Just a reminder to be safe out there...
 

So harvest is near an end and as such I made what I thought to be one final journey to the farm for the year to turn in my hours and collect my $$$. I hop into the combine with the bossman and we start talking. Turns out I just missed an accident at the shop by about an hour. Here is what happened:

The guy who usually runs the ripper had a flat so he returned to the shop to remove the tire and repair the flat. Being a little muddy as it is, he was having a hard time getting the tire off and onto his truck to take in for repair. So he got the skid loader out to help remove/move the tire. He gets it off, loaded into his truck, and goes to park the skid loader. It's at this point that I'm told (this many, many year veteran) had never run this particular skid loader. So he calls the cart operator to ask how to shut it down. Cart guy tells him "below your left knee there is a knob; pull it out and it'll shut down". Somehow (and we haven't figured this out yet, still haven't heard back from the ER visit) he winds up behind the skid loader with the engine bay open. He's on the phone with the cart operator at this point and next thing he knows he hears over the phone "Oh #(*$ my thumb!". A few minutes later the guy pulls into the field in his truck holding his right hand/thumb wrapped in a bloody rag. Checks in with the guys in the field and off to the ER he goes. Turns out he couldn't find the shut down in the cab so he was doing it "the old fashioned way". He must have slipped or...something...and the cooling fan caught his thumb. Supposedly cut through his skin and bone and was barely hanging on by a piece of skin. Here's keeping this guy in our thoughts but this just goes to show you no matter how many years you operate, work on, or are around this equipment, accidents can happen.

I know our Cubs are a sight smaller but things can still happen so be safe out there guys! :beerchug:

(On the plus side, the ripper operator seat is now open :biggrin2:)

I do hope a good surgeon can save his digit, and wish him the best!
A spinning fan or deck blade cannot be seen.
So sad when a person gets hurt.
Nobody gets up in the morning and says "well this is a good day to get hurt".
Stay safe!!:beerchug:

Blizzard of 93 we me and my old man were helping a buddy clear out his driveway and watched my dads buddy try to unplug the shoot on his big ariens walk behind snow blower with his hand! He was lucky that we were right there and got him into the garage and called 911. He almost lost all 4 fingers on his right hand. The snowblower was a big two stage and and soon as he touched the snow plugging the shoot it sucked his hand in. He was a Binghamton city worker and opperated machines every day at work for 20+ years! Lots of surgerys later and they saved his fingers but he only has about 40% use of them!

I did some welding once bracing the exhaust pipe on a Massey 750 combine. Got done reached to pull myself up and like an idiot grabbed the fresh hot weld! That wasn't very smart! I knew an old IH mechanic who had 4 fingers on his left had from charging the ac on a tractor, fan blade got his pinky finger. It's always good to remind people to be safe!

Don't know how many times I've grabbed a hot weld and said to myself
you dummy,you know better!!
But I'm new to welding with only 55++ years experience.:biggrin2:

Just goes to show it's the preoccupation with other thoughts that get us in trouble.
just like we can't concentrate on driving while talking on the phone or looking @ that sweet young thang on a John Deere tractor Ha,LOL! :biggrin2:
Back in my younger days you would see from time to time a fellow farmer who thought his hand was quicker than the snapping rolls on a corn picker.
None ever won that bloody contest.:eek: