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Pro tip: I watched a guy at the old Hamilton plant pour a 50lb crucible with his gloves tucked into his sleeves, not over the cuffs.
That one habit, which he said he learned after a bad splash 10 years back, is the single best piece of safety advice I ever picked up on a shop floor, so what's the one small thing you do that you swear by?
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jamieb805mo ago
Actually, that glove trick is good, but it's not the only way. Tucking them in can trap hot stuff against your skin if something gets past the cuff. What I learned from an old welder was to pull the glove over the sleeve, then tape the seam shut with a single wrap of duct tape. It seals the gap without creating a pocket. That extra step saved my forearms more than once when slag rolled down my arm.
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charlesn425mo ago
Taping it shut is the real pro move. That tuck method always felt like making a little hot pocket on your arm. One piece of slag gets in there and you're dancing. The tape makes a clean seal so nothing can creep in. Old welders know all the tricks that actually work. I'm sticking with the tape method from now on.
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leehall4mo ago
Used the tape method for years until one day I was working overhead and a big glob of slag melted right through the tape. That stuff gets hot enough to burn through thin tape in a second. Learned to layer two strips, one going up and one going down, then it held up fine. @charlesn42 is right that the tuck method turns your arm into a trap, but tape can fail too if you don't layer it right.
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felix4145mo ago
See, I've tried the tape method and it just slows me down too much. Every time you need to swap gloves or take a break, you're peeling tape and getting sticky residue everywhere. I've had way better luck just making sure my sleeves are heavy duty and tucking them tight. If you get the fit right, there's no pocket for slag to sit in. It just rolls off.
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