>>2947173
Yes, I am relying on luck to some degree, just as I do every single day of my life with every task ever -- with or without a guard. That's life. If I was concerned with safety above all else I would literally not do any work.
>Never rely on being careful for being safe
This directive confuses me because to my mind, the two things are inseperable. Between two scenarios,
>A cautious, attentive, skilled worker elects to make all of his cuts without a guard
and
>A reckless, distracted, unskilled worker makes all of his cuts with a guard
Which of them is more likely to be injured? Is it safe if I throw caution to the wind because I happen to have a guard on my grinder?
>b-b-but the skilled worker can use a guard too and then he'll be EXTRA safe!
Maybe so; I still don't care. That extra degree of safety (which I really believe is minimal -- not zero! -- in the case of the skilled worker) is not worth the time and effort involved in its use.
When I buy a new grinder, I either leave the guard on because that's how it comes out of the box, or I put it on because "meh, it can't hurt".
It inevitably becomes a nuisance; the moment that happens, it goes in the trash and I move on with my life.
What do you think safety even is? If it's not a mindset or a stance or a behavior based on your own judgment, I don't know what to say to you. If being safe to you means that you just always use all the manufacturer's recommended safety features regardless of context, that strikes me as woefully naive. I really want to know; I'm not trying to misrepresent your position. I'm just genuinely confused about what you think it means to be safe.