# One Thumb is Worth 3.75 Pinkies



## 1thumb (Jun 30, 2012)




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## controlfreak (Jun 29, 2019)

I worked in a textile mill back in the day and at the time workers could tell you how much you got for each Kunkle the digit was removed to. I used to have to replace belts on frames that were running and you had to pinch them so if the belt got "Yanked" it was pulled free. Those that hooked their finger through the loop knew the digit price points, sadly. There were several times a belt got Yanked and I brought my hand out for a safety check. Oh and this was reaching under the machine in a blind spot. But hey, you can't stop production, ever.


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## 1thumb (Jun 30, 2012)

> I worked in a textile mill back in the day and at the time workers could tell you how much you got for each Kunkle the digit was removed to. I used to have to replace belts on frames that were running and you had to pinch them so if the belt got "Yanked" it was pulled free. Those that hooked their finger through the loop knew the digit price points, sadly. There were several times a belt got Yanked and I brought my hand out for a safety check. Oh and this was reaching under the machine in a blind spot. But hey, you can t stop production, ever.
> 
> - controlfreak


Wonder if these guys know the same? Their knowledge is probably appendage not digit based. Bonus points for including everybody's favorite, Bob Vila!

<a href="http://www.scriptgenerator.net/">


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## JCamp (Nov 22, 2016)

All of a sudden the price of a sawstop doesn't seem to bad!


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## HowardAppel (Feb 3, 2010)

I was having a new house built for myself in the mid 90/s and I let the general contractor use my PM 66 for his carpenters. One of his carpenters tried to make an angled cross-cut free hand, got kickback to the forehead (of course had taken off the blade guard and splitter) and stunned, put his dominant hand down to steady himself-right across the blade, and lost his thumb.

I bought one of the first Saw Stops out on the market. And I have a simple response to people complaining about the cost of it-the additional cost is NOTHING compared to price you pay for the rest of your life having lost a digit, or worse. Ditto with blade guards, etc. Essentially, "******************** around and find out."

I represented gaming companies, i.e., casinos, back in the day and I would always run into people who insisted that they were beating the casinos every time they played. The casinos absolutely LOVED those people-you play long enough the casino always wins. I feel the same way about not using safety equipment-you may not have a problem but eventually the odds get you, so I try to move the odds in my favor. Safety equipment can move the odds such that you most likely severe injury is a splinter.

Safety glasses, sturdy work shoes/boots, don't use power tools when tired, headache or ill, blade guard and splitter/riving knife, ZCI, push sticks, GOOD LIGHTING, well maintained tools, jigs, hold-downs, taking your time and not rushing, THINKING ABOUT WHAT YOU ARE GOING TO DO BEFORE DOING IT, handy first aid kit and fire extinguisher(s), no loose clothing or long hair, when-ever possible using the best available (to you) tool for the job, ask for help if needed-use equipment to help you maneuver heavy/awkward materials, and practice good technique, e.g., don't use a sharp hand chisel on something being held against your leg right next to the femoral artery (you can lose consciousness in a minute and bleed out quickly), and know what things you don't know enough about to play with, e.g., electricity, etc., etc., etc.

And yes, I have done all of these things, usually more than once, and got away with it, excepting the holes in my garage door and the bruised ribs from kickback and the crushed toe nail from dropping a sheet of plywood on my foot while wearing sneakers (don't get me started on people wearing flip-flops and working on heavy beams). But I do try to do better.

End of rant.


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## wildwoodbybrianjohns (Aug 22, 2019)

What could possibly go wrong?


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## SMP (Aug 29, 2018)

> All of a sudden the price of a sawstop doesn't seem to bad!
> 
> - JCamp


Or the price of a push stick. /shrug


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## Sark (May 31, 2017)

Other injury sources:
Kickback from a skill saw while holding lumber in one hand and sawing with the other. (Not recommended.) Left a scar across my index finger, but fortunately the cut wasn't deep enough to cause real damage.

Stapled hand to piece of wood through fleshy part between thumb and index finger. What carpenter hasn't done that? Small scar, hardly visible.

2×6x 12' dropped on my head. OK that wasn't my fault. Do I know anyone who wears a hard hat in construction? Only on commercial projects, not in the home remodel industry.


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## controlfreak (Jun 29, 2019)

> All of a sudden the price of a sawstop doesn't seem to bad!
> 
> - JCamp
> 
> ...


I don't think a push stick would have helped the dude that put his hand down after a kickback in the head.


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## SMP (Aug 29, 2018)

> All of a sudden the price of a sawstop doesn't seem to bad!
> 
> - JCamp
> 
> ...


Also wouldn't help the guy that got hit by the bus…


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## 1thumb (Jun 30, 2012)

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It's the reflexive action that gets you. I should've let that board drop to the ground after chopped by miter saw two days ago. Peroxide. Neosporin. Napkin and electrical tape. Then completed the project. "I ain't got time to bleed."


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## 1thumb (Jun 30, 2012)

> Stapled hand to piece of wood through fleshy part between thumb and index finger. What carpenter hasn't done that? Small scar, hardly visible.
> 
> - Sark


Yeah. Who hasn't stapled their hand to a work surface before …

I've shot myslf w/18 ga. brads many of times. Glued up joint slipping and sliding as try to shoot it. Pow! Shot myself once w/ 15 ga angled nail. Went into finger and felt it hit the underside of fingernail. Ouch.


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## therealSteveN (Oct 29, 2016)

> All of a sudden the price of a sawstop doesn't seem to bad!
> 
> - JCamp


The figures shown in that pic are what your "compensation" for loss of said digit is worth, or was worth at the time of printing, they change all the time.

If you lost a thumb on a TS, the medical bill would by far dwarf those paltry figures, and that is for an uncomplicated case. Get an infection, or secondary problems and all bets would be off.


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## controlfreak (Jun 29, 2019)

> All of a sudden the price of a sawstop doesn't seem to bad!
> 
> - JCamp
> 
> ...


You just want me to Google the amount of bus injuries vs table saw injuries, not doing it.


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## wildwoodbybrianjohns (Aug 22, 2019)

drilling through a board and into your finger below is always entertaining - excellent way to divert ones attention.


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## Notw (Aug 7, 2013)

Interactive graph, even lets you see how your state compares to the national average. Might be useful for picking a retirement state 

https://projects.propublica.org/graphics/workers-compensation-benefits-by-limb


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## SMP (Aug 29, 2018)

> Also wouldn't help the guy that got hit by the bus…
> 
> - SMP
> 
> ...


I used to work as a cable installer. During initial training they showed us the top 10 leading causes of death were in the US. I think it was car crashes were 2nd leading cause of death after heart disease. Falling from heights was like 3rd or 4th. And the trainer says, "guess what you guys are going to be doing all day, everyday? Driving around and climbing up telephone polls and 32 foot ladders". Lol.


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## Unknowncraftsman (Jun 23, 2013)

I stapled my finger down to the roof right before a impending storm and holiday weekend. After I finished and everything was water tight I went to the workman's comp doctor and he sowed up the flesh that I tore ripping my finger from the plywood.
I also go into trouble for going back to work before I was cleared by the doctor. I was not going to stay home and let everybody grab the gravy. Roofers don't eat if they don't get their squares down.
I use a push wood on the tablesaw with a stick. So don't cut my fingers off.


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## 1thumb (Jun 30, 2012)

> https://projects.propublica.org/graphics/workers-compensation-benefits-by-limb
> 
> - Notw


Don't cut your arm off on the job in Alabama. Do it in Vegas then play the slots.


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## Desert_Woodworker (Jan 28, 2015)

+1


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## SMP (Aug 29, 2018)

> https://projects.propublica.org/graphics/workers-compensation-benefits-by-limb
> 
> - Notw
> 
> ...


Hey, don't tell everyone about my retirement plan.


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## bigblockyeti (Sep 9, 2013)

> The figures shown in that pic are what your "compensation" for loss of said digit is worth, or was worth at the time of printing, they change all the time.
> 
> If you lost a thumb on a TS, the medical bill would by far dwarf those paltry figures, and that is for an uncomplicated case. Get an infection, or secondary problems and all bets would be off.
> 
> - therealSteveN


I was thinking the same, heck those can't be USD, more like US pesos. A pinky is only worth a little over 2000 gallons of regular unleaded.


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## 1thumb (Jun 30, 2012)

> The figures shown in that pic are what your "compensation" for loss of said digit is worth, or was worth at the time of printing, they change all the time.
> 
> If you lost a thumb on a TS, the medical bill would by far dwarf those paltry figures, and that is for an uncomplicated case. Get an infection, or secondary problems and all bets would be off.
> 
> ...


W/C would've already paid the med bills. Compensation listed is for:

'If you suffer a permanent injury on the job, you're typically entitled to compensation for the damage to your body and your future lost wages. But depending on the state, benefits for the same body part can differ dramatically.'


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