Thread: Which is the "best" helmet for turning

Originally Posted by michael_m

I use one of these. The chin guard sits on the upper chest when I'm looking down, which to my mind gives me better protection, as it will be harder to be dislodged by an impact and the force will not just be taken by the head, but by the torso as well.

I've no idea if it's "best or not", but it's a step up from a standard faceshield.

That is also a very good choice! "Approved to Australian and New Zealand Standards 1337:1992 (Licence # 4011)" "Faceshield approved for high impact protection"

Originally Posted by

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xkZuLaSyQ_I&feature=plcp

No disrespect here Mr , but when your turning a half ton chunk of wood (which I have seen in one of your videos) do you think a plastic faceguard will save your noggin against an escaping lump of wood?. Personally I'd go for a full face motorcycle crash helmet. I'm sure you could fit one of those dust be gones under it.
OK, so the original question was about a bit of olive (maybe not half a ton), still turning stuff at high speeds always has its perils and any protection is better then none.
I'm sure most people reading this forum including me have had fluke incidents where something has gone wrong really quickly and has resulted in horribly close misses or big hits.
As they say, "Its all fun and games till someone loses an eye".
The dust factor is certainly as important. Gawd, "dust be gones" might be first line of defense, but give me a decent Sundstrom mask any day and let me wander through clouds of asbestos dust fearlessly.
Sadly to all the bearded turners....be aware that beards do reduce the effectiveness of good dust masks.
Anyway, safety is a good topic,cause no one wants to get maimed having fun
Burp!.... I might just have another parsnip sparkling wine!

Originally Posted by artful bodger

No disrespect here Mr , but when your turning a half ton chunk of wood (which I have seen in one of your videos) do you think a plastic faceguard will save your noggin against an escaping lump of wood?. Personally I'd go for a full face motorcycle crash helmet. I'm sure you could fit one of those dust be gones under it.

If you look up the punishment specs for face shields and make a few assumptions about the size of the chunk of wood and the rotational speed and then do the physics calculations you might be surprised what speed you could spin the lump at and still get substantial protection from a quality face shield. The mass of the rotating object is a secondary factor in the rotational energy equation - what really matters is the RPMs since the rotational energy increases with the RPM² - the key here is to keep the RPMs as low as possible, e.g. halving the RPM will drop the rotational energy by a factor of 4.

The dust factor is certainly as important. Gawd, "dust be gones" might be first line of defense, but give me a decent Sundstrom mask any day and let me wander through clouds of asbestos dust fearlessly.

I agree it is important but anyone really serious about dust will use a quality dust extractor well before using a mask since mask do not prevent a workspace from being contaminated. Using a mask means wearing it all the time the operator is in the shed as fine dust from turning takes many hours and even days to settle. Not to mention contaminating skin, hair and clothing. I have done tests that demonstrate that all fine dust can be removed while turning by a DC that can draw a real 1000+ CFM from the close vicinity of a lathe meaning absolutely no mask (but definitely use a face shield) is needed. A shed is also much cleaner and so is the operator and his/her clothing. In terms of effectiveness, money spent on expensive masks is much better directed at improving dust collection at source. Masks should only be used after all other possible and reasonable engineering solutions have been implemented.

Originally Posted by artful bodger

No disrespect here Mr , but when your turning a half ton chunk of wood (which I have seen in one of your videos) do you think a plastic faceguard will save your noggin against an escaping lump of wood?. Personally I'd go for a full face motorcycle crash helmet. I'm sure you could fit one of those dust be gones under it.

I would feel very confident standing beside a lathe and massive pole that was setup by or another with that level of skill and experience. Would I turn the lathe on without checking and veryifying the setup myself - never! A high impact face shield, or a motorcycle helmet, will not save you from a catastrophic failure from a high mass high speed object. They will however mitigate the severity and type of the injury.

Knowledge, skill and preparation will certainly eliminate many of the hazards and reduce others to acceptable levels, and reduce the risks of injury and will mitigate the severity of injuries to almost impossible in many scenarios.

To an experienced turner the risk of a catastrophic failure becomes so low that they acept far higher risks in everday life, like driving a motor vehicle. Going gung ho with motorcycle helments or riot gear helmets / shields at the lathe (what next bomb suits?) is not the answer. Learning to implement strategies to eliminate/reduce hazards & risk is the answer. Using suitable <st1:stockticker><st1:stockticker>PPE</st1:stockticker></st1:stockticker> is only one a small part of that strategy.

Turners certainly do get killed turning - usually from a combination of hazards with high risk – inexperience, but not necessarily so; overconfidence; an unstable work piece; high lathe <st1:stockticker><st1:stockticker>RPM</st1:stockticker></st1:stockticker>; a simple distraction, error or missjudgement that results in a severe head injury rendering the injured turner incapable of raising an alarm or calling for assistance. Unfortunately an Australian turner died in a similar set of circumstances not that long back. There have been several turners killed worldwide in the past few years.

Death or very serious injury are real risks, however far more wood turners receive painfull minor injuries or more serious injuries / even amputations to hands, forearms, face, eyes and brow/head from a combination of events/missjudgements that are so easily avoidable. Some are very life changing events, like the loss of an eye or digits etc. The injury statistics kept by emergency departments confirm that - the most common injury to “woodworkers” and “steelworkers” - is a foriegn body in the eye.


BobL is 100% correct – inappropriate speed kills!

Its only a few decades back that we all thought motorcycle helmets and seat belts in vehicles were a draconian intrusion into our lives, then came air bags, side intrusion bars, vehicle stability control systems etc. We accept them and even insist a vehicle has them and a 5 star safety rating now! There is no doubting that those improvements have saved many lives, and so have the many road safety campaigns.

Woodturners foolishly resist taking basic steps to improve their safety at the lathe by wearing even wearing something so simple as safety spectacles.

Face shields are rarely worn, unless a turner perceives the task to be a high risk activity which is unfortunately usually confused with a very high probability of failure. Other readily available well known and documented risk minimisation strategies are either not known to the turner or ignored for some of the lamest excuses ever heard.

While turners choose and enjoy the challenges of hand turning they will always be exposed to some level of risk. There will always be unlikely but possible combinations of factors / events that change the risk profile. Well prepared turners certainly put the odds in their favour.

Originally Posted by Mobyturns

Face shields are rarely worn, unless a turner perceives the task to be a high risk activity which is unfortunately usually confused with a very high probability of failure. Other readily available well known and documented risk minimisation strategies are either not known to the turner or ignored for some of the lamest excuses ever heard.

I don't know many turners or belong to any turning clubs etc but I would have thought this to be SOP for turning irrespective of the risk.

What Moby said. The risk assessment (mentally) that goes into jobs like that is very intense and not taken lightly.

The problem with wearing a motorcycle, hockey or any other type of "rigid" helmet is that in a "3rd degree" accident is that it will probably break your neck before it absorbs any impact.

Originally Posted by BobL

I don't know many turners or belong to any turning clubs etc but I would have thought this to be SOP for turning irrespective of the risk.

Bob, it should be but just look at photos taken at any collaboration style event or wood turning demonstrators in action even at very high profile AAW symposia. Not many face shield to be seen at all. Some actually have them in their kit but only use then if it gets a "bit risky".

Originally Posted by Mobyturns

Bob, it should be but just look at photos taken at any collaboration style event or wood turning demonstrators in action even at very high profile AAW symposia. Not many face shield to be seen at all. Some actually have them in their kit but only use then if it gets a "bit risky".

Maybe everything I do in my shed is "risky"?
Come to think of it - maybe it is.

i got a uvex 'bionic' face shield, it also helps keep dust from coming up under the sheild and seems pretty solid.

http://www.amazon.com/Uvex-S8510-Pol.../dp/B001VY3ACE

Just for the record, the Uvex, and Honeywell shields are all 2D (curved around one direction) so to obtain strength in the 3rd dimension a frame is added around the shield. They are indeed very strong shields but the frame does add some weight, restricts vision, and they don't usually protect the neck as well as the true 3D shield. The Umatta shield is also 2D shield with a chin/neck guard added but as it has no frame around it, it won't be quite as strong as the others .A 3D shield does not need a frame because its 3D shape is sufficient to provide the necessary strength to meet specifications.

Once I tried a 3D face shield and felt how lightweight and unrestricted the view was, there was no going back to 2D shields.
I also use one for Chainsaw milling.
I reckon they also make good gifts for woodworkers.

Problem with a 3d face shield is that you can not put on the clear layer
that catches all the resin, gunk, wax, oil and other sticky stuff thrown at you
when wood turning.
The stickons are much cheaper than replacing the face shield part.

Originally Posted by DavidG

Problem with a 3d face shield is that you can not put on the clear layer
that catches all the resin, gunk, wax, oil and other sticky stuff thrown at you
when wood turning.
The stickons are much cheaper than replacing the face shield part.

Good point. Although I haven't had a lot of problems keep the PC clean, a bigger problem for me seems to be scratches.
Invariably the shield falls off the bench or wherever that it always seems to land on its front so it gets scratched. A 2D shield with clear layer or a rim/edge might be able to protect the surface.
To get around this problem I have about a dozen large hooks set up all over the shed where I can hand the shield (and muffs) up when they are not being used.

Originally Posted by DavidG

Problem with a 3d face shield is that you can not put on the clear layer
that catches all the resin, gunk, wax, oil and other sticky stuff thrown at you
when wood turning.
The stickons are much cheaper than replacing the face shield part.

Don't be lulled into thinking face shields last for ever. Like safety helmets the harness should be replaced regularly - recommended at least before 5 years in industry.

Actually you can fit stickons to the Armadillo. The old Trend / Purelite stickons go over my Armadillo quite nicely as the curve in the Armadillo in both directions through the main viewing area is not that severe. The stickons will go over the polycarbonate shield with carefull placement. I keep a spare visor and consumables, stickons, main & pre-filters for the Trend & armadillo on hand.

I don't do much messy wet turning so I have no regular need to use the stickons. In any event the Armadillo is only $35 or thereabouts and you can purchase visor replacements through Prorector Alsafe http://www.protectoralsafe.com.au/pa...lacement-clear. Very cheap insurance and much cheaper than one trip to the doctor. (Edit - replacement visor $11.50)

To be honest if you are spreading that much wax and oil about you are either turning the item to fast or you could save some money in product by slowing down the lathe. The savings might even pay for a face shield and as speed increases risk you will be feeling much safer too..