Do you wear your chaps while splitting?

[chads]

I guess I am a sissy, at 45 I really don't care too much about that or how I look working.
Yes chaps and shorts do seem cooler than wearing jeans on a hot day cutting, I actually like that combo.
I thought it was ridiculous at first but it grew on me.

These rounds were from yard trees and full of knots etc. Impossible to split with a maul or ax.
I tried wedges but after 14 hits with a 12# sledge for just one split and still having to take the ax to cut the strings loose if I could get in there. I figured noodling was easier.
I have never used a log splitter before I always split by hand.
Actually I never owned chaps before this season either and been cutting since middle school.

The splitter is a vertical type the foot is about 25" off the ground so you didn't have to bend over to load/catch the splits.
We were splitting some 30"+ rounds and once in a while they would get away from ya.
Also we had a temporary table made out of a pallet and rounds to set the pieces on once in a while one would fall off and land on my leg or foot.
Fortunately we had a cool 56 deg. morning so it was not too hot even with them on.

I wear gloves to protect my hands.
I wear a mask when I paint lacquer etc.
I wear knee pads when I do floor work.
I always wear glasses but should wear safety glasses for a lot of things.
I wear ear plugs when I am working on something loud. I don't like staying awake all night waiting for my ears to quit ringing.
I do sometimes weld in shorts but I always use a helmet. Got plenty of burn marks to prove that.
I generally split in the winter with carharts on but these needed split to get them stacked and a friend let me use the splitter.
I do wear a helmet on my bicycle as it is a club rule if your in a club event.
I have scars all over my legs from unfortunate events along the way I am not afraid of blood but don't generally prefer to bleed if it is not necessary.

Call me whatever you want but I like to think if I feel better at the end of the day and can get more work done I'm all for it.
I have found that if I wear ppe I generally work more recklessly/faster and a get more work done in a day.
Not screwing around putting Band-Aids or black tape on a cut saves some time away from the job.

 

[TreePointer]

L-O-L You've almost got that correct... "Chaps simply reduce" the potential for "damage and suffering when the accident occurs."

It's all relative...
If you're riding your motorcycle at 165 MPH and a panel truck pulls out in front of you, what difference does it make if you're wearing a helmet or not?? The difference is an open casket or closed casket funeral... either way, you're still dead. Your death is the result of an accident; but the question of the helmet shouldn't even be raised, the question should be... why in hell are you riding your bike at 165 MPH on a public roadway??

Now I know that's not exactly the same thing, but where do you start and stop with it. OK, so chaps protect the front of your legs from chain cuts... so why ain't you wearing armor on your arms, chest, shoulders and whatnot?? If you say it's because the potential for cuts is greatest to the legs... I'll say the greatest potentials for injury when using a chainsaw have nothing to do with the moving chain at all. You're much more likely to have a tree fall on you, or a dead-fall roll over on you... or for that matter, you're more likely to trip, fall and split your fool head open on a rock. The question shouldn't be whether-or-not you're wearing chaps, the question should be... why the hell was the moving chain that close to your friggin' leg??
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My stipulation is that accidents WILL happen. No matter how careful one tries to be, they just do. Now, if you don't happen to agree with that, then we will just have to agree to disagree on that point. No hard feelings.

I understand the more precise language. There is potential for an accident to happen anytime when using a chainsaw. If we define an accident as any time a chain (whether moving or stationary) contacts the person (including covers/clothes), and we apply the stipulation that accidents WILL happen, then the probability of damage to body tissue is severely reduced by wearing leg chaps. The probability of a deep or even life threatening wound is even further reduced by leg chaps (chaps fibers jam the sprocket before the chain can travel very far into tissue).

The reason that chest and arm protection is not emphasized in many PPE discussions is that the area that leg chaps protects is far more likely to be a target for a chain. If the only PPE you wear is leg chaps, chainsaw/steel toe boots, and gloves then you are protecting the areas in which, by far, most chainsaw injuries occur.

In the end, it's a free country (at least for now, lol). I have my level of safety with which I am comfortable, and you have yours. Happy sawing, everyone!

 

[Dusty Rhodes]

Each to their own. I wear chaps when I cut, I do not wear them when I split wood, whether using the hydraulic splitter or using a maul. Composite toed boots and a pair of work gloves worn when cutting or splitting. My brother had his chaps on once when using a sledge hammer and a steel wedge. The wedge got launched into his shin and he got a nasty bruise but not cut. I think the chaps probably prevented the wedge from drawing blood.

 

[Whitespider]

Who lit the fuse on Spidey's Tampon?

If'n you ain't aware I can light my own fuse by now... there ain't no hope for ya'.

 

[Whitespider]

My stipulation is that accidents WILL happen.

Once again, you almost have that correct.
Accidents do happen, but to state they will happen is a fatalistic attitude I refuse to accept.
To say they will happen is the same as saying they are unavoidable... and that's flat unacceptable in my world.
But yeah, I'll agree to disagree.
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[RandyMac]

The word accident implies that the event was preventable. "An accident or a mishap is an unforeseen and unplanned event or circumstance, often with lack of intention or necessity. It usually implies a generally negative outcome which might have been avoided or prevented had circumstances leading up to the accident been recognized, and acted upon, prior to its occurrence. Injury prevention refers to activities designed to foresee and avoid accidents." lifted from Wiki.

You can swaddle yourselves in protective gear, spend time clearing escape routes, circle the tree 5 times with a plumb line, dab at it with the saw in many different places, jam a week's worth of wedges in it and because you lack the proper assessment skills, you fail.

 

[TreePointer]

Now I can just hear my father saying, "Accidents are caused by carelessness."

I throw human nature into the mix. We can be the most well trained, experienced and careful cutters, but still read the wood wrong, get tired before we realize it, lose a secure grip on a saw, become distracted, etc. I know I'm not perfect, so my comfort level has me wearing chaps. Whoopteedoo for me!

 

[Whitespider]

...my comfort level has me wearing chaps.

Now that I understand.
Don't get me wrong on this, I have no problem with someone acquiring and using PPE (or any sort of safety gear/equipment of any sort for any task). I would never tell someone not to use it. And I certainly would never make fun of, or tease someone for using it. But at the same time, the user needs to understand that safety gear/equipment does not make you safer, it only reduces the potential for injury or death when and if you (or someone else) screws-up... it cannot prevent the screw-up, or eliminate the danger from the screw-up. What got my dog barking was the comment from hdp stating that only a fool would cut without chaps. I took exception to that, and gave examples of everyday (foolish?) things most of us do that are way more dangerous than cuttin' without chaps. I also believe an employer has the right to require employees to use certain PPE... but after that it's a personal choice, no different than wearing a helmet when riding a motorcycle (I believe helmet and adult seat belt laws are flat wrong).

Having an opinion of that personal choice and stating it is one thing... but being judgmental of someone else because of their personal choice is another thing.
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[Whitespider]

Taking that just a bit further...
When I'm out on a job site working at the bottom of a tower, while one of the other guys is working up on the tower, I always wear my hardhat. Even a small ¼ inch nut dropped from 150 feet will raise a serious welt on the flesh, and put a serious dent in the skull (ask me how I know). At the same time, I'm fully aware that if he drops a 50 pound antenna mount on me it won't matter cold owl squat how much "safety" gear I'm wearing. I have to trust he is using a "safety" tie-off on that mount, so if he does screw-up and drop it it won't come down on me. But that tie-off doesn't make me "safer", it could still fail... for that matter, the tower could fall on me. The "safety" equipment has only reduced the potential for injury to me... but what if he drops his 3 pound hammer?? I rarely use "safety" gear to protect me from myself... like I said, safety is in the mindset... but I often use safety gear to protect me from the other guy's screw-up.
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[ray benson]

I started wearing welders chaps about 15 years ago when using the logsplitter. Keeps my thighs from bruising when handling the larger rounds.

 

[farmer steve]

Taking that just a bit further...
When I'm out on a job site working at the bottom of a tower, while one of the other guys is working up on the tower, I always wear my hardhat. Even a small ¼ inch nut dropped from 150 feet will raise a serious welt on the flesh, and put a serious dent in the skull (ask me how I know). At the same time, I'm fully aware that if he drops a 50 pound antenna mount on me it won't matter cold owl squat how much "safety" gear I'm wearing. I have to trust he is using a "safety" tie-off on that mount, so if he does screw-up and drop it it won't come down on me. But that tie-off doesn't make me "safer", it could still fail... for that matter, the tower could fall on me. The "safety" equipment has only reduced the potential for injury to me... but what if he drops his 3 pound hammer?? I rarely use "safety" gear to protect me from myself... like I said, safety is in the mindset... but I often use safety gear to protect me from the other guy's screw-up.
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i found a 3/4" gear wrench about 75' from our cell tower in the weeds. all i could figure out was one of the guys dropped it and it took a bounce. that would have left a mark. i just added to my collection.

 

[ppkgmsy]

A man ain't gonna' learn what he don't want to know.

 

[hdp]

**** white spider he is a fool

 

[djones]

I don't wear chaps while splitting but I should wear a cup. I split sitting down and sometimes a split will come back at me in a very angry fashion. Luckily I split while sitting on a round and it has taken quite a few hits over the years. My shins have been damaged beyond cutie pie nice from 45 years as a mechanic. Plenty of scar tissue, bumps and dents.

 

[Whitespider]

i found a 3/4" gear wrench about 75' from our cell tower in the weeds... that would have left a mark...

Gear wrenches are wonderful tools when working on a tower, less fumbling, less manipulation... and yep, it would make one heck of a dent.
One of the guys dropped his knife once, with the blade open... it landed with the blade stuck in the dirt just inches from my right foot. Usually, if the guy knows he's dropped something (sometimes something unknowingly falls from the tool pouch as you're diggin' in it) he'll sound out with a warning. The worst thing you can do is look up or run away... best to make yourself as flat against the tower as possible, even stick your head in between the cross members. I watched a 30 pound radio crash through a car windshield once; that car was parked at least 50 feet from the tower... between wind and/or bouncing off the tower on its way down, stuff rarely lands right next to the tower. Hence, my statement of making yourself as flat against the tower as possible.
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[Whitespider]

**** white spider he is a fool

“Foolish men always believe that a little knowledge will give them control over the world, but it is no more than a display of their vanity.”
- J. P. Vinluca

“If it's true what is said, that only the wise discover the wise, then it must also be true that the lone wolf symbolizes either the biggest fool on the planet... or the biggest Einstein on the planet.”
- Criss Jami

“The fool who knows his folly becomes wise by that fact. But the fool who thinks he's wise... He's called a fool indeed!”
- Unknown

“A learned fool is more a fool than an ignorant fool.”
- Molière

"Only a fool would judge a man to be undoubtedly a fool, based on his internet board posts."
- Whitespider
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[stihl sawing]

Ok guys, this thread went from wearing chaps while SPLITTING, then went to not wearing them cutting. then to insults. lets get back on subject. Do you wear them while SPLITTING not anything else. There are plenty of threads on wearing chaps while cutting. All of it is a personal preference and we all have to deal with our own actions and consequences. good or bad.

 

[Whitespider]

Nope, don't wear 'em when splitting... don't own any chaps, never have
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[redheadwoodshed]

All PPE is designed for is to reduce the severity of an injury should an accident occur. Personally, I'm sick of more PPE being thrown at every incident. On my job you have to wear a hardhat with a 4 point chinstrap, safety glasses with the foam inserts that block all your peripheral vision,long sleeved fire retardant shirts and pants, steel toed lace up boots (no slip ons allowed), ear plugs and gloves. And these have to be worn every where no matter what.

As far as splitting wood goes, I've been splitting for almost 40 years with axes and mauls, I feel bare hands give a better grip and control than any gloves, when swinging an axe. And I have never even came close to hitting a foot or leg with an axe in all that time. I don't own chaps.

 

[zogger]

All PPE is designed for is to reduce the severity of an injury should an accident occur. Personally, I'm sick of more PPE being thrown at every incident. On my job you have to wear a hardhat with a 4 point chinstrap, safety glasses with the foam inserts that block all your peripheral vision,long sleeved fire retardant shirts and pants, steel toed lace up boots (no slip ons allowed), ear plugs and gloves. And these have to be worn every where no matter what.

As far as splitting wood goes, I've been splitting for almost 40 years with axes and mauls, I feel bare hands give a better grip and control than any gloves, when swinging an axe. And I have never even came close to hitting a foot or leg with an axe in all that time. I don't own chaps.

I use a splitting tire whenever mr. fiskars comes out. Have had a couple blow throughs when I first got it and just had that thing whizz by..eek.

I don't own chaps either, I got the full cutting pants instead..ha!