Thread: Poor Utube examples for tool use

All too frequently we see online videos with a user chewing away at something with an unguarded angle grinder.
I believe that some users just don't know, and blindly follow bad examples while the others may just like the attention - the medical attention.

Hey! look even harder and a lot of them are holding the item being ground in the jaws of a bench vice.The manufacturers think is a good idea if the vices were securely mounted but, so often, they are not, either loosely bolted or haphazardly held down with a G clamp. The bench vice can otfen be seen moving separately to the bench.

The bench that the vice is attached to is often quite flimsy as well, allowing some unwanted movement while the grinding or mechanical action is taking place.

Watch a lot of the U tube demonstrators/how to makers or whatever you want to call them and they don't have a clue. I question why a lot of viewers are blindly following what the good ole boy did out of dual ignorance on the part of both parties?

It is not only the unguarded A/G thing that upsets me but other mechanical actions where something is held in the vice and the vice is flip flopping all over the place.

Drilling a hole, hacksawing off a piece of metal unscrewing something tight in a component .None of these actions works too well if the bench vice is moving backwards and fowards during the off and on application of force.

Crikey! it only took a few barked knuckes to learn that using a hacksaw as a young apprentice.

And then! there's the guys that hold stock to be drilled in the bench drill in their unprotected fingers-Don't get me started!!

I am just flummoxed as to why such a large number do it.

Steps off his soapbox
and shuffles off in to the crowd
Grahame

Grahame, I hear you. Another annoyance with UTube vids is the waste of time watching the clown cutting something or machining something. Those actions should be edited out to keep you interested to see what he is actually demonstrating. Yes I sometimes cringe when you watch the clown doing something that is not safe.

Maybe it is not just U tube. I see a lot of second hand cordless angle grinders for sale with no guard. For me no guard equals unsafe and I do not proceed further.

Originally Posted by chambezio

Grahame, I hear you. Another annoyance with UTube vids is the waste of time watching the clown cutting something or machining something. Those actions should be edited out to keep you interested to see what he is actually demonstrating. Yes I sometimes cringe when you watch the clown doing something that is not safe.

I agree about the poor safety propagation, but I reckon MOST of what is shown on instructional video's is a complete waste of time. Unless there is a clear need to see how something moves or interacts with something else I'd MUCH rather see half a dozen clear photos of the items that I can peruse and study in my own time. Leaving aside the inane and duplicitous chatter that poses for commentary on most of these videos.

Sorry Bob, damn computer, what you want to come up doesn't and what you want to doesn't.
After a couple of minutes of watching swarf coming off a cutting tool, I either move the thing along or cancel it, usually the latter.
Some of the other ones I cringe at is someone using a table saw with no guard over the blade doing a through cut!!!! Comments usually something like "so you can see what the blade is doing" or "Removed for clarity" !!!!!!! If it has to be removed for clarity, put the camera on the other side????
Kryn

Originally Posted by BobL

I agree about the poor safety propagation, but I reckon MOST of what is shown on instructional video's is a complete waste of time. Unless there is a clear need to see how something moves or interacts with something else I'd MUCH rather see half a dozen clear photos of the items that I can peruse and study in my own time. Leaving aside the inane and duplicitous chatter that poses for commentary on most of these videos.

I think most youtubers just like the sound of their own voices, They go on and on and on about nothing, whether it be guitar instruction, computer how tos, workshop quick fixes and so on.

But, it's easy to criticise, particularly if you don't know what intricacies are behind the video

Dunno whose YouTube channels you blokes are watching, but the guys whose channels I subscribe to are exceptionally good at what they do.

This is a good instructional video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K9iR6sLwDKY

Maybe it is inherent, or maybe it is just the way I have been trained.

My opinion is, if you post online videos you do have a big
responsibility to whoever may be viewing, not to show any technique or behaviour that could lead to an injury,to them, from using that technique or behaviour.

Basically a duty of care. By all means be an idiot in the privacy of your own workshop, but don't show the world.

However, to broadcast their unsafe attitude and risk another who is equally as stupid, being hurt is just plain wrong in my view.

Originally Posted by sacc51

This is a good instructional video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K9iR6sLwDKY

Scary isn't it.

Scary? No, just funny. She has a number of similar videos on youtube, all along the same vein. Is she stupid or are we stupid for thinking she's stupid?

Everyone took her seriously when she first posted, so I guess you'd have to ask 'is she stupid, or are we stupid for thinking she's stupid?'

She is a one hit wonder though, the rest are pretty lame...

Case in point, a number of us here follow the adventures of Project Binky and the guys there obviously know their stuff - but time and time again they show footage of sheet metal being drilled with a step drill in a drill press and the work is held by hand.

You need to pick your Youtubers - there's heaps who routinely break the golden rule of film, TV and video: show, don't tell. They happily blather on at the camera for minutes on end. They also tend to be American. Many also have a wildly over-inflated opinion of their skills, so you weed them out and stick to the truly skilled operators who make tightly-cut videos that don't waste your time. For welding, Welding Tips and Tricks, Weld.com and 6061 are good. For metalwork, This Old Tony and Abom come to mind, although Abom can yak on way too much.

Then there's ones who irritate me a little, but I can't help but respect what their doing - SV Seeker is a good example. I hate that he's ripped all the guards off his grinders, yet routinely invites volunteers to come and work on his boat - he makes them sign a waiver, and says that people's safety is up to them and is happy to respect their wishes regarding safety, yet if a lot of the work is cutting, welding and grinding, and none of the dozen or so grinders on hand have guards, he's not really giving them a choice in the matter.

I used to think guardless grinders was just a Yank thing, but I look after a vineyard where the viticulturist had a few of his retired mates come and help out with some trellising work - one of them (I never found out who...) just ripped the guard off the battery grinder - and by ripped, I mean it was bent out of shape and not going back on anytime soon. I was amazed that someone would do this to a business's tool that is used by a number of other people, yet they obviously felt it was OK to do.

One channel that gets me is "make it extreme" which tends to get lots of shares on social media.
Quite common to be cutting in to gas bottles and welding pressure vessels in a manner which is praised for being extreme.
The way I see it is when you are doing something for yourself with no impact to others you can do it how you like. When you start teaching others that this is acceptable then it really needs to be acceptable and safe for others to try at home without the skills you might have and there is no chance of danger.
when it comes to watching others for tips I can use myself then I like to think I have decent judgement as to whether or not it's ok.

The step drill is one I have drilled a lot of holes with. In my experience, the step drills have never jammed once .

However, everything I have ever drilled with them has been held with drill press vice or G Clamp.

It is just a habit I have.

Grahame