wdwerker Posted July 4, 2014 Report Share Posted July 4, 2014 Ok so this topic is an occupational hazard. I noticed yet another splinter tonight at a neighbors home. She is a veterinarian and close friend for over 20 years. She took the sharp tip of a hypodermic needle and picked out the splinter without causing even a minor flinch ! I assisted by lighting the finger with my super bright LED flashlight. There is a sense of awe watching someone do something you have painfully done repeatedly without even once causing the slightest bit of pain. It is nice to witness such skill in action. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stahlee Posted July 4, 2014 Report Share Posted July 4, 2014 I could use that every day I'm in the shop. I inevitably get a good one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wdwerker Posted July 4, 2014 Author Report Share Posted July 4, 2014 I can deal with a huge splinter, it's those tiny aggravating ones that really get to me.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woodbutcher74 Posted July 4, 2014 Report Share Posted July 4, 2014 I've got one of those fine tipped tweezers with the built in magnifying lens built into it. Works great for those annoying slivers that I can't see with my old bifocal eyes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keggers Posted July 4, 2014 Report Share Posted July 4, 2014 The walnut splinters bother me the most. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CessnaPilotBarry Posted July 4, 2014 Report Share Posted July 4, 2014 Nice! I pull 'em out with a new, sterilized X-Acto #11, possibly after slathering the area in Quret drawing salve for a while. The light is important, too... I could use your friend when the splinter is in certain parts of my right hand, though... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhighlander Posted July 5, 2014 Report Share Posted July 5, 2014 I am Chuck Norris, wood gets splinters from ME! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnDi Posted July 5, 2014 Report Share Posted July 5, 2014 I've dug out plenty between work and the shop with box cutters, exacto knives etc. When I have the patience, the best way is to put a dab of Vaseline on it and cover with a bandaid. Works itself right out. Especially good on the one's that break off under the skin. Best time to do it (if I can wait) is when you go to bed. Wake up, and the splinter is on th bandaid. Like magic. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tpt life Posted July 5, 2014 Report Share Posted July 5, 2014 I have used triple anti-biotic like you describe using Vaseline. I saw a meme the other day that suggested a baking soda paste in the same manner. Not sure any of this is one hundred percent effective but are just things to try with what might be on hand. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jHop Posted July 6, 2014 Report Share Posted July 6, 2014 I once had a job on the docks. I was showing the security guard (on a holiday night, so it was busy) how to tie off a boat, and got a splinter under my fingernail. Approximately 1/8" wide, and slightly over 1/2" in length, it was right between the fingernail and the skin. Didn't bleed, but I did finish tying off the boat before sitting down at a nearby bench and trying to pry it out myself with my pocket knife. I could only get half, so I got a workman's comp claim to get a ride to the hospital and have them pull the rest of it out. Four injections, two forceps, and I could still feel it. (Still never bled.) They let me go from the hospital, and said I could go anywhere. So I went back to work. (turned out to be the best thing I could have done; whatever could have gone wrong did that night. They needed an extra hand, what with the accident, the drunk who decided to swim across the river -federal waterway, federal offense - and the two mechanical failures.) But I'm going to have to keep that syringe idea in mind... Now that snake-bite kits are no longer in favor/legal, I might try to use one as a splinter extractor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trip Posted July 6, 2014 Report Share Posted July 6, 2014 For those splinters that are neither 'huge' (that resemble nothing so much as the horizontals of a split-rail fence) nor 'tiny' (you can't see, but know they're there) --- there's a excellent purpose-made product: http://www.medipoint.com/html/splinter_out.html. It's good for about 80% of the typical woodworking splinters, it's inexpensive, it works and it's sterile... For the small tough ones that are hard to see, but you know where they are, I pull a 29g x 1/2" 1cc BD syringe and have at it: http://www.bd.com/us/diabetes/page.aspx?cat=7002&id=7572. Sterile, single use, toss. When the going get's rough, I go with a #11: http://www.swann-morton.com/product/65.php, but that's like once a year... Again, sterile, single use, toss... One thing... When I'm pulling stock from the woodpile or setting-up for a full afternoon of milling rough stock, I wear thin upland shooting gloves: http://www.thegunglove.com/product.htm. The summer weight are excellent - protection without giving-up feel.... Once I started doing this, the number of splinters dropped dramatically. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wdwerker Posted July 6, 2014 Author Report Share Posted July 6, 2014 Just ordered a box of the Splinter out. Looks like just the thing to have around the shop, house and in the truck! Gonna just tuck a few into the first aid kits . Many thanks! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Tarbell Posted July 7, 2014 Report Share Posted July 7, 2014 I haven't tried a needle yet. I typically just reach for the fingernail clippers. They clip down through those top layers of skin and get a nice grip on the wood. Once you've got the grip you just slip it right out without any significant pain. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wdwerker Posted July 7, 2014 Author Report Share Posted July 7, 2014 I just remembered a trick for tiny hard to grip splinters. Put a dab of yellow glue over it and let it dry , then peeling the glue off should pull the splinter. Might not work if the end is below the skin. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coop Posted July 9, 2014 Report Share Posted July 9, 2014 I've dug out plenty between work and the shop with box cutters, exacto knives etc. When I have the patience, the best way is to put a dab of Vaseline on it and cover with a bandaid. Works itself right out. Especially good on the one's that break off under the skin. Best time to do it (if I can wait) is when you go to bed. Wake up, and the splinter is on th bandaid. Like magic. This definitely works. I remember my grandmother would put some kind of crap on mine and she called it draw salve. Also, if your wife and office can put up with it, put on a band aid right before a shower and leave in on and wet for a week or so The splinter will work it's way out Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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