Angle Grinder Safety

[AjohnwParticipant @ajohnw51620]

I find the comments about vibration odd. Neither of mine vibrate enough to cause hand problems especially as I don't use it daily. Orbital sanders and finish sanders neither.

John

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[Nicholas FarrParticipant @nicholasfarr14254]

Posted by John W1 on 16/08/2015 16:49:07:

I find the comments about vibration odd. Neither of mine vibrate enough to cause hand problems especially as I don't use it daily. Orbital sanders and finish sanders neither.

John

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Hi John, it's not the grinders themselves that cause the vibration problem, but more so what you are grinding and how long for. If you are grinding continuously for long periods, and in my job it can be for an hour or two and even all day, you will certainly know about it, regardless of what make of grinder you have.

Regards Nick.

[David CambridgeParticipant @davidcambridge45658]

Thanks everybody for all the helpful advice with regards to the question of wearing gloves when using an angle grinder – Neil’s advice about a couple of Valium is very good indeed!

David

[egaParticipant @ega]

John W1

I'm glad that you don't suffer from vibration; no doubt individual susceptibilities differ. Nicholas Farr has made an interesting point. As has already been said, these tools need firm handling but a "white knuckle" grip seems likely to make the problem worse. I don't think the modern soft start feature has been mentioned – definitely an advantage when turning on a 9" grinder!

FWIW, I see that Colin Furze wears gloves when angle grinding.

[David CambridgeParticipant @davidcambridge45658]

‘I see that Colin Furze wears gloves when angle grinding.’

I’m most definitely a Colin Furze fan – a talented chap indeed, but I’m not sure his no doubt brilliantly staged and acted videos are necessarily representative of good practice!

Interestingly, double boost was angle grinding on his video last night and also had gloves on.

 

Edited By David Cambridge on 17/08/2015 11:25:40

[Dave HalfordParticipant @davehalford22513]

Once you have used it a few times most things are just common sense.

Like not directing a stream of white hot sparks at your self cos it stings a bit. and not at glass or your car because it's still hot enough to melt it's way into the paint or glass from several Metres away.

You can use thick gloves as an additional spark shield when sparks bounce of other stuff and hit you

And it's best not to start up the grinder when touching the work as even the little ones can kick a bit

[nigel jones 5Participant @nigeljones5]

be especially careful if you use a wire brush -imo by far the most dangerous weapon other than an exploding disc, and ive had a few of those! I dont think gloves are of any benefit as its your torso and head that gets blasted with shrapnell when they let go – oh, and it realy hurts! Usually only happens when you missuse them have to say. Eyes eyes eyes.

[john swift 1Participant @johnswift1]

I don't know about you ,

but I don't have the nerve to use a blade like this :-

I don't want to be nominated for the Darwin awards

john

[V8EngParticipant @v8eng]

A tool for making chases in walls?

[mick70Participant @mick70]

Posted by john swift 1 on 17/08/2015 19:05:15:

I don't know about you ,

but I don't have the nerve to use a blade like this :-

I don't want to be nominated for the Darwin awards

john

very easy to use and very messy.

use one when making log hides for reptiles, def need full face mask though.

throws out nice bedding to go in with rabbits.

[Chris GunnParticipant @chrisgunn36534]

Maybe bit late to comment, but like some of the other posters I have 3 x 4.5" grinders, one with a sanding disc, one with a thin cutting disc/thick grinding disc and one with a wire brush, and a great asset they are too for larger work. I have used these at work since they were in common usage. I concur with most of what has been said, but I really prefer to have the grinder held firmly in my bare hands, I feel I get a better grip, and a good feel for the on/off switch unencumbered by gloves. The hand is generally close behind the guard so sparks to the hand are not an issue in my experience. My other tips would be to make sure the work is firmly held in a vice or clamped to the bench or a Workmate if working outside. Always unplug it when changing discs, and be careful with sanding discs as catching these on a sharp edge can shred them in a heartbeat. Use the correct backing disc for the sanding discs. Buy the best branded sanding and grinding/cutting discs as the cheap ones just do not stand up.

Chris Gunn

[Martin KyteParticipant @martinkyte99762]

Regarding the glove issue I do have one observation. If you are likely get you hands hit by hot or high velocity debris the issue may not be what damage you do to your hands but whether you involuntarily drop the grinder. As with all new processes first use tends to be with a degree of nervousness so I would suggest that over egging the protective gear until you get the feel of things is no bad thing as it removes many of the distractions and allows the user to concentrate. Once you feel happy using the tool then you can possibly discard what you think you don't require.

regards Martin

[egaParticipant @ega]

Chris Gunn:

Good point about unplugging but when working at the end of a long extension cord there is a temptation to ignore this. All my portable power tools have a short lead terminating in a push fit connector so disconnecting is no problem.

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