# Gloves: blue nitrile, safe?



## digiex-chris (Oct 31, 2012)

I know that using a leather or mechanic's glove is dangerous, but I think using the blue nitrile or vinyl gloves should be fairly safe. I've had tonnes of these gloves fall apart when I ask them to stand up to automotive mechanic's abuse, and the other day a long curl snagged and tore one glove on my drill press without any ill effect, not even a tug. I often don't realize they've snagged something and tore until I feel the ATF or grease inside the glove. I tried them with my lathe, and notice I get far fewer of the tiny metal slivers I often get and none of the black hands from turning the cranks. Quite enjoying it. I can't see how they'd ever stand up to being snagged and pulling my hand into the machine, they just fall apart too easy. Thoughts?


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## MuellerNick (Oct 31, 2012)

Vinyl? You mean PVC? That's a thermoplast, big fun if it melts into your skin. NOT!
Soap is cheaper.
You only have to touch the slivers that are harmless, and stay away from the pointy ones. In case, I know where my tweezers are.

I hate gloves at work.


Nick


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## bret4 (Oct 31, 2012)

I would not ware any gloves while running a machine. The fact that you are asking is enough to tell you that it isn't worth the risk.


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## Tin Falcon (Oct 31, 2012)

Chris: Your shop you make the rules. 
I wear gloves at work most of the time. leather for most applications or nitrile when leather would get quicly ruined or i need the feel. Also when I am in a lab and the hazards are chemical rather than physical. 
While nitrile will tear fairly readily I would not wear them around machines.  Is it worth the risk that one time the glove does not decide to tear before the machine tool tears into your finger. sometimes it is a matter of miliseconds or thousands of an inch that makes the difference between a near miss and a serious injury. 
I know I have trimmed fingernails with a trim router not on purpose mind you . NO blood no harm just a very short fingernail. But for the grace of god and quick reflexes it could have been to the bone. 
OSHA rules do seem silly sometimes but remember they were written in blood. For every rule written dozens were hurt or someone died. 

You may want to try liquid glove or some other similar protective hand cream. 
Tin


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## Lance (Oct 31, 2012)

As a professional mechanic I can tell you that they do tear easy, BUT they also grab and like to get wound up, with amazing strength when using impacts, and air ratchets. I'm new to this hobby, but I would not wear them around my machine.


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## crankincraig (Nov 1, 2012)

As the supervisor of a student machine shop our rules say ; No Way.
 No gloves of any kind allowed while useing machines.


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## digiex-chris (Nov 1, 2012)

Lance said:


> As a professional mechanic I can tell you that they do tear easy, BUT they also grab and like to get wound up, with amazing strength when using impacts, and air ratchets. I'm new to this hobby, but I would not wear them around my machine.



That is all the warning I need. Thanks for that. No gloves then.


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## srgtherasta (Dec 31, 2012)

Take one of them gloves, twist one of the fingers around like string and see if you can tear it. bet you can't. I have seen it happen to a fitter at work on a pillar drill. Don't it makes a woeful mess to clean.


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## wm460 (Jan 1, 2013)

No glove for this boy any more:
I was putting a bit CA to fill in a couple of voids in a pen blank, I had a plastic bag that a pen part came in on my index finger, holding the end with my thumb, when some how it wrapped its self around the mandrel.
It pull the glove ½ off my and dragged my fingers around the mandrel, fortunely for me it stalled the lathe.
I would have been buggered if I had my big Vicmarc then.
end result was a cracked pen blank, bent mandrel and almost dirty undies. 







The glove is just an examination glove a lot thinner and weaker than the nitrile gloves.


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## kvom (Jan 1, 2013)

I use these gloves, but only for oil changes and grease jobs on vehicles.


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## terrywerm (Jan 1, 2013)

Same here, no gloves of any kind around machines or power tools of any kind. Vinyl or nitrile gloves get used only for protection from chemicals,  painting, fiberglass work, wrenching on vehicles, greasing, milking cows, and handling the sewage hoses for the RV.

Oh yeah, my granddaughter's favorite use is for making colored winter decorations for the front yard. Mix water and food coloring, pour into glove or balloon, then put outside to freeze. Once frozen, remove the gloves or balloons and you have colorful decorations for the yard. And it's a wonderful activity for a guy and his grandkids!


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## gus (Jan 2, 2013)

I totally banned  out gloves when working on rotating tools. Having my left thumb dislocated once was enough. Till today the scar on my left hand is still visible.Scar works to scare my stubborn workmen when they argue with me. 
When doing gravity casting of aluminium,I wear thick asbestos gloves when it was not totally banned in Singapore.


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## Cogsy (Jan 2, 2013)

gus said:


> When doing gravity casting of aluminium,I wear thick asbestos gloves when it was not totally banned in Singapore.


 
In my younger (and stupider) days I worked in a hot-dip galvanising plant, with a 13 metre x 2 metre x 2.5 metre deep 'bath' of molten zinc, ali, nickel and lead, at about 480 degrees C. We wore leather welding type gloves.

On my last night there, we were fooling around and tried submerging a glove in the molten metal. When it survived intact, we tried it with a human hand (mine) in it. It got real hot, real fast, but survived the test. 3 more tries later (and seriously thinking about a fourth) we got back to actual work. I walked over to my 150 degree tool, picked it up and burned the heck out of my finger - the stitching along 1 full side of the glove had split. To think how close I came to plunging that glove, with my hand in it, back into the melt gives me shivers...


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## JLeatherman (Jan 2, 2013)

You know, I'm going to be in the minority here and say that I do occasionally use gloves in the shop, but not in the way you're trying to use them.  Grease and metal shavings on your hands is a fact of machining.  My shop, unfortunately, is unheated and nothing chills you faster than gripping a handwheel for a few hours with your bare hands.  I keep a couple pairs of cheap yellow or black cotton gloves that I wear ONLY to turn handwheels with.  When I need to check a part, sand or file something, spin the lathe chuck around, etc I take the gloves off.  I understand there is a small amount of additional risk, but still I put them on to spin handwheels because otherwise my shop time would be limited to about 15 minutes before frostbite set in.  In the summertime there are no gloves at all near my machine tools.


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## Noitoen (Jan 2, 2013)

I don't know if anybody mentioned it before but there are "virtual" gloves available from some hand cleaner manufactures in the form of a cream. Smear it on before work and when it comes to washing your hands afterwards, it's easy has if you had gloves all the time. At least the nitrile ones anyway . 
I only wear gloves if I'm forced to.


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## gus (Jan 3, 2013)

Cogsy said:


> In my younger (and stupider) days I worked in a hot-dip galvanising plant, with a 13 metre x 2 metre x 2.5 metre deep 'bath' of molten zinc, ali, nickel and lead, at about 480 degrees C. We wore leather welding type gloves.
> 
> On my last night there, we were fooling around and tried submerging a glove in the molten metal. When it survived intact, we tried it with a human hand (mine) in it. It got real hot, real fast, but survived the test. 3 more tries later (and seriously thinking about a fourth) we got back to actual work. I walked over to my 150 degree tool, picked it up and burned the heck out of my finger - the stitching along 1 full side of the glove had split. To think how close I came to plunging that glove, with my hand in it, back into the melt gives me shivers...



Hi Cogsy.
Those were the days when were young and foolish. I have seen apprentices
risking their fingers at who is faster than the drop forge hammer.One chappy lost the bet and his fingers.

Sure glad we survived.


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## gus (Jan 3, 2013)

crankincraig said:


> As the supervisor of a student machine shop our rules say ; No Way.
> No gloves of any kind allowed while useing machines.




You have saved many fingers. If one doesn't want to dirty his hands then he should not be in the machineshop.

Very rare for accidents to happen in our Trade School.When it does,the poor instructors have a pile of reports to write-----why- how-when--who etc.
A fellow student and later colleaque at Metal Box have his finger chopped off while holding on to the chuck key on the Colchester Lathe in 1961.
He had gloves on.


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## trumpy81 (Jan 3, 2013)

You can take it from me ... gloves and ANY spinning part equals ... No No. How do I know this? Well they don't call me stumpy for no reason. I lost half a finger to the chain of my motorcycle. It's a bugger being only able to count to nine and a half ... lol


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## Noitoen (Jan 7, 2013)

Just received some terrible glove related news. Our next door machine shop have just lost a 62 year old machinist due to his gloves getting caught in the lathe's work. He was using a big chuck and was pulled towards  it by his leather gloves and it's jaw smashed his skull.


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## gus (Jan 14, 2013)

Scenario for glove grabblng and hand injury.
 20 years back,my extremely painful thumb dislocation was caused by same happening with Gus wearing cotton thread gloves. Just wondering if my watch belt should be removed when using the drill press.


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## MuellerNick (Jan 14, 2013)

> Just wondering if my watch belt should be removed when using the drill press.



No rings, no gloves, no wrist watches, no long hairs, no chains around your neck, no loose sleeves.


Nick


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## gus (Jan 14, 2013)

MuellerNick said:


> No rings, no gloves, no wrist watches, no long hairs, no chains around your neck, no loose sleeves.
> 
> 
> Nick



Hi Nick ,
Good advice.Will remove watch too. Hang up a clock nearby.The last posted fatal shop accident is scary. Boring Head completed,boring cutters came in.Will do test bore today.Hope my mini mill can take it.


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## neseng (Apr 26, 2013)

.....I have been machining for 47 years now (....and boy, am I tired?) and NEVER wear gloves of any kind apart from a leather glove on one hand when clearing swarf from beneath the machines at the end of the week.

I rely on a good quality hand cleaner to get rid of grease and grime but at least I still have all my fingers, including their surrounding flesh, and have never broken any bones in my hands.

Incidentally, splinters are not a real problem and are also few and far between if you use brushes and a blow-down air gun to keep the work area clear of swarf.

Cheers,      Norman.


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## jgedde (Apr 26, 2013)

When I was much younger and dumber, I was running a drill press at work wearing a shirt and tie.  A piece of swarf came up and snagged my tie.  The next thing I knew my tie was wrapping around the chuck drawing me in!  

The good news is that the drill press was powered by a foot switch (a good idea if you ask me) so I was able to stop the machine in time.

But, damn, that was a hard neck knot to untie!  IIRC, the tie was still serviceable afterwards.

John


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## /// (Apr 27, 2013)

I was wearing nitrile gloves one night while helping friends moulding a carbon fibre and Kevlar sump-guard and under-body armour for a WRX rally car.
We were racing the next day and, as usually happens, trying to finish everything last-minute. It was early morning and we were all getting very tired.
We needed to drill a hole(I don't remember why) so I picked up the cordless drill, gripped the chuck to remove the bit currently in it and gave the trigger a pull and the glove instantly twisted up in the chuck. Happened so fast and I was so tired it took a few seconds to realise what had happened.
The glove had firmly attached the cordless to my left hand and then the torque twisted it out of my trigger hand and had enough momentum to spin once and crack the battery hard against the knuckles on my right hand.
Took a while for us to cut my hand out of the glove and free it from the mess and even longer to cut the glove free of the drill (between chuck and drill body) with knives and scissors.
This was a first time for me... and you can be sure it will be the last!


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## gus (Apr 30, 2013)

jgedde said:


> When I was much younger and dumber, I was running a drill press at work wearing a shirt and tie.  A piece of swarf came up and snagged my tie.  The next thing I knew my tie was wrapping around the chuck drawing me in!
> 
> The good news is that the drill press was powered by a foot switch (a good idea if you ask me) so I was able to stop the machine in time.
> 
> ...




Hi John,
Good reason why I went against the company protocol of wearing ties when working in the office or shop floor.When troubleshooting production machines,a tie around your neck becomes a very good hangman's rope.
C.E.O. from Corporate Office USA came for a shop visit and said this, " Gus .I am glad to see you are not wearing a tie. My best engineer was killed last week wearing one on the shop floor bach home. And I don't want to lose Gus too"


But for formal meetings I could not,would not and dare not, not wearing ties.

While working on a Can Body Machine Operator,why helping out a female factory mate to retrieve a can from the floor,I had to bent over the conveyor,
an exposed cog wheel caught my tee shirt and tored it off in split second.
Gus could suffered fatal injury. This was in 1966 and Gus was 22 foolish young man still attending night technical school 

This happened in the 60s and 90s. Today Gus is 70 and still alive with 10 complete fingers. Only exception is my left thumb will not do do a perfect bend. Good reminder/warning.
I used wrong tool to remove a taper pin and hit thumb. See fotos of bad thumb and good thumb.

Another warning.See foot of hand/wrist. Scarred by drill bit seizing cotton glove. Thumb dislocated. Extemely painful.When using drill press. No gloves!!! You can barely see the 3" long scar.

I take no short cuts with personal safety when working in my mini machineshop.


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## westender (May 9, 2013)

I agree, no gloves in the shop except for unpowered cleanup. 

If I'm going to handle chemicals, and I'm not sure of the correct glove material, I check the M.S.D.S.(Material Safety Data Sheet), or call the 800 number on the container. I don't know the equivalents of these two ways of checking in other countries. If I seem a bit wimpy on this subject, I just retired from the petrochemical industry with all parts intact(more or less). Nuff said.

Tom



 E=neseng;218242].....I have been machining for 47 years now (....and boy, am I tired?) and NEVER wear gloves of any kind apart from a leather glove on one hand when clearing swarf from beneath the machines at the end of the week.

I rely on a good quality hand cleaner to get rid of grease and grime but at least I still have all my fingers, including their surrounding flesh, and have never broken any bones in my hands.

Incidentally, splinters are not a real problem and are also few and far between if you use brushes and a blow-down air gun to keep the work area clear of swarf.

Cheers,      Norman.[/QUOTE]


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## rake60 (May 19, 2013)

We had a couple hundred parts at work that wouldn't accept the Go-Gage after being plated.

I purchased a special size drill bit to drill-ream the small end hole to specs.
My right hand was starting to get a little raw from manually running the parts up and down
the spinning drill bit that was mounted in a low torque drill press. I wouldn't allow anyone else do it, 
after all I'm a professional! 

I decided to put on a thin nitrile glove. It would tear away, right?
It didn't.
It got wrapped up in the bit. The light drill press stalled out, but not before it tipped forward putting a knot on my bald head.

No more gloves of any kind around powered machines for me!

Rick


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## gus (May 20, 2013)

rake60 said:


> We had a couple hundred parts at work that wouldn't accept the Go-Gage after being plated.
> 
> I purchased a special size drill bit to drill-ream the small end hole to specs.
> My right hand was starting to get a little raw from manually running the parts up and down
> ...



Hi Rick,

Welcome to the club of members having gloves grabbed by drill bits.
My left thumb was dislocated and pain was excrutiating. Top of hand was skinned and scarred for ten years before fading. Same scar was very useful
to preach--------"no  gloves" when working in drill press and lathe.
Trust the head has not hurt too much.


Gus Teng,


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## kquiggle (Nov 4, 2013)

Ran across an interesting blog post on this topic. Tom Lipton makes the point that there are some areas where wearing gloves improves safety.



> So here we are fast forward. My experience with wearing gloves in the  shop has been manageable, positive and hand healthy. Here are some of  the positive benefits I have seen from wearing gloves in the shop.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


He also makes the point that gloves are still a no-no around rotating machinery (and some other places).  It's an interesting read; go here for the full article:

http://oxtool.blogspot.com/2013/07/gloves-in-machine-shop.html

P.S.

I have no connection to Tom Lipton, but I have become a fan of his youtube channel:

https://www.youtube.com/user/oxtoolco/videos?sort=dd&view=0&shelf_id=1


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## Tin Falcon (Nov 4, 2013)

> Incidentally, splinters are not a real problem and are also few and far between if you use brushes and a blow-down air gun to keep the work area clear of swarf.


Another bad , dangerous idea that should be avoided.

compressed air can turn swarf into projectiles and damage the machine and operator. User brush and shop vac.

Tin


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## MCRIPPPer (Nov 23, 2013)

trumpy81 said:


> You can take it from me ... gloves and ANY spinning part equals ... No No. How do I know this? Well they don't call me stumpy for no reason. I lost half a finger to the chain of my motorcycle. It's a bugger being only able to count to nine and a half ... lol



i had a similar experience. i was 13, riding my xr100(which comes with only a single sided lame chain guide) i fell over and fell back and put my left hand out and it got in the rear chain sprocket. lost the ends of my middle and ring fingers and almost lost the end of my pointer finger, but it was still kind of attached!!!!  im 18 now and still have a pretty big scar in my pointer finger. i have pretty much adapted to my new finger length lol. luckily i only lost a little bit (just enough to see the bone!) i still have fingernails. it still took 3 months and 3 surgeries to fix! i can still play guitar perfectly fine after some re-toughening of the fingers. 

i learned at a young age that stuff can and will happen to you.


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## Tin Falcon (Nov 23, 2013)

> It's a bugger being only able to count to nine and a half ... lol



Probably makes it hard to multiply by nines with the fingers also. 




> i learned at a young age that stuff can and will happen to you



I did my best to teach my son what Safe start calls line of fire. and case and effect If you do this   and your hand or the tools slps what is the likely result . If the likely result is an injury change the plan. 

I consider myself pretty safe by the grace of god. IIRC  only 1 visit to the ER due to slightly stupid behavior on my part. Fell of a bicycle at age 36 Broke my wrist. 
so learn to minimize stupid risky behavior on your part ad avoid others stupid behavior . I know not always an easy task. 
Tin


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## trumpy81 (Nov 24, 2013)

Tin Falcon said:


> Probably makes it hard to multiply by nines with the fingers also.



It certainly does .... lol



Tin Falcon said:


> I did my best to teach my son what Safe start calls line of fire. and case and effect If you do this   and your hand or the tools slps what is the likely result . If the likely result is an injury change the plan.



That's a pretty good path to follow, but often, we do not allow ourselves time to examine all the possibilities, especially when you have an unruly boss breathing down the back of your neck, telling you to get the job done, or you simply want to get home to the missus for a little desert  ... lol  



Tin Falcon said:


> I consider myself pretty safe by the grace of god. IIRC  only 1 visit to the ER due to slightly stupid behavior on my part. Fell of a bicycle at age 36 Broke my wrist.
> so learn to minimize stupid risky behavior on your part ad avoid others stupid behavior . I know not always an easy task.
> Tin



If we followed that advice to it's ultimate conclusion though, we would not get out of bed, ever, and what on earth has a God got to do with it?

It seems to me that you're an intelligent being who is capable of reasoning. No evidence of any involvement of a God there


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## Nick Hulme (Jun 16, 2016)

MuellerNick said:


> No rings, no gloves, no wrist watches, no long hairs, no chains around your neck, no loose sleeves.
> 
> 
> Nick



+1 

 - Nick


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