Showing off (somewhat graphic content)

Les Voorhies

Les Voorhies

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For some reason I like showing off fresh injuries, so every time I do something really stupid and it results in a nasty injury I take pictures (if I don't need to go to the ER :) )

So today I pulled out a little 2" slitting saw blade that I had some history with 7 or 8 years ago (stitches that time) and I made a new mandrel for it so I could slice some CF. The CF in question is like .300" thick and it seems such a waste to mill or sand it down to .125" so I tried it on my mill on the edge of the sheet, it seemed to work fine so I cut off the piece I needed and instead of gluing it down to the table I decided to free hand it. I knew I was making a big mistake but I couldn't stop, sure enough when I was almost done the blade caught the piece and threw it and my thumb followed right into the blade. I thought I was going to need stitches but it quit bleeding fairly quick so I washed it as best I could, doused it a few times with hydrogen peroxide and bandaged it up with triple antibiotic. I'll probably have to superglue it up after is not so tender.

Anyways, here is the graphic stuff, I'll attach the photos instead of direct linking them so nobody has to look at them too closely if the don't want to :)
 

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Now you'll know where the phrase "sticks out like a sore thumb" comes from! :D

Sorry you got hurt, just be glad it's only the meat, not the bone. Should heal up ok, always has for me. One bonus of spending years in the printing industry is that a lot of my little scars are also tattoos from getting ink in the cuts, lol.
 
Wow Les! That looks absolutely horrid! I know alot of people do not recommend it, but everytime I get bit in the machine shop, I grab some super glue. ( Now I know you knifemakers have it on hand :) ) That spot will always catch on something regardless of how hard you try to keep it protected.

regards

Bill
 
Nice pics, Les!
If there's even a remote possibility a setup is going to bite you, rest assured it will.
Glue time, indeed.
Get better and wiser.
 
It will need super glue but I was too wimpy to deal with the sting on raw flesh so it'll have to wait a day or two :)

Howie the problem is that I get away with stupid crap too often :)
 
My Thanks for posting the smaller images.
They were more than enough for me, I know, I didn't have to look but couldn't help myself. I don't handle pain well, especially my own. Take some extra fish oil capsules.
Dozier
 
Nice Les, You gota be more careful friend.. Great pics though! Thats gona sing when you glue it!

A few weeks back a friend asked if he could work in my shop, he wanted to cut a small cherry burl into a pipe of something. I Normally would of said Here, let me do that for ya. That day I was VERY busy and against my better judgment let him..

Long story short, As he was shaping this small round shaped burl with my band saw, It grabbed the material and threw his thumb right into the fresh blade! Almost looked exactly like your cut. I shoulda known better!
At first he was tough.. But after a hour or so when The throbbing stared we did go to the ER and ended up with 7 stiches!
Come to think of it, He never did come back to finish his pipe!

I hope you heal up fast! and for God sake, Be careful!
 
OUCH!!

Seriously though, as a medical professional and dealing with gluing wounds closed with the correct stuff all the time I can tell you that there are VERY big risks with just throwing some super glue on wounds. At the risk of sounding like a "told you so" and I'm sure there will be a few "I've been doing it for years and have never had a problem" people, it is something you could EASILY loose a finger over from infection.

There is a reason that ER's and surgeons don't use off the shelf super glue. And one of the reasons that they do use the proper glue (dermabond or indermil depending on the company) is because it does have a place. It is useful but it is used in a controlled environment in the er and a sterile environment in the OR. Looking at your fingers in those provided pics makes me think that your case would be a BIG no no for gluing that shut. There are more than likely lots of nasty bacteria in that cut. With the prevalence of MRSA being found in places outside the hospital these days I would worry. There is a saying in the ER that you don't mess around with fingers and eyes because once the damage is done your screwed.

Also, while we are on the subject of how to properly deal with wounds another no no is washing your cut out with H2O2 (hydrogen peroxide). It actually delays healing because it kills the good healthy tissue and important cells like keratinocytes and fibroblasts (yes even at the 3% strength it comes in). It will help to clean the wound but it is not the best option and it also hurts. Alcohol in a wound is even a bigger no no. Washing with a sterile saline (salt water) solution is the best choice although not many of us have that around. The next option is just plain tap water and LOTS of it. With neither previous option available H2O2 will help clean but like I said it will delay wound healing and kill your beneficial cells. On top of that if you are hurting your mechanism to kill bacteria and then you seal said bacteria in your wound with glue you are asking for trouble.

I know this might go in one ear and out the other with some of you but there are different and more beneficial ways of dealing with cuts and injuries that hydrogen peroxide and super glue. I would just hate for any of the awesome knife makers here to get seriously hurt or have problems from improper wound care. So sorry for the rant but it is a subject near and dear to me and could help others out. I really do care 2thumbs Remember even if you haven't had issue with it in the past, all it takes is one time that there are bad bugs in that super glued cut to cause all sorts of bad bad problems and loosing fingers or worse.

BTW, the triple antibiotic cream is a good start but it also should not be applied "inside" the wound which can cause a delay in healing also.

Any questions can be directed my way. I would be happy to try and answer them.
 
Wloch248, I'm glad you posted that, I won't glue it. One of the things I usually do with things like this is keep a band-aid on for a few days (changing it each night) and then let it go with out one until it heals, I've been told that that's not right but I like to let them dry out. But on this one I know the tip of it will start to peel back and catch on everything while it's trying to heal so that's why I intended to put the SG on later. I'll just stick with the triple antibiotic and a band-aid until its sealed up good.

Thanks for the advise.
 
Glad you didn't lose anything, Les. Be careful dude, it's hard to make knives without fingers.

Larry
 
Les,

I hope I didn't come off too hard with the suggestion but I really don't want anyone to get hurt. And it sucks to have a cut that just won't heal. And yes it is better for a cut to "dry out". If it is kept very moist it gives bacteria a place to grow (they really prefer warm moist areas). It is actually a good thing when it scabs over. If you have a really superficial cut with very little bleeding and it is fairly clean using the glue is safer but not 100% risk free.

Happy knife making!
 
I know Les. Anything that bites him dies an horrible death. :D

What I want to know is why you didn't close this up with your nail gun? :cool:
 
Les just tape it , I cut the end of my thumb nearly off from about where the cutucle is . They put 4 stitches in it and said it my die cuzz there isnt alot of blood flow there and yup 10 days later I cut the end piece off and a month later the nail grew back and you would never known Iwas gone. Ithink you got lucky. I also did the same thing with my router when i first started. kellyw
 
I would butterfly tape the cut and then wrap it up in a proper badage to keep it clean.
Dang, that hadda hurt! :eek: How's the cut doing?
 
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