Jason wrote in with a question I’m sure a lot of us can relate to. It seems that he’s been pinching his fingers and hands with some (many?) of the tools he’s been using.
The best solution, and I mean this in the best way possible, is to slow down and focus more on what you’re doing. True, there are some tools that are more prone to pinch your skin, but most pinches are preventable.
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The photo above is of a blood blister I suffered a few years ago, probably with a hand tool of some kind. I don’t remember the exact cause, but I’m fairly certain I was rushing through a task.
Jason wrote:
I have a bit of an embarrassing question.
Are there any tools out there made for the three stooges of the world? I am a network engineer by trade and by necessity I have to work with everything from ladders and SDS drills to Philips #000 screwdrivers and tweezers.
My problem is, my fingers manage to get pinched on every surface they can come in contact with. Everything from the spreader lock on a ladder and the back hinge on my impact driver case, to the lock/hinge on wirestrippers.
Are there any tips and tricks to help out? Tools that have these problems in mind?
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As mentioned, the best solution, in my opinion, is to slow down. Every move of your hands should be deliberate and coordinated. Yes, this means it’ll take you longer to do everything, but maybe it’ll become habit after a couple of days. And if means less of a chance that you’ll pinch your fingers or palms, then there will be time saved there.
A “Band Aid” solution, no pun intended, would be to wear gloves where it’s safe and unhindering to do so. Gloves might not be safe to wear, depending on the tools you use, or practical depending on the tasks you are expected to accomplish.
You are master of your hands, nobody else. Learning how to train yourself to be more coordinated and cautious will help in other aspects of your work, play, and life.
5 Hand Tools that Draw the Most Blood and Curses
Do You Work Deliberately?
Ouch, Darn, I cut my Thumb, and it was Completely Avoidable
Some injuries are avoidable, some are preventable, and some are accidental.
Discussed further in my Do You Work Deliberately post, linked just above, a reader commented about how working deliberately can be a good way to avoid preventable injuries.
When using a knife, you should cut away from yourself. When using a hammer, you should take care in how and where you hold a nail. When changing the blade on a powered saw, you should remove the battery, unplug the tool, or otherwise ensure that a tool is unpowered.
It can be less obvious about how to protect oneself from things like pinched fingers, but that comes with caution.
If I kept pinching my fingers, I would take a moment to apply first aid if necessary, another moment to let out some curses, and then another to analyze the situation. I’d ask myself what I could or should have done differently to prevent the injury from occurring.
As for the tools where pinching is a concern, I think pliers are the most obvious culprit, but Jason’s mention of the spreader lock on his ladder made me think of other collapsible products, such as folding tables.
I didn’t really answer the question that well, and am hoping for a great discussion in the comments section.
Are there any tips and tricks to help out [with preventing pinched skin]? Tools that have these problems in mind?
Dave L.
I gave away an early Gerber multitool because the design made it nearly inevitable you’d get a palm pinched if the tool slipped while you were gripping something. I think the handles on the later ones don’t come completely together for that reason.
Mike
I have the same tool it’s not a needle nose more of a regular pliers, that would pinch all the time you had to wear gloves the tool was cool you just flicked it and the pliers came out but you would pinched 75% of the time
Dave K
I find I am less likely to get pinched by pliers that have a return spring of some kind, as the closing motion is slower and much more controlled. Beyond that, I agree with the advice about slowing down and cultivating a more mindful approach to the work.
fred
My Wilton woodworking vises use pipe handles with a pipe cap at either end. When gravity slides the handle down – your palm would get pinched. An O-Ring placed under the pipe cap at each end solved this issue.
BTW – a bit off-topic – but plumbing O-Rings work well on Router bit shanks to keep them from sliding into the collet too far (many have a radiused fillet where the shank meets the cutter head). Danco part #96727 fit 1/2 inch shanks and Danco part #96722 fit 1/4 inch shanks
John Blair
Some tools are more prone to pinching than others. I had a pair of pliers which had matching square areas that continually pinched me.
I improved the situation by holding them differently.
I eliminated the problem by buying a better set of plier.
But I agree with Stuart: Slow down. As the Army Rangers say, “Slow is Smooth, Smooth is Fast.”
pete
The worst blood blister thing I ever got is when I slamed my thumb in the rear hatch of my wifes 4runner. It has an electric closer that closes it the last 2″ and OUCH! Good heck that hurt A LOT.
I had to go to the emergency room and they took a pencil needle that the dr pushed a button on and the needle instantly turned red hot then he jabbed it in my thumb to relieve the pressure from the blood in my thumb.
And you know the reason why I did that? I was in a hurry! Slow down, buy better pliars and maybe eliminate your drill case, use a bag, wear gloves.
A good post idea- worst jobsite accident, the cause, what you learned and how you do things differently.
Jerry
Used to have a cheap pair of groove joint pliers that would pinch flesh between the handles almost every time they would slip, and they slipped often. Didn’t matter if I was hurrying or being deliberate, the shape of the handles just always seemed to pinch the hands of whoever used them. Got frustrated, and got a pair of ChannelLock pliers, with a somewhat different handle design, and the blood blisters went away, never to return. I also have a pair of Knipex Cobra pliers, and they also have a no-pinch design. If you find the same tool seems to be inflicting most of your blisters, it may just be a poorly designed tool.
Mahalo
The one time this happened to me was with a pair of wire strippers that had crimping slots behind the pivot. Two of the prongs were really close to the red grips, and I ended up pinching the “webbing” between thumb and index finger. Painful.
Slowing down certainly will help 99% of situations like this. I.e., slow down enough to identify potential problems with handling and using a tool. However, I do find that the design of certain tools (like my wire stripper pliers) increase the chance of injury. In retrospect, I would not have purchased these and would have looked for something that didn’t have prongs located so close to the handles.
Mahalo
These are the strippers. Stanley Proto J298. Those little prongs toward the handle are great at pulling your skin in and giving you a nasty blister.
http://www.amazon.com/Stanley-J298-4-Inch-Stripper-Pliers/dp/B001HWC0TO
Stuart
Ouch, those Proto strippers do look downright painful, almost like they were designed to pinch skin!
Jason Abettan
Oh yes! those were the fun style of wire strippers that think my palm is a chew toy!
Thank you again Stewart for the post. I will try and keep the advice of deliberate speed in mind. Its just when you have 50+ users hollering for why is the phone and internet still down . . . a calm and collected work environment is a challenge all unto its own.
For now though, it looks like the advice is:
1. Some tools just hate you. Buy something better designed. Multi-tools seem to be the worst offenders. Knipex was mentioned as a nice brand with an anti-pinch design.
2. Gloves are your friend. For me, I am looking now into a 2 finger style that leaves the tips of the thumb, index and middle finger exposed.
3. Try to slow down a bit and build it up as a good habit.
glenn
It is one of those things that happens from time to time, usually when rushing.
But there are some tools that are prone to pinching through their very design. Best answer is to bin them and buy a better designed version. There is no excuse for poorly designed tools.
The-Dung
Exactly, rushing or fatigue are my main cause of hand scars. My old dad always had a good laugh when I reach for Mechanix gloves at every task but they saved my hands many times.
SteveR
Stuart–I read the post, “Five hand Tools That Draw the Most Blood and Curses”. and thought I saw a theme develop: You, me, and everyone who has picked up a tool or tried to fix something seems NOT to put on their PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) to select, pick up or handle raw product in advance of actually starting a project. In other words, we go in to HD, Lowes, wherever, not wearing gloves, eye protection, etc., when we’re selecting lumber, sheet glass, wire, metal conduit and other materials that can cut bare skin, drawing blood.
I suspect most contractors carry gloves with them as the enter the store, so they at least have them to use if needed. The employees are outfitted with hand and eye protection while stocking the shelves; what makes us think we can’t be injured picking up those same materials? Most of us go in, though, with our bare hands and unprotected eyes, so we run the risk of being injured just by our presence in the store. And who hasn’t dislodged doweling, plastic pipe or sheet plywood trying to pull out that one piece at the back causing it and other nearby material to come crashing down?
The next time you go there or to a lumber yard, be sure to at least bring a pair of gloves with you. There’s no point becoming injured before you even start a project owing to carelessness while shopping for the necessary materials. Prior to beginning work, determine what other PPE are needed (hard hat, respirator, ear plugs, steel-toed boots) and have them with you during the life of the project.
You should also: (1) Make sure someone knows what you’re going to be doing and where you’ll be working. (2) Stay hydrated, taking breaks as necessary. (3) Don’t rush through a job; it isn’t worth getting injured trying to meet an artificial deadline. It takes however long it takes.
Stuart
I can’t say I ever felt unsafe at the local home improvement or supply store. I might have suffered a splinter or scratch or two.
I did get a nasty scratch once from very well-milled maple that I ordered from Rockler or Woodcraft. I hadn’t broken down the right angle edge between faces, and it was sharp enough to break skin.
What disappointed me during a recent visit, aside from it taking 30 minutes to get someone to cut some lumber for me, is that they didn’t don safety gear when using the radial arm saw.
Steven Syzdek
Watch for errors at Home Depot when they cut plywood for you. I was at a Home Depot here in Las Vegas and they did a cut on a 4X8 piece of plywood. The panel cutter (not sure what it is called) was misaligned. On the 8′ cut it was one inch narrower at the end of the cut from the start. I didn’t catch it until after the second cut. He gave me another piece of plywood that I cut at home. At least I caught it there instead of at home.
Pablo
Knipex builds most of their pliers with an anti pinch stop. NWS as well, I believe. Spend once and get the right tool the first time.
firefly
It’s funny I pinched my hand twice recently. The first time turning a knob that was slightly stuck. The second while playing around with a clamp at the HomeDepot!
http://www.homedepot.com/p/HART-4-in-C-Clamp-with-Quicktight-Technology-HCC0401/205035947
The handle bar have a spring loaded mechanism that allow the handle to be oriented in a straight or 90 degree angle. I was just playing around with adjusting the clamp not realizing that the spring loaded mechanism doesn’t have a positive locking mechanism so it can be compressed unintentionally and snap back quickly pinching whatever it its path. Which was my finger 🙁 . Needless to say I didn’t purchase that clamp… Seem like a neat idea because I ran into the problem with the handle bar on one of my clamp was getting in the way of turning earlier in the day.
Stuart and all the comments about slowing down is right. Slow down enough to become more aware of what we are doing. If a particular tool pinch you more than one it’s probably because of a tool design problem or how we operate it. So either modify it slightly, change the way we operate it or retire the tool all together…
Grady
I believe the theme here is “Slow Down and Pay Attention To Where You Put Your Fingers.”
Good advice, no matter what your doing!
Nathan York
Put the Leatherman pliers down! It seems everytime I use them for more than a single squeeze, my hand suffers lol.
Ken S.
I haven’t seen that since I was a teenager. Quality tools, patience, and proper technique cans overcome a great deal of injuries.
The last time I had a blood blister pinch, was using the wrong tool for the job as a young mechanic – using pliers to remove a nut.
RKA
eventially you learn to be careful and identify the things that are going to make life miserable for you…but if you don’t, gloves. That will stop the blisters. And maybe it’s best to stay away from anything with a blade.
Nathan
Coincidentally i’ve right now got a matching pair of the biggest blood blisters i’ve ever had on the outside web of my thumb. Conduit bending can be a harsh mistress.
Chris Rafter
It’s easy: Invest in a pair of mechanics gloves. The gloves today are much thinner and dextrous than traditional “work gloves”. I now reach for them when I use just about any tools that are larger than my hand. They have saved my skin numerous times, they protect against pinches, burns, cuts, punctures, and tool slops and have tremendously cut down on blisters, & calluses. Not to mention they offer much better grip. Even latex surgeons gloves offer protection, and they’re cheap and disposable.
When working in dirt or soil, know that there are a ton of harmful microbes that just love to enter under your fingernails and will give you a painful, swollen infection at your cuticle. I now wear moisture proof work gloves whenever I’m working with soil or wood outside. There’s the traditional MechanixWear, but Harbor Freight and Home Depot carry some very economical brands in this category as well.
David
I just found this post after pinching my hand in the same spot with Husky needle nosed pliers. This is the result of a badly designed tool, plain and simple.
John Dozier
OPEN IT tool. This will give instant very painful blood blisters. Should never have been sold. Horrible design almost looks intentionally made to pinch