Free slot cutting bit - or - a good reason to wear saftey glasses

[Dervacumen]

So I took out my laminate trimmer to cut the t-moulding slot around the last corner of my cabinet.  Went fine.  After the slot was complete I lifted the cutter from the workpiece while it was still spinning, and all hell broke loose.

No injuries.   The bit landed about 7 feet away in the dirt.  The piece of the base plate was a bit further.  Small shavings of plastic littered the towel I had draped over my cabinet.

Just a friendly reminder that this stuff happens so fast and without warning that anyone not taking proper safety precautions is, um, a likely Darwin Award candidate.

On a side note, I proceeded to install the t-moulding and move my finished cabinet into the house.  Whee!

[javeryh]

Woah!  That thing looks completely mangled.  It's scary how fast you can injure yourself if you are not 100% awake and paying 100% attention to what you are doing. 

[kelemvor]

Pics of the finished cab to offset the pics of the dead bit? 

[quarterback]

I almost had a similar issue last night.  Mine didn't go that far but while routing last night, my router started sounding a little rough and being hard to control, wobbling somewhat.  I turned it off and it seems that the bit had been working it's way out of the collet and was at an angle. 

It was tightened down, but clearly something had gone awry and it was working it's way out.  I don't want to think about what could have happened if, somehow, that spinning cutting-bit had flown out of the router all together.

Glad you're okay

[Dervacumen]

Pics of the finished cab to offset the pics of the dead bit? 

Sure.  It's a little unconventional but have a look here.

[Fozzy The Bear]

Damn!!! That's enough to scare the heck out of anybody!!! That thing could have dug itself right into you as it flew off 

It's a good warning to take a look at the damage it did to the router and to itself.   

The fur covered cab is great by the way.... Love It!!

Best Regards,
Julian (Fozzy The Bear)

[AlanS17]

Maybe there's a bigger lesson to be learned here... never send a laminate trimmer to do a router's job.

[MaMeNnO]

I did the same, pulling out a spinning router while cutting a t-molding groove. Luckely I could proceed with the same bit and router.
You can't be carefull enough with these kind of equipment.

[hypernova]

That's one of those common mistakes that you just don't realize how BIG a mistake it can become, or even realize it's a mistake at all.  I can bet that alot of people pull the router out of a slot cut before it stops spinning their first or second time using it, if they aren't too familiar with woodworking.

I know I did it.  Nothing happened though fortunately, but I sure realized then what COULD happen and never did it again.

[Banacek]

To be honest I consider myself lucky not to have been hurt using my router. I'm so glad I'm done with that part of building

[ChadTower]

When the thing shoots out, it's going nearly as fast as a bullet.  But this one has blades.  Think about that.

[Dervacumen]

You know, I've been using power tools of all kinds for 20 years and this is the first time I had a near death experience.  I hope it's my last.  I remember thinking to myself before I pulled the trimmer from the work piece, "Should I turn this off while it is still in the groove, or should I remove it and then turn it off?"  I know I'll never do that again.

I still can't find a piece of the bottom plate.  Might be on the roof.  And I'm not trying to be funny here.  I just don't know where else it could be.

[ahofle]

I know you're supposed to let the router come to a stop before removing it from the workpiece, but I'm trying to understand how this happened?  Did you nick the workpiece as you pulled it out or something? 

[Dervacumen]

I know you're supposed to let the router come to a stop before removing it from the workpiece, but I'm trying to understand how this happened?  Did you nick the workpiece as you pulled it out or something? 

You know, I was really carefull (like paranoid carefull for good reason) about pulling it out.  It was out of the workpiece for about 3 seconds and I was about to turn it off.  Then it happened.  All I can guess is that the collet loosened up and finally gave way once it had no resistance.

The more I think about it the more I just want to put it behind me because it's kinda embarrassing and insulting at the same time.

Scared the bejesus out of me and I always prided myself on my safety habits.

My dad painted on the wall of his workshop (when I was 6 or so) "You can't grow back your finger, you can't grow back your arm, remember if you saw them off you've done eternal harm."

I'll never forget it, and now it's that much more pertinent.