Ever been bitten?

How many times have you been bitten by a prop? I went flying today and with my head up my a..![&:] I got my left index finger in the way of my spinning prop. Next thing I knew blood was gushing and I still was carring the plane from the table to the field. I set it down and shut off the engine, wrapped my finger in a bunch of paper towels and drove home to fix my mistake. After an hour for it to quit soaking up the gauze in blood I was ablt to wrap it in tape. I went back to the field and retrieved my gear. Sure would have been nice if I hadn't been the only one there. But I go early in the afternoon and it is always empty then. Most of the time I like it because I can fly more but not today. Well it wasn't the first and probably won't be the last. Let me hear your stories and pictures if you have any. Mine just looks like a finger wrapped in tape and gauze so no big deal.

Barry

And just suppose the cut had been a little bit worse? And the drop in blood pressure had caused you to pass out? Having friends around can be a very good thing. Just saying. I'm glad it wasn't worse; and that it heals quickly and without lasting effect. Thanks; Ernie P.

Glad you where OK Barry...could have been worse.

My first trainer Alpha 40 (3 blade prop) bit me big time. I had just fired it up and the glow driver was still attached. Someone had let their youngster maybe 5 years old out into the pits. He had been walking behind all the planes and as I was reaching over the prop to remove the driver he walked into my planes rudder. It wasnt pretty. Two of the blades actually broke off the hub when they hit my thumbs bone. I was just in shock at first at what had happend. The engine kept running with only 1 blade of the three attached. After a second or two I jumped up and wrapped my hand with my cleaning towel wich was filthy. A fellow modeler killed my engine and I HA'd to the ER. After countless stiches through my thumb nail to hold the meat together, I went back to the field and collected by equipment. Of course the child and his parents had been long gone.
I now watch everyone around me before even getting close to my running engines.
Stangevil29

We were at a fun-fly last weekend...saw an old-timer loose two fingers at the middle joint. Amazing the damage a .40 glow engine turning an APC can do to flesh and bone. All it takes is a moments inattention. Please be careful fellas...makes me wonder sometimes if turbine jets wouldn't be safer and cheaper in the long run!!!

5 years ago I was getting frusterated with a Thunder tiger .42 spinning a 10X6 Master aircrew prop and without even thinking pulled my hand through the path of the idling prop. That was enough to slice through my index finger 5 times in a perfectly spaced fashion. My buddy drove me to the ER and nothing some stitches and some of that ER superglue couldnt fix up. I got lucky though, it went deep but not deep enough for nerve damage, I made a 100% recovery besides the battle scars. Needless to say I am very careful around spinning props now. Definately something to never let your guard down around. Funny though it didnt feel like a cutting feeling. It felt like someone hit my finger moderately with a hammer 5 times in a super fast succession.

I was helping a newbie set up an e-powered Somethin' Extra. I made an assumption and you know what it did. He'd left the power on while he answered the phone. When I reversed the throttle channel (with the TX on!) I had to choose between my hand and my face. 42 stitches along my thumb and forefinger. If the prop had been 90 degrees from what it was I would probably have lost the use of my thumb. As it was I could see bone and tendons and the newbie barfed all over his shop floor (-:
Walt

Had one last fortnight, Ran up a 61 on a 3 blade, didnt have a spinner and have no problem hand starting this girl on the prop nut but she started backwards and bit me..No to sure how it got me..Some paper towel and insulation tape didnt stop the bleeding but flew any way. After landing as the TX was getting sticky you could see the blood over the wing, engine and ground..Had the head cam on as well so it on the "Tube" as most of my flights are. I ended up landing her on to salt water and flipping over, long story, too many destractions and pain..

I'm about to start my first gasser. A Zenoah G-62 in my Ziroli P-40 without a spring starter. I think I'll buy a heavy duty starter and not take the risk of a 22 inch blade taking off all my fingers. It's good to learn on smaller engines but as some of you said it's the little ones that can really do the damage. My cut came from a Saito 1.50 with a 16" APC prop. Boy those babies are sharp and hard to break when you wish they would.

Thanks for the replies. Lets hear somemore,

Barry

After ten years the feeling in my left pinkie finger is almost back. It wasn't pretty when I picked it up and held it in my hand on the way to the hospital.
Mitch

This was a 15cc engine just think what 100cc will do.

what the h3ll ???????????? [:-][:-][:-][:-]

Just this past Saturday a guy at our field stuck his hand in the prop of a backwards running 90 4-cycle, cut his little finger clean off, mangled his right hand and put a 3-4 inch gash in his forearm. It was an APC prop running backwards so he got the razor edge. He left the field in an ambulance (yes we found the finger). The City of North Las Vegas Parks Department came out and had to do a hazmat cleanup due to all the blood. Man, those visuals will stay with you awhile. Fortunately I have no photos.

This is what a CFM-56 turbofan engine does to you if you are not carefull

Dont click on the link if you are faint hearted.

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=1ae_1273782186

Guys, be sure to tell all the newbies and veterans in the hobby to sand the edges of the props. Remove all the sharp edges and flash from the wood, nylon, and glass props. This could be the difference between a mangled finger/fingers, or have them cut clean off !!! As shown above, engine size does not matter. The electrics are just as bad if not worse. They have the same power and can start unexpectedly! We have or will be cut by props at one time or another. Like the box says, "THIS IS NOT A TOY". Ya'll be careful out there! Paul

Man that had to HURT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I feel the pain while looking at that picture.

Do you have use of the fingers?

Barry

It was not me,but a fellow club member.
Over the 35 years i have been running model engines its inevitable you will be had at some time.
I have been nipped a few times and have scars to prove it but the power of modern engines now is mind boggling i run up to 85cc and boy do i keep out of the way.

Iam still feeling the pain of that guys hand, maybe i should stick with gliders, falling and tumbling 275' doesnt seem that bad. Ian

I believe eletrics can be worse sometimes cuz the can keep running and they power thru. I had a shockflier that had lots of battle damage and I was about to hand launch it overhand....what a no no, When I did I still had half of the fuse in my hand and it sliced thru my forearm a few times. I threw it and it hit me in the leg and I almost stomped it like a bee. I was lucky I had long pants on. I ended up with six stiches to tie it back together.

And I love the thump you get from gassers when you aren't fast enough to get your fingers out of the way... I wear glove but you get a nice bruise still.

Darren

My sympathy goes out to the owner of that hand.  <div>
</div><div>After 30 yrs using a very old table saw (one that didn't have a blade guard) I got careless and caught the tip of my rt index finger in the blade.  As another poster stated, there is no cutting feeling, it feels like you got hit with a hammer.  It shattered the bone in the tip of my finger but after surgery I got to keep everything and after a year the nerves have healed enough that I only have "bothersome" numbness and a twinge of pain if I hit it the wrong way.  </div><div>
</div><div>That guy's got 3X what my carelessness got me...if props can do that (I'm new to RC) no amount of flying fun will get me to start a prop by hand.  Just WOW!</div>

we have all been careless,   my  worst was from the smallest engine, a cox 049, damned thing opened me up like a tin opener,     worst  2 prop jobs i saw where a 60 powered pusher launch,   he didnt remove his hand and arm fast enought, model was a difficult to hold delta,    just ripped open his forearm, and

2nd was a busy body,  watching a 40 being run up,  for some insane busy body reason, he looked at the noseleg, saw it was round the wrong way,   and reached through the prop to turn it round!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!    engine was at full bore,     he didnt do that again!!

3rd was terrible,    friend of mine was videoing his large camera carrying heli, being set up in the hover,     this was a mega chopper with carbon blades,   radio link failed,  chopper flew into his chest, chopped the camera up,  that at least took some of the inertia,  but, he raised his hands to shield hiself,     you can guess the rest,    hands, chest, face, all slashed with a set of smashed carbon blades, doing high rpm,    it took a while for him to mend,      

it doesnt matter what model it is,     treated unwisely, its a potential killer,    just be carefull,

The picture of that hand is still in my mind everytime I start or carry a plane. I just don't see how he could sit still for that picture to be taken. He must of been full of Morphine is all I can think. Nothing else would deaden that much pain. I hope you have the use of your hand again sir.

I've got scars from a 3.7ci Twin where it caught my hand during the starting flip. I knew exactly how many flips it took to get the initial "prime pop" with the ignition on, and how many flips to get it running after the prime pop and turning the choke off.. The day I got BIT, it fired one flip before hand and caught me off guard. Since i wasn't expecting it, i didn't get my hand out of the way (and this is also the one weekend i forgot my glove and didn't have it). My right middle finger has a scare from the first knuckle all the way to the finger nail. The point finger you can see the difference in the skin where the skinned portion regrew back. I got luckly and only lost a few finger nails (all of them but the thumb and pink) and it all healed w/o any stitch's or a visit to the doctor, but it still hurt like a SOB!

Hi all, there has been another incident at our club.
The club member was doing everything by the book, ie. restrained aircraft with 2 poles electric starter, an experienced modeler.
The 120 size aircraft engine started but in reverse in tick-over. Ee went behind the aircraft to stop the engine by pinching the fuel line and guess what the engine sped up with the fuel line pinched and as there were no restraints backwards it moved backwards at greatly increased revs. and cut him 5-6 times up to and into his wrist and arm cutting an artery and making a real mess of his hand and arm.
He spent the night in the hospital and had surgery on his hand and arm.
Now i guess we have all stopped an engine by pinching the fuel line. BUT.

Last Oct I pulled my hand through the prop arch. The slight cut through two nails are still healing. Fortunately several club members where there and I was patched up quickly and easily. You really should NOT FLY ALONE. IF something like the hand in the picture happens when you are alone, .... well not me. I thought I was very cautious around models and still cut myself.