How to "Correctly" Grind, Cut & Prepare Tungsten Welding Electrodes (11 pages)
safety suggestions
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DIAMOND GROUND PRODUCTS
“The Tungsten Electrode Experts”
2550 Azurite Circle Newbury Park, CA 91320 PH: 805.498.3837 FX: 805.498.9347 Web:
www.DiamondGround.com
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7. SAFETY SUGGESTIONS
Tungsten welding electrodes should never be manually ground on an abrasive belt or wheel (particularly
silicone carbide). The risk of injury when hand (manually) grinding a very hard brittle material like tungsten
is quite high.
It is important to always follow standard safety guidelines when operating high speed
grinding equipment.
•
Wear approved safety glasses
•
No loose clothing which may get caught in moving parts
•
Wear protective hair covering to contain long hair
•
Wear safety shoes with non-slip sole
•
A vacuum system is recommended to remove tungsten, especially thorium dust
•
Never operate power tools when tired, intoxicated or when taking medication that causes
drowsiness
The most common injuries to the manual tungsten electrode grinder are eye and finger related. Holding
and grinding the tungsten electrode by hand has resulted in burned fingers, laceration to fingers and
splintered tungsten electrodes in hand or fingers.
Eye injury generally occurs from manually grinding tungsten electrodes without a safety shield or safety
glasses. Small slivers of tungsten electrode may become stuck in the operator’s eye.