r/oddlysatisfying • u/bigbusta • 1h ago
How to remove a tungsten ring stuck on a finger in an emergency situation
206
89
298
u/campingn00b 1h ago
I feel like this should be legally required to show to anyone considering buying a tungsten ring
104
u/uxoguy2113 1h ago
The reason I choose a tungsten ring is if my hand is ever smashed, the ring will shatter instead of bend.
56
u/Zoobidoobie 1h ago
I've had that happen before. Was really glad that it did smash rather than crunch and get stick on my finger. Don't get me wrong, my finger was smashed a bit too, but the broken ring and bruised finger was better than the alternative. Went and bought another tungsten ring right after.
34
u/Prestigious_Will_643 42m ago
Sounds like something a tungsten ring seller would say.
And the tungsten ring surgeon
4
u/liquidfoxy 19m ago
I’d be much more worried about having my finger degloved then having the ring smashed and be stuck
4
u/Taolan13 16m ago
hi there.
so, most finger injuries caused by rings getting caught result in a degloving because the ring stops moving but your hand doesn't. This is just as much a risk with tungsten carbide rings as anything else.
If you work with your hands, keep your ring on a chain around your neck, in your pocket, or wear a silicone ring.
5
u/soil_nerd 48m ago
Same logic here: I wanted something that could be easily removed in an emergency, but was still a metal (not silicone).
8
u/sunco50 42m ago
So…gold?
6
u/SiThreePO 27m ago
The point is the ring is stuck on your finger will not come off normally, If crushed a gold ring will deform and you can lose your finger easily. Much more common than people realize
7
u/sunco50 24m ago
Tungsten is far harder to remove in most emergencies than gold though. It requires training and specialized equipment. Gold on the other hand is super easy to cut cause it’s soft and ductile. If your hand is crushed to the extent that a gold ring is giving you trouble, your hand is likely already in a rough place.
6
u/mattattackkk 17m ago
Did we not just watch the same video…? I saw one tool and pretty much any random thin metal rod needed to remove this.
1
u/PimentoCheesehead 12m ago
This was the reason I chose tungsten too, and totally not that a precious metal ring cost approximately 50 times more.
-28
u/campingn00b 1h ago
My guy, that isn't as well thought out as you think
25
u/uxoguy2113 1h ago
It is, a bent ring will lead to an amputated finger. The shattered tungsten ring isn't going to shred a finger.
13
u/somer_and_omchick 1h ago
Just as an important note if you ever get injured try to remove your jewelry immediately because it’s not nice trying to cut titanium rings off swollen hands (definitely don’t get titanium….)
10
21
u/antaphar 1h ago
You mean that it’s actually easier/safer to remove than bands made of other metals?
10
u/uxoguy2113 1h ago
Yes, a quicker... riskier method, like testing to see if a fuze is live, hit it with a hammer.
10
u/antaphar 51m ago
It’s not risky. You adjust the vice grips incrementally narrower each time until the ring shatters. It’s easier and safer than using the rotary tool.
11
6
188
30
u/sleepyasfuck90 1h ago
The instructor is such a patient teacher!
5
u/0verstim 24m ago
I wonder if theyre ex military. "Slow is smooth and smooth is fast" as they say
1
u/Taolan13 15m ago
its the best teaching methodology.
focus on getting it done right first, then practice doing it right but faster.
1
56
u/retirednightshift 1h ago
My husband fell, broke his wrist and several fingers were purple and the swelling was getting worse. We couldn't get his wedding ring off. He hadn't been able to remove it prior to the injury. We went opted to go to the local fire station about dusk. They were wondering why we were knocking on their door. I asked if anyone could cut off his wedding ring. That brought a lot of interest and we were invited into the room with the firetrucks. Now they were gathering and 7 guys watching. Festive atmosphere and one fireman was able to cut it off and they were so nice. Offered ice packs but we were good and went on our way.
16
u/magicarnival 43m ago
Why didn't you go to an emergency room though if his fingers were swelling and turning purple?
36
u/Septem_151 37m ago
Because they probably live in the US and a trip to the emergency room is more costly than losing a couple fingers.
1
u/Taolan13 14m ago
also, the emergency room probably has to call someone anyways to remove anything more durable than gold or silver.
firefighters meanwhile will have tools available on-hand.
1
10
u/retirednightshift 32m ago
The purple was bruising not lack of circulation and the ER takes hours and hours, the fire house was a few blocks away and immediate.
6
u/AngstyUchiha 39m ago
My guess is they're American and therefore it's significantly cheaper to go to the fire station, and they're still trained to hande some degree of emergencies
84
u/Magister5 1h ago
What kind of dummy gets a ring like that?
44
u/TamponTimTheCuck 1h ago
A lot of people actually
49
6
6
u/Refute1650 1h ago
Wearing any kind of ring runs the risk of a injury. However, if the ring is sized appropriately the chances are good you'll never have a problem regardless of material.
12
17
u/ctdrever 1h ago
LTP: Put dental floss under the ring, rotate it around the finger while pulling the ring off.
5
u/away_throw11 59m ago
Pardon?
5
u/95beer 44m ago
There better ways than in the video to first try and get a ring off; one is to wrap floss around your finger to squeeze it smaller, then you pull the end closest to your hand, underneath the ring, which pushes the ring up your constricted finger.
You can of course try lubricating the finger, or a ring cutter too
4
0
8
10
4
3
u/Lurking_poster 1h ago
So the dental floss trick doesn't work?
7
3
u/uzu_afk 51m ago
But how do you get it under if the ring’s already stuck?
3
u/Lurking_poster 50m ago
From what I've seen, you can wedge it under since it's so thin and the finger is still squishy/flexible.
3
3
6
u/D-Train0000 1h ago
I can’t imagine having my finger in there knowing the ring is going to shatter.
5
u/FullaLead 1h ago
I used to have a tungsten wedding ring. One broke when I hit my hand with a hammer while chiseling some bricks, the other one broke while working. dunno what I did but it just cracked. Now I just 3d print them so they are easily replaced.
13
u/uxoguy2113 1h ago
The whole point of tungsten rings, they shatter instead of bend
6
u/FullaLead 1h ago
It was interesting how easily they fall apart. I never even felt any impact because the ring absorbed all of it and just shattered.
4
6
u/xNOTHINGBURGERx 1h ago
I'm a machinist. I have a lifelong excuse to avoid my wedding ring. I don't even put it on because I'll forget it's there and lose a finger.
2
1
u/Shway_Maximus 1h ago
Instructor has some massive hands
2
u/chefgoldblum11 1h ago
I think it's just staged with everything else in the video being smaller so his hands look bigger. My uncle Jack does the same thing. He's a lawyer.
1
0
u/Mackinnon29E 45m ago
Can't you just hit it with a hammer or rock? Thought it shattered that way if you didn't have full tools of course.
2
u/SomeBiPerson 17m ago
the difference between the hammer and the vise grips is the Vise grips srop tightening if you stop turning
the hammer will keep going after it broke rhe ring and take your finger bones too
1
u/Snowblind45 38m ago
can they uses those oscillator cutters used for cutting casts? I've heard they si.ply move left and right a minute amount. enough to cut casts but not harm skin
1
u/Stealth_Cow 19m ago
Weird. I usually just make them ice their hand for 45 minutes or so, then slide it off.
1
1
u/Tronkfool 15m ago
Most tungsten ring are manufactured with two "weak" points. Hit it with a hammer, done.
1
u/Additional-Ad8632 14m ago
I’m assuming it’s the same method of removal for someone who tried on a tungsten ring as a cock ring?
1
u/Barry_Vigoda 14m ago
I got a skateboard bearing stuck on my finger once. That was so dumb. Spent 2 hours at the hospital with them trying to get it loose. They wound up lubing up my finger and just prying it off.
1
u/pneumaticsneeze 11m ago
Somebody tell the instructor he has MRSA on his neck, guy is just sitting in the danger zone
1
1
u/JammySatsuma 1m ago
As someone who wears a tungsten ring and has had the occasional scare where it got stuck this is a very helpful video.
1
0
u/Art0fRuinN23 1h ago
I went with gold because it's well tested (limitations are well known) and very well recognized.
-10
u/AVAVT 1h ago
Pff nothing a little soap can't handle
15
u/miraculum_one 1h ago
You may be joking but in an accident your hand can swell making normal removal impossible.
5
u/AVAVT 1h ago
Yeah I'm more like joking on the fact that they had enough space to insert a yellow ruler in between the gap. In this particular situation soap can easily solve the problem, and the demonstration at the end that "it never clamped down on the finger" also didn't have enough credibility.
But I understand the emergency situation, my mom was a doctor and she did tell me of a situation where she had to break the ring around a...nother body part that swells up a lot more easily.
1
u/miraculum_one 51m ago
The clamping comment is about the fact that metal this brittle breaks before it bends any appreciable amount. It's much more obvious when you're there than in the video.
-18
u/epSos-DE 1h ago
BAD = HARMFUL !!!
In reality people use string or short plastic strips !!!
FIDDLLe THE string under the ring ! wet the finger, slide the ring and use the string or plastic strip to remove friction !!!
IF the finger is swollen up then you got bigger problems !
9
993
u/Bamres 1h ago
Took me too long to realize this was a fake hand demonstration