor was digging out the paper towel bits out of my RIGHT hand (note - never ever use a paper towel if you can avoid it) with a probe and he managed to hit a nerve that sent my LEFT side into a spasm. After that, I was a firm believer in acupuncture.

On the way home from the ER we called my oldest son, who was watching the other boys, and explained that his Dad would need his help while his hand recovered. While he was very receptive and eager to help, we pushed it a little bit and told him that his Dad would need help with EVERYTHING that he normally does with that hand. A long silence developed as he quickly realized what we meant by EVERYTHING, and all of a sudden he was backtracking pretty hard with his offerings of help. I was lit up pretty well with PK's, so I of course found it hilarious. Oldest son, not so much. Ahh, memories……..


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## KTMM (Aug 28, 2009)

Hmm, been a while, but I found this near miss in the archive.....


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## j1212t (Dec 7, 2013)

That doesn't look very bad at all, but still, I would have not liked to be you in that point in time. Heal swiftly and continue making sawdust!


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## greasemonkeyredneck (Aug 14, 2010)

Snap a photo Lucas. 
How's it looking after a few days?
I hope you're keeping it clean. 
Anytime I break the skin, I worry more about infection than I do the original wound. 
I've been that way ever since I had a small cut get infected once. 
The doctors said I was just a couple of days shy of losing my whole arm to infection. 
It had started as a tiny cut.


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## Quanter50 (Feb 11, 2012)

My Dad use to say….."Ya know what the best part of that ordeal is? I can't feel it!" Sorry about your mishap. Keep that wound clean. Infections are the worse!


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## wseand (Jan 27, 2010)

It's just a flesh wound.

Hope it heals well.


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