After yesterday (that marathon typing thing in the morning, and then another long day in the shop, this time sanding the UNDER side of the cab-over bunk and front wall) my arms hurt - really badly, so I'm typing this with my toes and will be making it short. And I think my teeth are loose - all of them. (Ibuprofen being bery, bery good to me.)
While still here in Finishes & Finishing, and covering recent poisons handled routinely by the American do-it yourselfer (it's POISON I tell you, POISON!), I figured now might be a good time to re-iterate the importance of proper equipment, not that I have any, let alone use it, but you know me - I'm a cowboy!
Actually, it's really pretty simple - the main thing is the mask. They're cheap and have replaceable filter cartridges, and can regularly be cleaned by blowing out with air (compressed air for jobs like this is a MUST!). This is a 3M respirator from a home center and is designated NIOSH, which is either an industry term about being up to OSHA standards, or is a bad word uttered my the Orcs of Mordor - I forget which.
Next, the eye protection. By the time I got my first corrective lenses (mid-20's) it was pretty easy. No, glasses aren't the best for side protection, but if you're invincible like Superman or something and the HUUUUGE majority of your work is face-on, then they do (especially poly-carbonate) offer pretty good protection. BUT, once you get into bi-focals that never seem to work after you leave the Optometrist's office, and you lay them down more often than not, do yourself a favor and get used to something that works for you. These are just a cheap basic clear lens safety goggle. They're not going to be the best for large or high-velocity projectiles like 9MM or Boeing-757s, but they do fairly well on the kind of dust and small chips that tend to fly around where I'm working.
Next, ear protection. That depends on the job and decibel level. Every since I got that neat little old-school paint sprayer compressor running, I turned off the Sam's Club Big Max "oil-less" compressor in the corner and never looked back. Man I hate that thing! It's like Jim Carey's most annoying sound in the world times 7 times 70! And even with ear-cans I can't hang out in the shop when it re-charges. But for this sanding work I use disposable-foam ear-plugs left here by DS, just to keep down the higher decibels of the sander itself, and the tax-relief commercials on the radio.
And finally, gloves. Something stylish, in a complimentary color, but not too expensive.
Here's a guy I call Primer Grey Dave. I found him down at the modeling temp agency.
Tomorrow we'll head back to Exterior, Skin & Openings.
