Alan Zoff Posted March 31, 2008 Share Posted March 31, 2008 I have always treated an angle grinder with respect, bearing in mind that if it can slice through metal it would make short work of a leg.On Saturday, a neighbour borrowed my angle grinder in order to part two sections of a car exhaust system that the previous owner had seen fit to weld together, rather than rely on the clamp and perhaps some paste. He told me had used a grinder many times before so I let him do the tricky stuff while I steadied the workmate. The pipe was set in the jaws, he had a nice clear area to work in and (thankfully) he was wearing goggles. He had fitted a brand new (Parkside) metal cutting disc to the (also Parkside) grinder, all supplied by yours truly.He allowed it to reach full speed before approaching the section to be cut, making sure the pipe was held firmly and that he had a firm grip on the grinder. However, as soon as the blade touched the welded section he was hit in the face by something. At first we thought it was a piece of the pipe but in fact the blade had torn on inpact. A jagged section of blade hit him full in the face, taking a layer of skin off his nose but thankfully prevented by the goggles from taking an eye out.The rest of the blade was still securely fastened to the grinder. It seems the blade simply did not take kindly to cutting through a welded section. However, when I fitted another make of blade to the same grinder, I was able to cut through the joint without any problem (even though I approached the task in exactly the same way as my unfortunate neighbour had done).Before I kick up a fuss with Parkside, should we have known better? Is there perhaps a known risk when cutting welded joints with angle grinders? As it is, he lost a little blood and the nose will look a mess for a while but there shouldn't be any long term damage. Had he not been wearing goggles, I think the outcome would have been somewhat more serious. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chancer Posted March 31, 2008 Share Posted March 31, 2008 [quote user="Alan Zoff"]IBefore I kick up a fuss with Parkside, should we have known better? [/quote]Not really Alan, most of the brand names that used to be a sign of good quality are now just used to charge more for the same goods from China.I suspect that Parkside is no more than a pile of sticky labels on an asembly line somewhere in the far east. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anton Redman Posted March 31, 2008 Share Posted March 31, 2008 I am pretty sure Parkside is Lidl's own brand and are actually made in Switzerland rather than PRC. I always feel I am taking my life in my hands every time I pick up an angle grinder. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meg Posted March 31, 2008 Share Posted March 31, 2008 Is there any chance the disc could have been dropped before use? Did he bash into the piece or use to much pressure initially?Also was the guard used??I normally use a face shield and safety glasses when grinding or cutting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Zoff Posted March 31, 2008 Author Share Posted March 31, 2008 Disc came straight out of a new box before use. Guard on grinder was in place. Didn't appear to me that he attacked the piece or apply excessive pressure. He was wearing large, high-impact glasses which covered top half of nose, eyes and lower forehead. Had never occurred to me that a full face mask was essential but it served as a warning to expect the unexpected.As no one has implied that you shouldn't try to cut through a welded joint with one of these, I can only assume it was a dodgy disc. Hopefully, an isolated instance.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
powerdesal Posted March 31, 2008 Share Posted March 31, 2008 A full "flip-down" face shield is always my personal choice. It allows you to wear glasses without them steaming up and gives much better peripheral vision at the same time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meg Posted March 31, 2008 Share Posted March 31, 2008 I've certainly never heard anything about cutting through welds. Although i normally only need to grind the life out of them, not cut them.Any small defect in the disc may cause it to shatter. I never use anyone else's discs, i know mine are kept safe, and a dropped one goes straight in the bin. It's a couple of quid versus a potential injury. My guess, it was just a dud disk. It happens.As with any tool/ machine, know the dangers before you start playing with it. Go for worst case scenario and take measures to protect yourself. (sorry, i am a heath and safety nerd!) [:)] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pads Posted March 31, 2008 Share Posted March 31, 2008 I dont see goggles on snipperpuss..... what if one of those bullets backfired[:(] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John L Posted March 31, 2008 Share Posted March 31, 2008 I am very interested in discs shattering if dropped. Are we talking about metal/Diamond disks or something else. I was not aware that dropping diamond discs would cause problems. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meg Posted March 31, 2008 Share Posted March 31, 2008 Cos me and kitty know, if you look after your tools, they'll look after you!I treat mine as if they were my babies.....[:$] A while ago, himself (accidentally?) left some of my tools out in the rain and they got all rusty, i was close to tears!! [:$] [:$] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pads Posted March 31, 2008 Share Posted March 31, 2008 Cor bet he felt the sharp edge of your angle grinder!!!![Www] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meg Posted March 31, 2008 Share Posted March 31, 2008 [quote user="trevoraki"]I am very interested in discs shattering if dropped. Are we talking about metal/Diamond disks or something else. I was not aware that dropping diamond discs would cause problems.[/quote]Sorry, i was referring to the resin/ fiberglass (or whatever they are made of) cutting/ grinding discs FOR metal, not the metal/diamond ones. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meg Posted March 31, 2008 Share Posted March 31, 2008 [quote user="Pads"]Cor bet he felt the sharp edge of your angle grinder!!!![Www][/quote]You should have seen the fallout when i caught him using a beautifully polished hammer of mine for whacking in nails! My new lovely workshop has a lock on the door. [6] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pads Posted March 31, 2008 Share Posted March 31, 2008 cor you sound like my hubby when i use his paint brushes, or his chizels for prizing nails out [:D] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meg Posted March 31, 2008 Share Posted March 31, 2008 [quote user="Pads"]cor you sound like my hubby when i use his paint brushes, or his chizels for prizing nails out [:D][/quote][:'(] yep, it's a bit like that! Imagine he nabbed your best roasting tray for draining the oil from the car.........or whatever it is boys do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pads Posted March 31, 2008 Share Posted March 31, 2008 Sorry ....... he would be more upset about that than me .....,[:)] now if you wrote/defaced in one of my books ................ heads would roll[:(] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LEO Posted March 31, 2008 Share Posted March 31, 2008 I had a close shave with an "angle grinder" once.thank god she married someone else! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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