Do you have a failed tool/wrench/socket story I can learn from?

[Theowegian]

I thought that maybe some of us could learn from others here on the forum from tool failures or at least an unexpected tool event.

For example, recently, I had removed the mower blades on my rear finish mower for sharpening. During the reinstall, I was torquing the flange bolt to the bearing spindle when the socket I was using failed. The result was an extremely bad cut on my left hand from the sharp edges on the broken socket. I should have gotten stitches, but just cleaned it up and put butterfly bandages on it.

What did I learn? I learned that I should have been wearing gloves, not using my bare hands while working under the mower deck.

Does anyone have a story of a unexpected tool failure? What was the lesson learned?

 

[Destructo_D]

It's not exactly a failed tool accident, however.... I was probably about 17 or 18 at the time and I used to spend a couple hours on the weekend at the dump scrounging for scrap metal and copper wire to take to the scrap yard... I was stripping some wire with a carpet knife. I had one end tied to a pole and the other end in my hand... I was pulling the knife towards me and the knife slipped and I cut my left thumb near the base on my palm side... shoulda had a couple of stitchs, but I didn't... still have a scar about 3/4 inch long... now I know to 'push' the knife away from me anytime i am doing something similar.

 

[markct]

well i can say that the only sockets i have had fail when not being abused were some small craftsman sockets, usualy the 9/16 deep ones. the majority of big socket failures have been abuse, like a 2 1/2 inch socket with a chain hoist on the breaker bar, socket let off like a shotgun! and that was a brand name impact socket, luckly no one got hurt. but the thing i always try to remember when using anything with force involved is where will you, or flying parts or tools go if something breaks of slips, like never stand inline with a chain when pulling something, never pull a prybar towards your body, whenever using a prybar or wrench and realy putting some grunt into it think where will you end up if it breaks or slips of the fastener breaks, i see guys hanging on wrenches with all there weight with no thought to where they will fall if it lets go. kinda like the guys who say cheap tools will get you hurt, while i do agree with this to a point, i try to never let myself get in a position that will get me hurt if a tool fails, weather its a name brand tool or not, anything can fail, including what the tool is turning. a few weeks ago i was using my chinese 3/4 drive socket set to tighten the turntable bolts on a barco crane used to pack garbage at the transfer station, its mounted on a pedastal right next to the pit where the trailers back into to get filled with trash. well on one of the bolts, luckly on the backside away from the pit i gave it a firm pull and pop the head broke off, i jumped back a bit but didnt fall or anything cause i had been standing in a way to try and anticipate such a thing. had it happened on the other side, where the pit is, and had i not been braced right, i easily coulda fallen the 20 ft to the concrete floor below.

 

[Egon]

For starters get quality tools and use the right ones.

Always have a firm stance when using snipes. Never use snipes on aluminum or inexpensive tools. Never postion youreself so that the wrench handle can give you a good crack in the face when the bolt or nut let loose. Wearing of hard hats or bump helmets keeps bandages off the head. I use a Petzl ckimbing helment. If you are having trouble stop and think about it for a few minutes.

And the list coulds go on. I seem to able to mention all of the above from experience.

 

[knute_m]

Some warrantees are better than others!

About 15 years ago I was out in the field and didn't have the tools I needed. I didn't have a 1/2-inch socket breaker bar with me -- but I had a 24-inch pipe wrench and a 3/8-inch Thorsen ratchet. I was trying to loosen the lug bolts on a Ford 8N that probably had not been off for 30 years or more. I was using the pipe wrench on the ratchet handle to gain leverage.

Of course I snapped the ratchet. So, the next time I was in the hardware store where I bought the rarchet at least 25 years earlier, I took it with me. I was razzing the hardware store owner about the "cheap" ratchet he sold me a quarter century earlier.

He still sold Thorsen products, and he said they had lifetime unconditional warrantees. He replaced it FREE -- but he did ask how I did it.

Now that's a warrantee!

Knute

 

[markct]

egon, what on earth is a snipe? never heard of one, maybe its a tool i need but dont know it yet! my curiosity has me wondering!

 

[Egon]

A snipe is usually a piece of pipe that will fit over the handle of a wrench to give extra leverage.

Many other items may be used to increase leverage.

With combination wrenches one uses the open end on the bolt or nut and then takes another combination wrench and use's the open end in the closed end of the first wrench for that little extral pull. This method can be tricky and make for a sore jaw if you are using wrenches that are over 1 inch size. From experience.

 

[shvl73]

I've (stupidly) used one of those cheap terminal crimpers with the small threaded bolt cutter to cut a bolt and should have stopped when it required more force. I used both hands and squeezed real hard. The bolt cut, the cutter jambed on the cut piece, and a part of my hand was caught in the wire cutter that is behind the joint in the tool. I had a heck of a time removing the tool from my hand and yelled loud enough, that I'm suprised all of you didn't hear me.

 

[bloody_peasant]

I've got a small one. I was maybe 16 or 17 and was taking off the brush blade on our weedeater (the kind that looks like a circular saw blade) to service it. I was using the little rinky dink socket wrench and the little one for holding the main shaft still that it came with. The wrenches slipped and my middle finger sliced along the blade right at the middle knuckle. Not a huge cut, but big enough to see the bone and leave a deep scar that I still got today.

Definitely a pair of leather gloves would have prevented the cut.

Another couple of things I do routinely now adays that I don't like, but still don't wear gloves for is removing the blade on a table saw and changing bits in a router. I've had a couple close calls but no cuts yet. I need to invest in one of those fancy blade locks for the table saw as pieces of wood sometimes slip. And wrenching a router with 2 wrenches while it sits on the workbench always seems risky to both me and my router. I've found my biggest help for it is not to over tighten. I only tighten it with the wrenches one half turn past finger tight and that makes getting it off less challenging.

 

[Marine1]

I was cutting some v-groove lumber to line a closet wall with. I was using my circular saw that has a thumb safety switch. Just in case you don't know what that is, it is a switch that is on top of the handle that you must depress to pull the trigger to start the saw.
It was working fine for about an hour. Apparently the switch just broke because when I picked up my saw for a new cut the saw just started. Before I could stop it I cut the power cord. You can't pick up the saw without hitting the trigger. I have tried it and it can't be done safely.
I have learned that my saw is toast and that I need a new saw.