accidents whilst welding

[Disco_owner]

Last week the top pocket of My King-G shirt cought fire whilst trying
to WELD overhead with MIG , and then again this week the bottom of
my jeans cought fire whilst stick welding overhead.:D:D

I have a leather / sway protective jacket i have with me all the time that
I forgot to wear and look what happens when i don't wear it..:o

Also ...think I've gotta start wearing chaps...:p

[d@rk51d3]

As long as you keep your pants on. :D

[p38arover]

Weld naked and your clothes won't catch fire.

Or, as you suggest, wear chaps:

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/

[Disco_owner]

:eek: Not quite Ron

this is more like what I have in mind , but the pants stays on :p

http://www.tptools.com/eccStoreImages/product_images/Images/8061-75_R.jpg

[andrew e]

At my last work a fellows crotch caught on fire, burning all the hair off his dangleberrys. :eek:

Another fellow at my current work caught his shirt on fire, and a quick thinking apprentice threw 1/3 bucket of water on him..... not only that, there were a few bits of cut off steel in the bottom of the bucket. The welder was not happy.

my worst one was with the stick when i was an early teen. As i flipped up the helmet, i picked up the electrode holder at the same time. I didnt realise the almost full welding rod was facing me. The next thing i felt was like my head exploding as it formed a circuit between my front upper tooth, and the piece of steel i was sitting on, connected to the earth clamp.


Andy

[Slunnie]

Holy crap Andy!

Tried that, been burnt there. I wear the full kit in the middle of summer while welding in the sun. I'm over weld burns.

The associated body fires that I see a bit of is from the angle grinder. If the sparks direct onto your clothes or workwear it will also ignite.

[CapeLandy]

I reakon arc eyes is the worst thing related to welding.
I was not careful while another guy was tig welding nearby.
I spent an agonising night not knowing whether to keep them open or shut.
Then tried an old wives tail with a wet teabag on each eye. Took 20minutes and good as new - I swear it works a treat.

[discowhite]

Holy crap Andy!

Tried that, been burnt there. I wear the full kit in the middle of summer while welding in the sun. I'm over weld burns.

The associated body fires that I see a bit of is from the angle grinder. If the sparks direct onto your clothes or workwear it will also ignite.


take some concrete slunnie:p the burns and spraks will make a man out of you yet!

oh, and has anybody else that wears cotton drill work clothes noticed at how easy it is for sparks to get through the fabric?? i dont remember getting burnt like that 6 years ago??

cheers phil

[Rangier Rover]

Weld naked and your clothes won't catch fire.

Or, as you suggest, wear chaps:

http://www.selfabsorbed.me/wp-content/uploads/2008/12/chaps.jpg

Ron, no wonder you need a good heater in the shed as your bum will get a little cold with that gear on!:p

[mudmouse]

Years ago I was welding a cat (no not feline) with the car on a hoist. A blob fell off, straight through the overalls and lodged itself in between my boot and sock/foot as it changed from liquid to solid. There was no time to get the boot off or even swear. Despite the hole in my foot, it was so badly burned it didn't hurt that much and left a scar about the size of a five cent piece.

The bloke i was working for just said, 'Well get on with it boy. It'll heal up quicker than your arsehole'. Great bloke and I learnt a lot from him...but no hug???

Nowadays I usually set my overalls on fire via the grinder :p


Matt.

[Rangier Rover]

Setting our selves on fire is a popular one. The old hot metal down the shirt or boot trick can be a bit ordinary as well:eek:

[MacMan]

My Dad has scars on his chest from arc welding in bib & brace overalls ONLY. The UV gave him sunburn that blistered within the day.

I have ended up with sunburn on my right hand welding without a glove on a fiddly job before.

It's easy to forget the UV factor until it's already cooked you.

[Bigbjorn]

I often shake my head and wince when I see guys welding in singlet and shorts, and often thongs. Usually on construction sites, although builders have at long last learned to wear proper boots. Sometimes one still sees someone welding without a helmet. Just turn the head sideways and squint and all will be well, seems to be the thinking.

[JDNSW]

First fiel crew I worked on, I saw a few of good ones.

The first one was my boss - welded up a job (actually a ring coupling on a trailer), stood up straight, pulled off the helmet and gloves - and picked up the job! And put it down, very quickly.

The second one was the crew mechanic. He was oxy cutting in very hot weather wearing leather sandals. A triangular offcut about a centimetre to a side and the same thickness landed between his toes. He got quite excited. He was also accident prone - some months later he had bought a second hand cartridge reloading outfit, and, having forgotten its contents, was using the top of a rusty treacle tin as an ashtray. It contained about a pound of smokeless powder, and events showed it also must have had a pinhole rusted in the lid. Lost his beard and half his hair, and suffered first degree burns all over his face, which was blackened as you see in cartoons in similar circumstances.

Years later a bloke working for us did a small welding job (not work though) - couldn't see what he was doing through the helmet, so did it without. Did not do his eyes any good at all.

John

[austastar]

Had an acquaintance arc welding while wearing baggy shorts, squatting down to the job.
Hi walked bowlegged for a few days after that.
cheers

[Hoges]

"Or, as you suggest, wear chaps:

bare faced cheek :eek:

[Bigbjorn]

Pull on your chaps, Ron.

[Rangier Rover]

He may have sent them away for a repair as they appeared to have a nasty crack that may lead to failure of the originally intended purpose:p

[Chops]

At my last work a fellows crouch cought on fire, burning all the hair off his dangleberrys. :eek:

Another fellow at my current work caught his shirt on fire, and a quick thinking apprentice threw 1/3 bucket of water on him..... not only that, there were a few bits of cut off steel in the bottom of the bucket. The welder was not happy.

my worst one was with the stick when i was an early teen. As i flipped up the helmet, i picked up the electrode holder at the same time. I didnt realise the almost full welding rod was facing me. The next thing i felt was like my head exploding as it formed a circuit between my front upper tooth, and the piece of steel i was sitting on, connected to the earth clamp.


Andy

:Rolling::Rolling::Rolling:

One of my best memories of my dad,, (thanks dude [im all emotional now] I think)

I know this is serious stuff though,,, but I haven't heard them called that for so long,, :D

I've done lots of overhead welding too (silo's),, we used to wear heavy shirts and pants, then overalls, "sock savers", (to stop bits going in your boots) leather arms, then with an old leather apron, cut to size, and with a hole cut out in the middle of it to put your head through, and a skull cap to finish it off,,, we looked like "old knights of the round table",,;)
Summer in Albury can be very hot,,, so we were also wet :eek:, but "rarely" got burnt,, :D

And dont ya just love making like a circut,,,:( a short one at that,,

[loanrangie]

Setting our selves on fire is a popular one. The old hot metal down the shirt or boot trick can be a bit ordinary as well:eek:

Yep, had a mate have a huge lump of slag drop into his blundstone, should have seen him dancing like Jacko trying to get it off.

[steveG]

Had an acquaintance arc welding while wearing baggy shorts, squatting down to the job.
Hi walked bowlegged for a few days after that.
cheers

Unfortunately I've also done that. Spent the afternoon welding up a beach buggy frame for a mate and suffered for a few days afterwards.

SteveG

[bblaze]

worse I have had is hot slag in the eye. welding with uetectic 680 electrodes and a piece of red hot flux went in behind the helmet, bounce around a bit and entered the eye. Also had a piece of molten aliminum go down the boot, worse that steel. One of my bosses run a great heating barrel up my forearm. Lots of other minors like flashes, minor burns etc
cheers
blaze

[johnclv]

I used to be an Aluminium fabricator building ships. I still have a permanent chequred plate imprint on the nice flesh bit of the inside of my arm when I went to take a closer look at something and put my arm down on some recently welded plate, but the best I saw was a school class mate who made a sulphur bomb in a test tube, put it into the front pocket of his pants and made his way to school.

well the friction of riding his bike set the bomb of (partially) and he burnt his tackle and require skin grafts

You can imagine that he had to swap schools after that. He got stirred like there was no tomorrow

[nealo]

Worst one was whilst building a dragline in North QLD. Sitting down reaosnably comfy, welding from near one foot to the next. First foot would get hot where i started, then begin to cool off once I approached the other foot which would become hotter as i got closer.
Worst thing was as I got to the end...both feet/legs were hot!!!!

Lifted up my airfed helmet and discovered 6" of my pants had been burnt off!(oops sorry..."smouldered off"...no such thing as a fire on a mine site lol)

Im over getting burnt...leather jacket, welding hood, gloves(not bloody riggers gloves either:mad:) double front pants and spats on my boots. I may feel like I am going to melt sometimes, but beats getting burnt!!!!...sometimes I wish I could get out of this office, put a bucket on my head, pick up a wirefeeder or gouger and just switch off!

[V8Ian]

Why is it that in the midst of the best run of the day, a hot bit has to drop down your neck ir boot?:(

[LandyAndy]

A workmate learnt a lesson a few weeks ago.He was welding the chassis on his 1 season old supermod(speedway buggy).Luckily it had no engine fitted so it was quite lite.The welding cable managed to switch the fuel tap on feeding petrol to the weld in process.It went up in flames,as it had no engine fitted it was easy to push out on the shed.
He put it out but a new paintjob and seat and re-wire were required.
He also had his HG Kingswood Premier in the shed that his dad owned from new.He would have been devastated if that burned.
Andrew

[Slunnie]

take some concrete slunnie:p the burns and spraks will make a man out of you yet!

oh, and has anybody else that wears cotton drill work clothes noticed at how easy it is for sparks to get through the fabric?? i dont remember getting burnt like that 6 years ago??

cheers phil
:lol2: probably, but I'm on them day in day out and would be a walking scar by now.

[Vern]

I often shake my head and wince when I see guys welding in singlet and shorts, and often thongs.
thats me, but now i put a towel over my legs and feet to stop the burning:angel:

[nealo]

Why is it that in the midst of the best run of the day, a hot bit has to drop down your neck ir boot?:(

Because it just does....grit your teeth, keep going and HTFU!:twisted:

It apparently also looks cool to have lace up boots only half done up or shirts untucked....looks bloody painfull when something hot goes down there!!!!!

[Disco_owner]

Worst one was whilst building a dragline in North QLD. Sitting down reaosnably comfy, welding from near one foot to the next. First foot would get hot where i started, then begin to cool off once I approached the other foot which would become hotter as i got closer.
Worst thing was as I got to the end...both feet/legs were hot!!!!

Lifted up my airfed helmet and discovered 6" of my pants had been burnt off!(oops sorry..."smouldered off"...no such thing as a fire on a mine site lol)

Im over getting burnt...leather jacket, welding hood, gloves(not bloody riggers gloves either:mad:) double front pants and spats on my boots. I may feel like I am going to melt sometimes, but beats getting burnt!!!!...sometimes I wish I could get out of this office, put a bucket on my head, pick up a wirefeeder or gouger and just switch off!


That's the reason why I started going to school to learn how to weld, :D;)I just enjoy putting the helmet on and weld for 3 hours 2 night a week. And that's my release away from the office. :(

[HBWC]

my worst was i caught my legs on fire didnt relise till they smelt like bacon

[long stroke]

My worse happened about a year or 2 ago while i was welding up my job at school when a nice blob of hot weld went strate through my shoe, shoe lace then my sock and you guessed it into my foot, well did i dance:D
My shoe ended up on the other side of the room anyway:angel:
Havn't been flashed yet..

CHEERS TIM.

[disco_mitch]

a bloke i kinda know was welding near a fuel tank when it caught alight and he was in hospital for a bout 3 months with his whole body burnt to a crisp

[Shonky]

When I did welding at TAFE, my teacher was telling me about some bloke in America who was using a stick welder to build a trolley for his newly purchased oxy/acetylene cylinders. For some reason or another he decided to weld a bracket directly to the A bottle. :eek:

KABOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM! :o

[Bigbjorn]

a bloke i kinda know was welding near a fuel tank when it caught alight and he was in hospital for a bout 3 months with his whole body burnt to a crisp

A guy I grew up with was a highly competent boilermaker-welder. He was restoring a Holden FJ ute and found a leaky fuel tank. He did all the right things. Used a high pressure hose to remove all residue, filled it with hot water and strong detergent to sit over night, blew it out again with the hose, filled it with water and put it on to boil, used the hose again, and left it in the sun for a few days before hosing it out again. Then when he went to weld the crack with oxy-acetylene it went bang. Black peeling face and ears, eyebrows and the front half of his hair gone.

[Rangier Rover]

A guy I grew up with was a highly competent boilermaker-welder. He was restoring a Holden FJ ute and found a leaky fuel tank. He did all the right things. Used a high pressure hose to remove all residue, filled it with hot water and strong detergent to sit over night, blew it out again with the hose, filled it with water and put it on to boil, used the hose again, and left it in the sun for a few days before hosing it out again. Then when he went to weld the crack with oxy-acetylene it went bang. Black peeling face and ears, eyebrows and the front half of his hair gone.

Just shows how hard it is to remove the last of the residue.

We had an aircraft fuel tank that was used as a boom spray tank for over 20 years. It was put aside once we updated to modern spray gear. About five years latter it exploded from a ember out of a near by fire.:eek: Was out in the sun and a hot day.
I am terrified by old fuel containers and drums after seeing that happen.

[Tank]

Khos, you were probably told this at TAFE, but for the others out there, NEVER carry (in your pockets) a disposable Cigarette Lighter when welding or Oxy cutting, if a spark sets one off in your pocket it can Kill or maim you, Regards Frank.

[crash]

I have only managed to light myself on fire a couple of times. The last time I accidently leaned against a fresh weld and my jacket caught on fire. Also have had the hot slag down the back of the neck a couple of times while using stick welders.

[Psimpson7]

A good few years ago my brother was cutting something up with an Oxy torch and a bit of molten steel went in his ear... That wasn't good!

I have had the 'sunburn' a couple of times, trying hard to never get it again... can't be good for you!

One of my worst accidents was with an old belt drive milling machine. It was fairly late and I was on my own in the workshops back home. I was deperatley trying to get something finished, I think from memory for an event that weekend, and wasn't really thinking.

I needed to change the cutter speed, so released the motor so the belt went loose, took off the cover, and went to move the belt to the larger pulley........

That was a bad idea, as the motor was still running, and as the belt went tight it wound 3 of my fingers around the front of the pulley, stalling the motor with my fingers still there.

Luickily I managed to reach the emergency stop button and had to manually wind the pulley back to remove my hand.

Never did that again.

[Chops]

A guy I grew up with was a highly competent boilermaker-welder. He was restoring a Holden FJ ute and found a leaky fuel tank. He did all the right things. Used a high pressure hose to remove all residue, filled it with hot water and strong detergent to sit over night, blew it out again with the hose, filled it with water and put it on to boil, used the hose again, and left it in the sun for a few days before hosing it out again. Then when he went to weld the crack with oxy-acetylene it went bang. Black peeling face and ears, eyebrows and the front half of his hair gone.


Not sure, but we were told to do this you need to have it as full as possible with water to keep the air out,,, :confused:

I dont care what the cost,, I'll just buy a new one,, :D

[Bigbjorn]

Not sure, but we were told to do this you need to have it as full as possible with water to keep the air out,,, :confused:

I dont care what the cost,, I'll just buy a new one,, :D

New ones had not been available for decades and the one he was to repair was the best of a sorry lot. Even sorrier after it went bang and popped open along the line of the crack to be repaired. In the end he fabricated one to fit in the same place.

[Disco_owner]

We get the the run-down on workshop safety almost begginging of every semester.

Another accident that one would never have thought would actually happen , we have a Power tools room with several Bench grinders , 2 x Lenishers , Wire Brush etc . now 3-4 weeks ago I was in the room grinding some Butt welds off that I had put down to be able to weld that same area again for practice, and a Female next to me was using the Lenisher.

The Other side of that Lenisher is a Buffing Disc , now While I was angle Gridning the Welds off , The sparks were landing straight on top of the Buffing disc , I got a Tap on the shoulder by the Female to stop grinding , when I questioned her as to why , she pointed to the buffing disc and said because we have to to do something abou this Fire.:o

[andrew e]

We get the the run-down on workshop safety almost begginging of every semester.

Another accident that one would never have thought would actually happen , we have a Power tools room with several Bench grinders , 2 x Lenishers , Wire Brush etc . now 3-4 weeks ago I was in the room grinding some Butt welds off that I had put down to be able to weld that same area again for practice, and a Female next to me was using the Lenisher.

The Other side of that Lenisher is a Buffing Disc , now While I was angle Gridning the Welds off , The sparks were landing straight on top of the Buffing disc , I got a Tap on the shoulder by the Female to stop grinding , when I questioned her as to why , she pointed to the buffing disc and said because we have to to do something abou this Fire.:o

When i was an apprentice i was told a story about people grinding aluminium and steel on a linisher, which causes the alloy and oxide filings to mix, then ignite. This chemical mixture is meant to burn through concrete.

[Disco_owner]

When i was an apprentice i was told a story about people grinding aluminium and steel on a linisher, which causes the alloy and oxide filings to mix, then ignite. This chemical mixture is meant to burn through concrete.

:o Thanks for that Tip Andrew, earlier on we were told it's best not to sharpen zerconiated and thoriated Tungsten tips on the same lenisher due to contamination , and this makes sense , but nothing has ever been mentioned about grinding alloy and steel on same lenisher for the reasons mentioned above.

[robzilla]

When i was an apprentice i was told a story about people grinding aluminium and steel on a linisher, which causes the alloy and oxide filings to mix, then ignite. This chemical mixture is meant to burn through concrete.
Thermite ;)

Worst i've have is the usual blobs down shirts and for a while my garage pants were some old jeans that had a big hole over each knee. after a long welding session, both knees would be burnt to a crisp, everything else fine. Learnt my lesson pretty quick after that :p

[Sprint]

worked for a while in an engineering workshop, worst i've had happen to me has been spatter getting caught in my watch band, shirt pockets and (most painfully) a blob dropped off while i was doing an overhead weld under a trailer...... i was pretending to be a contortionist, twisted up in the suspension to get to one weld between the tray and the bearer...... so imagine how long it took me to get out and dance around when the blob dropped down and burnt its way through to the family jewels......

also had a shirt catch on fire while cutting 150x75x5mm RHS with a 9" grinder and cutoff disc, i was used to getting a bit warm while cutting, but figured something wasnt quite right when i smelled smoke.... wore a leather apron when cutting after that, and even that ended up with a hard black spot about 4" across burnt into the front of it


Khos, you were probably told this at TAFE, but for the others out there, NEVER carry (in your pockets) a disposable Cigarette Lighter when welding or Oxy cutting, if a spark sets one off in your pocket it can Kill or maim you, Regards Frank.

hence why disposable cigarette lighters are banned on a lot of mine sites......

as for slag down boots, a guy i worked with one had had a gouging rod drop into his boot once..... wouldnt let me start work with him till i bought a pair of laceup boots.....

[V8Ian]

A guy I grew up with was a highly competent boilermaker-welder. He was restoring a Holden FJ ute and found a leaky fuel tank. He did all the right things. Used a high pressure hose to remove all residue, filled it with hot water and strong detergent to sit over night, blew it out again with the hose, filled it with water and put it on to boil, used the hose again, and left it in the sun for a few days before hosing it out again. Then when he went to weld the crack with oxy-acetylene it went bang. Black peeling face and ears, eyebrows and the front half of his hair gone.
Quite obviously he didn't do "all the right things", or the mishap wouldn't have occurred. A fuel tank needs to be steamed for 24 hours, tested and certified gas free, prior to welding. Many people have got away with skipping the first three steps, but many have not. Whether or not the job explodes, is not dependant on the welding skills of the repairer.

[Bigbjorn]

Quite obviously he didn't do "all the right things", or the mishap wouldn't have occurred. A fuel tank needs to be steamed for 24 hours, tested and certified gas free, prior to welding. Many people have got away with skipping the first three steps, but many have not. Whether or not the job explodes, is not dependant on the welding skills of the repairer.

And those steps are beyond the capacity of pretty well all hobbyists and most repair shops. And most certainly were not in vogue in 1980 when the mishap occurred.

I might add that we used pretty much the same procedures as my injured mate at Wall and Co. in Winton to repair vehicle fuel tanks that regularly used to split seams, crack or be pierced by stones on the superhighways of Western Queensland in the 50's and 60's. We used to boil them over gidgee coals in the back yard. Never had one go pop.

[V8Ian]

And those steps are beyond the capacity of pretty well all hobbyists and most repair shops. And most certainly were not in vogue in 1980 when the mishap occurred.

I might add that we used pretty much the same procedures as my injured mate at Wall and Co. in Winton to repair vehicle fuel tanks that regularly used to split seams, crack or be pierced by stones on the superhighways of Western Queensland in the 50's and 60's. We used to boil them over gidgee coals in the back yard. Never had one go pop.
These were normal procedures in the '70s; just because safety is inconvienient is no reason to discard it! Your mate proves my point, some get away with it some don't. Two workers were fatally injured at Jackson (SWQ) a few years back, welding a diesel tank.

[JDNSW]

These were normal procedures in the '70s; just because safety is inconvienient is no reason to discard it! Your mate proves my point, some get away with it some don't. Two workers were fatally injured at Jackson (SWQ) a few years back, welding a diesel tank.

It is not a matter of "discarding" safety - it is impossible to completely remove risk (and still do anything). I suggest that the procedures Brian described, if properly carried out reduce the risk to less than many other risks which are encountered every day - for example, running road trains on the Mitchell highway with rough narrow lanes and no shoulders between Nyngan and Nevertire, to pick one example in the local news.

It is not a matter of inconvenience - it is a matter of affordability; exactly what the RTA says about this example.

Having said that, I am very wary of of welding fuel tanks, and would avoid it if at all possible, regardless of any procedures (alternatives such as rivetted patches, plus chemical sealers come to mind). So far I have managed to avoid it.


John

[Bigbjorn]

The procedures used by my mate were the standard of the time and probably would have been thought a bit excessive by many.

Whilst steaming for 24 hours and then testing and being certified gas free may be today's best practice, I will bet that only major corporations, big shops, mines, etc. have the facility. I bet most small repair shops are still doing it the way it was done 50 years ago but with the added safety feature of the ready availability of welding gases like CO2 and argon and mixtures to flood the interior of the tank. Nobody outside heavy or specialist industry had mig/tig until recent times.

[Grockle]

A relative some years ago got a mate to do some welding on his Moggie Traveller,bloke doing the welding totally inaware that Moggie owner who had bucket of water had gone to the dunny, soundproofing caught light, bloke comes back grab's the blokes legs and pulls him from under the car, in a matter of seconds car gone.

[V8Ian]

The procedures used by my mate were the standard of the time and probably would have been thought a bit excessive by many.

Whilst steaming for 24 hours and then testing and being certified gas free may be today's best practice, I will bet that only major corporations, big shops, mines, etc. have the facility. I bet most small repair shops are still doing it the way it was done 50 years ago but with the added safety feature of the ready availability of welding gases like CO2 and argon and mixtures to flood the interior of the tank. Nobody outside heavy or specialist industry had mig/tig until recent times.
I did my time at a workshop employing less than ten people, back in the '70s. We used to send vessels out to be properly degassed, before we would consider welding them.

[lokka]

My worst ones are MIG spatter in the ears it bubbles as it burns through ya ear wax and feels like its rolling down your throat ..

Speared my thigh once with a red hot tig tungsten that hurt like a mofo and took a good while to heal up ..

Tho wost and maby one of the most painfull ive seen was a former work mate spear his knob with a red hot tig tungsten he was in major pain spent a week in hospital and a further 3 weeks off work porr bloke ..

[Slunnie]

My worst ones are MIG spatter in the ears it bubbles as it burns through ya ear wax and feels like its rolling down your throat ..

Speared my thigh once with a red hot tig tungsten that hurt like a mofo and took a good while to heal up ..

Tho wost and maby one of the most painfull ive seen was a former work mate spear his knob with a red hot tig tungsten he was in major pain spent a week in hospital and a further 3 weeks off work porr bloke ..
Would have been peeing like a fountain in the bathroom.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/

[lokka]

Would have been peeing like a fountain in the bathroom.

http://www.pondsolutions.com/images/Pond_Jet_Floating_Pump_and_Fountain.jpg

No fountain the hospital had him on a bag as the swelling made it that bad he could not piddle that's why he spent a week in there he had to be able to piddle before he could go home poor bugger

[johnclv]

Ah - all those lovely workshop accidents.

The worst tool I saw for causing injuries in my time of ali and steel fabrication was the grinder. It cause more accidents and injuries then any other tool

Worst I ever did though was with the band saw. I was making a large flange to join pipe work together. Cutting a 20mm think piece of Aluiminuim plate on a blunt bandsaw on a hot day.

My finger slipped as I cut the last little bit. I did not realise I had cut my thumb off from just below the nail until when I was walking away and had someting squirted me in the face and I realised it was blood. My thumb was looking like a garden hose - squirting blood.

Fortunately the thumb was still attached by a few mm of flesh and that was enough blood supply to keep in it Ok condition for it be be attached :angel:

[bblaze]

another one just come to mind. D9 cat dozer blade. Me and another boiler maker had just spent 8hrs plus refacing. We had been working non stop all night with stick welders. I was just starting to clean access to bring the dozer back in when there was a bloody great explosion. It tore away the face of the blade like a tin can (1/2" plate). The heat in the blade from continuios welding had built up enough pressure over time to cause this, so its not only fuel tanks that blow. Lucky no one was injured but sure made the undies a funny color
cheers
blaze

[rovercare]

Spatter in the ears, down the shirt, down the glove, the rare time I wera them, in the boots. never had flash yet, well nothing substantial

Speedglass auto helmet, wouldn;t be without:D

[BAILEY]

I had a mate that had a melanoma behind his eye, put it down to possible welding flash, he lasted about thirteen years .