TIL a guy on my crew was using a regular grinder wheel for his bevel prep and it made me want to scream.

We were working on a new boiler section for a plant in Erie, and I watched him try to prep a half-inch plate with a standard cut-off wheel. The bevel was all over the place, full of gouges and inconsistent angles. I had to stop him and ask if he was trying to create a stress point for a future crack. A proper bevel wheel costs maybe five bucks more and gives you a clean, even surface every single time. It's not about the tool cost, it's about the integrity of the weld and the safety of the whole vessel. How many shortcuts like that are people taking because they think it saves ten minutes? Has anyone else had to step in and correct something this basic on a job site?

3 comments

3 Comments

olivers281mo ago

Ever tried showing them how much faster the right wheel actually is?

leo_carr131d ago

Ugh, that's everywhere though" is exactly right, @taraw16. I once saw a guy use a chipped hammer for weeks because he was too stubborn to walk 20 feet to the tool crib for a new one. He told me the chipped face let him get a better grip, and I had to show him the safety report from that same chipped hammer chipping a chunk into his coworker's arm.

taraw161mo ago

Ugh, that's everywhere though, right? It's like people will skip the right tool for any little task just to save two minutes. Makes you wonder what else is getting half-done.