Stupid
Ill say it right up front, nothing happened. It couldve, though. I needed to cut a couple quick tenons, and decided to use the router table rather than change out…
Ill say it right up front, nothing happened. It couldve, though.
I needed to cut a couple quick tenons, and decided to use the router table rather than change out the blade on my table saw with a dado head.
Popped the router and plate out of the table, unlatched the motor, spun off the base/plate assembly, removed the bit that was still in there from the last time I used it, replaced it with a straight cutter and tightened the collet, spun the base/plate assembly back on and dropped it back into the table. Then it was just a few seconds more to adjust the bit height, lock down the motor and, finally, set the fence.
The last thing I did was reach to the side of the table where I keep the coiled cord on a hook, so I could plug it in. The cord wasnt there. Thats because it was already plugged in.
I serious chill went through me. I hadnt realized that it was still plugged in from the last time I had used the table just the day before, but had never checked to be sure. And the whole time Im setting it up I never noticed the cord was plugged in. Stupid; very, very stupid.
But thank goodness, nothing happened.
But the thing of it is, is that something could have happened. I could have keyed the on/off switch for whatever reason or keyed the switch accidentally when remounting the router back into the table, or when I was rotating the motor to adjust the bit height, or any number of things. As I thought of what that might have been like if it had happened when I was swapping out those bits, the chill went through me again.
Yep, it was stupid. And I was stupid. And fortunately, nothing happened.
But Ive found that in the woodworking environment, stupid can be a darned good teacher when something bad happens. And if the lesson is learned, stupid is just as good a teacher even when nothing happens.
Hopefully, Im now a bit less stupid as a result.
Till next time,
A.J.

A.J. Hamler is the former editor of Woodshop News and Woodcraft Magazine. He's currently a freelance woodworking writer/editor, which is another way of stating self-employed. When he's not writing or in the shop, he enjoys science fiction, gourmet cooking and Civil War reenacting, but not at the same time.