damn, I just speared myself...

[davestlouis]

https://goo.io/KKQVMl

I was trying to drive a selector handle down onto its post on an old Indestro 1/2 inch ratchet, using a screwdriver and mallet, and the screwdriver got away from me and speared my finger. Damn, that hurt. It just left a puncture wound and it bled like mad, but it still stings. That'll teach me to properly secure the ratchet and use proper tools next time.

 

[wrenchr]

Yup I hate that, I hurt myself all the time farting around in the garage.

 

[davestlouis]

This particular ratchet had me puzzled...the selector lever seemed to move in rhythm, each time the pawl hit a new tooth, the lever would bounce. I assumed that the pawl and post were moving, but I watched more closely, and the lever is loose on the post, so the little movement of the post is magnified, making the lever dance, and making me nuts.

 

[Bolster]

Join the hand-wound crowd. Did you have to get stitches?

 

[ZRX61]

Yup I hate that, I hurt myself all the time farting in the garage.

Maybe a change of diet?

 

[davestlouis]

I got the press-fit access panel off too, revealing decent-looking guts with no discernible wear or damage. I cleaned/lubed it and buttoned it up. Aside from the dancing lever, it feels much smoother than my other, almost identical Wizard pearhead.

 

[davestlouis]

No stitches, and I was supposed to be in the basement putting the dogs' blankets in the dryer, but my wife is at the supermarket, so I was playing instead...

 

[Fedwrench]

In an effort to trully serve as a lesson in tool safety, pictures of the wound are necessary so, that others may rebuild their ratchets more safely.

 

[davestlouis]

The dumbest part is that I don't have any burning need for that ratchet to work better than it does, it makes no difference in my life whether that lever bounces around, but it bugged me enough to compel me to drop what I was doing and attempt a repair. My new camera won't be here until tomorrow, so if it still looks bad I'll take a pic then.

 

[gofastman]

not gonna lie as far as minor wounds go i like the ones that bleed allot better, i dont have any medical basis for this but they seem to heel so much faster
nothing ***** worse then getting a cut from an exhaust heet sheild on the knuckle and not having it heel for 2 weeks

 

[Fedwrench]

The dumbest part is that I don't have any burning need for that ratchet to work better than it does, it makes no difference in my life whether that lever bounces around, but it bugged me enough to compel me to drop what I was doing and attempt a repair. My new camera won't be here until tomorrow, so if it still looks bad I'll take a pic then.

Since when has needing to take a ratchet apart really driven us to take them apart? I've seen pictures here of people lubing new ratchets, and I'm guilty of opening some up to see what's inside and comparing brands. There may be one or two ratchets here that needed repair but, curiosity gets the better of most of us.

 

[davestlouis]

The worst part is that I didn't fix the problem, either. All this grief over a $5 pawn shop ratchet that I might NEVER use to turn a socket...I have more shiny new and newish Snap On and Matco ratchets than I'll ever wear out in a lifetime, and I'm screwing with this relic. I also plan to go back in the basement later and take another crack at this problem.

 

[old salvage]

What model # ratchet is it ?

 

[davestlouis]

I don't know, I'll go look. It's marked as a PATRIOT, but it's clearly an Indestro pearhead. I'll let you know in a minute.

 

[davestlouis]

The one I'm having an issue with is marked PATRIOT USA 8672, the other with identical guts and head, is a WIZARD USA H2831..the Wizard has a hole in the knurled part of the handle and a chromed access plate, but otherwise they are the same.

 

[old salvage]

Depending on how high the post is you may have been able to just peen it a bit and maybe it would have tightened it up.
I did that with an old Walden that had the same annoying problem.

 

[davestlouis]

I have plenty of post, but the lever is some sort of sheelmetal that has become wallowed-out from use and doesn't fit tight on the post. So, I have to devise a way to give the lever a few well-placed whacks to reshape it a bit.

 

[Gregster]

Yup I hate that, I hurt myself all the time farting around in the garage.

Sometimes I don't even notice I am bleeding anymore. My girlfriend has fun trying to find new cuts and scraps on my hands, I don't even notice them anymore. Having big hands in small areas isn't fun

 

[Bolster]

nothing ***** worse then getting a cut from an exhaust heet sheild on the knuckle and not having it heel for 2 weeks

Most disgusting cut I got was clipping myself on a sawed-off closet bolt...closet bolts are what hold toilets in place...I was in the process of removing the toilet and suddenly blood... At a time like that you start to wonder how many nasty bacteria you just got in your bod...

 

[zuspiel]

My wife still makes fun of me for putting shelves into our closet and drilling through my thumb... Was securing a bracket to the (crappy) wood floor in a corner, bit broke, drill jumped, and in about a nanosecond the weight of the 18V Dewalt drilled through my thumbnail. I think the neighbors heard that one, too... At least I didn't have to put a hole in the nail to relieve the pressure

 

[64merc]

My wife still makes fun of me for putting shelves into our closet and drilling through my thumb... Was securing a bracket to the (crappy) wood floor in a corner, bit broke, drill jumped, and in about a nanosecond the weight of the 18V Dewalt drilled through my thumbnail. I think the neighbors heard that one, too... At least I didn't have to put a hole in the nail to relieve the pressure

Yikes man, I got goose bumps reading about that.

I've been pretty lucky myself, but once I was using a dremel with cutoff wheel and I accidentally bumped into the wheen hard enough for it to slow down. I got a pretty good gash in my finger but it really didn't bleed and didn't hurt much for some reason.

Also, the other day I was hitting a brand new wood chisel and it slipped off the workpiece and sliced my finger next to my nail. Man, that was a super clean cut I made (new chisel).

BTW Dave, you don't need an excuse to fiddle around with stuff.

 

[caper]

Yikes man, I got goose bumps reading about that.

I've been pretty lucky myself, but once I was using a dremel with cutoff wheel and I accidentally bumped into the wheen hard enough for it to slow down. I got a pretty good gash in my finger but it really didn't bleed and didn't hurt much for some reason.

Also, the other day I was hitting a brand new wood chisel and it slipped off the workpiece and sliced my finger next to my nail. Man, that was a super clean cut I made (new chisel).

BTW Dave, you don't need an excuse to fiddle around with stuff.

Probably didn't bleed cuz grinder wheels tend to burn the skin as they cut.Kind of self cauterizes-don't ask how I know.

 

[zuspiel]

There goes my Coke...
Maybe they should put that on the label: "Self-cauterizing cutoff disks"...

 

[Itzkwik]

Having big hands in small areas isn't fun

That isn't necesssarily true.

 

[ZRX61]

I guess this will teach me for making a smartass comment on page one.. I just sliced my finger open with this ******:

 

[zuspiel]

Wicked. But where's a pic of the finger spewing blood?
Sorry, couldn't resist. I hope the finger is ok.

 

[Bolster]

My wife still makes fun of me for putting shelves into our closet and drilling through my thumb... Was securing a bracket to the (crappy) wood floor in a corner, bit broke, drill jumped, and in about a nanosecond the weight of the 18V Dewalt drilled through my thumbnail. I think the neighbors heard that one, too... At least I didn't have to put a hole in the nail to relieve the pressure

Ow! I felt that one!

Hey ZRX, be careful with that S&W knife, I recollect they have a reputation for dodgy liner locks.

 

[ZRX61]

Wicked. But where's a pic of the finger spewing blood?
Sorry, couldn't resist. I hope the finger is ok.

It's the finger I use for er, communicating..

 

[Blacktooth Grin]

I drilled a 3/16" hole in my finger just the other day. Bled something fierce.

 

[zuspiel]

It's the finger I use for er, communicating..

That's perfect then. I'd use a thick orange bandage...

 

[bmwpower]

I drilled a 3/16" hole in my finger just the other day. Bled something fierce.

Damn....like all the way through??

 

[Frank Elson]

I was using a hot gun to heat up stickers down the sides of a car, to peel them off.
I must have touched the side of my left hand, but this being November I didn't notice until I walked in the house to wash my hands.
My beloved said it was the first time she'd ever seen anyone jump in the air with pain.

 

[eschoendorff]

Since when has needing to take a ratchet apart really driven us to take them apart? I've seen pictures here of people lubing new ratchets, and I'm guilty of opening some up to see what's inside and comparing brands. There may be one or two ratchets here that needed repair but, curiosity gets the better of most of us.

Makes me wonder... when y'all were kids, how many of you guys took your toys apart to see how they worked rather than play with them???? I caught more grief from my parents about that very issue... now, 20 year later they think that it was the cutest thing,

 

[davestlouis]

I took all sorts of things apart...the difference now is that I have a fighting chance at getting it back together