• The forum upgrades have been completed. These were moderate security fixes from our software vendor and it looks like everything is working well. If you see any problems please post in the Forum Technical Support forum or email us at forum_moderator (at) aawforum.org. Thank you
  • February 2026 Turning Challenge: Cookie Jar! (click here for details)
  • Congratulations to Chad Eames for "Red Tines" being selected as Turning of the Week for February 23, 2026 (click here for details)
  • AAW Symposium demonstrators announced - If the 2026 AAW International Woodturning Symposium is not on your calendar, now is the time to register. And there are discounts available if you sign up early, by Feb. 28. Early Bird pricing gives you the best rate for our 40th Anniversary Symposium in Raleigh, North Carolina, June 4–7, 2026. (There are discounts for AAW chapter members too) For more information vist the discussion thread here or the AAW registration page
  • Welcome new registering member. Your username must be your real First and Last name (for example: John Doe). "Screen names" and "handles" are not allowed and your registration will be deleted if you don't use your real name. Also, do not use all caps nor all lower case.

Neck protection

M

Mike Jennens

Joined
Jul 30, 2019
Messages
19
Likes
3
Location
Bismarck, ND
What does everyone use for neck protection? I can envision a wild piece of wood getting below my face shield and embedding itself in my neck, so I'm going to add another piece of safety gear. Plus, it would be nice to have something to keep the shavings from going down my shirt. Neck protector or apron?
Thanks!
 
I guess I'm not 100% sure what would be best. I've had the errant piece fly off the lathe, so I want to be proactive. I'm thinking something leather or kevlar, but something comfortable.
Thanks
 
I use either a Uvex Bionic or Trend Airshield Pro ... I think either one affords sufficient protection.
 
Mike Jennens said:
What does everyone use for neck protection? I can envision a wild piece of wood getting below my face shield and embedding itself in my neck, so I'm going to add another piece of safety gear. Plus, it would be nice to have something to keep the shavings from going down my shirt. Neck protector or apron?
Thanks!
Click to expand...

You need to also be aware that your face shield may be giving you a false sense of security. It is designed to protect your face and eyes against things such as chips,pieces of bark, and other small chunks of wood, but provides insufficient protection against what you describe as a "wild piece of wood" that has enough energy to embed itself in your neck. Personal protective equipment (PPE) should be considered the last line of defense rather than the only protection. There are a number of things that you can do to greatly reduce the chance of injury:
  • Probably most important is to stay out of the zone of fire.
  • Make sure that the wood is being solidly held by a properly made tenon or mortise or a flat surface for a faceplate.
  • Make sure that the wood isn't punky where it needs to be strong,
  • Verify that the wood doesn't have cracks or other flaws that might cause it to come apart while spinning.
  • Listen to the wood ... it's talking to you. If there is a change in the sound stop immediately and look for the cause.
  • Life is too short to turn crappy wood ... don't make it even shorter by ignoring this advice.
  • Beginners are typically plagued by epic catches that are sometimes strong enough to knock the piece off the lathe. This usually says that something isn't being done right. This needs to be addressed ... otherwise the problem won't go away and could result in injury.
  • Hidden flaws are always a possibility, especially in "interesting" wood. This is why it is important to frequently stop and examine the wood. Listening for sound changes are also critically important.
 
Using the proper tool correctly usually minimizes the chance of large splinters coming off the wood piece. Once you master the proper use of the tools you can direct the wood chips in a direction away from your body.
 
Like @Mike Johnson said
I recommend getting a quality class or spending some time with a mentor.

a little learning greatly reduces the chance of any part of a blank coming off the lathe.
Learn basic stances that keep you out of the line of Fire. Learn cutting technique, blank inspection, holding techniques

Learning to turn with either hand forward is a valuable skill that helps you see the form better.
It has the side benefit of easily shooting the chips so the don’t hit you.
 
As an added precaution I bought a lathe guard (Metal Cage) that is an optional accessory for my Jet lathe. It swivel's over the top and front part of the wood blank. When locked in place for use it is very strong and appears that it would protect against a chunk of wood flying off of the lathe. When not in use It swivels up and an out of the way, Or it can also easily be removed from the lathe when not in use. I don't use it very often so it is usually off of my lathe. I usually only use it during the initial rounding of a piece of suspect wood where I may see a minor crack or some punkiness. I don't hear much about the use of this item from other members on this forum. I did see a video by Mike Peace reviewing the use of this type of guard.
 
Jerry Bochenek said:
As an added precaution I bought a lathe guard (Metal Cage) that is an optional accessory for my Jet lathe. It swivel's over the top and front part of the wood blank. When locked in place for use it is very strong and appears that it would protect against a chunk of wood flying off of the lathe. When not in use It swivels up and an out of the way, Or it can also easily be removed from the lathe when not in use. I don't use it very often so it is usually off of my lathe. I usually only use it during the initial rounding of a piece of suspect wood where I may see a minor crack or some punkiness. I don't hear much about the use of this item from other members on this forum. I did see a video by Mike Peace reviewing the use of this type of guard.
Click to expand...

The guard on Powermatic lathes has been discussed a few times on this and other woodturning forums, but I don't think that the subject has ever been discussed seriously. I think it has some design shortcomings that interfere with turning and that may be the reason that it isn't widely used. I'm sure that a more usable guard could be designed. The problem is that a comprehensive safety test program would be prohibitively expensive and there might not be a directly applicable safety standard that would serve as an overarching guide to create a test program. Add to that the cost of product liability insurance and nobody could afford it.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top