Razor Blades

[DJ]

I've got one, not while boating but while working on a boat.



I recently purchased a 60 HP Johnson from a prominent member of this board.

The engine needed new paint. So, I start the sanding process. In 1989, Johnson put a pin stripe on the lower unit. Most of it was gone so I thought I'd remove the rest of it.

Best tool: razor blade. I got a new blade, out of the pack and commenced-"peeling".

Well, guess what? The stripe came off quick and my hand slipped. Guess what the blade hit? My left wrist.

So, here I am, alone, in my garage, with two foot "squirters" coming out of my wrist. Dang it! I thought. This is not good.

Thank goodness, I'm a big guy so I have plenty of blood. I realized that if I closed my wrist, the "squirting" would stop. So I did that.

I walked into the house, got some paper towels and wrapped the wrist up in them, folded back. I then wrapped the whole mess with some painters masking tape.

Once I got the bleeding stopped, I had to hose out the garage. My wife would be home in a couple hours. I couldn't let her see that mess. It looked a homicide scene in there.

Since I was a stinking mess, I then put a trash bag over my hand and took a shower. Once dressed, I drove myself to the urgent care facility about 15 miles away.

Once there, the nurse took one look at the wound and turned white. I was with a Doc. within minutes. He (Doc) spent twenty minutes grilling me on "suicidal issues". He asked. "Do you need help"? I said, yes, sew me up.

He did, 14 stitches later and I'm back sanding within three hours. A little dizzy, from the loss of blood. but OK.

My wife "freaked" when she saw the wound. The best part is that I handled it myself. The stitches hurt a whole lot more than the wound itself. I declined the pain killer shot and pills.

Everything is fine now.

I am a born Klutz. If I don't bleed, I haven't done anything worthwhile.

 

[new_boater]

Re: Razor Blades

Glad everything is fine

 

[JB]

Re: Razor Blades

Hmmmmmm. I wonder if there was some premeditated negligence there?

Nah, just klutziness.

 

[Labman]

Re: Razor Blades

We all know, that our boats are labours of love, but you just gave new meaning to BLOOD,Sweat and Tears!

 

[mike64]

Re: Razor Blades

We all know, that our boats are labours of love, but you just gave new meaning to BLOOD,Sweat and Tears!

I've gotten my blood and sweat on my boat, but no tears (yet).

 

[jerryjerry05]

Re: Razor Blades

IF YOU DON'T LOOSE BLOOD THE JOB ISIN'T DONE RIGHT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Jerry

 

[Backyardhockey]

Re: Razor Blades

Reminds me of a good cut I put into myself a few years ago. Opening a can of beans no less. Lid was 95% up. I was prying the last part with a knife. Yep, it slipped and my hand gets sliced. It's halftime of NBA finals during MJ's time, so I'm not going anywhere. Had my steak, rare of course, with blood dripping down my hand onto the plate. Confirms to my wife that she has married a caveman. Two days later, still oozing slowly, I get my stitches.

I hope you took advantage of the situation and had a beer once you were done with your chores. More bang for the buck when your low on the red fluid.

 

[salty87]

Re: Razor Blades

why decline the pain killers?... ask for seconds

 

[Andy in NY]

Re: Razor Blades

a few years ago i almost lost a finger to a seemingly innocent cut. got the base of my index finger on the bottom of my hand. Turns out that tendons get infected REALLY easily. Finally went to the ER when I couldnt bend my finger because it was so swollen. they actually had to admit me overnight because I needed IV antiboitics. Doc said it needed stiches too, but it was too late at that point.

 

[Geo2008]

Re: Razor Blades

I kinda know what you were going through, I accidentally cut three fingers with a skill saw, not off, but over 50 stitches in three fingers. I was bleeding all over the place, you are right about it looking like a crime scene.

Exhilarating experience

glad you are OK

 

[AZMinyard]

Re: Razor Blades

"It's only a flesh wound . . . " - The Black Knight

I have somewhere over 30 scars on my hands and not one of them was intentional, but there is a story behind every one of 'em. I have eventually (by and large at the wife?s nagg . . . er, insistence) learned to wear gloves and eye protection. Even went as far as buying a high quality mask.

Glad to hear you are ok! Anyone want to take up a collection for a pair of gloves for him?

 

[wildmaninal]

Re: Razor Blades

Dude I would have freaked out probably even passed out. I'm not one to faint at the sight of my own blood but if I cut myself in the wrist like that I would have just because I know it is a vital area.

I have stabbed myself with (very sharp pointed) sissors in the past right in the thumb, that was ugly enough. That happened at a food processing plant, but I was in the office when I stabbed myself (by accident). I had to walk through the processing area to get to the company nurse though. She asked which I wanted butterfly bandaids or stitches? I would of had to go to the hospital to get the stitches so I took the bandaids. I had to fill out an accident report, the description of the accident looked great on that report . Somebody else cleaned up the blood. I still have the scar, will have it all my life, to bad it's not the only one.

 

[SooLineRob]

Re: Razor Blades

"It's only a flesh wound . . . " - The Black Knight

LMAO! Didn't the British bicyclist in "European Vacation" also use that line?

Seriously DJ, glad you're alright.

Due to similar past experiences with razor blades, I now use plastic razor blades for removing decals/stickers from smooth surfaces. They look like regular blades, except they're made out of plastic and a little thicker. They won't scratch the surface you're working on, and won't cut into your flesh if there's an "oops" ... they're available from auto supply/tool vendors.

 

[stevenj]

Re: Razor Blades

Might of helped lower your cholesteral (sp?), glad you are ok

 

[winenut]

Re: Razor Blades

My weapon of "choice" was a wine glass...I just picked it up and the stem snapped, slicing open my middle finger to the bone. Had to go get stitches, still have no feeling where the scar is. Dangerous as it is, I still drink wine from a glass, lol.

 

[DJ]

Re: Razor Blades

LMAO! Didn't the British bicyclist in "European Vacation" also use that line?

Seriously DJ, glad you're alright.

Due to similar past experiences with razor blades, I now use plastic razor blades for removing decals/stickers from smooth surfaces. They look like regular blades, except they're made out of plastic and a little thicker. They won't scratch the surface you're working on, and won't cut into your flesh if there's an "oops" ... they're available from auto supply/tool vendors.

Thanks for the tip! I didn't know there was such a thing.

 

[bootle]

Re: Razor Blades

Like JB said, "Premeditated negligence".

You are now within your rights to file suite against one noisy feline or perhaps a butterfly larvae.

 

[ezmobee]

Re: Razor Blades

I was doing something really dumb with a table saw once. Something like trying to knock a little hunk off a small board or something. I wasn't even sliding it through, more like jabbing it at the blade. Well it caught and whipped my thumb into the blade. I immediately grabbed and held my thumb with my other hand. I was afraid to even look at it for a a few seconds. I was sure half my thumb was gone. Fortunately when I finally looked it wasn't as bad as I had thought but I'd still cut through 60% of my thumbnail and kinda "leveled out" the underlying flesh. I'm way more careful around saws since that one.

 

[ThePerchik]

Re: Razor Blades

5 points for you for staying calm. Good to hear you are OK.

I got a story in the stab yourself category as well...I was taking the glass sliding doors out of my bathroom and that was done. So now i was using a really expensive cooking knife (dont ask my why i chose that over the scrapers and knives in my tool box, I am still unsure). So i am sitting with my back towards the tub. And as your would expect a stubborn piece of calk came loose and hnife went about 2 inches into my thigh. Suprisingly almost no blood. I closed it all up with tape right over the wound.

Nowhere near as dramatic as yours.

 

[fire831]

Re: Razor Blades

I learned the hard way not to put both hands close together while holding a fillet knife. How I did it I still have not figured out but I ran a Rapala fillet knife through my left wrist. Talk about blood. Probably Like JB said, "Nah, just klutziness. "