[TheForge] Real men dont use tongs-Gloves

[David E. Smucker]

Here is an Safety article I did on Gloves some time back for our newsletter.
It has also been reprinted in some of the other blacksmith newsletters.  I
do feel strongly having seen what a hand looks like with some fingers torn
off.  It makes a mess of the drill press too.

Dave Smucker

Blacksmithing and Safety --  Last issue we talked about one aspect of hand
safety -- wearing rings -- this issue I would like to spend some time
talking about gloves.  Gloves can be a real aid in hand safety, preventing
both burns and cuts but they also can be a major risk around rotating
machinery such as a drill press.  So first let's start with the high risk
behavior of wearing gloves while using a drill press, lathe or other
rotating machinery.  Never ever use this equipment while wearing gloves -- 
Don't do it, not even for just one item.  The risk of getting the glove
caught in the chuck, drill, work piece or other parts is just too great -- 
and the result is the loss of a finger, or extreme damage to a hand and / or
wrist.  Don't take the chance, take the gloves off.



I have been appalled while visiting some manufacturing operations to see
operators of rotating equipment wearing gloves.  The reason they had gloves
on was to prevent cuts, often minor, from sharp edges of metal that they
were working with -- but the risk of a loss of a finger or extreme hand /
wrist damage was much greater.  The problem originated from the fact that
the inexperienced management was under great pressure to prevent cuts and
other limited hand injures -- but had no idea of the possible damage if a
worker got the glove caught in the chuck, drill or work piece.  When I asked
them about this -- I was told that the workers were not to get their hand
near the chuck, drill or work piece while the equipment was running -- give
me a break -- people do dumb things, especially when tired, or in a hurry.



My advice -- drummed into me by some older, experienced machinists when I
was a young engineer was never, ever wear gloves when you turn the machine
on.  If needed wear them to load the work piece, drill, etc. -- but for your
hand's sake take them off before you hit that on switch.



Now that I have that off my chest let's talk about gloves as a great aid to
the blacksmith and welder.  I include the many forms of welding here -- 
since many of us do that too and it plays a large part in our overall shop
safety.  Some smiths like gloves while doing forge work, others do not, but
I find them very useful when dealing with hot stock, and the high
temperature of the forge.  Some smiths like to wear just one glove, on their
tong or stock hand, while other like a glove on both hands.  Some like to
wear a glove only when doing forge welding or if the piece they are working
with

(and not using tongs) is too hot to handle.  Some smiths almost never wear
gloves at the forge.



For arc welding -- stick, mig or tig -- gloves are really required because
of the heat and  ultra violet radiation from the arc.  Most welders doing
gas welding and / or cutting also want a glove on the filler rod hand
because of the heat.  The old standard for this arc welding is leather
gloves.  They come in forms ranging from very heavy gloves with large wrist
gauntlets to very thin, tight fitting gloves for tig and gas welding.  I
have used them all -- but have now come to like something  better -- 
KEVLAR.�



In my blacksmithing I had tried leather, and cotton and found the cotton
gloves better since they were a better insulator of heat from both the work
piece and the forge itself.  Problem with cotton, was that while they were
cheap, they didn't last long and were a real pain if you got them wet from
the slack tub.  A few years back I purchased a pair of heavy Kevlar gloves
and was very impressed with how well they work as an insulator -- but found
them too heavy for the hammer hand and even too awkward for the tong hand
for many things.  Still they sure handled the heat well.  I then found some
thin knit Kevlar groves -- I really like these and now wear them for both
forge work and arc welding.  I have found that I even like them on both
hands most of the time.  The one thing that is missing is that they don't
have wrist gauntlets that would help when arc welding.



What is KEVLAR� anyway?  It is an aramid fiber invented by two DuPont
scientists, Stephanie Kwolek and Herbert Blades,  back in 1965.  It has a
very high tensile strength to weight ratio, low electrical and thermal
conductivity, high chemical resistance, high cut resistance, and is flame
resistant and self-extinguishing.  DuPont's web page on Kevlar gives some
data that explains why it works much better than leather for dealing with
heat.  In contact with a hot item at 415 F for 25 seconds the leather will
rise in temperature by 120 degrees F while the Kevlar will increase by only
17 degrees F.  The problem I always had with the leather while welding -- is
that it stays hot too -- the Kevlar doesn't.



The gloves I like so well are "really intended" for cut protection and not
hot work, but I find them very effective.  I got mine from MSC for about $ 5
a pair but many industrial supply houses now have them.  I have also found
they make great general work gloves and use them for many things.  They are
washable and I have yet to destroy a pair.



Just remember take them off around the drill press and other rotating
equipment.