Echo Gloves: not that Safe?

[Paul Bunions]

I just modified my Echos, so I'm in the recliner, self-medicating with a magnificent glass of homebrew. Nightmares can't touch me.

 

[dankas]

There are more ways to injure your left hand then you might think @Paul Bunions . One wrong way is 'slapping' the chainbrake. If the left hand is not thumb- locked and to roll your arm to make the brake you could...and many it seems have...let the left hand toward the chain...perhaps the right hand - on the throttle - gooses the machine... If the left hand gets loose as the machine accelerates, it goes to the chain... then to the ER.

Gloves, are NOT required in FSA except in high level threat situation- judged by the personel- you... any sort of gloves are not specified in OSHA... hold your left hand in front of your face...right now...do you like it?

Personally, I never go without gloves in the forest. Leather, vinyl coated (I like the Atlas...) and cut safe chainsaw gloves are always in my reach , most often on my hands.

Do you 'like' your left hand , do what you should.

Protect it.

( I do mostly forest restoration- as a 75 y/o volunteer, so I need to haul a lot of rough wood-gloves for that seem reasonable...all PPE for chainsaw is mandatory in my mind, you may disagree - that's OK ... but I cannot do this work with only one hand. Nor could i hug my wife in the same way I like too. You may have other priorities. So be it.)

 

[Paul Bunions]

I cannot do this work with only one hand. Nor could i hug my wife in the same way I like too. You may have other priorities. So be it.)

Do not be alarmed. Hugging your wife is not among my priorities. My own wife keeps a close eye on me.

 

[sean donato]

The pants are also rather hot. OK in colder weather. I use Labonville chaps. They have (4) buckles per leg, so they wrap around almost as much as pants, but have some breathing room at the rear. But I don't climb trees.

I wouldn't trade my cloggers for any pair of chaps during summer. Had several different pairs of chaps over the years, and they all suck vs clogger pants. Only where chaps over winter or for really short time periods during summer.

 

[Hermio]

We refer to this as ‘survivor’s bias’. An example:

A guy gets up in a bar and loudly states: ‘I NEVER WEAR SEATBELTS, AND I’M STILL ALIVE!’. A bunch of guys nod in agreement.

The problem is that the people who died, not wearing seatbelts, are not there to object, or offer a different perspective.

Accident, incident, and injury statistics are developed from large numbers of people, not just from ‘everybody’ that some guy knows.

I have seen videos, and read reports, of things with saw use, tree cutting, etc., that I would never have believed.

Philbert

I will add an unbelievable, but true, story to the mix. My brother-in-law was once an EMT, and he always had tales to tell. In one case, a guy asked his wife to hold up a small log while he cut it in half with a chainsaw. Well, the guy managed to cut the log and leave a nice, raggedy kerf in his wife's breast. It could have been worse. I am not sure who was more stupid: the guy or his wife.

 

[Breckinridge Elkins]

My local timber buyer/sawmill operator does not use any PPE except for eye protection. He cuts thousands of trees per year and is in his 70s. I would say since he has done it for a living for so long he qualifies as a professional. I am sure he is quite skilled. But it only takes one screwup to prove the need for PPE. He is nearly deaf, by the way.

What a terrible example. Lucky is not the same as smart.

 

[Hermio]

What a terrible example. Lucky is not the same as smart.

True. I do not advocate doing what he does. But I think many pros think they are good enough to not need PPE. But it only takes once...

 

[HumBurner]

What a terrible example. Lucky is not the same as smart.

Accepting luck for what it is, luck, as opposed to thinking that one is so great that they never got hurt are also two very different things. We've all had close calls, even if our brains and egos might sway us to think otherwise.