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Question of the day, metal slivers.

Wear gloves LOL...

I find that if you can't flick/pick them out with a needle and tweezers you pretty much have to let them work themselves out. Anywhere from a day to a week.
 
You know when to use gloves for and not to for safety I’m sure, but when I get one that is beyond the skin surface (my hands like leather so it’s rare) I cut it out with a sharp blade, a simple incision and a flick will remove it most times. Or You come in with the blade horizontally forming a T and squeeze pull
 
When I was in the military reserves they taught us a technique for slivers I use to this day. You first sterilize a needle. Then sterilize the area around the sliver. Using the needle you push it under the skin FROM THE SIDE such that the needle is flat against the skin. The idea is to just get it under the sliver, but not so deep that it hits a nerve. You have to also press down on the needle laterally so it depresses the skin. Most slivers don't fully penetrate to the layer of the skin with nerves, so you can almost always get the needle at least partially under the sliver. Once there you pull up on the skin and sliver with the needle until it breaks the skin and you can see the exposed sliver. Then remove with tweezers. Clean and disinfect the area.
 
I have some tweezers like this. The integral magnifier is necessary for my eyes especially when the sliver is small. It can be helpful to apply pressure sometimes to both find the shrapnel it & ease it out. I give everything a spritz of alcohol as I'm digging around. Sometimes it helps to show up metal. Aluminum is a bugger because it stays shiny. Steel usually has a bit of color. Try not to break it off when you find it, that just makes more pieces.

Nitrile gloves can help. I find myself wearing them more & more these days just for general protection & perpetual cleaning, solvents etc. But real sharp slivers can penetrate them.
 

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How do you like those tweezers? Are they sharp enough to dig with? I have a monocle eye loupe and I’ve been using the tip of an olfa knife to dig with. It works but I’m hoping for something better.
 
I like them a lot but it took me a couple tries to find ones with good close fitting pincers. Like most import stuff you cant judge quality by the picture. They are quite sharp so you can dig but more importantly you can grip once you found the shrapnel. Mine is called CETTEX stainless steel, but I cant recall where I got in online. I also have one from before that I think I found in the fishing section of some such store. It cost more but wasn't quite as precise. You can lap the jaws a bit squeezing them over 1000G paper & they perform better.

I used to use iodine because it stains the entry hole & sometimes the sliver & of course helps with infection like alcohol.
 
Guess I'm dating myself. I've heard its not available like it used to be. One of the many things that were OK then but apparently not now.
 

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slivers are just part of the job, or the hobby. My day job as a machinist now requires us to wear latex gloves during the Corona virus pandemic. I haven't had a sliver in my hand since I started wearing gloves. Both my wife and I had metal slivers in our feet today. Do latex socks exist? I'm just kidding about the socks.
 
PeterT said:
Guess I'm dating myself. I've heard its not available like it used to be. One of the many things that were OK then but apparently not now.
Click to expand...

Can't even get Mercurochrome any more, which was a step up from the pain inflicted when mom applied the Iodine.
 
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Iodine was making us smarter so it’s been quietly removed, it’s an essential mineral so It’s a good idea to use iodized salt for health purposes as the only source I currently know of.
 
I was looking for iodine last year and nobody had any. It was rather odd.
Then again I’m hoarding my last bottle of rubbing alcohol because apparently that’s in high demand these days
 
-You can buy iodine crystals and dissolve them in distilled water. My pharmacist can order iodine crystals in... but apparently not the liquid. go figure!
 
Kens gems has jewelry tweezers with very sharp tips. They work great and are cheap like under $5. Magnifying safety googles and lamp and even the tiniest ones I can grab and pull out. Get a pair.
 
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