Submitted by Steve Winicker
LAST WEEKENDS SHOP ACTIVITY
Busy week with getting the grounds straightened out and safety training on Saturday. Most of the cable slings that were out in the weather were treated with oil by Bill Martz and stored in one of the reefers. The bearing shims were largely put in place on that car, and we will be doing the same for the other two cars soon. The Yale forklift lost its steering while loading scrap iron, much of which was cleaned out of that reefer. Dave looked at it and came up with a repair plan. Matt was able to jack the lift truck up and get it ready to remove broken parts. Dave also worked on getting the 1231’s issues resolved – successfully with an assist from the deep recesses of John Jaress mind. Someone had tripped the emergency fuel shut off and the emergency cut off for the air. Malachi washed the tender and helped remove some old pallets and blocking. Most of the grass got mowed by Myself before the monsoon season and by Matt Lee Sunday. Jimmie supervised several folks in oiling cables on the rail crane. Jim D added a coat of paint inside the tender coal bunker to complete that repair. In late breaking news – DJ brought the new cab curtain for the 765 and began assembling the pieces.
UPCOMING ACTIVITIES
If supplies arrive, we might fill the 765’s sand dome with sand. More clean up and maintenance issues around the property if the weather cooperates.
SAFETY SENSE
Frequently we have a need to use knives and other cutting tools in our daily activities. We cut bindings off boxes of paper. We cut seafood, meat or poultry. We open containers of all sorts. We cut ropes, cloth and other various materials. But we don’t always do this safely.
There are two golden rules in knife safety…
- Always cut away from yourself
- A sharp knife is safer than a dull knife
Watch someone use a knife sometime and notice how often they risk being injured by cutting toward their body. Sometimes when cutting a rope, we bend the rope into a loop and insert the knife into the loop facing upward. When the knife is drawn up through the rope, the force of the cutting action can bring it to the face or other body parts. This is not a good idea!
An unwise but common use of box knives is to reach across the box and draw the knife toward you. This too is dangerous and breaks golden rule number one of knife safety.
It takes less force to cut through an object with a sharp knife. This gives you greater control of the blade. When heavy force is applied, the blade often cuts deeper than intended and, sometimes, into your flesh. When someone tells you their knife is so dull it wouldn’t cut butter, don’t you wonder why they are still using it? Ensure your knife is sharp and keep it sharp.
SAFETY IS JOB 1
SAFETY FIRST ALWAYS
