Captain Obvious on Exacto Knives

While I have several Xacto knives and one set, I prefer to use a utility knife for most of my cutting.  My typical cuts are with stryene and occasionally dense cardboard (not like the stuff that boxes are made off - this stuff is rigid - I use it for internal bracing of my styrene walls).  I found an Xacto not strong enough as the blade seemed to bend.  But a utility knife gives a nice clean, and SAFE , cut.

I only use an Xacto on things like clear, thin, styrene (for windows), paper, and other products that are THIN.

- walt

This is the funniest thread I have read on here...made so because it brings to mind

all the near misses I have had, and Murphy's Law.  (I appreciated the note about

Excel).  The doctor who sees mostly chain saw accidents reminds me that power

saws, chain, table, or Sawzalls, I have, apparently wisely,  always treated like picking up a rattlesnake with your bare hands, chain saws especially.

I just remembered another one.  I was recently cutting rail with a dremel, and the 1/8 inch piece of rail I had cut off landed on my neck.  Sizzle sizzle.  I had safety glasses on, but I guess I should have been wearing a safety scarf. 

As a carpenter, I use the Xacto #11 more often to intentionally cut myself than I use it for modeling...ie there is no better tool for digging in and removing splinters.

Allan

Never cut towards your self.... Always cut towards a friend. 

FWIW, CA glue is like magic for fixing cuts, as long as the finger isn't totally severed.

I have had small cuts from various causes, and I just put a drop of CA glue on it, and it really speeds the healing.  The faster you join the split and keep it in place, the faster it'll heal.

Man after reading all of this all I can say is Ouch!  I feel like to date I've been pretty lucky, cross my fingers and remeber to never cut towards myself!  Bo 

You can visit my website Bo's Trains at http://www.bostrains.com 

This thread reminds me of an old Saturday Night Live skit where the two security guards were relating stories of self-impalement, immolation and other forms of masochism.

I think Billy Crystal was one of the actors.

Also, the use of CA accelerator combined with the heat of reaction reduces cure time.

I keep a fresh tube in the garage and in toolboxes just for this reason.

I hate when that happens!

Crossing your fingers can result in cutting both simultaneously. I would keep them separate when using an Exacto.

I'll pass on that tip!  I've gotten the accelerant on my hands at times with some CA glue, that stuff gets HOT when it's curing the glue!

For heaven sake, John, I hope you really did not take that as a tip. I better watch what I say here.

One of my RR buddies was working with an Xacto knife when the blade fell out of the handle.  His first instinct was to slam his thighs together to catch the blade.  He did and he got 6 stitches.  Ouch.

Gotta be careful.

Larry

Especially with X-acto knives.   Nope, just commenting on the "suggestion".

I thought that CA was originally used in surgical procedures? Don't know about the accelerator 

I use a mini wire wheel in a Dremel tool for various clean-up projects and use safety goggles, of course. But some of those little wires get flung into my clothing and I discover them later as elusive splinters.

That's the reason I stopped using the wire Dremel wheels for the most part.  I now use this for many of the same tasks, a ScotchBrite pad on a mandrel for the Dremel.

Thanks gunrunnerjohn, that's a great idea, I'll try it !

I can't claim the original idea, someone else mentioned it and I tried it.  It works so well that I use it often.  It's great for all sorts of cleaning, I clean locomotive and rolling stock wheels all the time with these.